I am doing an experiment with the new Sporty's oil tank cap that we all like to cuss...

I saw the new oil temp cap that is out, but don't feel that I have a need for it here where I ride. Besides that, I am also a cheap bastard... :rolleyes:

I will be testing it for the next few days, and will report back with results and pictures pending its success.

I for one am interested on what you come up with. The cap has not been a total PIA for me but would appreciate an improvement. The only time it gives me problems is when it has some coat of oil around it which usually happens while filling the tank.

RedRider wrote:
Besides that, I am also a cheap bastard...

Same here!

I bought the new cap (very nice, by the way) and now have the old one laying around. I'm thinking of trying something with it as well.

I'm one of those who like to know the oil temp..........don't really know why just do. Guess it's a gage fettish thing........I like tachs, oil pressure gages, etc. Anyway, bought the new oil temp cap and it works great. Bikes been running about 180 degrees this time of year (60s to 70s here in Dallas). Main concern is what it will read in the summer when we get our months of 100 degree days. Price was kinda steep, but hey....its HD.:clap

I've been told that those temperature guages are not very accurate. Any thoughts on that?

I've been told that those temperature guages are not very accurate. Any thoughts on that?

Well, I guess you could get a meat thermometer and stick it in the tank to compare temps ...

Lets see, shouldn't turkey be 'done' when it gets to 170 degrees? :p

He He He you said meat.

I have another word of warning for you guys. I recently tried a newer oil tank on my bike thinking it was just shaped a little dif. I was way wrong, flow was dif. and it caused major motor meltdown and a rebuild was nec. I believe these new bikes need the pressure in the tank to work so don't screw around with them too much. You might get a 1250 like me(.030 overbore to clean up the gouges). Rottenralph

I think RottenRalph makes a good point here... HD invested millions of dollars in R&D before our bikes came off the assembly line. I think that caution should be exercised before we start tearing into stuff. :yikes

My general idea when approaching modifications is to enhance what the factory has provided me with, not re-invent the wheel! :) Personalizing our bikes should be an individual thing, I think.

The mod I made to the oil tank cap seems to work pretty well. My schedule is crazy this week, but I hope to have pictures and details posted by this weekend if anyone is interested.

That cap is such a pain I don't check the oil as often as I should. I did find that I could get it on and off by wrapping a bicycle inner tube around it and using a big pipe wrench. It is getting progressively harder to turn each time I open it up to check the oil.

Doug
2004 883>1200 Real Red

Just got the new cap. The old one really looked sharp, but in operation left a lot to be desired. I had a good laugh when I picked up my bike at the dealer and the salesman was going through the standard spiel about checking fluids and such...he had a hell of a time getting the cap out...then it took about ten minutes-no lie-for him to get it all the way back in :laugh

Kim

Thunderpaw,

I can understand the problem of getting the popup cap back in. Another reason why I went to the gage cap. It simply screws in and out.:)

I just got a temp. gage cap from HD and checked its accuracy against a lab-grade mercury thermometer. It's not very good, reading anywhere between 9 d. and 17 d. low int he 120-170 d. range and 7 d. low at 212 d. I'm guessing that each cap would be different. Easy way to check without a thermometer is in a pan of boiling water -- always 212 d. (at sea level). A digital gage probably would be better.

I have another word of warning for you guys. I recently tried a newer oil tank on my bike thinking it was just shaped a little dif. I was way wrong, flow was dif. and it caused major motor meltdown and a rebuild was nec. I believe these new bikes need the pressure in the tank to work so don't screw around with them too much. You might get a 1250 like me(.030 overbore to clean up the gouges). Rottenralph

EXCELLENT point...has anyone ever taken the cap off with the bike running?

She DOES NOT like that!

[QUOTE cantolina asks]...has anyone ever taken the cap off with the bike running?/QUOTE]

Don't do it unless yer in the mood to wash it!. :frownthre

Finally, here is a picture of the oil tank cap that I modified. Sorry for the delay.

Nothing too high-tech here... There are 18, 9/64" holes drilled around the perimeter of the cap to allow some grippage with your finger tips. The holes are not visible when the cap is pushed in flush with the tank. I intentionally did not deburr the outside of the holes to allow as much traction as possible.

