Slow Leak problem

[Chopper]

How olds the bike? I've had a bike with a pin hole in the casting before but it was new from the factory. The bike would loose pressure while sitting on the show room floor, checked the tire & bead but it kept happening, finally found the pin hole by spraying soapy water on it as Jack suggested, it was a nine spoke cast wheel and it was on one of the spokes, mid way up, very hard to find. Warranty took care of the problem with a new wheel. A problem like a pin hole in the casting should have been found a long time ago if the bike is older and if not it should be covered by warranty.. Valve stem or tire bead would be a lot more likely on a older bike. If you find it is the wheel, I wouldn't mess around trying to fix, I would replace, you only have two wheels on a motorcycle.

 

[dbmg]

Have seen slight cracks that are hard to find and the tub is the best way to find it. What year is the Ultra, possibly a warrty issue or does he have wheel and tire policy on his extended warrty which would cover wheel if bad......

 

[HarryB737]

Thanks Chopper, I'm not sure of the year model, but it's not under warranty. I think it is a nine spoke rim. I'll pass your advise along... Very sound thinking.

 

[TQuentin1]

Before getting all carried away, start with the basics. If the valve stem is an assembled one, try replacing it with a new one piece like on your car. If it is already one of those, check that the Schrader valve is well seated, and that the stem is not bent/binding. As cheap as these are, I would just replace the whole valve stem with a new one.

If that does not work, then the tub idea is the best way to track down the leak.

TQ

 

[pigrider]

One of my riding buddies has an Ultra Classic that has a cast rear wheel. Here's his problem: Rear wheel has a slow leak that leaks down to about 20lbs. He can reinflate & it will hold for a couple weeks then it's down again. The set-up is tubeless, & he wants to keep it that way if possible. He's check the tire, & stem carefully... & he said it did the same with the last tire he had on the bike. I'm thinking there maybe a small pinhole in the casting of the wheel. Here's my question... Is there any type of sealing agent that can be applied on the inside of the wheel (Not Slime), but applied with the tire off, maybe with a brush applicator (Thin coat) that will harden ?

He's not using those valve stem pressure indicaters is he? I know there are several differt kinds of these on the market and while it sounds like a good idea they have proved to be more trouble than they're worth.

 

[HarryB737]

On my old Honda the casting had flaked a bit and that caused a small leak through the rim itself,much like you describe.I took the wheel off and put a wire wheel on a drill and cleaned the interior of the wheel.Then I washed it with thinner and brush painted it with Tremclad,and put a new valve stem in.That was 8 yrs. ago and when my son started riding the bike last year we changed the tire and the inner rim looked like it did after my repair back then.Still doesn't leak.

Thanks Steve, This was what I was hoping for a product to try to repair from the inside. Since my last post I talked with my friend to tell him what the responses were. I found out his bike is a 2006 model with no extended warranty. He said he will contact HD about the rim because it is the 9-spoke style, to see if they offer to cover some of the cost to replace it since there has been some problems with this style rim. Thanks to everyone who responded.... this is why I like this site so much. People are willing to share their experiences & help where they can...

 

[lewis]

Hello you may want to check the rim,at some time you could have hit a pothole the rim might be warped or you could have a foreign object some were around the beed of the rim. good luck man

 

[northernrider]

Was the rim seat area clean ? when tire installed on cast wheels we been using Tire Lube makes easier put tire on helps keep moisture out.