Primary cover leaking

[Chris Garrett]

The primary case on my '82 was sealed up as a self-contained, pour in. I pour a few ounces of oil in through the shoe adjuster hole. The gasket is leaking at the bottom. I used the gasket the dealer gave me and torqued it to 18 ft.pds. and then 20fp when it started leaking. I put it on dry. Is there a better gasket than the dealer one, or should I just try again?

[Dave63]

James Gaskets have a bead of silicone on them.

When you get it to stop leaking, I don't think you run a whole lot of fluid in the primary, either.

There is a vent on the rear, top if the inner primary, right?

[facn8me]

Put the primary a cover on a flat surface and check and see if it's warped.(use a feeler gauge). Also run a straight edge across the sealing surface. Look for pry marks on it also. Normaly any part the requires a gasket should not need any sealer, but sometimes they do. I don't have enough experiance with hd gaskets or aftermarket but the one I put on the buell was from j&p and worked fine.

[Dave63]

I wish you lived closer to me Chris..... I'd wave the title to my Evo, (although 15 years old) in front of you on a daily basis, and take that Shovel off your hands.....

[Chris Garrett]

Originally Posted by Dave63

I wish you lived closer to me Chris..... I'd wave the title to my Evo, (although 15 years old) in front of you on a daily basis, and take that Shovel off your hands.....

Don't get me wrong. I may be asking a lot of questions, but I love this bike. I was out all day cruising on her.
Someone sealed the case and left the fitting where the oiler hose used to hook up as a vent. It's pretty small orifice. Do you think there's too much pressure in there? I've been putting less and less oil in, attempting to get to the least amount necessary. I just check to see that the chain is wet. I've only got about 2-3 oz in there now. Do I need to make a larger vent hole?

[Dave63]

It only has to be enough to vent out psi from spinning parts in fluid. If I recall correctly, you only need about 4 oz of fluid in the primary after this mod.

You can enlarge the hole, but that may or may not be your problem. It should be about a 1/4".

[Chris Garrett]

Originally Posted by Dave63

It only has to be enough to vent out psi from spinning parts in fluid. If I recall correctly, you only need about 4 oz of fluid in the primary after this mod.

You can enlarge the hole, but that may or may not be your problem. It should be about a 1/4".

Okay, thanks. I'll figure something out.

[facn8me]

Are you thinking it's pressure that's making the primary gasket leak? Or is this just a vent question also?

[Chris Garrett]

Originally Posted by facn8me

Are you thinking it's pressure that's making the primary gasket leak? Or is this just a vent question also?

Actually, I didn't really think about the pressure being that great. The "vent" hole in there now is very small, but I'm concerned that making a bigger hole will cause more leakage. How are the newer sealed primarys vented?

[SCHMIDTYS]

Originally Posted by Chris Garrett

Actually, I didn't really think about the pressure being that great. The "vent" hole in there now is very small, but I'm concerned that making a bigger hole will cause more leakage. How are the newer sealed primarys vented?

They're not vented .
I have my 81 shovel primary sealed and use 24oz. atf but I also run a Rivera Pro clutch with a wet clutch pack . The old 4spd. shifts smooth with atf in there .