Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums General Tech Tips for Replacing Countershaft Oil Seal

I've got a leaking oil seal on the countershaft behind the front sprocket, and I've got replacements enroute via Bikebandit. The service manual doesn't discuss Removal/Replacement of the seal, but it seems like it would be fairly straightforward. Does anyone have any suggestions or experiences with this? Use or don't use RTV, grease, blah blah, that sort of thing?

Thanks!

I used a wood screw to remove the old one. Someone (after I struggled with mine) suggested freezing the new one overnight to sort of shrink it to make it go on easier. Oiling it will help. You need something big and round and hard to push the new one on, I think the socket you use on the sprocket nut should work.

Benny's got it. Doesn't matter if you screw up the one you are taking out, just get it out of there. Just oil the new one before you put it in. I used a socket as a drift on mine too, and it worked great.

Check the surface of the shaft where the seal rides, after you remove the seal. Make sure there's no dings or scratches (or even a groove caused by the rubber seal) before you install the new seal.

Thanks for the tips guys!

I put a slight film of red rtv around mine when I replaced it a couple of years back. You can lightly feather the leading edge of the seal with a grinder to make installaton a bit easier too.