^^^^ This absolutely this!!!! It is a simple primary cover. I removed my primary, timing cover, and transmission cover for powder coat. When I replaced them, a torque wrench never crossed my mind.... Dont be dumb enough to snap a bolt, and its all good. Its common sense, Y'all. don't over complicate ****.

Just as background reference, I am a mechanical engineer. I have my BS in Mechanical Engineering from a very well respected engineering program. I, also, passed the Fundamentals of engineering exam. go ahead and look up the pass rates on this exam, it is always changing but hangs around 40-60%....

To be perfectly honest, when Engineers provide torque specs for something of this nature, we basically use a "back of the envelope" calculation, based on several assumptions, and approximations. Of course, engineers are taught to err on the side of caution and always use conservative estimates. This builds in an added factor of safety, on top of the Factor of Safety that we were shooting for.

 

No, It certainly wouldn't be the first typo in a manual. but the difference in the values, doesn't amount to much of anything. use the lower of the 2 for safety's sake, and I bet there are no issues... if there proves to be an issue--LEAK... remove and re-tighten... not much of an issue in my opinion.

 

So... 9 - 10 ft/lbs versus 12 -13 ft/lbs? I'm thinking there's not much difference there for derby cover bolts.

 

The only torque wrench I have ever used on my Harley is that thing on the handlebar that you twist , you know that thing that makes it go fast.

 

Or a nut!

 

if the manual says it then do it, why you would buy the book and then not follow it is a waste of at least $50. they built it so do it! you wouldnt plug a 120v drill into a 240v plug, so go by the BOOK!!

 

Of course, it could never be that there might be a Harley trained mechanic on here who could provide the factory reason as to why something changed. The Midol comments crack me up, and so needed. With everything else Harley won't stand behind, do you think a broken or stripped bolt would be fixed under warranty just because of a misprint in the manual? The original question seems perfectly reasonable to me. Is there a reason that someone with the EXPERIENCE and knowledge to recognize a change is given so much grief? Some of you kiddies should just go out and play, don't tease the fat kid either.

 

the best thing about these torque threads, is watching everybody get torqued about what everybody else said

 

If I use a made in China torque wrench will that void my warranty?

 

The reason why the values increased is because of the "paint" or "powder coat" on the cover. Increasing the torque value allows for the compression of the paint. Torque values were increased a couple of years ago on the starter bolts for the same reason.