Fixing Primary Inner Case Leak

SHORT VERSION OF LONG POST:
Inner Primary Case appears to be leaking at bolt to tranny. Will
applying silicone to the bolt and torquing the bolt to spec stop the
primary oil leak?

Long version: I=92ve checked the archives and didn=92t find any post on
this problem (but that doesn=92t mean there=92s none there). My 2002 FXDL
Low Rider has a leak behind the inner primary case. It=92s not
crankcase engine oil: the leaking fluid is clear, clean, and with
almost no odor (whereas on the oil dip stick, the crankcase engine oil
is not clear and is dark).

I raised the bike on a 2-arm m/c jack and sprayed brake cleaner around
the area to the rear of the primary case and to the inside between the
case and the oil pan where I saw the leak. I cranked (but not started)
the engine several times to get the oil to leak (turns out it will
leak by itself now without the engine running). Oil drops are
accumulating on a protruding post at the back of the inner primary
case where the case bolts to a threaded transmission tab. I can see
the flush end of a threaded bolt that appears to come from inside the
inner primary case through the case post that threads into the
transmission tab. The end of the bolt points toward the oil pan on
the other side of the transmission tab. The oil pan is clean.
There=92s no oil on the upper portion of the transmission tab that
implies the oil is not coming from anywhere above the bolt (like from
the tranny).

The FXDL factory manual shows the inside of the inner primary case
(but not the back of the case that faces the tranny). The inner case
drawings show three (3) Primary-to-Transmission locktab bolts located
on the right-half of the case (behind the clutch). One of the bolts
looks to be in the right spot (the lower-right bolt) where I see the
leak. So I'm assuming the bolt is loose, and/or any sealer applied
between the inner case and the transmission has broken down.

If I have isolated the leak correctly, I think there are a couple
options, but I don't know which is best (or correct):

Per the manual all my options would require removing the primary
chaincase cover then removing the primary chain, clutch, and
compensating sprocket to gain access to all three P-to-T bolts, then =85

A. Torque down all three bolts to spec and see if that stops the
leak.

B. Apply silicone sealer to all three bolts then torque them down and
see if the leak stops. This was done in an archived post to fix a
different primary leak.

C. Completely remove inner primary case, clean off the contact points
for all three P-to-T mounting bolts AND P-to-Engine bolts, add
silicone at the mounting points, then bolt the case back up to the
engine and transmission.

Are there other options??

The C. option sounds like a lot of work, but it would give me access
to the Jackshaft oil seal for a visual check. There's also mention of
a "crankcase lip O-ring" that's discarded and replaced when removing
the entire inner primary case.

Am I on the right track here? If so, any thoughts on which is the
best option (or is there a better option)??

TIA for any tips, suggestions, comments.

Manjo 2002 FXDL

On Apr 28, 3:07=A0pm, Manjo <manjo1...@gmail . com > wrote:
> SHORT VERSION OF LONG POST:
> Inner Primary Case appears to be leaking at bolt to tranny. =A0Will
> applying silicone to the bolt and torquing the bolt to spec stop the
> primary oil leak?
>
> Long version: I=92ve checked the archives and didn=92t find any post on
> this problem (but that doesn=92t mean there=92s none there). My 2002 FXDL
> Low Rider has a leak behind the inner primary case. =A0It=92s not
> crankcase engine oil: =A0the leaking fluid is clear, clean, and with
> almost no odor (whereas on the oil dip stick, the crankcase engine oil
> is not clear and is dark).
>
> I raised the bike on a 2-arm m/c jack and sprayed brake cleaner around
> the area to the rear of the primary case and to the inside between the
> case and the oil pan where I saw the leak. I cranked (but not started)
> the engine several times to get the oil to leak (turns out it will
> leak by itself now without the engine running). =A0Oil drops are
> accumulating on a protruding post at the back of the inner primary
> case where the case bolts to a threaded transmission tab. =A0I can see
> the flush end of a threaded bolt that appears to come from inside the
> inner primary case through the case post that threads into the
> transmission tab. =A0The end of the bolt points toward the oil pan on
> the other side of the transmission tab. =A0The oil pan is clean.
> There=92s no oil on the upper portion of the transmission tab that
> implies the oil is not coming from anywhere above the bolt (like from
> the tranny).
>
> The FXDL factory manual shows the inside of the inner primary case
> (but not the back of the case that faces the tranny). =A0The inner case
> drawings show three (3) Primary-to-Transmission locktab bolts located
> on the right-half of the case (behind the clutch). One of the bolts
> looks to be in the right spot (the lower-right bolt) where I see the
> leak. =A0So I'm assuming the bolt is loose, and/or any sealer applied
> between the inner case and the transmission has broken down.
>
> If I have isolated the leak correctly, I think there are a couple
> options, but I don't know which is best (or correct):
>
> Per the manual all my options would require removing the primary
> chaincase cover then removing the primary chain, clutch, and
> compensating sprocket to gain access to all three P-to-T bolts, then =85
>
> =A0 A. =A0Torque down all three bolts to spec and see if that stops the
> leak.
>
> =A0B. Apply silicone sealer to all three bolts then torque them down and
> see if the leak stops. =A0This was done in an archived post to fix a
> different primary leak.
>
> C. =A0Completely remove inner primary case, clean off the contact points
> for all three P-to-T mounting bolts AND P-to-Engine bolts, add
> silicone at the mounting points, then bolt the case back up to the
> engine and transmission.
>
> Are there other options??
>
> The C. option sounds like a lot of work, but it would give me access
> to the Jackshaft oil seal for a visual check. =A0There's also mention of
> a "crankcase lip O-ring" that's discarded and replaced when removing
> the entire inner primary case.
>
> Am I on the right track here? =A0If so, any thoughts on which is the
> best option (or is there a better option)??
>
> TIA for any tips, suggestions, comments.
>
> Manjo 2002 FXDL

Sorry. Accidentally posted here, but if anyone has been unlucky
enough to have this same problem and knows the fix, please post.

Otherwise, best regards, Manjo