If it still has all the original breather gubbins on it, they were notorious for clogging up with emulsified oil & condensate - sometimes referred to as mayonnaise. Poor pipe runs would allow the gloop to back up in and block the pipes, meaning the crankcase pressure had to look for other exists, usually pumping loads of oil up the catch-can oil return pipe as it did so. From here said oil would overflow via the breather pipe from the catch-can into the air filter box, and from there all over the back end of the bike and/or the garage floor.
As my learned friend points out, this has taken up quite a bit of forum space down the years, more so now as a new crop of owners discover the delights of this model.
Various attempts have been made from ingenious to horrible bodges to sort this out. Keep it simple.
1. A short piece of hose with a 90° bend taken from the original breather pipes and fitted over the pipe union/hose tail on top of the oil tank;
2. A 10mm or ⅜" non-return valve, and
3. A longer piece of hose running along the rear chain guard to the back of the bike. Don't forget the hose clips.
There are also some Electra-Xs around with the old importer's own breather kit with a strange tin-can arrangement over the oil tank. Those pose a few issues for the unwary.
A.
