Broken starter ring gear teeth

[NEWHD74FAN]

No true believers in the "Tooth Fairy" here I guess, so don't expect a dime under you pillow for your trouble anytime soon...! :small3d029:

 

[BUBBIE]

Checked on the bike today. My dealer replaced the entire clutch and the gear on the starter under warranty. They also did the SE Compensator install for 1 hr labor. The broken teeth were not attached to the stator so I'm pretty sure they were attached to the magnetic drain plug when I had the 1K, 5K, 10K or 15K mile service done. Not sure how I feel about that....I can't point fingers but sure would like to know where those gears went.

THANKS for the build date! 03/09****** mine is 04/09 FLHR

NOT finding the broken teeth on the stator while apart, I would figure that they GROUND up into the chain or HOPEFULLY they were pulled to the drain plug magnet.
I ALSO would of liked to HEARD from the shop that DRAINED the oil THAT they were on the PLUG at the time of OIL CHANGE...... ANY abnormal amount of metal SHOULD be of concern by service and TOLD to the customer...

THIS being ONE good reason I SELF-SERVICE MY OWN bike.

signed....BUBBIE

 

[B-1B_Guy]

Bubbie,

As you stated, I can't point any fingers cause I don't know what was on the plug on the previous primary oil changes. I bought the priority maintenance plan when I bought the bike mostly because it covers tires and I do put on a lot of miles every year. If you figure the cost of the services, the plan has already paid for itself and I still have 3 years to go. Bad thing is I have to run Syn3 (or supply my oil of choice). Anyhow, I'm glad they fessed up a new clutch and starter gear free of charge. My service man said that he wished all new HD's came with the SE compensator sprocket.....he said it's one of the BEST upgrades available. He's a good wrench, he does most of the wrenching featured in American Bagger....they're just down the road from us. Thanks to all for the advice.

 

[kathat223]

Sunday, I attempted to install my SE Compensator and Aim VPC clutch. After I removed the stock compensator (a flimsy piece of junk) I pulled the primary chain and noticed three bad teeth (all in a row) on the starter ring gear. One tooth is completely gone, the next is 1/2 gone and the third tooth is chipped....none of the broken teeth are in my primary. The teeth are probably attached to the stator. My dealer is going to pick the bike up Friday to take a look at it. A very reliable source said that in '09 there were some hardening problems at the factory and this is not an unusual problem.

Last year I put 15K+ miles on the '09 Ultra. It has a 103" motor and 255 cams all of last years riding season. I never had any starting problems or grinding issues when starting.

Anyone else seen this? I'm hoping the my dealer changes the clutch basket and the starter under warranty.

Just something I thought you might want to look for when you have the primary cover or the derby cover off.

Yes it appears that there is a problem with the teeth on the ring gear breaking. I have a 2007 ultra with almost 40,000 miles on it. My warranty is out on bike, and I have had numerous ongoing problems with the bike( starter-crank sensor-fuel pump line). I approached the service manager at my Harley Dealer. He contacted Harley directly and Harley has agreed to pay for the parts post warranty. I will pick up about $220 in labor. FYI...There ia also a flaw in the fuel pump line located in the gas tank on some models . It was designed too long an rubs on the inside of the tank and a hole develops. For a long time everyone denied the problem too me but when I purchase the new line it was designd shorter "imagine that". Recently a harely mechanic admitted to me that it is a common problem and they replace about one every month. Should have been a recall item.

 

[Hoople]

Recently a harely mechanic admitted to me that it is a common problem and they replace about one every month. Should have been a recall item.

One a month at a dealership sure is not many. I bet they change several different parts "once a month".

 

[Fossil]

Having a good Quality Control background I wonder if Harley is being careful with their metal they order or even completed parts? The initial failure of those bolts in the timing case were too brittle. If Harley had a Certificate of Compliance and the company sent them bad hardware. Then Harley could make them pick up the bill for making bad parts. I have seen this done. Especially in the aircraft industry.

 

[Brutal FXDX]

In 2007 with the intro of the 96ci/6 speed platform there were many issues with starter ring gears losing teeth. Mostly on 103 police bikes (and some civilian touring models) When the police bikes came out the did not have automatic compression releases, then after a few months of issues we were swapping heads for ACR heads on police models, all paid for by moco. What the other issue was at the factory they were making the ring gears too hard (brittle) and they would break teeth. I have replaced prob close to 50 clutch assy and starter gears. Dont really see too much of it now

 

[hey dog]

Talking to the Evolution Industries tech guy. He claims HD took the same diameter ring as the 102 tooth and made a 106 tooth ring in 2007, making the teeth thinner. I am replacing my 3rd clutch, with Evolution's ring gear. My bike is a trike conversion with a Screaming Eagle Pro Stage ll, 103 cubic inches. I also changed the starter to 1.5 kw. You have to watch changing the complete clutch assembly to after market designs, because they will not work with the stock speedometer and cruise