Spark Plug Replacement on a Harley Davidson Street Glide

This is going to be a short post and its one of those stand bye posts that Ill pull from the closet when life is busy. We started a new construction project at work so for the next 6 weeks I probably wont get a weekend off to write about much.

SPARK PLUGS! Another super easy maintenance task! The service manual schedule lists this to be performed at 30K miles. You will need a couple, literally 2, special tools for this. The tools are not expensive and easily obtainable. Not only that but you will be able to use these 2 tools on your car as well! Dual purpose! Or in my case quad purpose having 2 SUV's and 2 bikes.

For changing spark plugs you will need a spark plug socket and a gap tool/gauge. You can get the tools at Autozone or for that matter any auto supply shop. You'll need to be sure to get a spark plug socket. These are a bit different from a standard deep socket. It will have a rubber insert in the top portion of the socket. The rubber is put inside to keep the metal sides of a standard socket from chipping or cracking the porcelain on the top part of the spark plug. It also grabs the socket which makes it easier to remove from the cylinder once you've got the spark plug loose.

The spark plug gauge is used to measure the correct gap for the firing of the plug. Though this is important, its not as critical as you might be concerned about seeing as the gap measurement for my stock Street Glide is .025-.038. That is a huge range to have available and very easy to achieve with a gap tool. Not that I would do this since I have the tool but that range is so big you can almost eyeball the correct gap.

I purchased Screaming Eagle spark plugs from our local dealership. Go to the parts counter and let them get the plugs for you based on the year and engine in your bike. They will also ask you if you have engine mods such as a stage 1. This will determine what plugs you need. The plugs are different so you want to be sure to get the correct ones. Pick up a tube of thread anti-seize stuff too. This will help prevent the plug threads from rusting or seizing from carbon in the cylinder for the next change out.

Gently pull the sparkplug cable off to reveal the plug. Get that sparkplug socket out and put it on making sure you feel the rubber inside the socket is secure on the plug. Remove the plug and inspect the end. The color will give a very good indication to how your engine is running. The following assessment is a consolidated explanation, your service manual will provide more details.

1- A wet black and shiny deposit indicates an oil fouled spark plug.

2- A dry fluffy or sooty black deposit indicates an air fuel mixture that is too rich

3- A light brown glassy deposit indicates an overheated sparkplug caused by a lean air fuel mixture.

4- White, yellow, tan or rusty brown powdery deposit indicates balanced combustion.

Get one of the new sparkplugs and set your gauge tool anywhere between .025 and .038 and stick it between the sparkplug contacts. If it doesn't fit, softly grab the contact with a pair of pliers and bend it up a bit until you can get the gauge in between. If its too loose you can very lightly tap the end on a towel on a solid surface until the gap is correct. You'll want the gauge to fit snugly between the contacts and touch both sides.

Now wipe a bit of the anti-seize lubricant on the threads and put it back in using your hand at first to make sure your not cross threading the plug into the cylinder. Once you cant turn it with your hand anymore use the sparkplug socket again and tighten. This is kind of important, you have to be careful not to over tighten the plug.  If you do and ream out the cylinder threads your gonna be in a world of hurt and out of a lot of money to replace the top of your heads.  You don't have to use a torque wrench but if you have one use it and tighten the plugs to 12-18 foot pounds as indicated by the service manual.

Inspect the cables for cracks and if their ok put them back on. You might hear or feel a slight snap as the contact engages with the top of the plug. This will help you to know if its on all the way.  That's it!  A simple quick maintenance task that will save you a few bucks and again help you know whats going on with your bike.

Sparkplug Change Slideshow

Dinner Ride to Godley

We finally did all of that work around the house that we had planned for the last couple weeks. Most of it was yard work and after a long day of that, we were tired, hungry and didn't feel like cooking anything. There had been something like a 50% chance of rain all day but we didn't even get a drop. Sundays chance for rain had gone up considerably so we thought it would be a good opportunity to get take a short ride and get some fantastic food.

We called our friends George and Pat to see if they wanted to go with us, which they did, so we decided to meet up with them at the dealership. Margaret and I arrived quite a bit early so I could look at some new winter jacket options. The one I have has this collar ring that has never broken in and I always feel like I'm being choked while wearing it. We did find one that fit very well so I'll keep it in mind and do some more shopping before making a final decision.

