Differential diagnmosis

[A Star Ride]

Hello all and I'll thank you all for your help and for staying on topic <AHEM>

Anyway, I looked to check how my rear tire was holdn up and realize I have a black diff. WTF?? it is everywhere, I had the rear tire replaced about 1000 miles ago and curious if something went wrong with the installation and created the leak. I plan to pull the bag off this weekend & hoping to just tighten the drain & fill plugs & top it off.

Is this expected maintence, or unexpected failure?
Should I drain the diff & refill it completely, or just top it off & hope for the best?
Is this related to new legislation or global war....err climate change?
Has anyone read a good book lately?

[seruzawa]

First be sure to wash the area thoroughly. You should pull the wheel and ensure that all the parts were re-installed properly. Maybe you can see in the seal around the drive spline is leaking. If so remove the hub and have someone who knows what they are doing replace the seal. It takes special tools usually to properly work on a drive hub. If you don't see a leak than replace everything and ensure the fluid level is correct. Check the hub frequently for the next few hundred miles and see if it is still leaking. If so you probably need a seal.

Blowing seals is a dirty habit.

[A Star Ride]

Thanks seru, I'll remove the bags & clean it all up, top it off & look for leaks as I put on more miles. I'm not confident removing the tire, it has to be dropped below due to the pipes and valanced fender, even with the cases off, and I wouldn't know if anything was missing if I had it apart, lol.
Since I have a quart of diff fluid, should I drain whatever is in there (after checking to see how low it was) or just top it of & shelf the rest hoping to never need it again. The bike did have a full service at 15K miles, it has mid 30K-ish on it now.

[The_AirHawk]

I advise STRONGLY against using high-pressure to clean the bike. Quite easy to force water THROUGH a seal that's only job is to hold oil inside the bike, and keep dust outside - at atmospheric pressure.

[Buzglyd]

Penguin drops off car at mechanic and goes to ice cream parlor. Penguin returns to garage.

Mechanic: It looks like you blew a seal.

Penguin: No, that's just a little ice cream.

[A Star Ride]

Thanks seru, I'll remove the bags & clean it all up, top it off & look for leaks as I put on more miles. I'm not confident removing the tire, it has to be dropped below due to the pipes and valanced fender, even with the cases off, and I wouldn't know if anything was missing if I had it apart, lol.
Since I have a quart of diff fluid, should I drain whatever is in there (after checking to see how low it was) or just top it of & shelf the rest hoping to never need it again. The bike did have a full service at (15

[A Star Ride]

Originally Posted by The_AirHawk

I advise STRONGLY against using high-pressure to clean the bike. Quite easy to force water THROUGH a seal that's only job is to hold oil inside the bike, and keep dust outside - at atmospheric pressure.

I wouldn't use a pressure washer but do sometimes use an air compressor to blow dry most of the water.

[Morbo the Destroyer]

Originally Posted by The_AirHawk

I advise STRONGLY against using high-pressure to clean the bike. Quite easy to force water THROUGH a seal that's only job is to hold oil inside the bike, and keep dust outside - at atmospheric pressure.

+++1!!

Nothing good can come from assaulting your bike with a high-pressure washer, and quite a bit of damage can result. As Le Hawk said, it will blow seals out, strip grease from bushings and bearings, wear away your clearcoat and paint, cause herpes and genitial warts...it's BAD.

To safely remove the crap, I recommend GUNK. GUNK is essentially kerosine with a detergent base in a handy spray can. You can safely soak almost any surface (I have yet to see GUNK damage anything, even clear plastic) with the GUNK. Let it sit a few minutes and then rinse, rinse, rinse your cares away with Doctor recommend GUNK cleaner. Follow your GUNK treatment with a good quality car-wash soap 'n rinse and put cold cucumber slices on your eyes. Use the remaining cucumber to pleasure yourself while the bike dries.

I hope this helps!

[pushrod]

Yah, I'd try to determine where the leak is before I dumped more fluid in.

If it's a leaking seal, it's only going to worsen. They usually don't heal themselves.

[A Star Ride]

Thanks you guys, Ill get on it soon, by that I mean Sunday night at best. Full slate with the kids this weekend.