The Panhead & Flathead Site

Hi,
Is it ok to reroute the primay oiler back to the oil tank? could I tee it into the crankcase breather line?
Asking cause I cannot shut mine off.

Post by cotten

Please tell us what year you have, and if you wish to run a belt (or at least why you wish to shut it off...)

Post by guest

Cotten,
Its a 50 fl, have the primary adjust screw all the way in and it is still pushing too much oil into the primary case.
I know they are supposed to leak but this seems like too much oil.I figure if I lube the primary manualy I can dispense with this feed,but dont want to vent it to the ground as it seems to be a lot of waste oil.
thank you for the reply.

Post by cotten

Guest!

First, please check to make certain that your adjustment screw goes to a full point, and has not been replaced with a later truncated screw.
Then let us consider that the primary should dump a good tablespoon of oil (at least) every time the machine sits idle. Sitting for extended periods invites sumping, which is a whole different concern, yet it purges from the same spot.
How often does your machine get ridden?
How quickly does excess oil present itself?
Does it purge when started, or while going down the road?

...Cotten

Post by guest

Cotten
checked my oil pump adjusting screw. it does not come to a fine point, but is flattened off.I am using the later style oil pump with the longer screw.This is a brand new pump. so the point has not been distorted by excessive torquing.It is v-Twin. Can I find a screw anywhere that is correct for this style pump.
Thank you.
Ps. Bike was ridden daily since completion, but would load up the primary with oil evry time while being ridden.

Post by cotten

I'm afraid you are on your own with an aftermarket pump, considering the various arrangements.
Harley flattened the tips to allow a constant supply to the modern aluminum primaries, but I don't know if a full point will make any difference on your pump.
The screw only meters additional oil to the breather passage and then onto the chain. Be certain that you do not have excessive blow-by from the motor itself.

Post by Guest

Cotten,
Ihave the V-twin replica 1951-1967 type pump. With long adjust screw.
This motor has less than 100 miles on it, after a complete rebuild by a well recommended builder.
How do I tell If I have excessive blowby?
Back to the original question though. If all else fails, could I reroute the feed back to the oil tank possibly teeing into the crankcase vent line?Have you heard of anyone else trying this? Thanks, James.

Post by caschnd1

James,

I have seen guys T into the return line (not the return line from the pump, but the return line from the case). BUT! But, you have to vent your oil tank if you do this. Otherwise you will be pressurizing your oil tank and your bottom end will not be able to breath correctly. This will result in too much pressure in the motor and you will soon (within a couple minutes) have oil leaking out of every place imaginable. Slickest setup I saw was a guy who had inserted a small drilled and tapped bung into the top of his oil tank and installed a small filter on it to allow the pressure to vent.

-Craig

Post by guest

Craig,
Sounds like a solution, maybe a transmission vent screw tapped into the top of the oil tank.
The oil system still puzzles me.
The heads and case are fed under pressure from the pump. The primary chain has a trickle feed from the pump. How does the primary vent pick up oil from the crank? Are the primary vent and crank vent at the same pressure?
Finaly, noticed last ride that the oil lamp would come on when I rolled off the gas in top gear . Also it would come on when cruising in top at about 55,( just bearly enough gas for the engine to mentain speed).Also when doing 25-30 in 3rd it would come on. Is this ok?
Thank you for the replies,James.

Post by caschnd1

A transmission vent screw does not have a large enough vent hole. This is the vent for your crankcase so you need a pretty good sized vent hole.
Since the primary chain oiler is also your crankcase vent tube they are at the same pressure. After shutting off your chain oiler, the oil you are getting is most likely to be oil from the crank case. Oil mist is mixed with the crankcase gases and comes out the vent tube.
I don't think it's ever ok for the oil light to come on. I'd get to the bottom of that. Bad switch or low pressure is the cause. Either way it should be fixed.

-Craig

Post by fasted53

Guest, If you dont mind I would like to jump in here, are you running a oil filter and if so what kind is it ? Ed

Post by guest

Craig,
that makes sense regarding the vent size.Think I'll go with what you said earlier regarding the set up you saw. That is unless I can get this overload of oil coming out of the primary vent problem.
Fasted53. yes I.m running an after market oil filter from JP cycles. Tube mount spin on type. You think this might be why I have so much oil loading up the case?
I also have a pressure gauge fitted in a tee along with the oil pressure switch. it seems to read plenty of pressure..25-30lbs when rolling.Also getting return to the oil tank which I guess is a good flow( this is my first harley).Craig has got me worried with the oil light situation. Guess I 've got some investigating to do.
James.

Post by caschnd1

25-30 on the oil gauge is plenty. Most pans will barely read any pressure at idle. What does your gauge show at idle? You could have a bad pressure sensor or a shorting wire that is causing the light to come on.
Which oil line do you have your filter connected to?

-Craig

Post by guest

I have the filter on the return line.James

Post by caschnd1

Return line from the pump or return line from the case?

Post by guest

Craig,
I have the filter installed between the pump and the oil tank. The return to the oil tank from the pump goes thru the oil filter. I hope that is right. James

Post by caschnd1

James,

You got it right.
Next question... what kind of filter are you running on it? I'm wondering if your pump is having a hard time getting your oil back to the tank because of the filter. Perhaps you are running a filter with a relief valve pressure that is too high? Just kind of thinking out loud here.
Is it easy for you to remove the filter (put a return hose from the pump directly to the oil tank) so you can test without the filter to see if it stops pushing excess oil out the breather? I run a shovel head spin-on filter on my pan (#63782-80).

-Craig

Post by fasted53

Thats the angle I was getting at, I just removed the filter cartridge and my problem dissappeared. I had a replica filter from J&P, not their problem but I didn't like the way it worked. Ed

Post by guest

Craig,
Sounds like a possibility, Will try it today and see what happens, Hope it works because this has been a nagging problem. Was that a Harley part# for the shovel filter? where do you get yours from?

FastEd53,
Did you have the same problem on your ride?
Have you done away with a filter completely?
Thanks for the replies everyone, this is a great site. James.

Post by fasted53

James, I was having the same problem you were having, by removing the filter element it seemed to straighten out. I ran with out the element for about a year and used the cannister for a cooler only. I finally took it off and ran lines direct, probably not a good practice but I change oil about every 1000 mi. Ed

Post by caschnd1

James,

Yep. That's a H-D part number. My local dealer keeps these in stock. I'm sure you could get them from a number of aftermarket places as well. Try one before you order more. Make sure they will screw onto your filter adapter and not leak.

-Craig

Post by guest

You guys rock!!
It worked , no more oil filling my chain case!
Thank you. What a great site. Thanks again Craig and Ed. James

Post by caschnd1

James,

Glad to hear you are running without the excess oil. What was your final solution? Did you elimnate the filter entirely or install the shovel filter?

-Craig