I am riding a 2012 Tri Glide that sounds like there may be something going on in the primary. It's loud! (or seems to be) I went on a trip to the Black Hills the first of August and after I got there, it seemed the primary was making more noise than usual. I had just changed oil in all three holes before I left using Lucas 20w-50 Full Synthetic. I used this oil in my 2012 FLHTK for 30k miles and never had any problems. The clutch seems fine, I don't hear/feel any primary chain slap and it shifts through the gears and into neutral just fine. I can't put my finger on a specific noise other than a grinding sound. Changed the oil after 4,000 miles and everything was clear and no metal on the drain plugs. I am getting older and I know my hearing is not getting any better, so I think it has gotten worse. Does anyone have any idea where I should start looking?

 

Inner primary bearing or clutch hub bearing or you could be where I'm at and rebuilding the transmission...probably not though. I think the test for inner primary bearing being bad is with the bike running pull in the clutch and if the noise goes away then the bearing is likely bad. Don't over look the rear wheel bearings...i was told by someone smarter than me that a bad wheel bearing could transmit sound to the primary area. Welcome aboard and good luck with the bike.

 

Guessing is expensive, go to a dealer, have them road test it. Once you have a professional diagnosis you can go from there.
This is what I would do.

 

 

This probably is not it...but easy to check.

If the belt is too tight you can get a racket coming from the primary area.

Dwayne experienced that on his bike just last week.

 

If I read it right, the noise started after changing the fluid? If so, why not change it again to a real gear lube? Might even try something non-synthetic like a Lucas 75w-90 or something similar from Bel-Ray.

 

Been there - done that!!! I thought I had Machine Gun Kelly in my primary.

 

Ya don't put gear oil in the primary case !!

 

From the owner of Bandit Clutch; "We recommend Golden Spectro Golden Gear Lube 80 or Bel Ray Gearsaver 75 or 80 ".

 

Opposite of what Harley specs . The clutch pack is marginal on the holding, or grip of the disks. . With more or heavier oil film the clutch would hold less torque. In fact the drier the clutch pack is, the happier it is. I.E. an open drive uses the same clutch pack as closed.
Not to mention the drag from the oil viscosity trying to pull the clutch disks giving you trouble finding neutral. Even just a little too much oil in the case will give you the same trouble.
Harley's Formula with half type A ATF works quite well. I use Amsoil primary oil.