[man_of_steel]

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

Not only from the oil filter, but from the RHS case near the kick start lever and brakes. I've the remaining oil. So should I pour rest of the oil, I mean the remaining 500ml ?

Hold it! I think I made a mistake! Adrian has pointed out that you can't drain more than 2.35 L of oil from the UCE! So 2Ls refill is sufficient I guess. I vaguely remember my mech filling 2.5 Ls but could be rusty memory! Anyways, if the oil level is correct(mid point) after filling 2Ls leave it at it. Do start the bike for a bit, switch off and confirm after the fill.

What about that grinding feeling? Apart from chain, can anything else cause this, like rear wheel bearing or some thing? Since that swing arm squeal is still present, I'm planning to replace that bush. Also, the bike feels the rear suspension is not working even though the suspension is set to the softest setting. The whole pleasure of riding is dampened due to these complaints.

Tightened chain is the most likely culprit here. Its good to start with that. And if you clean and lube the chain, this grinding sensation should reduce. But its always better to adjust the chain properly. An overtightened chain can damage the drive train. IIRC, TBTS's rear suspension is a bit stiff. But it will be better to get it checked for any leaks.

Regarding the leak near kick starter, there is an O-ring there. Ask them to inspect it if you are sure that it is not excess chain lube from the front sprocket.

[drdeepudev]

Originally Posted by man_of_steel

Regarding the leak near kick starter, there is an O-ring there. Ask them to inspect it if you are sure that it is not excess chain lube from the front sprocket.

I had read it some where in this thread itself. The sump capacity as per manual is 2.75 ltrs. That made me think. I have used the bike for 500 plus km after the oil change and the oil level looks just fine.

Regarding the chain, I religiously follow the chain clean and lube procedure every 500 - 1000kms interval.

Nope, that oil stain was not from the excess lube. Ill ask the mechanic to get that O - ring checked.

Thank You.

[adrian]

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

The sump capacity as per manual is 2.75 ltrs.
Regarding the chain, I religiously follow the chain clean and lube procedure every 500 - 1000kms interval.
Thank You.

2.75 L is the volume of oil you can add to a fresh engine or a rebuilt engine. I change the engine oil of my bullet myself and what I do is that I measure the drained oil before refilling with fresh oil. I have got readings of 1.9, 2.1 etc, but never more than that after waiting for about 45 minutes, tilting and bouncing the motorcycle. Now think of how much the RE ASS would drain in 5 minutes or so. You also have to pay for 2.75 litres.

I don't know about the Thunderbird with the new type of swing arm, but the manual of my Standard UCE 350 recommends 25-30 mm free play in the drive chain. Please refer to your manual and adjust the chain free play. The complaint mentioned- "the suspension is not working even in the softest setting" is a classic indication of a very tight drive chain. The reason is that the tight chain won't allow the swing arm to extend beyond a certain point when the motorcycle is over rough patches and it gives the feeling of the suspension not working or bottoming out. The rumble and grumble could also be due to a busted bearing from a too tight chain.
regards adrian

[drdeepudev]

Originally Posted by adrian

adrian

So, I believe I can stick on to the present volume of oil and will take a cautious approach.

Regarding the drive chain, ill get it checked ASAP and will report back.

Can a faulty swing arm bush cause bad suspension? The mechanic informed me that he has to take the swing arm to a lathe to get it done. Is that true?

Thanks, Deepu

[adrian]

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

So, I believe I can stick on to the present volume of oil and will take a cautious approach.

Regarding the drive chain, ill get it checked ASAP and will report back.

Can a faulty swing arm bush cause bad suspension? The mechanic informed me that he has to take the swing arm to a lathe to get it done. Is that true?

Thanks, Deepu

1.Ride the motorcycle for a couple of kilometers to get the engine into running temperature.
2.Keep the motorcycle in center stand in your garage on a level surface, switch off the engine and wait for around 15 minutes to allow the oil to seep back into the sump.
3. Check the oil at eye level. The ideal/perfect reading should be halfway between the high and low marks.
4. Don't worry if the oil window is full even after 15 minutes. Just leave the machine as such and take a cold reading next day in the morning.
5.If, on a cold engine, the oil level is on the high mark, even it is considered overfilled, it is OK.
6. If the oil window is fully filled regardless of whether the engine is hot or cold, then you should consider it as grossly overfilled and take corrective action. I don't remember, but somewhere in this forum, ArizonaJim has made a detailed post on the oil level query of the bullets.

A bad swing arm bush feels like you are riding with a punctured rear tyre.
1. Keep the motorcycle in center stand.
2. Hold the rear wheel at 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock and try to rock it horizontally (push and pull).
3. If there is movement, then the swing arm bushes have failed.

