The DX has 16,000 miles on it, which in itself is a bit mad for a Harley ‘cos most people don’t actually ride them.
The 15,000 mile service can be a biggy though mainly because the valve lash needs to be checked. There is also a complete fluid change.
I have known that the clutch fluid has needed doing because it has been looking a creamy brown, when the sun shines on it. Little did I know just how bad it was.
The first thing was to make a bleed bottle. I have spent years fighting with a 6 inches of pipe, a tall Tequila shot glass and some black electrical tape to hold it all together, including taping it to a fork, etc.
I got 3 foot of piping from B&Q, and then found an old Carex bottle. If you remove the pump mechanism the pipe fits in through the resulting hole quite snugly. To make it a bit more stable, I cable-tied it to a block of wood.
Tis perfect, if I say so myself.
First I did the clutch fluid. Removing the circular cover on the right engine casing provides access to the bleed nipple, and it is bled in the same way you would bleed brakes.
TIP: When you squeeze the clutch in, do it very slowly otherwise a jet of hydraulic fluid is shot up in the air to land, hopefully not on the paint work. The same applies when doing the brakes.
I managed to hit the driveway a few times, and in a moment of sheer fluke managed to get some to land on top of my head 🙂
Next was the rear brake. This requires removing the right hand radiator casing. This is just a case of undoing the allen bolt underneath, and then pull the top edge upwards and outwards and slide the cover downwards. The reservoir is then accessible.
Lastly, I did the front brakes. The right hand side was done first, and then the left hand side.
The way I did each reservoir was to pump through as much fluid as I could, until it was barely covering the bottom. I did not pump any air in to the system.
I then soaked up the remaining fluid from the reservoir, and gave it a wipe around. The reservoir was then filled with clean fluid (Dot4). I then repeatedly pump the fluid through until it came through clear.
In the case of the front brakes, doing the right side first dealt with most of the dirty fluid. It did not take much to pump through the dirt in the left pipe/caliper.
As you see from the photo, the fluid certainly needed doing!