unknown noise

[marcn]

This is something that has been going on for quite a while. I have a 2002 HD Heritage that I bought used a few years ago, about a year ago I started to hear what I thought was a chain slapping noise coming from the engine compartment.This seemed to mostly happen when there is no load on the engine,say at 55 and just maintaining speed.At first thought it was a primary chain loose so had my mechanic check it out and he said it all looked ok but it still happened. Nothing got worse since then so I let it go.
Now,at any speed, if hitting any size bump in a road I get a noise that sounds like I have metal scraping the asphalt.Almost as if the foot peg is still down,which it's not .At first I thought it was a tire scraping the fender but there is no sign of this happening,then I thought it may be the belt hitting something. I cannot find any indication of anything scraping or hitting that has anything to do with the frame compressing when hitting a bump or dip in the road. Don't know if somehow these two issues are linked somehow or not.It's got me worried now thinking something is going to pop before I can find the problem.The scraping noise happens with the front or back taking a dip,I have plenty of clearance between the tire and fenders. Does anyone have any ideas what to check? Thanks in advance.
Marc

Posted this in the repair section also but this area gets more traffic.

[Biker Dash]

Could that be the sound of it finally starting????

JUST KIDDING! You know a dedicated Honda man has to pick on a Harley, just as a Harley man picks on a Honda...

Seriously though, thinking about it, the primary would be my first place to look. If it was my Shadow, I would be checking the cam chain, but I believe the harley cam is gear driven?

[OTD]

I been told that they have cam chain tensioner problem in those years that can cause a ton of damage.

[marcn]

Found it! The ECM unit,which from what I understand is the electronic module that stores the codes and info when diognostic testing, was laying on the rear tire. Weird the way it was positioned on the bike. It was placed under the seat mounted to a plastic panel that was positioned over a rectangular hole in the rear fender.It was held in place by a plastic plug about 1/8" dia through a slot in the plastic mounting panel. Somehow the panel slipped off the plug and dropped through the hole and was bouncing off the tire. Much longer and it would have worn through the module housing and really screwed up some of the electrics.What a stupid design. So a word on periodic inspections of your bike; do it thoroughly.Remove the side bags,which was the only way I found it, remove the seat and do an in depth inspection of your bike.I will do this about once every 3 weeks in addition to my every ride checks. I was just about to pull the primary chain cover and go that route.Thanks for the input though.

[OTD]

Originally Posted by marcn

Found it! The ECM unit,which from what I understand is the electronic module that stores the codes and info when diognostic testing, was laying on the rear tire. Weird the way it was positioned on the bike. It was placed under the seat mounted to a plastic panel that was positioned over a rectangular hole in the rear fender.It was held in place by a plastic plug about 1/8" dia through a slot in the plastic mounting panel. Somehow the panel slipped off the plug and dropped through the hole and was bouncing off the tire. Much longer and it would have worn through the module housing and really screwed up some of the electrics.What a stupid design. So a word on periodic inspections of your bike; do it thoroughly.Remove the side bags,which was the only way I found it, remove the seat and do an in depth inspection of your bike.I will do this about once every 3 weeks in addition to my every ride checks. I was just about to pull the primary chain cover and go that route.Thanks for the input though.

Good self Diag. that's something you can never guess. Good job.

[Blaine]

Glad you found it. That is one of the reason I wouldn't care for a Harley, I love their looks but quality seems to be lacking. I'm not meaning to throw mud at those who own them, I just wish the company would put a little more effort into their engineering and quality control.

[Biker Dash]

Marc, thats a new one for me lol
Glad that you found the issue. ^_^

[OTD]

Originally Posted by Blaine

Glad you found it. That is one of the reason I wouldn't care for a Harley, I love their looks but quality seems to be lacking. I'm not meaning to throw mud at those who own them, I just wish the company would put a little more effort into their engineering and quality control.

Uh....it's a 9 year old bike. Things tend to loosen up on any vehicle over time. You can hardly blame the manufacturer for a part that comes loose after that amount of time.

[Badlands-4-2]

Originally Posted by OTD

Uh....it's a 9 year old bike. Things tend to loosen up on any vehicle over time. You can hardly blame the manufacturer for a part that comes loose after that amount of time.

Agreed.
Glad you found it, especially before it got expensive or painful.

[iamjustifyd]

Glad you found it and didn't turn into an electronic nightmare!! Things over time can vibrate off/loose on any bike.

[marcn]

Yea but it's not like my bike shakes like a Har....never mind