The newer bullets have plastic swing arm bushes. After installing the new swing arm bushes, there is a process called reaming to adjust the inner diameter of the bushes to 18.9mm. This is done in the lathe with a reaming machine.

[drdeepudev]

Got the chain loosened. Voila, the grinding feeling that I mentioned disappeared. Thank you for your inputs Adrian and man of steel. But, I believe its time to replace the chain lock as there is a rhythmic sound ( like trk..trk.. ).

I used to check the oil level that way only. After riding for few kilometres, ill place the bike in centre stand and will inspect the level. The level is fine as per your description.

I've tried to move the wheel as you mentioned and its not moving. Even I'm trying this for past few days. Thanks for the detailed info. But what I'm bothered about is the squeak which is coming from that region when hitting a pot hole. No amount of lubricating is helping. So, are you saying not to touch/ replace the swing arm bush if there is no movement?

Thanks and regards,
Deepu

[ArizonaJim]

Just a few thoughts:

With the motorcycle on the center stand, if the oil level in the sight window is above the bottom and below the top, don't worry and don't add any oil to the engine. It is fine.

The older UCE's like my 2011 only had a drain plug and the oil pump inlet screen cover plate to drain out the old oil. Refills required just under 2 liters.
The new UCE's have another drain plug under the crankshaft so, with this removed, more oil is drained out of the engine.
This is why the newer Royal Enfield UCE's require more oil to refill them. Usually, the amount will be slightly less than 2.5 liters.

An overly tight chain can make noise. It should be adjusted like man_of_steel recommends, with both wheels on the ground and the rider sitting on the seat.

The rubber block under the chain is there to dampen noise caused by the chain rubbing the rear fork crosstube. Replacing it may help to reduce the noise your hearing.

In the meantime, with the motorcycle sitting on the center stand and the rear wheel clear of the ground, try to move the rear wheel back and forth sideways.
If you hear clicking or clunking noises coming from the hub, the rear wheel bearings are defective and must be replaced.

If your rear shock absorbers have a cover over the spring, these covers have been known to rub the springs as the rear wheel moves up and down. This can also cause noises. (I don't think RE uses these covers anymore but I thought I should mention it.)

A 2014 Thunderbird should have no trouble accelerating to over 105 kmph. In fact, it should cruise long distances nicely at that speed and be able to accelerate to over 120 kmph.

If you haven't changed the air filter, I suspect that it is plugged.
Also, if you (or your mechanic) has overfilled the engine oil, some of it can be blown out of the crankcase ventilator onto the air filter.

Check the condition of the air filter. If it is dirty and/or oily, change it.
Although some dirt and dust can be knocked out of a paper element filter, it can never be totally cleaned. If it is oily, there is no possible way of cleaning it to a new condition.

[drdeepudev]

Originally Posted by ArizonaJim

Just a few thoughts:

.

Sir, Thanks for the reply.

I've adjusted the chain as advised and the grinding sensation is better.

Oil level is just fine. Hence will only add rest of the oil if needed.

The air filter is new. I replace the filter every 9000 km or so and get it cleaned every 3000km during the time of oil change. The present filter has done around 6000km till date and was cleaned 500km back. ( I ride around 120km a day in this thunderbird).

I have tried moving the rear wheel side ways when the bike is placed on centre stand and there is no visible movement.

Earlier, the bike used to touch 100 easily. Off late its struggling to do so. That caused the panic. I've to try speeding tomorrow and have to see whether over tight chain caused the issue.

Should I replace the swing arm bush because of squeaks when hitting pot holes? I lubricated the swing arm rod 500kms back, but the squeaks started reappearing.

Thank you for the inputs.
Regards, Deepu

[Rugged]

What is the exact duration service the Bike ?
I mean is it every 2000 kms or 3000 kms ?

How about the wheel spokes ?
How often is a wheel-throw required ?

I have to press hard to horn , is it a warning for a low battery ?

[adrian]

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

But, I believe its time to replace the chain lock as there is a rhythmic sound ( like trk..trk.. ).
Deepu

AFAIK, the chain is locked with an e-clip. I don't think if changing that would be a remedy to your sound issue. Clean and lubricate your chain and build some kilometers on your odometer. Hopefully the sound might resolve by itself. Just shorten the lubrication interval.

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

I've tried to move the wheel as you mentioned and its not moving. But what No amount of lubricating is helping. So, are you saying not to touch/ replace the swing arm bush if there is no movement?
Deepu

If there is no wheel wobble and play, then don't touch the swing arm. Why repair something which is not bad ?

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

I'm bothered about is the squeak which is coming from that region when hitting a pot hole.

