Dan89FLSTC
Banned
You said it was a classic case of overtightening of the auto tensioner, if it had oil in it...That made no sense at all, sorry if you are offended.
I've got a mess!
- Thread starter gs34
- Start date
Dan89FLSTC
Banned
Like I said, sorry if you are offended.
W
wildspirit97
Guest
my 07 FXST (softail standard) takes one quart (32oz.) in the Tranny and one quart (32 oz.) in the primary.
KIT CUSTOM
Member
A prime example for learning to do your own service items when possible. Half the fun is keeping them running and improving the preformance. Remember, the guy doing the service didn,t know any more about bikes than you when he started. A must is a repair manuel and the parts book is pretty handy also.
gs34
Junior Member
On with the story.....
The chain tensioner came in late yesterday afternoon. I picked it up, and it only took about a 1/2 hr or so to put everything back together and refill the primary with oil.
I dumped a quart of 15/40 CAT Diesel Engine Oil in for a fill, and sent the Son In Law out for a ride.
I wanted him to warm things up good, get all the crud that might be leftover loosened up, and generally make sure it was A-OK.
He came back from his warm-up smiling, and there were no leaks, so I dumped the "flush oil" and refilled it with the good stuff.
The oil I used for a flush appears to have done it's job....It was plenty dirty after the little warm up run, and there were a few bits of the old tensioner it found and washed out of their hiding spots.
Just some real fine stuff, no big lumps.
I also dumped the stuff out of his transmission and refilled it with Specrtro Platinum Plus.
After getting everything buttoned back up, I sent him out for a ride again.
He was smiling even broader, when he came back, and was amazed at how much smoother and quieter the oil change made his transmission.
So I sent him on his way. Everything seems to be dry and quiet.
He will put some miles on it today, as he will be riding to work and probably a little cruise on the way home. Hopefully, it'll still be that way by the end of the day.
As for the "who forgot to put the oil in?" part of the story....
I talked to the seller, and as I fully expected, He accepts full responsibility. He is too much of a gentelman to try and shuffle the blame off on someone else, or point fingers.
He told me that he even asked my SIL if he would like the Harley Dealer to pick the bike up and repair it, but SIL said that we already had it apart, and would do it ourself.
He sold it, and he accepts his responsibilities. That's good enough for me. How he handles it with the Harley shop is up to him.
Now, as an aside....if you're still with me, and have bothered to read this far....
Having worked for 30+ years as a professional mechanic, I know from 1st-hand experience just how easy it is to make a mistake.
Before you spend too much time criticizing a shop tech, walk a mile in his shoes.
There are millions of distractions when working in an environment like that...someone is always coming by to drag you away to do something else, while you are in the middle of what you are currently working on.
And you may be pulled from that to something else, and hours and several jobs might pass before you are able to return to your original job.....and by then, you've completely lost track of where you were and what you were doing.
That is hard enough for an old experienced guy to keep up with. Imagine how it is for some of these youngsters who are just getting started....and the dealerships are full of these young guys.
Not trying to justify the shortcomings of some of these dealers. Just saying that there is often more to a story or problem than meets the eye.
Doctors bury their mistakes....mechanics still have to fix theirs!
The chain tensioner came in late yesterday afternoon. I picked it up, and it only took about a 1/2 hr or so to put everything back together and refill the primary with oil.
I dumped a quart of 15/40 CAT Diesel Engine Oil in for a fill, and sent the Son In Law out for a ride.
I wanted him to warm things up good, get all the crud that might be leftover loosened up, and generally make sure it was A-OK.
He came back from his warm-up smiling, and there were no leaks, so I dumped the "flush oil" and refilled it with the good stuff.
The oil I used for a flush appears to have done it's job....It was plenty dirty after the little warm up run, and there were a few bits of the old tensioner it found and washed out of their hiding spots.
Just some real fine stuff, no big lumps.
I also dumped the stuff out of his transmission and refilled it with Specrtro Platinum Plus.
After getting everything buttoned back up, I sent him out for a ride again.
He was smiling even broader, when he came back, and was amazed at how much smoother and quieter the oil change made his transmission.
So I sent him on his way. Everything seems to be dry and quiet.
He will put some miles on it today, as he will be riding to work and probably a little cruise on the way home. Hopefully, it'll still be that way by the end of the day.
As for the "who forgot to put the oil in?" part of the story....
I talked to the seller, and as I fully expected, He accepts full responsibility. He is too much of a gentelman to try and shuffle the blame off on someone else, or point fingers.
He told me that he even asked my SIL if he would like the Harley Dealer to pick the bike up and repair it, but SIL said that we already had it apart, and would do it ourself.
He sold it, and he accepts his responsibilities. That's good enough for me. How he handles it with the Harley shop is up to him.
Now, as an aside....if you're still with me, and have bothered to read this far....
Having worked for 30+ years as a professional mechanic, I know from 1st-hand experience just how easy it is to make a mistake.
Before you spend too much time criticizing a shop tech, walk a mile in his shoes.
There are millions of distractions when working in an environment like that...someone is always coming by to drag you away to do something else, while you are in the middle of what you are currently working on.
And you may be pulled from that to something else, and hours and several jobs might pass before you are able to return to your original job.....and by then, you've completely lost track of where you were and what you were doing.
That is hard enough for an old experienced guy to keep up with. Imagine how it is for some of these youngsters who are just getting started....and the dealerships are full of these young guys.
Not trying to justify the shortcomings of some of these dealers. Just saying that there is often more to a story or problem than meets the eye.
Doctors bury their mistakes....mechanics still have to fix theirs!
hammerhead pat
Active Member
You're right gs34, mistakes do happen. But man, when it happens to you it doesn't make things any easier. Curoius to hear how the dealership handles things.