George and Pat rolled up, did a few circles in the parking lot, and then we headed out. The ride was very short, about 50 miles round trip, which was fine especially since we were seeing pockets of rain clouds scattered around. We only got sprinkled on one time the entire evening somehow managing to ride in between the pockets of rain. There were some wet roads from showers in one area that left quite a bit of standing water. At one point we had to make a turn off the road coming down a hill on a wet road. I heard a skid noise and looked in my mirror to see Margaret getting a bit sideways while trying to stop. She did good though, let off the rear brake which brought the bike back into line. She didn't panic, knew how to handle the situation, and the crisis was averted. When I saw this I decided to go past the turn since the skidding caused her some issues in slowing down enough to make the turn. I didn't want her to skid more while trying to slow down too fast or turn too wide and have an accident so we just eased to the side of the road past our turn and decelerated safely, made a u-turn and went on our way.

We arrived in Godley and ate at the Del Norte Taco restaurant. They seriously have the best taco's I've ever eaten. The line to order was 10 people deep so we had a seat and waited for it to subside. It took quite awhile as more people kept coming but it was nice to relax and enjoy the evening with George and Pat. As usual, the tacos were wonderful and we spent a couple hours there having a good time. Alas, all good things come to an end, night fell upon us and we still had to ride home. So we parted ways on full stomachs and good memories and headed home in the quiet of the night.

Dinner ride to Del Norte Taco in Godley, TX

These are a few pictures Margaret took when we got there, and for the record, I don't like having my picture taken...

Fort Worth HOG 2013 Chapter Picnic & Parts Installation

This weekend was super busy for both of us. Again, we had plans to do some work around the house but all of that changed when Margaret got her new grips. I received the call from Fort Worth Harley that her parts had arrived earlier in the week so we went to get them Friday evening. When we got to the dealership they also had the saddlebag guards I had ordered. I started whining a bit to Margaret that Saturday would be a labor intensive day without rest, slaving away installing parts. During this whining along with the support of Nick, Patrick, Daniel, and Phil, she grabbed a set of edge cut saddlebag hinges off the shelf behind us for my bike and said that would be my payment for doing all the work. Awesome, whining pays off!

Saturday was a parts installation day. I started with her grips and we decided to do our first video of parts installation. In the past we would post photos of the process so we wanted to mix things up a bit and see how it went. I wont elaborate here about it since the entire process is covered in the video. It did come out really good and I hope it can help someone install their own grips and adjust their throttle by watching it.

I also installed the saddlebag guards and saddlebag hinge covers on my bike. We also did videos of that process which I'll work into future posts.

Sunday was the Fort Worth HOG Chapter Picnic! This is an annual event and our second time attending.  It is held at the Canyon West Golf Course in Weatherford, TX which is a beautiful place to have the picnic. We met at the dealership to line up for the parade ride to the golf course. This year the weather turned out very nice from the previous year. It was a bit chilly in the morning, 58 degrees when we left the house but soon warmed up to the mid 70's. The parade ride went well, no traffic issues and it turned out to be a very pleasant ride to start the morning. Upon arrival those that wanted to ride the golf course staged while others parked their bikes.  This is a unique opportunity that Canyon West allows us. We ride our bikes on the cart paths for all 18 holes and stop on the 9th for a photo shoot of the Chapters members. It's a whole lot of fun and brings a good laugh to be able to do this. Golfers are taking pictures of us and waving as we ride on the cart paths while were waving and taking their pictures in return.

Next on the agenda were bike games! I love the bike games. We are a motorcycle riding group thus bike games only make sense! There were 5 bike games offered and Margaret and I did all of them. I was very proud of her because she competed in the single rider slow race even though she is still new to riding. She said she didn't want her fear of trying something new on a bike to keep her from doing it. The bike games included a single rider slow race, couples slow race, ball drop, road kill toss, and weeny grab. We did well again this year taking 1st in 4 of the 5 bike games.

After the games, there was a yummy lunch and home baked sweets to satisfy our hunger. Shortly after eating lunch the monthly Chapter meeting was conducted, prizes for the bike games, and raffle ticket prizes were given away. The day concluded with a water balloon toss and a poke and run game. I was the unfortunate victim that broke the water balloon and got wet.

We rode home and relaxed from all of the excitement. We were both tired and didn't even take time to download our pictures for the blog. I didn't even take the GoPro this time. For whatever reason, I didn't want to keep up with it or worry about taking video. I just wanted to enjoy the day, spend time with Chapter members, and have fun. Margaret took the camera though and managed to snap a few shots. Until next time, Ride Strong, Ride Safe.

Fort Worth HOG Chapter Picnic 2013 Slideshow

Installing Grips and Adjusting the Throttle on a Harley Davidson 2013 Softail Deluxe