Deepu

Just try the following and see if the squeaking sound goes away.

Spray the area I have marked in the picture with silicone spray / oil would also suffice, but silicone will recondition the rubber seal which dries out in time and produce squeaks when it rubs against the shaft.



(picture courtsey -Team-BHP)

Originally Posted by ArizonaJim

Just a few thoughts:


The older UCE's like my 2011 only had a drain plug and the oil pump inlet screen cover plate to drain out the old oil. Refills required just under 2 liters.
The new UCE's have another drain plug under the crankshaft so, with this removed, more oil is drained out of the engine.

So the new UCEs have 3 drain plugs in total. My 2011 February Standard has 2 drain plugs - the primary which has the oil filter screen and the secondary being the hex nut located right below the gear assembly. The service guys drained the oil only through the primary drain nut and when I questioned them on this they answered that the secondary shouldn't be opened too often as there is a risk of the threads getting damaged Lazy buggers - Now what are they going to do with three drain plugs.

The key for a correct engine oil refill (assuming that the machine had correct oil level before draining) is to measure the oil that you have drained (don't forget to add the amount of oil absorbed by the replaced oil filter), and watch that oil window while refilling. Stop filling when oil is between the high and low marks and do the engine oil level test. You can add oil if the level is low, but believe me, draining off excess oil is a messy job.

[drdeepudev]

Originally Posted by adrian

.

I've tried drained engine oil at the point you have mentioned. Ill get silicone spray as advised.

Previously, my chain which was replaced at 20000km had the same sound occasionally and I have replaced the chain lock twice for this and it solved the problem. That's why I thought of replacing that.

Also, I'm shocked to discover a drain bolt covered with m-seal. The lowest one. Probably the service centre guys damaged the thread and for leak they might have done this.

Thanks Adrian for the detailed info.
Update: Loosened the chain, the grinding feeling has reduced. I had previously mentioned that top speed is suffering. Today morning, the bird touched 90 without much strain. Hence I can assume the drive chain caused so much trouble. Thanks.

[FuelInjector]

Not sure if this question is right in this forum.
@mods - please help move this question to the right forum.

Have booked a RE500. The load has come in. Have requested the dealer for a PDI before paying the invoice amount. The sales guy said that, since they are direct RE outlet (and not a separate dealer), he can offer a PDI after raising an invoice and me doing a NEFT. His argument is, if they have 5 vehicles in stock, they cannot make me take my pick, rather after paying the invoice amount, RE would allocate a vehicle in serial manner.
Once that allocation is done, am free to do a PDI, test drive etc. before sending the vehicle for registration. If some defects are observed, they would re-allocate another vehicle (but still i cannot have my pick)

Just wanted to ensure, this is the right process. can someone confirm this please?

[farhadtarapore]

Originally Posted by FuelInjector

Not sure if this question is right in this forum.
@mods - please help move this question to the right forum.

Have booked a RE500. The load has come in. Have requested the dealer for a PDI before paying the invoice amount. The sales guy said that, since they are direct RE outlet (and not a separate dealer), he can offer a PDI after raising an invoice and me doing a NEFT. His argument is, if they have 5 vehicles in stock, they cannot make me take my pick, rather after paying the invoice amount, RE would allocate a vehicle in serial manner.
Once that allocation is done, am free to do a PDI, test drive etc. before sending the vehicle for registration. If some defects are observed, they would re-allocate another vehicle (but still i cannot have my pick)

Just wanted to ensure, this is the right process. can someone confirm this please?

I had also asked for PDI before vehicle is sent for registration, but didn't get any call for doing that. Got a call that the vehicle has arrive from registration and I can take the delivery.

Thankfully, there were no issues I found in my post-delivery PDI

[adrian]

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

I've tried drained engine oil at the point you have mentioned. Ill get silicone spray as advised.

Did it resolve the squeaking ?

Originally Posted by drdeepudev

Also, I'm shocked to discover a drain bolt covered with m-seal. The lowest one. Probably the service centre guys damaged the thread and for leak they might have done this.

Could you please post a picture ?

[drdeepudev]

Originally Posted by adrian

Did it resolve the squeaking ?



Could you please post a picture ?

Nope. Yesterday, searched for silicone spray in my town and the closest I could get was Abro AB80. Read its basically a petroleum product just like WD40 and hence, I didn't purchase that. But, I sprayed some amount of Wd 40 in the area u mentioned ( I know it can damage the rubber) left it for 2 hours and sprayed Motul chain lube C2 in the same area. But on riding with pillion today morning the squeaks are present. So, what next?

Yes, ill take a photo and post here. Need to grab my laptop for resizing the image.