That’s hot

Living in the most densely populated state in the nation, I end up sitting in traffic a good amount of the time. My Sportster has an analog oil temperature gauge/dipstick, so I can tell when the engine is getting too hot. However, Harley never made an analog gauge for my 2000 FXD and I’m not a fan of digital gauges, so aside from my seat-of-the-pants guesses, I’ve never known what the Dyna’s oil temperature is.

We all know the dangers of overheated oil breaking down, causing lack of lubrication to a motorcycle’s engine parts. And when riding in places like Sturgis, the ambient temperate can exceed 110 degrees while the bike is idling in the middle of a traffic jam. The engine situation has been worrying me because, at 95″, the engine, of course, runs hotter than it did at 88″. Now I can tell when the engine is getting dangerously hot because I finally found an analog oil temperature gauge that’ll work in my Dyna—the JESCustomAccents Oil Temperature Gauge.

As soon as I discovered this gauge, I called the number listed on the company’s website. The owner took the time to speak with me to make sure I got the correct gauge for my bike. He also told me that they were in the process of redesigning the oil-filled gauges, so he offered to send me a model that wasn’t filled with oil, just so I could have a gauge to use temporarily. The deal we made was that when the newly designed oil-filled gauge became available, he’d ship it to me and I would ship back the one he’d sent, at no extra charge to me. Now, that’s good customer service!

Once I did receive the oil-filled gauge, I set about reading the instructions. The gauge is a two-piece affair consisting of a wedge-shaped thermometer holder and the thermometer itself. The thermometer dipstick has two O-rings that help it fit snugly into the “wedge.” On the side of the gauge is a pin that slides into a groove in the wedge. The assembled gauge is then inserted into the oil tank spout with the thickest part of the wedge facing you (assuming you are next to your bike and not sitting on it). There’s a groove in the wedge that allows you to rotate the gauge until it faces the desired direction. Once I had it pointed in the right direction, it was extremely easy to see when sitting in the saddle.

Because of the variance in tolerance of the oil tank spout, the company sends three extra sets of O-rings to make sure the gauge fits tight. Three O-rings were already installed in the wedge, and the fit seemed a little loose so I tried two progressively larger sets of O-rings until the gauge/dipstick was snug in the tank. Different combinations of O-rings can be used to assure the perfect fit.

When checking the oil, all I needed to do was to rotate the gauge/dipstick thermometer and pull it out. The dipstick has a marking to indicate oil level. The wedge should stay in the tank spout, as the hole is large enough for an oil funnel.

JESCustomAccents has been doing research, development and testing on its gauges for years. Skeptic that I am, I took the bike with the new gauge installed to Black Hills Custom Parts where Ken, the owner, measured my engine temperature with his Raytek handheld infrared thermometer. It matched the gauge’s needle exactly. What’s more, I rode in the rain and because it’s oil-filled, the gauge didn’t fog at all.

The gauge is made of 6061 billet aluminum, machined and chromed in the U.S. The 1.5″ diameter gauge face can be ordered in white or black, and comes with either Fahrenheit or Celsius markings. The product line also covers ’93-to-present FLs as well as 2006-and-up Dynas.