1,000 mile / fork stem bolt, rear sprocket screws

[mark198]

I am preparing for my 1,000 mile service, but I don't really understand how these two fasteners should be checked. The manual says "if the fastener does not rotate, the fastener torque has been maintained", but the torque spec for each of these involves tightening, loosening, and retightening. Should I check torque for the final spec, or repeat the tighten, loosen, tighten procedure?

This is my first post, hello everyone, great forum.

Thanks,
Mark

[brprider]

I believe the real issue here is if the bolts are currently tightened to the correct torque. I would just use a torque wrench on them to be sure that they hadn't loosened up. Don't really see any need to loosen and then retighten.

By the way, welcome to the forum from Florida.

[Oldwrench]

Welcome to the Forum, and congrats on your new Sportster.

There is no need to loosen bolts and then re-tighten them. Many bolts are installed with Loctite, and if you loosen them, you'll break the Loctite bond, which you don't want to do. If you're using a torque wrench, don't set it to the maximum torque listed. Set it somewhere in the middle range. All you're doing is inspecting, checking to see if anything might be loose.

I'm assuming you're working on an '09. (You need to tell us a little more about your bike.) Word of caution: There is a torque specification error in the 2009 and 2010 Factory Manuals for the primary chain inspection cover screws on Sportsters. They should only be 40-60 inch pounds. About 4 ft lbs with anti-sieze is plenty, which is only screwdriver hand tight. The manuals for 2009 and 2010 say something like 84-120 inch pounds, which is WRONG. Those screws are 1/4"x20, not 1/2"x20.

The stem bolt is not "torqued" tight. That bolt is carefully tightened during a specific "fall-away" procedure to set the pre-load on the head bearings. It is best not to mess with the stem bolt unless you know what you're doing and why. Improper adjustment of the stem bolt can lead to bearing failure which could result in locked front forks.

Also, don't mess with the engine head bolts or rocker covers bolts unless there is a problem. The old adage of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" should apply.

Do pay close attention to all the motor mount bolts and all the exhaust mounting hardware; those tend to loosen up sometimes.

If you do find something loose, then seek advice or assurance before proceeding. There are no dumb questions, and it just might save you from big headaches and big expenses.

[bigjnsa]

+1 on the exhaust stuff.. My exhaust nuts are constantly loosening. Its part of my weekend routine now to check the nuts on the head bolts.

[mark198]

Thanks for the responses.

The bike is an 09 883N. If I find any issues I will let the dealer address them under warranty, but for over $350 for a 1,000 mile service I'll take care of fluids and fsteners on my own.

Mark

[Recon Dad]

Welcome to the Forum, and congrats on your new Sportster.

I'm assuming you're working on an '09. (You need to tell us a little more about your bike.) Word of caution: There is a torque specification error in the 2009 and 2010 Factory Manuals for the primary chain inspection cover screws on Sportsters. They should only be 40-60 inch pounds. About 4 ft lbs with anti-sieze is plenty, which is only screwdriver hand tight. The manuals for 2009 and 2010 say something like 84-120 inch pounds, which is WRONG. Those screws are 1/4"x20, not 1/2"x20.

My 08 service manual says the same 84-120 inch pounds. The bolt chart I used for years says for a 1/4"x20 socket head cap screw 11 ft/lbs. Oiled and 14 ft/lbs. Dry. A 1/2"x20 socket head cap screw is 100 ft/lbs Oiled and 126 ft/lbs Dry.

I think the manual is correct?

[Oldwrench]

Recon Dad - The manual is wrong. The screws that attach the primary chain inspection cover are 1/4" x 20 x 5/8". They are not 1/2" x 20. The manual says they are 1/2" x 20, which they are not. The manual says to torque the primary cover inspection screws to 84-120 inch pounds, which is wrong for the 1/4" x 20 screws going into aluminum.

Somehow during editing the data base picked up 1/2" x 20 for the screw size and plugged the size and torque values into the wrong place in the manual. So it appears that 2008, 2009 and 2010 all have the same error.