Super glide sport......
- Thread starter Johno23
- Start date
And there is the rub. It’s the lack of use that will cause problems with any make of bike over time.
Buying a bike that’s been well used but looked after is probably a better bet that some low mileage garage queen that a lot of folks seek.
So the moral is just ride the thing and if you aren’t using it much then sell it.
Correct..spend more time riding than polishing...bikes look better anyhoo wi a coat of road muck n bugs
They don't......But hey...the 'my bike better than your bike' is so intensely dull. There's only one person that gives a flying fuck about which bike you choose.....and that's you...so enjoy it, whichever you choose.
I’m off up to see the bike on Tuesday. Cam tensioner hasn’t been done as far as he knows. So I’ve been doing a little research.
It seems there are two tensioners, front and rear( on different chains). Is one more likely to go than the other or are they both suspect? I watched a few videos, one on a 70k road king the rear one was fine, the front one had disintegrated.
The bike I’m viewing has only 11k on it, am I correct in thinking it seems to be over 25k that this problem can show itself? And if so could I not worry about it for a while?
From what I’ve seen it’s definitely a job I can do at home, although there are a couple of tools that I may need or at least make it easier to do.
There is also the choice of what to do............ replace the tensioners with std Harley ones ( which I assume have been improved) this being the cheaper option or upgrading the cam plate too with an SS upgrade kit which also has hydraulic tensioners, obviously this is 2-3 times the cost.
Anything else I need to consider
I had a FXDXI same year and colour. Inspecting the tensioners at 19K showed they were worn, the mechanic said they *may* make it to 25K but definitely not to 30K. It's just the luck of the draw how long they may last in each individual bike based on how sharp the chain plates and how much air was in the tensioner shoe plastic when they were molded. When, not if, you replace them you could just replace the shoes themselves. They changed how they were made and the replacements don't have the tiny air voids. Also the chains will have had their sharp edges polished down a bit from sliding on the tensioners, so new ones should last longer than the originals. The better option though is to upgrade to the hydraulic tensioner which Harley sells as a kit including a better flowing oil pump.
The front motor mount is something to look at, I had to replace mine once. Harley used DOT 5 brake fluid in those years when you change it that's the only kind you can use, no DOT 3,4, or 5.1. All in all a nice motorcycle, kinda wish I still had mine.
Thanks again for all the information yesterday, I’m pretty much set on getting this if the condition of the bike looks good, and I’ve no reason to think it won’t be.
Really looking forward to seeing it now, may even try to get up there today as the weather looks better.
Really looking forward to seeing it now, may even try to get up there today as the weather looks better.
As others have said, don't stress too much about the cam chain tensioners. If you buy it check them and if you have got as far as that you may as well renew them whilst your there. I used some from Cyco which are supposed to be a bit better in terms of durability. And I managed to do it all myself without blowing it up. The hardest part on the Road King was removing the darn exhaust but that doesn't look too hard on the Glide. Good luck
Cracking Bikes IMO.
Ref: Cam Chain Tensioners, if and when you can afford it, switch to Gear Driven Cams, then the whole Issue goes away.
Buy it, Service it, Ride the Feck out of it and Enjoy it!!
Ref: Cam Chain Tensioners, if and when you can afford it, switch to Gear Driven Cams, then the whole Issue goes away.
Buy it, Service it, Ride the Feck out of it and Enjoy it!!
I’m now the proud owner of a Harley!
Bike is in great condition, forks have suffered a little with corrosion through the lacquer, an easy clean up
.
It also has the original exhaust and seat with rack and back rest too. Also has some hard luggage and rack to instal them,plus he’s given me his optimate. Bike has had 14 oil changes in 11k for some of the years it only did a couple of hundred miles between changes.
Engine felt great, though far too loud with those pipes on! Everything worked fine, brakes weren’t wonderful, but I’m assured you get used to them.All in all very pleased and I have a couple of manuals with it too. I got a couple of hundred quid off as it needs a new rear tyre which I was happy with. Few pics taken today........
Bike is in great condition, forks have suffered a little with corrosion through the lacquer, an easy clean up
.It also has the original exhaust and seat with rack and back rest too. Also has some hard luggage and rack to instal them,plus he’s given me his optimate. Bike has had 14 oil changes in 11k
for some of the years it only did a couple of hundred miles between changes.Engine felt great, though far too loud with those pipes on! Everything worked fine, brakes weren’t wonderful, but I’m assured you get used to them
.All in all very pleased and I have a couple of manuals with it too. I got a couple of hundred quid off as it needs a new rear tyre which I was happy with. Few pics taken today........Attachments
Enjoy the magic. (sounds corny but it's true)
Oh, and a proper bargain.
(sounds corny but it's true)Oh, and a proper bargain.
Nice one! Hope you enjoy it
Well done Johno
That looks like a lovely bike.
That looks like a lovely bike.
Happy new (to you) bike day Johno. Enjoy
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Check those brakes out.....properly... that’s not a bad set-up as standard....
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