ive done this as well on my last change. i think its much cleaner .ill do it again next time.I use one of those vacumn pump things to suck the oil out of the tank. I think it works great and I feel you get just as much oil out of the tank as you would removing the drain plug. You pump the handle to build up suckion then take the hose to the bottom of the tank and move it all around to get all the oil out. Then fill it up with oil and run the rest of the oil out using the scavenger or some other method. Either way by time your done its all gone and clean. And no mess if you take your time. Just my 2 cents.
I would initially think that gravity would be the best method as one typically gets the bike up to temp prior to draining the oil. It would seem that while most of the particulates are suspended within the oil, the draining action may "grab" some of the heavier particulates that are at the bottom of the pan and flow out with the oil. Moving that suction tube around to pick up sludge or whatever is at the bottom of the pan may be good to do as well.
Doug

Dont think you need to disconnect the hose, just unplug the cap on the end of the hose.The drain plug on the 03 chopper also has a hose connected to it correct?
So you have to disconnect the hose and thats where the oil drains from correct. Then when the oil is drained then you need to remove the plug to clean it. This is my first oil change on the 03 Dog and want to be sure..
I cant find just a plug...can somone send a picure of what is considered the "plug" on an 03 chopper?