Make sure if you decide to try this to get all the plastic shavings out of the inside of the cap for obvious reasons. ;)

The cap still wants to fight you at times during removal & installation, but at least you are able to generate some grip on it with the holes.

Did I mention that this improvement is free??? :D

Give me some feedback on this if any of you all decide to try it.

When I picked-up my sporty from the previous owner, she over-filled the oil tank and on top of that, didn't properly secure the cap. My buddy started her up (the sporty, not the previous owner ;) ) and the cap went flying and Jeff got oil all over himself. About the only good thing was the oil was cold, had it been up to temp. he'd have gotten burned.

Regards,

How's the oil gonna stay in with all those freakin holes :yikes .

Any way, it looks good. Nice job.

You're too funny, Barry.... I had to read your post twice before I figured out it was tongue-in-cheek! :laugh :clap

I've been told those meat therm-o-meters aren't very accurate either.

Pretty innovative red rider! I'm sure it does enable a better grip while twisting!
Billy

I too have switched to the new guage type cap and love it. Yup, it was $45 but I actually made it out of the dealer without paying an HD (hundred dollars). I use the Syn3 oil and the engine runs about 150 at temperatures of 55-65. I have checked the oil with a probe type pyrometer and the gauge was reading 4.3 degrees hotter than the pyrometer, which is +/- 1/10th of a degree.

The Syn3 oil seems to run much cooler however, it's a real pain to get the oil warmed up when the ambient temperature is below 60 degrees. So, if you use it stand by, it takes forever for the oil to get above 125..........

Stephen Hawk

S-HAWK... I wouldn't get too nervous about getting your synthetic up to 125 deg. Mobil-One will pour at minus 49 deg. Synthetics have inherently superior cold flow characteristics, so you can drive it to warm it. Just don't rev it or stress the motor till it's at operating temp.

I fight that bugger of a cap on my '04 1200C too! My girlfriend asked if there was anything specific I wanted for Christmas. After the obvious, "You wrapped in JUST a bow!", I asked her to get me the new temp gauge oil cap. I copied the page out of the catalog and circled the right number for good measure. I hope it twists in easier than the old. From the picture it looks like it has a raised area to get a firm grip on. I did find that if you use one of those rubber jar opener pads or a piece of that "no slip" rubber shelf liner you can get at a "Dollar Store" you can grip the old cap even if it's oily or your hands are cold. I keep a piece in my back rest bag. I wrap my shock spanner wrench in it.

I think(?) I posted this in another thread, but I wish that Harley had knurled the area between the 'high' and 'low' oil level marks. With hot, clean oil, it just runs off the dipstick faster than I can get a good read on the level. Thinking about getting a machinist to knurl it for me, if I discover that I won't screw up the thermometer section-could be a capillary section in the tube?

Kim

Its plastic. I filed some hatch marks on it with a triangle file.

Its plastic.

Really? Mine appears to be stainless steel.

Kim

On my 04 the dipstick is plastic. The filler cap top is SS.

on the oem cap/dipstick is all plastic the shinny bit is chrome plated plastic 9neer understood how that worked) the replacement is plastic with a metal dip stick and it is hard to read. I wonder about just breaking the surface with some emery paper.

Luxblue

The new cap goes on and off real easy. I hated the original, I wrote a letter to HD about it but never heard anything from them. I tested mine in a pan of boiling water and it was real close to 212 degrees. It is harder to read the oil but as long as the oil is above the middle of the stick the oil level is fine. My bike has used very little oil in the first 3500 miles.

Hope you get the new cap for Christmas, if not you'll just have to buy yourself an after Christmas gift.

I watche the certified mecahnics struggle with that cap -- really bad design -- the temp gauge solves the whole problem and adds the the "mechanical" look that is so cool about the Sportster

Any machinists here? Could it be possible to knurl the area between the lines on the new temp gauge cap, or would it screw up the thermometer?

Kim

thunderpaw have a local painter bead blast the stick lightly (use glass bead media only not sand) then clean it fully before reinstalling it

I'm assuming your talking about the dipstick part not the cap

Wanna zero cost way to be able to see the oil level better if you have the 04-05 oil cap with temp guage that has a stainless steel dipstick rod?

