Hey gang. Had a fantastic time in York and the area until the ride home. I didn't make it to Harrisburg from York when I heard a bad noise. I finally got off the highway to find the whole left side of the bike covered in a film of oil. So was my left leg and boot. Saw smoke puffing out of the left side case. Low and behold, I blew out the timing plug. On an Evo, there is a plug to access the left side flywheel, where the timing marks are. I called Don to ask some technical advice about oil pressure and oil passages down there. He told me it should only be crankcase pressure. Obviously, I needed to something, as I couldn't go 200 miles with the oil blowing out of the left side of the engine.
At that point, a local asked if he could do anything to help. I called the 2 HD dealers in the area. One was Appalachian, the other was Susquehanna. The reason I mention that is that both tried to be very helpful. Either would have come and gotten me. And one offered to bring the part and tools to try to get me going. But our good Samaritan friend, Ray, went to Susquehanna and picked up a timing plug and some oil. Sounds like we'll be back in business and good to go! WRONG!!!
We went to install the new timing plug, and lo and behold, it was too small for the opening! WTF!!! I've only owned this bike a little over 10 years. There must have been a previous problem there and the hole is oversized. Dead in the water? Not so fast. I thought about the info Don gave me, and Ray went to a hardware store to bring back various plumbing fittings. I was determined to get this bitch home tonight! One of the fittings he got was a Nylon 3/8" MPT x 1/4" barbed fitting. It would not thread, so I got it lined up in the hole, put a deep socket over the Nylon fitting, and drove it into the hole with a hammer. Jammed it in there good. No chance of damage, as it's soft Nylon. The I took some clear 1/4" hose and ran it from the fitting, along the clutch cable, and up to the handlebars. I zip tied it to the fitting and the clutch cable. I had just crated a new crancase breather! It looked like a real Rube Goldberg! It's too dark, but I'll show some pics tomorrow of what I did. I filled the oil tank back up and started the bike. We all had our fingers crossed. The bike fired up and the fitting held. I let it warm up and then started revving the engine. It's still holding up. I'm going for it! I packed up my chit and hit the road.
Now you have to understand that there's only crankcase pressure under the cylinders. But you can't just leave it open. The flywheels were slinging the oil out of the hole. It wasn't being blown out. So by leaving the plug open, and running the hose 2 feet above the hole, there was no chance of losing oil. And the opening would prevent any crankcase pressure from building up and blowing the fitting out. I could only hope that vibration or thermal expansion wouldn't foil my plan. I took off!
I ran about 65-70 MPH to avoid getting run over, but didn't want to risk my usual faster pace. I rode about 90 miles, leaning down to left side of the case, what now seems like every minute to check on it. Could it be holding? Damn straight it was holding. I shoved a burger down my throat, filled the bike up with gas, and proceeded on. That was at the PA/NJ border. Only 90 miles left. I got back on the road and continued checking, but everything was still holding up fine. I got about 10 miles from the George Washington Bridge and a wall of traffic. F that! My bike's broke and I'm taking her home!!! Splitting lanes and riding on the shoulder all the way to the Toll Booths. Then splitting lanes the entire length of the bridge. No traffic for me. I was on a mission! Got to the other side and got off and took alternate route back into Queens. I think the entire country knows to stay off the Cross Bronx Expressway! I took the Deagan to the Triboro Bridge and was in Queens now! 15 minutes more. Stayed on the Grand Central, past Shea Stadium and made it home. What a relief! Desparate times call for desperate measures. It was time to get creative!!! And my perseverance paid off! My baby got me home after I gave her a little love!!! She's broken chit before, but has NEVER left me stranded!!! I love my Wide Glide. Should I blame this on MoCo too? If I had my SERK, I would have been on that bike. FTF!!!!!!!
Now I need to thank a few people. First, thanks Don for helping me keep my head on straight and give me some technical input and ideas. I actually expanded on one of your ideas as the Bandaid to get me home. Thanks to Hoody, who offered to come from Gettysburg with a trailer and bring the bike back to his house and put me up. Thanks to the 2 HD dealers that weren't going to leave my bike stranded on the road. But most of all, thanks to Ray, a total stranger, who took three hours out of his afternoon to help me until I was good to go! He even offered to store the bike and let me stay at his house. Not a CVOHarley brother. Not an HD rider at all. He was in a pick up truck. He went home and got his Kawasaki, and ran around until we got something to work!!! That is one stand up MoFo!!! I hope he visits me in NYC like I asked him to. I owe him a night on the town.
As it turned out, it's now just another story for the Hoist Motorcycle Diaries! And it had a happy ending. At least for now. I still have to figure out what to do with that oversize hole. But it's home safe and sound. And so am I! That's what really mattered today.
So like I said, Chit Happens! You can't panic and must get as creative as necessary when you're on the road. With the help of some good people and some ingenuity, I made it home! And it feels great knowing my bike got me there!!!
Hoist!
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Topic: Chit Happens! Time to Get Creative!!! (Read 7251 times)