ever so often my bike (09 street bob) will make this ****ed up grinding noise when i try to start it. usually i just wait a second and try again and then it starts right up. i never took it in because it was it was never a consistant problem. its happened a handful of times but i was always afraid i would take it in and modesto would say they could not recreate the problem (i see that a lot in the tractor industry). anyway, today it did the same thing but the starter noise sounded louder and then after about a second or two after the noise and it NOT starting all of the sudden there was a huge backfire. i let it sit for 30 seconds then it started right up again. what do you think is wrong? is this something common? i have the HD air cleaner stage 1 upgrade, rush slip ons and the dealership recalibrated it when it was all installed (about a year ago). there use to be a little backfire while i was ridding if i let of the throttle, it it was real small. this back fire was when the engine was not running and it was really loud.

 

is that bike efi or carbed? Either way, check the exhaust for leaks or a loose bolt.

 

also...there should not be any backfire when you let off the throttle. sounds like it could have been mistuned. Best bet...take it back in and have a mechanic @ HD you trust look at it..

 

next msg... i fked up this one... LOL

 

There should be no grinding noise of any kind when starting. Something is very wrong. You have a starter problem, or you have a ring gear problem. The jack shaft may not be engaging the ring gear all the way, or you have teeth missing off the ring gear. Either way, you should pull the primary cover (The whole thing, not the derby cover), and have a look in there. Check the ring gear (a gear on the back of the clutch basket), and the jack shaft gear. With the cover off, have a friend start the bike while you watch it. If the teeth on both gears are OK, then watch for the jack shaft to engage the ring gear during starting. Try to get it to make the noise, or you see what is causing it. This wont go away, it has to be fixed.

As far as the backfire... You got a little gas in the pipes when trying to start the bike, and it didn't start on the first revolution... No biggie. Pull the plugs, and make sure they are clean. Look up info here about tuning and how to read the spark plugs.

 

I had my starter replaced at 22k . I think the stock starter on these bikes is not powerful enough for the 96 or higher displaced engines.

 

Make sure the connections are tight, KISS. Then get a friend to help ya.

 

Good thread its on the 103's but it could be useful here.

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/screa...nch-motor.html

 

Harley has starter problem, 07 Street glide 5,000 miles, 09 Heritege 8,000 miles
09 Fat Bob 6,000 miles. Dealer replaced under warranty say's they have replaced
quite a few since 06.

 

It's still under warranty.... take it in and let the dealer deal with it.