Clutch problem with '48 Chief

[Tim Baker]

Got a question for anyone out there who has a lot more knowledge on these things than I do.. Was enjoying a great ride this afternoon.. Weather was perfect.. The Chief was running great.... And then.. "Disaster struck".. I was running along at about forty five on a flat streach of road.. And I started getting this feeling in the back wheel like the "tire was going flat".. Or there was a really bad "flat spot" on the rear tire.. Or the "brake was intermittently dragging".. Had this sorta.. "grabbing feeling"..? Well.. I stopped.. And checked the tires over real good.. (No problems there.. They're almost new..).. And.. When I pressed down on the clutch pedal.. Slipped it into first.. Let the clutch pedal out slowly.... And nothing happened.. ! .. ?.. Tried several times.. In every gear.. NOTHING.. No grab.. No slip.. Not even so much as a "hint" that I was going to move forward.. Anyone have any ideas?.. The linkage is all still together.. Tried adjusting the rod.... Oil level in the trans is perfect.. Not sure "what" might have happened.... Does this sound like a worn out clutch.. ? Any suggestions would be appreciated.. Thanks..

[brian_groff]

Sounds like you lost your lug nuts and studs on your rear wheel. Use red Loctite on the studs to the brake drum and blue Loctite on the lug nuts. For the front wheel, use blue Loctite on the studs.

The other scenario is you lost the special nut in the tranny which holds the clutch basket in place. There is a special locking washer in the tranny to keep this from backing off.

I've made all of these mistakes myself.

[Tim Baker]

Thanks for the reply.. You're right on the Money!. The lug nuts were the problem.. I figured that out the hard way by looking at a Kiwi-Indian parts catalog rear wheel picture while laying on my back with a flashlight examining the rear wheel.. Two were broken off and the others were MIAs. Used the loctite.. Rear wheels work great "with the lugnuts in place".. :-) .. Have put over three hundred miles on the bike.. Had had one other odd problem though.. Had a real heavy vibration from the engine above 50 mph.. And after getting back home from a meet about two weeks ago.. Noticed that the two front bottom engine mount bolts had totally "shaken" out and were just about ready to fall out in the street.. (Clutch pedal stopped them thank goodness!); so I put some new nuts on, used red loctite, checked all the other engine mount bolts (which were also loose); and now the vibration is all but gone.. Lessons learned the hard way.. Highly recommend to anyone that's new to Indians.. (Like me..) that you torque all the bolts, no matter how good and tight they may appear.. And use plenty of Loctitite.... :-) ..

[AdminGuy]

Cool. Make sure your application is clean and dry for loctite to work properly. You can speed cure time (blue) on road side with a lighter flame. Ehhhhh... just be careful.

I also found out 'the hard way' that the blue does need set-up time.

[brian_groff]

Most generally, "motorcycle tight" on fastener torque is suitable. That is, as tight as you can get it without stretching or stripping it!

That said, never re-use any fasteners! Loctite is generally recommended for stuff that you can torque to spec and vibrates out anyways (wheel studs and lugs, wheel drum caps, speedometer mounting bracket, and whatever). Check the torque specs for your hardware.

19 lbs for 5/16" Case fasteners
55 lbs for all Head bolts

I just learned a hard lesson with head bolts. Even though their threaded through a casting and won't generally strip, they can stretch. I had new copper clad gaskets, torqued the head bolts to spec, retorqued, retorqued, retorqued again and after 1200 miles they had loosened to 10 lbs. What happened was (I was an idiot :-) ) the bolts stretched beyond their elastic zone and wouldn't retain their clamping force any longer. Now, I'm in an engine rebuild because it ran too hot for too long without me knowing about it. It would have been cheaper to simply buy new head bolts on the last rebuild.

Lessons learned.

[AdminGuy]

I also find it interesting just how much of a difference a clean thread hole can make on the torque. Or even a lubricated bolt. An interesting study in itself. There is lots of information about this floating around.

[Tim Baker]

Thanks for the good info on the Head Bolts... Just went over mine (Obviously didn't think to check that when I was torqueing bolts a few weeks ago with the lug nut problem; which was really brilliant...) .. Two of mine were loose.. And I take it the torgue is checked when the engine is.. "Cold".. right.. ?.. .. Also.. Does anyone know if it's possible to find a "Sealed Beam" headlight for the stock Chief.. The reflector on mine seems to have lost its mirror finish.. (Probably original I guess...).. And I was thinking about replacing it with a sealed beam.. Or.. Should I just "leave it alone since it's not broke".. Any info (or past experience..) with this "idea" would be appreciated..

[brian_groff]

I'm not sure what "original" sealed beams should be. On the reproduction headlamps I have, which I believe are from Kiwi, 6V systems use a Wagner 6006 and 12V sytems use a 6014. That said, Wagners and Phillips are junk! They can't handle the vibrations.

Starklite Cycle gets a fair price on GE sealed beam headlamps because they purchase in quantity. My best experience is just going through them. Starklite is also one of the few Indian dealers who sells a "non-fluted" spotlight for 6V and 12V systems. They are MUCH brighter than what you can buy at the automotive store and you can see where you're going at night.

Of course, if you run a 12V system you don't have this trouble anyways