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Crank going bad

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Old Mar 20, 2011 | 09:50 PM
  #41  
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If a guy wanted to have a crank plugged, trued and welded before hand, how would the best way be to go about it? While Im at it, Id like to have forged rods with the bushings for the wrist pins and I would want to keep the stock 4-3/8" stroke by the way. What options are there? Would you go back with HD components or would you go S&S or SE or ? Id like to do a build but I want everything ready to go before I start tearing it down and the crank issue seems to be my biggest hurdle. The rest is just buying the components.
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 02:12 PM
  #42  
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It should state how to avoid engine from breaking.
Stay on the throttle and never back off!!!!
If a guy wanted to have a crank plugged, trued and welded before hand, how would the best way be to go about it?
You might be able to pick up a stock crank at an Indy that is out of true and has been replaced for little or nothing. You're gonna have it trued anyway. The one I go to for dyno work has two or three of them sitting on the floor. You can go with S&S, but you'll have to go to 4 1/2" stroke, makes a 106 ci. Revolution Performance can split a stock crank, put in the rods and new pin, true it, and weld it. You can buy a forged SE crank in
4 3/8" stroke, but you would probably want to have the true checked and have it welded. There are options.
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 02:37 PM
  #43  
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Originally Posted by Stonecold54
Stay on the throttle and never back off!!!!
You might be able to pick up a stock crank at an Indy that is out of true and has been replaced for little or nothing. You're gonna have it trued anyway. The one I go to for dyno work has two or three of them sitting on the floor. You can go with S&S, but you'll have to go to 4 1/2" stroke, makes a 106 ci. Revolution Performance can split a stock crank, put in the rods and new pin, true it, and weld it. You can buy a forged SE crank in
4 3/8" stroke, but you would probably want to have the true checked and have it welded. There are options.
Picking up the cheap one from an Indy or individual who has one layng around sounds like a good idea but can you buy 4-3/8" forged rods with the wrist pin bushings from HD?
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 04:27 PM
  #44  
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Originally Posted by 1931jamesw
Picking up the cheap one from an Indy or individual who has one layng around sounds like a good idea but can you buy 4-3/8" forged rods with the wrist pin bushings from HD?
I can't answer that, but I personally wouldn't put a high priority in spending the extra money on the rods. The slip fit non welded crank is where the multitude of reported problems come from. A trued and welded stock crank would make me sleep real well at night.

Unless I was building a real monster of a motor. Disregard what I said above, if that is the case.
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 04:46 PM
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Originally Posted by Faast Ed
I can't answer that, but I personally wouldn't put a high priority in spending the extra money on the rods. The slip fit non welded crank is where the multitude of reported problems come from. A trued and welded stock crank would make me sleep real well at night.

Unless I was building a real monster of a motor. Disregard what I said above, if that is the case.
You wouldnt want rods with the wrist pin bushings?
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 04:52 PM
  #46  
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Originally Posted by 1931jamesw
You wouldnt want rods with the wrist pin bushings?

"Wouldn't want" ain't exactly how I'd put it.

Wouldn't brake the bank to do it. I guess I am in a conservative mode lately due to finances. That sways some of my opinions. I don't see it as a high priority item, when all the failures I see are run-out related.
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 04:52 PM
  #47  
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This blaming the MoCo gets a little old. How many stock bikes have had crank failures? Not many. HD designes them for the bike being stock. So if they design a part to handle 70 HP and it fails on a bike making 100, how is that there fault? This is going to be a larger problem in the future, builders are figuring out how to get alot of power out of a top end build. Let this be a caution for those wanting "big" numbers from your budget top end build, the weak link will be the one that breaks. In this case it's the crank. Here's a better idea, if you don't want the money to build it right, and don't want to fix it later, then keep it stock and you won't have a problem. This problem is the same as plugging 30 appliances into 1 outlet and blaming SquareD because your breaker tripped.
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 04:58 PM
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This blaming the MoCo gets a little old. How many stock bikes have had crank failures? Not many.
The are more out there than "not many".

A friggin' misplaced downshift will throw you out. A downshift don't care how many HP you have.

Shifting a decent powered motor near the rev limit is a lot safer that a poorly placed downshift on a stock motor.

Shifting early on a built motor ain't no good for the crank. Ruined one that way myself. The gear ratio's are where they are supposed to be if you shift near the top.

keep it stock and you won't have a problem
I beg to differ. Plenty of stock bikes have runout issues, some of them right off the show room floor!

This blaming the MoCo gets a little old.
It is their bad. The friggin' things are press fit! (For cryin' out loud!)


Edit: I gotta add, I'm just debating with you and still have a high opinion of you.
 

Last edited by Faast Ed; Mar 21, 2011 at 05:04 PM.
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 05:03 PM
  #49  
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Originally Posted by Faast Ed
Crossing bumpy railroad tracks can do it! (I always pull in my clutch when approaching bumpy areas).

Shock to the drive train. Period.
I wish you would have posted this in my obsolete SERT thread... I have had a vibration ever since I hit a rough crossing 4 months ago
 
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Old Mar 21, 2011 | 05:07 PM
  #50  
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Originally Posted by BUIZILLA
I wish you would have posted this in my obsolete SERT thread... I have had a vibration ever since I hit a rough crossing 4 months ago
I knew a guy who's bike immediately began puking oil after crossing some hard tracks. Nothing you'd expect without having heard of others failures. But it does make sense.


But you might still have other issues, maybe a motor mount or something.
All you can do is measure your runout to see if that is your problem.
 
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