08 Ultra with12,000 miles.
I have notice a lot of play in the drivetrain when letting off the throttle. I put the bike on the jack stand, in 1st gear and took a measuring tape and measured the rear tire tred by rotating the rear wheel by hand and found i have 1 3/4" play from stop to stop. Is this normal?

 

I haven't done a check like that, but it don't sound normal to me. You may have some abnormal wear in your IDS. At least the first place I would look is at the rear sprocket.

 

Definately not in the IDS. I can see the sprocket turn with the wheel. That was one of the first things i checked. I also checked the primary chain and it has a small amount of play, but very little.

 

Hold the wheel so it can't move and turn the sprocket to see if it has any play. You've probably already done this.

 

I have the same problem with My 08 UC. complained to the dealer, and after He checked the drivetrain operation, He said it was normal. I can really feel the play in first & second gear while traveling at slow speed and making minor speed adjustments. Hope someone can advise Us about this problem.

 

No movement here in mine. When I had anew set of tires mounted I had them check the belt adjustment. At 12k you will be ready soon for a rear tire anyway.

 

not sure if your model is like my new 2009 ultra-the new 09 has a rubber mounted rear pulley, i was warned that I will hear a clunking sound when decelerating then giving it throttle again. I remember my old jap dirt bikes doing this because of the rubber isolator between the rear sprocket and hub. My old 2003 classic didnt do this because it didnt have the rubber isolator. not sure if yours has the isolator on it.

 

1-3/4" play along the circumference of the tire. That's a lot of driveline slop. I haven't ever checked mine so can't say how normal that is. Certainly it decreases as the gears get higher. In 6th gear it should be the sum of the slop in the primary reduction, a set of splines on the input/output shaft, and the IDS. I figure the IDS should represent the least of the three.

The primary slop is multiplied by the cumulative gear ratios which follow it, not to mention picking up any gear/spline lash in the transmission, which when early, also gets multiplied.

Next time I've got the rear off the ground I'll try to remember to check what it is on my '07. It should be proportional to yours by two less cogs on the rear sprocket in the final reduction.

 

After stripping the inner teeth out of the forward belt drive sprocket for the second time, I realized I also have A LOT of drivetrain play on my 03 ElectraGlide Classic with 67k miles. Traced it down to rotational play between the input and output transmission shafts. There's at least 45-50 degrees of play between the shafts. Hate to think about pulling the tranny apart or replacing it, but looking like that may be the next step. Thoughts anyone?
George Cole
Cocoa Beach

 

How did you trace it down? With mine (02 FLHTC, 25k miles) on my lift for service this weekend I noticed being able to move the rear wheel about two inches front to back in first gear while the derby cover and primary chain inspection covers were off. No movement in the clutch assembly or primary chain until you reach the end of the play. I have one month of warranty left so will call the dealer Tuesday but want to know as much as possible before calling. Not sure what "normal" is in this case.