Oil quantities

Hello all, I have an 07 fatboy (96b) and am going to change out the three oils. After doing some research (and knowing that there is motul syn in there now) I plan on switching to amsoil syn 20/50 in the engine, syn 10/40 in the primary, and severe gear 75/90 in the tranny. I already have an HD filter, how much of each of the different weights of oil do I need to buy? I assume that the primary and the tranny have the original fluids in them, and the former owner told me about the motul syn in the engine. The bike has 6000 miles on it.

Amsoil is a great choice in oil that i use in my ride.I first used the SYN3 but had the problem of finding nuetral.There is another one called redline that others have said is a good one.I buy 5 bottles of the 20/50, one extra for top ups and a bottle of the 10/40 for primary 24oz and bottle of the 75/90 for tranny 32oz.Some like to put heavier grade in the primary but i like the 10/40 weight, i think it would run cooler.Check with your shop manual if you have one for the right amounts...

thanks roadinger, so 5, 1 and 1 should get me there. Thanks to all for the advice to buy the shop manual for the bike. I don't have the owners manual either, the bike was reposessed by harley financial so I am sure the original owner was not thrilled, and then it was auctioned. I was told buying the owners manual was a waste of time, but the service manual is good. I was told it was a bit pricey, but I will look into it at the dealership. I donot plan any drivetrain mods at all, so I figured good preventative maintenance will get me through. I am very mechanically experienced and will be performing all the work myself.
thanks

It can be confusing 'cause engine & primary/transmission oils are rated differently. 75W90 gear lube sounds a lot heavier than 10W40 engine oil but it's not. The difference is in formulation & additive package & while some engine oils have the friction modifier in primary fluid to keep the clutch from slipping, many do not. The other factor is shear & while gear lubes are formulated to handle the forces gears put on each other & not get wiped off, engine oils are not. You can get away with using some engine oils in the primary/trans too, but that's definitely not the best way to go.

FLHTbiker sez:

Red Line for me too & I don't buy the one size fits all deal either, but I understand how they get away with it - additives. For example, many Japanese bikes have the trans in the same cases as the engine & the oil goes thru both, so it not only needs to be a good engine oil, it needs additives to handle shear in the trans & also keep the clutch from slipping.

Sportsters share the primary & trans fluid & I use Red Line 75W90. SAE 50 or 60 in the engines, weather depending. The engine oils are also designated 20W50 & 60, but because they can pass the cold-flow tests, not because the oil is multi-grade. 20W50 conventional starts out being 20 weight, then additives are mixed in to make it act like a 50 weight hot - "nice theory" the chemical engineer I worked for said. But synthetics are different & a 50 weight synthetic will flow as well cold as a 20 weight conventional.

In one Sportster setup built for Land-Speed-Record runs I've got a Zippers trap door that seals the trans off from the primary - 3 different oils in it. Same for the engine & primary as the street bikes, but Red Line "Shockproof" in the trans. I use the Light in that application, but for big twins, the Heavy is better.

Git you a K&N chrome oil filter, it has a 11/16 nut on the end, Makes it easy to put on and take off. It also has a check ball.
Git Amsoil MCV 20-50 for the motor and primary.
Git SVO 75-140 for the transmission.

Carry the oil nut to the auto parts store and git some new o rings incase one is cut or nicked so you can replace them on the motor drain plug transmssion plug or the primary plug.

These will be a great combo for yer bike.

Put Autolite plugs in it when the times comes.

thank you for the advice. The filter on the bike now has the nut on the end, but when I sent my wife to the dealership (she was right nearby) she got a harley one with no nut, what a PITA (the filter, not the wife). I will look into the K&N

Noticed you put 75-140. I've been running the 110. How do you like the thicker stuff?

Got a buddy we was puttn the 75-90 in on his 08 bike, his transmission was still makin a noise. We put the SVO 75-140 in and it quitened down a lot more and the sound has nearly gone. I've put it in mine since.
Been runnin it for a year now.
Time to change it too.
If anybody wants to become a amsoil dealer so they can buy the oil cheaper I will give you my dealer number for you to use when you join.

I'm using syn3 in all 3 holes right now with no problems. My next oil change I am going with Mobil 1 in the engine, HD formula + for primary and spectro GL1 trans oil made for 6 speeds. Is syn 3 really that bad? I hear more bad than good.

I did the changes and have amsoil 20 50 in the engine, amsoil 10 40 in the primary and severe gear 75 90 in the tranny. I have only had it out for one ride (crappy weather) but all is good. I will see if things get smoother or quieter.

Since you all are talking about oil quantities, I hope you don't mind if I throw in a question. I got a situation. I just done the 1K oil change on my '09 Softail and went straight by the owners manual. I've always done my own maintainance on my bikes, all our vehicles for that matter over the last 40 years, but this is my first Harley. I went straight by the owners manual. After refilling the oil tank with 3 1/2 quarts, again according to the manual, I checked the level and it was too full according to the dipstick. So I checked the amount that I drained and found that only about 2 1/2 quarts drained and before changing the level was good on the dipstick. So I rechecked the level of the Synthetic and although it showed too much, the manual says that when checking it cold, the level should come up to the filler neck weld on the tank which is about where it is. So I started it to check for leaks, etc., then shut it off and rechecked the level after a couple of minutes. It still checks too full and the level is still at the weld of the filler neck. Did I do something wrong? Not sure what it would be. I certainly don't want to run the crankcase too full because of potential aeriation of the oil, if that can occur in Harleys. Is any oil stored in the block below the crank that could foam? Do I need to drain a quart? What gives?:gah:
Thanks for any help.
Danny

My bike calls for 3.8 quarts, both me and the dealer put 4 quarts in. this will make it go over the full mark some. I use the dip stick as a guide line.
But I think it's better to have a little more oil incase yer bike uses some than to have less and be low on oil.
But I would do as yer manual says. And did you check it upright or on the kickstand, check yer manual for yer bike. Some dipsticks has what to do on them also.

Oil is not supposed to drain down into the crankcase when the bike is sitting, but it can & the longer the bike sits, the more likely that is to happen. Only way to get a correct oil level reading is when the engine is running, or right after you've cut it off.

Checked her on the kickstand (or Jiffy stand) just like the book said. Ya' know, somehow the words "Harley" and "jiffy stand" just don't seem right for each other. Maybe it's just me but........................
Thanks for the advice. Don't want to mess up a good ride.
Danny

Didn't realize it would be okay to check it running. Thanks.
Danny

I'll give that a try too. I called the dealer before I got online and he said to take out about 1/2 quart and, as you said, ride it for a warm up and recheck.
Thanks,
Danny