Get a medium grit piece of emory paper (sandpaper) and sand the metal rod. It will make it dull and slightly rougher ... you will be able to see the actual oil level much better ... Fact

I got the new oil temp dip stick for my '04 Custom...my girlfriend came through! Also a gift certificate and other Harley goodies for my bike! :laugh

i can finally get it off now without too many 4 letter words. would like to get the new one but thought they might come out with a skull one. (wishful thinking) curious to hear what you come up with.

Don't understand what all the hubbub is about gettin the cap off and on? Seems pretty simple to me? Ya outta try gettin the oil cap of and on a 737 APU...absolute *&#$*#pain in the ass. Takes a mirror and flashlight to make sure it's secure.

any pics of this new temp gage cap.....luv to monitor the engine vitals:-)

any pics of this new temp gage cap.....luv to monitor the engine vitals:-)

Yeah, how about a pic??

Thanks,

Kevin

My guage dipstick FELL OUT!!!! This left a royal mess. Luckily, I found the problem before any damage occured to me or my 1200s.

FYI
make sure to wipe off ALL oil from rubber seal on stick and top of oil tank after checking you oil

I am sure the custom chrome piece didn't fit as tight as the oem unit and probally had some oil residue from where I added oil before the ride.

After losing my custom chrome temp dipstick, I installed the oem dipstick and a hd se oil cooler.

I realize it sounds WAY too simple and also takes the time and energy to do, but I simply pop the seat off on '04 Sporty roadster and then I have no trouble with putting the stock oil cap on or off. And I was sure having a tussle with it every time before I figured that out.

That's counter productive! Since I'm religious about checking my oil level, I'd be mad if I had to take the seat off every time I rode. My dad once bought a new truck that didn't start easily. The dealer told him to pump the gas pedal 10-15 times before turning the key. My dad suggested rather inpolitely that he had bought a truck not a f*#king pump! The new Temp Indicator cap twists on and off easily.

here ya go, courtesy of HD

http://a1276.g.akamai.net/7/1276/734/infinite/www.harley-davidson.com/media/images/productphotos/PNA/63023_05_M_1d729.jpg

Since we have a bunch of new members here who may not have seen this, I am bumping this up due to the reoccurring comments I keep hearing about the rubbermount Sportster flush-mount oil cap.

The cap I modified on my scoot is still working well, and didn't cost me $45.00 like the temp gauge cap does.

:bump:bump:bump

I too hate the stock oil tank cap on my 04. Even cut my finger tip on it one time!

Had a H-D gift certificate laying around from Xmas, so I bought the fancy H-D temp guage cap. Just when I thought it was a perfect solution, and could actualluy check my oil without getting stitches, I went on two 100 plus mile rides. I found a thin coating of oil blew past the oil ring , down the oil tank, and covered the back of my bike each time.

All my riding buddies were on rice rockets and man I took a verbal beating about my "belt drive chain oiler." Tank was not over filled so I tried the stock o ring on the new cap. Same bad results! Put the stock cap back on and no leaks. Dealer is out of town, so I couldn't take it by and let it drip in their driveway to get a refund. Receipt disappeared at the same time as my H-D accessory satisfaction level dropped to zero. Guess I ate that one.

Did find out that the oil film that covered my bike, bags, and jeans ran 190-200 degrees. WooHoo!!!

Between that and the crappy big dollar Screamin Beagle air cleaner fiasco, I'm not real inclined to spend my hard earned Benjamins on label H-D accessory crap! :frownthre

Later,

I'd like to modify mine by throwing it under my lawnmower.

Once again, I HATE that damn popup cap!

I'd like to modify mine by throwing it under my lawnmower.

Once again, I HATE that damn popup cap!

Try the mod that I did. It'll take you all of 15 minutes, and won't cost ya any money. After it's done, checking yer oil won't be a blood pressure raising experience. ;)

Try the mod that I did. It'll take you all of 15 minutes, and won't cost ya any money. After it's done, checking yer oil won't be a blood pressure raising experience. ;)

Thanks Rob. I haven't had too much trouble with mine, but I can see how your mod will make it much easier. Besides, I like drilling holes :smoke