| Author | Message | ||
     Stormfool |
Just curious how many people have fitted some kind of a catch can to their Buell (either for the head breather or primary). I finally got fed up with the puke from the stock airbox and fitted one. Then found at high speeds the vent hose tucked up under the tailpiece (primary breather) was puking onto the rear fender--so I routed another line for that to the catch can. Success! An Oil-free exterior. I have heard from others that their catch cans just puked onto the bike from the filter anyway. So far so good. The capacity of my catch can is about one liter and I rigged the internals so that the puke/spew cannot revert through the filter on top. I have been told by a Harley/Buell tech (I refuse to nomer them mechanics) that the head breather need the vacuum created by the intake to operate correctly. Perhaps true. Any knowledge on this? I fitted the "cure" with checkballs instead of umbrella valves. Supposed to have all sorts of miraculous properties--one of which is the elimination of airbox puke. Well it made more puke if anything. What are your thoughts on this matter? | ||
| M2me |
My thoughts are I wasted my money if what you say is true about the "Cure+" product. I bought it this winter but haven't put it in yet. I am wondering what you mean by "checkballs instead of umbrella valves". You are not supposed to take the umbrella valves out. The instructions say to replace them with new ones. So it would be "checkballs in addition to umbrella valves". About needing intake vacuum to work properly, I've always suspected that this makes the puking problem worse by sucking in oil mist. But this is just my suspicion. I have no proof one way or another. | ||
| Spiderman |
Put on the Cure and I still use my catch can. I just put in new rings so she is still spewing a bit. | ||
| Mbsween |
I have a Yodude can on my X1. I got tired of all the friggin oil on the timing cover and wondering how much oil in the air intake was helping performance. I keep forgetting to empty the damn thing tho, Now I get oil on the other side of the motor. (all my other bikes have been inline4 types, they leak from other places) Someone told me that getting the breathers out of the airbox was worth a HP or two an high rpm. It makes sense if you consider that an air-oil-fuel mix must burn much worse than an air-fuel mix. But this logic would assume constant puking. How much puking is "normal", or is a your mileage may vary area? | ||
| Rick_A |
I have a catch tube for the head/crankcase breather. Low buck with some fuel line and a spigot for draining. Works great. On humid days I have some greasy water to empty. I used to have a oil/gauze filter on it but it did puke every time it got wet. Now I have the breather tube unfiltered and pointing towards the ground. Works as intended. | ||
| Stormfool |
Thanks for the feedback. I did not install the "cure" myself--if the umbershoots are in there so be it. I thought it replaced them all together. I get about an ounce of fluid tops from a hundred mile ride. Not sure if one ounce of puke burned with three gallons of gas would effect the power that much. Has anyone had oil spew from the vent hose off the primary (under the battery tray and tucked up into the tailpiece on the X-1). At high speeds this became an issue. But it only happened just recently. Is this a sign of something else? Just like to keep my eyes open. | ||
| Aesquire |
I had a catch can on my last 3 bikes, the only way to go. Suzuki 750, 1100, Yamaha 750. I found page after page on this site about breathers (THANKS ALL!) and if you want to spend $200 on fancy billet gear, you can. Come spring (come on spring!) I will install a catch can on this bike too, I find it a useful diagnostic tool to look at what comes out of the engine. plus a couple a hp , and a cleaner bike make this little defiance of the EPA worth while IMHO. I myself am planning on using hose & a redbull can. It's an energy drink, right? | ||
| Ravnos |
I have a catch can on my bike. It's a lot more low tech and lower dollar. I took a water botlle (you can use a soda bottle too)a little 16oz. and chopped an inch off the top so I could fit both the breather and the primary vent in it. It might not look as pretty but you can tell how much is in there and saved me a few bucks. | ||
| Bomber |
home-brewed catch can here . . .. the breather needs the vacuum from the airbox to work? er, find another tech is my advice, and soon . . . he's not qualified to work on your bike | ||
| Ara |
I've got a clear polyethelyne catch tube with a drain on the end for each jug, and a two-nipple breather filter on my S3. Works fine, no mess, and I can monitor the level of the gunk in the tubes visually. | ||
| Djkaplan |
I get a kick out of everyone's catch can solutions. I've seen some high dollar set-ups that looked good and some that looked pretty ridiculous (not naming names!). I went low-buck, low-tech with an extemely large fuel filter that I installed a vacuum tube nipple on as a drain. The filter has an element on the top and a cylindrical reservoir. The "spooge" enters the reservoir and the element filters any air that gets sucked back in. Works good and looks factory! It cost about $5 (not including beer) and an hour to fabricate. | ||
