oil tank question

[Gonzo]

On an Evo horseshoe style tank, there are two lines that come off the bottom just above the starter. Do these lines go to seperate chambers, or do both just go into a main area? I guess what I'm askin is, does it matter which of the two hoses goes to which inlet? Havin a hard time gettin my new steel braided hoses installed, and it might help to be able to move them if needed, but didnt want to screw up the routing. TIA

[ModelABob]

Gonzo,

I would say that it does matter "very much" where each oil line goes!   If you don't have a service manual for your particular year Evo, get one.  It will show you the oil line routing's and what each line does.    I knew a guy who rerouted his oil lines the wrong way and burnt up his motor.....

AMF/Ride Safe

[CraigArizona85248]

I've never looked at one of the Evo softail oil tanks.  But the supply line absolutely must be hooked up to the correct spot.  The supply pulls from the bottom of the oil tank.  The return and vent lines should both return oil and air/oil mix to the tank.  On the old panheads, these lines could be interchanged as they simply dumped back at the top of the tank above the oil level when the tank was topped off.  On the softail oil tanks the return and vent lines enter the tank at the bottom but I believe there is a tube inside the tank the goes all the way to the top so the oil and oil/air mixture coming from these lines comes up the tubes which are open above the oil level in the tank.  If the vent or return lines are below the oil level, you'd have sumping problems.

Bottom line, I think you can reverse the vent and return lines with no ill effects.  Can someone who knows these Evo softail oil tanks better then me confirm or deny that as fact?  I'm interested in the answer too.

Bob... if your aquaintance hooked up the supply line to either the return or vent, he'd definitely cook the motor.  Must have been what happened.

-Craig

[ramcr913]

Gonzo
ModelABob is correct, it does matter. And CraigArizona is on the money as well- the tube inside the tank needs to hooked up correctly or you may flood the sump. I am going to try to assist-
I have a 97 Softail and the HD service manual has a picture of the oil line routing. I can scan it and .pdf it to you... however I don't think it will help much, as it is difficult to tell which line is which. So, looking at your bike from the right side-

There are 3 lines clearly visible, two towards the front of the oil tank and one towards the rear.
The FRONT line CLOSEST to you goes to the oil filter mount- you can trace it under the cam cone with your finger.
The FRONT line FARTHEST from you goes to engine, ABOVE the oil pump.
The REAR line connects to the oil pump, near the bottom of the pump.

Lastly- I don't know what year EVO you have, but the later EVOs had a fourth line, exiting from the rear of the tank, and clamped to the frame. This is the oil drain line. I am not sure, but I believe the earlier EVOs did not have the drain line.

2 last notes:
My use of CAPS above was for clarification (I wasn't shouting, HONEST!!!)
I am a Shovelhead owner who recently acquired a EVO softail, so I am still trying to figure this out. Interestingly, I have some oil leaking from the lines around the pump and filter mount and am about to fix it this weekend. So I have already noted the line routing.

Good luck, I hope this helps.
Regards
Rick

[ramcr913]

Hey CraigArizona:
"Bottom line, I think you can reverse the vent and return lines with no ill effects."
I don't know for sure but I think you are correct. As long as there are 2 tubes it wouldn't matter. I can't tell on my tank without draining the oil and poking an object up into the tank to check for tubes.
On the old FX tanks (shovelheads and 4-speeds...), it did matter, because the filter was located inside the tank. With an external filter, as long as the return line hits the top of the tank (via a tube) it could be switched with the vent.

Regardless, Gonzo ought to hook it up the way it was originally.

Rick

[Gonzo]

Thanks to both of you. I DID have the two lines off the bottom of the oil bag backwards. But I also found the main reason I wasnt pumping any oil was that I had over-torqued the oil pump cover. Theres no way to get a torque wrench in there, and it had been leaking before anyway, so I snugged it up pretty good. When I pulled the cover, I could see fresh score marks where it looked like the gear(s) were rubbing on the inside of the cover. Replaced it with a new gasket and a lot less elbow grease, and switched out the two oil lines and VOILA!!! Oil moving inside the oil tank and no more oil light. I'll finish iy up this morning and hopefully everything will be tight and leak free. Thanks again for your help guys!

[ramcr913]

Gonzo
Glad you figured it out.

BTW, regarding "The FRONT line FARTHEST from you goes to engine, ABOVE the oil pump"-
I looked at it today, when I had the cam cover off. That line dumps directly into the cam chest. Therefore, it has to have a tube in the tank, else gravity would drain the tank into the cam chest.

What year is your Evo, and does it have the rear drain hose?

Rick

[Gonzo]

Rick:Its a 1990 Fatboy, and yes, it Does have the drain tube at the back. It tee's off of the supply line coming from the oil pump and runs behind the tranny and out the side.

[ramcr913]

Gonzo-
Does your oil tank have 3 or 4 lines?

I believe that the later Evo's added the 4th line- My bike does not have a tee from the line going to the oil pump. There is a 4th line, all the way at the rear of the tank that has a single hose with a plug for draining.
Sorry for the barrage of questions, I am just trying to figure out if there are differences.

Regards
Rick

[Gonzo]

Rick: Not sure exactly how to answer your question. The oil tank has two lines coming in to the lower front area. One to the oil pump and one to a nipple on the cases just above the oil pump.  One line comes in off the oil pump to the bottom of the oil bag where it tee's off, one side going to the tank itself and the other runs behind the tranny to the bottom which is my drain hose. So, I guess the answer is it has 3 "ports", but 4 lines.  The "T" is all the way up under the oilbag, so you may not see it unless you have to get in there for something. Thanks again Rick, appreciate your help
Steve