1984 shovel head

I have redone the oil lines on a 1984 shovel head, I run them exactly as they were and checked them with the harley book. I started the bike and it is pouring out of the breather which is a after market but has been on the bike with no problem, I was told that it could be because the bike had been sitting for a couple of years and the owner may have over filled the oil.

The valve that's supposed to keep oil in the tank from draining down into the crankcase ain't the greatest & when a Harley sits for a long time with oil in the tank, you can bet it'll drain down. Then when you start the engine, the oil pump will scavenge it right back out & return it to the tank like it's supposed to. But if you've refilled the tank, there's way too much oil & the pump can't refill a full tank, so it'll force the oil out the breather & any other place it'll go.

so it will stop on its own

If the oil tank is full & the crankcase is too, it won't stop until you've got oil all over the place. If it was me, I'd drain most of the oil from the tank & start the bike with the cap off to see if oil is being returned. I wouldn't leave it run very long, just long enough to check. If the crankcase is full of oil & I'd bet it is, then the pump will scavenge it out, but it needs room in the tank to go to. Then drain it all & change the filter. If everything is OK after that, I'd do another oil/filter change within a day or so - heaven only knows what all crud is in the crankcase after sitting that long.

sounds great I will do that tomorrow.

Don't forget the cap and watch really close, I've shot my cap up a couple times:roflmao: sprayed oil on the ceiling:roflmao: but like art said, after sitting and puting oil back in, your prob about a quart or so high, and make sure you put your lines back right.

worked out good i drained and then kick started the bike and added a little at a time and now no more oil coming out. now it wont kick over with the starter only clicks, when we were turning it over it seemed to heat up the jack shaft solinoid and then the positive bolt was very lose i tightened it and now nothing, if i cross the circuit with a screw driver it turn but sounds like its binding and this may not have anything to do with this but now the directional don't work either

Whoa there - definitely don't want to get hydraulic lock. Get too much oil in the engine it won't turn over & you'll start breaking parts trying. 2 key factors are the oil pump scavenging oil out of the crankcase & returning it to the oil tank like it should & the valve that keeps oil from draining out of the tank back down into the crankcase when the engine's not running working properly.

When the engine's running, you should see oil moving in the tank all the time - if not, you've got a big problem. And if you keep filling the tank while oil is draining down into the crankcase, you'll over-fill the tank & fill up the crankcase too. Harleys run a "dry sump" oil system where the majority of the oil is in the tank all the time - there's no oil pan like a car. And they don't need a lot of oil pressure, but they do need a lot of oil flow for cooling.

thanks for the info I think this is a job for the pros I don't own this one I just did a friend a favor and replaced the oil lines and powder coated some parts this seems to be a train wreck with electrical and motor work. I am not that familiar with shovels.

Pull the timing plug and see if oil comes out?

ok I believe the oil issue is all set but now we are having problems starting the bike. we had a problem with the solinoid heating up so we replaced it and the new one does the same it seems to be sticking and turning over really really slow and it wont disengange and then heats the solinoid and i have to disconnect the neg. cable. please give me some ideas, I have replaced the solinoid, positive cable, starter relay anything else I can do.

If you're SURE that too much oil in the engine isn't a problem, 'bout the only thing left is the starter itself.

I am pretty sure, I did remove the timing plug and no oil comes out and when we did run it no more oil pouring or dripping from breather there was about atleast 1 quart or more over. I was wondering if the switch on the tank that turns on the power could be a problem it is finiky some times when the switch is on the light don't work then youhave to wiggle it and it will turn on. I am just not able to figure out way the starter still has power even though I turn the power off

Does sound like something goofy in the switch & perhaps the wiring too. Have you got the factory service manual? I don't know enough about that bike to help with the electrics.

I have my service manual which includes some 84 fx and it does have a wiring diagram this bike has flh front end so the wiring is a bite odd I just wonder if there are other relays that could be to blame, I know there are three other relays under the seat and one attached to the battery + side