| Lake_Bueller |
I have a Bomber Special Model 2  Looks good. Works great. | ||
| Road_Thing |
Quote: "It cost about $5 (not including beer) and an hour to fabricate." So I guess I'd get away cheaper by just buying one of those high-dollar jobbies, huh?  r-t | ||
| Buckinfubba |
on our very expensive factory buell sponsored race bikes at tilley's we use a very high dollar catch can that should be on eveery bodies bike. Its a clear plastic tub like thing with a blue lid with very percise breathing holes in it. whats the cost...I am not sure but I've seen them on the shelves at wal mart very cheap in the tupper ware isle. Who would have thought wal mart would have gotten into the motorcycle aftermarket business... just laughin seesya bubba | ||
| Bomber |
(blush) . . .thanks mennis! | ||
| Bads1 |
Bomber any word on the BOMBER CAN progress for me BOMBER. (grin) | ||
| Bomber |
bad . . .. can Mk XIV in the polishing stage as we speak | ||
| Bads1 |
BOMBER YOU ARE THE BEST TO AWESOME!!!!!!! | ||
| Bomber |
Bad . . .wait'll you see it first, bro (smile) . . . the engraver just finished putting the truck-mud-flap nekkid lady on it, just like you ordered . . . .looks GREAT! | ||
| Mikej |
Best to awesome, much better than fair to middlin'.  (Just funnin'.) | ||
| Bomber |
ROFLMAO! good one Mike . . .. . stayed a little too long at starbucks this AM, dintya? | ||
| Mikej |
Starbucks was in the wrong direction away from work, I stopped at the SuperAmerica for a $.79 fuzzy 24ouncer. Just makin' pictures today, lots of time, no brain power, click and wait, surf and wait, point and shoot, send as an attachment, lather rinse repeat. | ||
| Bruce1 |
For what it is worth, I used some fuel line and routed the breather line behind the engine and then wired tied it to the bottom of the kick stand. Nothing leaking any where except occationally a bit of funny colored stuff from condensation occationally on stand after a ride. Same stuff the used to leak everywhere down the side. | ||
| Kent |
Stormfool said, "Has anyone had oil spew from the vent hose off the primary (under the battery tray and tucked up into the tailpiece on the X-1). At high speeds this became an issue. But it only happened just recently. Is this a sign of something else?" My experience with my S1W and wifes'M2, in both cases the oil puking from the primary vent was cured by replacing the crankshaft seal between the crankcase and the primary. Both mine started leaking just enough to make a mess and my S1W gradually progressed to the point of filling a 6oz puke can during a spirited 50-70mile high speed ride through the twistys. BTW this must be a fairly common problem because they have updated the seal. It now looks very different than the original in that it has a double lip, one on each side. Friends with Buells have also had the same problem. I would say that anyone that sees oil puking from the primary vent and it was not over filled might possibly have the beginning stages of a leaking primary side crank seal. Just my 2 cents. Kent | ||
| Koz5150 |
The Crankcase seal failing is a common problem on '99+ sportster motors. I read an article on it in Ironworks back in January. I confirmed this with my dealer mechanic as it seems to have shown up on my Dad's 2001 Sportster. The way you can test for this is the dealer can put a die in the Crankcase oil. Run the bike for a day and then check the engine oil for the die. Harley is aware of the problem, but it will not be a recall fix. Much like the Rocker Box paper gasgets. | ||
| Tornado |
This may be a silly idea but... Could you run a line from the head breather up higher. Say to behind the headlight fairing and vent it there with a filter? It would seem there would be a couple of feet of line for use as a catch can and oil could drain back into the crankcase after a ride. | ||
| Bomber |
Tornado . . . you sure could do that, but please don't . . . . . any oil coming out of the heads is mixed with condensation (water) and looks a great deal like a Coffee Milkshake . . . .you don't want that spooge re-introduced into your oil . . . . further, there's no route for this noxious stuff back to the crankcase from the head . . .once that stuff travels up to the rockerboxes, there's no way for it to get back further south than said boxes . . . . . you'd have a helluva mess in no time | ||
| Hootowl |
Not quite true. The oil will drain back from the rockerboxes, there are oil return passages, but once the spooge goes out the vent hole near the umbrella valve, it goes downhill to the exit from the head. Trying to make stuff drain back up that hill will create a fluid plug, and prevent the breather from breathing. Very bad. | ||
| Djkaplan |
Are we the only people in the world that use and understand the term "spooge"? | ||
| Paroyboy |
I've heard the word used before but in a very different context! |
