I am not a mechanical engineer... nor am I even a good mechanic.... I have changed a few parts on my bike.. thats about it.. so for my 2 cents... several times, when I have test ridden a new bike.. the dealer handed me the keys and says "Go check it out, run it through the paces and tell me what you think" I have numerous times test rode a bike with less than 10 miles on it and rode it hard to see what it is all about. The dealer has encouraged me to "test" it out. So if the 500 mile break in is so critical, why do the dealers allow you to ride it like that? Another point I thought of... racers.. my dad was a flat track racer... he put the engine back together, fire it up and go race! Interesting seeing all the opinions...

 

Do it your way.

Have you ever been to the factory?

What HARLEY DAVIDSON does to these engines before you ever see them throws all that out the window.

They are run HARD before they are ever installed in the chassis. And then when the completed bike comes off the assembly line, they are rolled straight to the dyno room, where they run the **** out of them....

Where do you think the 8 miles on the odometer comes from?

I've been there and witnessed it first hand.

I agree with getting the oil out early, and the "secrets" call for that. I didn't write it, that's why it is in a quote box.

You break yours in anyway you feel comfortable, and I'll do the same.


....but there are reasons I won't buy a used bike as my primary ride.

 

For me, anything between 800 and 1200 for the 1st is good enough. Again at 5k and every 5k after that. 5 Bikes in 35 years, and really since the 1st a Shovel, oil hasnt been an issue.

 

My last new, a 2013 Limited, only had 1 mile on the odometer when it was delivered. Maybe they only test random samples and not all of them.

I purchased that 1 in January with no upgrades so it didn't get rode, my 2012 from the same dealership had 8 and I assumed it was rode after it was uncrated and before it was rolled to the showroom floor. Same for my 2003 at another dealership, 8 miles that i assumed was a test ride after they assembled it and installed my Stage 1.

 

This should be pretty easily cleared up.

I'm assuming that you're familiar with the fact that gasoline engines create vacuum relative to atmospheric pressure anywhere behind the throttle blade and the amount of vacuum is proportional to throttle position and RPM.

The pressure inside the cylinder is linearly proportional to the pressure inside the intake tract after the throttle blade. This princple is how a speed density fuel injection algorithm works btw. The increase in air pressure means an increase in air mass, which is why you need additional fuel mass to maintain your air-fuel ratio. So far that's just static pressure, but now we have the ingredients for a more powerful explostion during combustion. More oxygen, more hydrocarbons, bigger bang. That bigger bang is the increase in pressure that's going to put those rings in to the cylinder walls, break the oil film barrier, and allow the rings to conform to the cylinders to improve sealing.

To put it a different way that may speak more to your mechanical engineering backround, as you know a crankshaft throw is nothing more than a lever and the piston+rod is the "hand" acting upon that lever.

When you're crusing down the road and maintaining your speed the force applied to those levers is in balance with the aggregate resistances that would slow you down if you were to just pull in the clutch. The only way to accelerate from this position is to increase the amount of force on that lever, and the way you do this is to open the throttle. If what you said was true, that opening the throttle does not increase the pressures in the cylinder, then opening the throttle wouldn't do anything. Without an increase in pressure there's no increase in force, and there's no acceleration.

 

Another 2 cents of my opinion.
I have been fortunate enough to have rebuilt truck, car and motorcycle motors in the past and never seen a issue of anything that had to do with the engine oil. I do run my stuff harder than most immediately. Motor oils have really gotten better over the decades and as far as the filter goes, a dirty filter will clean better than a clean filter. (once again, my 2 cents worth). Harley does not make oil.
The companies that manufacture the oil do rigorous testing on used oil and have a much better idea of when oil should be change in different applications.
Yes, we all have a different opinion on how things should be done and what works for us.
The bottom line is do you want, if that means change your oil often or just ride the crap out of your equipment.
I choose the latter because it works for me.

 

This is true, but oil filters have spring loaded bypasses in them. Basically if the effort required to push the oil through the filtering medium gets too great, a trap door opens and the oil just goes right around the filtering medium and your oil stops being filtered alltogether.

My primiary reason for dumping the oil early is getting the assembly goo out. That stuff actually isn't a great lubricant, it's just great at sticking to parts and being an "ok" lubricant long enough for the real oil to get in there. It's also full of stuff that will clog up your filter sooner.

That said you probably are ok at 1k miles. Actually I'd be content with just a filter change at 50 miles but I just do the oil too while I'm in there.

 

First off, I didn't mean to ridicule your commends, Safetyman. I just don't buy that Break-in BS from mototuneusa.com. I apologize, if it came across to you the wrong way. OK, now to answer Don81: yes, I am aware that there is a vacuum inside the cylinder, when the piston travels downwards. And yes, the amount of air-gasoline mixture will determine the force of combustion and increase RPMs. But with that acceleration comes increased heat. And that's exactly what you don't want while breaking in a new motor. Regarding the "break-in" procedures done by HD. I don't think that every bike that comes off the assembly line is put in the Dyno-room. There is simply no time to do that. They do random checks, but not on all bikes. For sure the new bikes don't leave the factory already broken in. That is certainly not the case. I have tested multiple brand new bikes and I was told on several occasions by the dealer ship, to be careful it's a brand new bike. Anyway, my thread was not meant to contradict, nor confirm any break-in methods, but to tell you fellow riders what I noticed changing my oil prematurely.

 

Well as the article states, it's a controversial topic!

 

Actually there is no vacuum inside a cylinder, the piston moving down actually allows the atmospheric pressure to fill it with air.

Which is why turbos and superchargers work, by adding to the 14.7 psi (approximate) mother nature gives us.