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Thought I'd put this out there in case someone else runs into this problem.
I purchased my 84 XLX ironhead about a year ago. When I got it the oil tank was way overfull. After riding it for a short while I found out it was transferring primary oil to the engine. I replaced the primary sprocket seal with no improvement. After searching the internet and finding no solution (although saw that others have had the same problem) I dug a little deeper. After talking to Dave Carlton (sportster expert judging at the Fort Sutter Swap Meet) I decided to remove the transmission and pressure up the crankcase. It seems that Harley changed from a sand-cast to a die-cast crankcase in 83 and had some issues. Using soapy water to check for cracks I found that it was leaking between the aluminum casting and the steel insert that the crankshaft bearing and seal ride in. I cleaned the area real well and covered it with Hondabond 4 while pulling a slight vacuum on the crankcase. After that cured I put on another thin layer. So far I've done 100 miles with no transfer, which would have been obvious at this point before.
While I had the transmission out I decided to put a new seal on the mainshaft. This is an early 84 (by serial #) with the generator. Apparently there was a change in the crankcase before the later 84 with the alternator. Although Harley calls for the early seal with a seal carrier (which mine doesn't have) mine used the late seal which goes directly into the bore in the transmission part of the crankcase. ID of the seals are the same, but later seal is a smaller OD.
I purchased my 84 XLX ironhead about a year ago. When I got it the oil tank was way overfull. After riding it for a short while I found out it was transferring primary oil to the engine. I replaced the primary sprocket seal with no improvement. After searching the internet and finding no solution (although saw that others have had the same problem) I dug a little deeper. After talking to Dave Carlton (sportster expert judging at the Fort Sutter Swap Meet) I decided to remove the transmission and pressure up the crankcase. It seems that Harley changed from a sand-cast to a die-cast crankcase in 83 and had some issues. Using soapy water to check for cracks I found that it was leaking between the aluminum casting and the steel insert that the crankshaft bearing and seal ride in. I cleaned the area real well and covered it with Hondabond 4 while pulling a slight vacuum on the crankcase. After that cured I put on another thin layer. So far I've done 100 miles with no transfer, which would have been obvious at this point before.
While I had the transmission out I decided to put a new seal on the mainshaft. This is an early 84 (by serial #) with the generator. Apparently there was a change in the crankcase before the later 84 with the alternator. Although Harley calls for the early seal with a seal carrier (which mine doesn't have) mine used the late seal which goes directly into the bore in the transmission part of the crankcase. ID of the seals are the same, but later seal is a smaller OD.