Check Those Cam Chain Tensioners

[NEWHD74FAN]

Question here --- IF the cam chain has about 30-40K miles on it, and the shoes are replaced with new spring loaded shoes (original type) -- do you think the chain would be so polished by then, the new shoes would tend to last a very long time???
I heard once that the reason for the wear was a new and rough chain (burrs etc) rubbing on them, and that the chain polishes itself with wear over time smoothing out so less wear would be evident.

Thanks
Bill

those things are funny some go kaboome @15,000 some people get 50,000 out of them i switched 2 hydraulic @24,000 and mine had very very little wear on them...IMO once u hit 20,000 keep a check on them if there fine no worries but if there showing wear don't push your luck address the issue

Billbo, you are correct that the wear will be "lessened" as the new chain gets polished over time. That is why Holy Diver's statement is also true, as shoe material and polished chainlink wearin go hand in hand. Inspection is 'about the only way you can tell...if you wait to see the plastic orange bits floating in the gear oil drainings you may be too late. Inspection is only a $35 gasket, another $10 for gear oil and lots of primary case cover fasteners (make sure you keep track of where each one came out...and of course your time. :sd

 

[glider]

...if you wait to see the plastic orange bits floating in the gear oil drainings you may be too late.

Hey Lucy, 'splain to me how this happens:s

 

[War Horse]

Billbo, you are correct that the wear will be "lessened" as the new chain gets polished over time. That is why Holy Diver's statement is also true, as shoe material and polished chainlink wearin go hand in hand. Inspection is 'about the only way you can tell...if you wait to see the plastic orange bits floating in the gear oil drainings you may be too late. Inspection is only a $35 gasket, another $10 for gear oil and lots of primary case cover fasteners (make sure you keep track of where each one came out...and of course your time. :sd

I thought we where talkin bout cam tensioners, not primary.

Mebbe I'm confused..:small3d011:

 

[glider]

I thought we where talkin bout cam tensioners, not primary.

Mebbe I'm confused..:small3d011:

Primary? I think we are all working too hard

I always thought the orange flecks would be in the engine oil or filter. Back to the books for me

 

[Redfish-Joe]

Got my nephews 02 RG on the lift right now replacing shoes. Got it at 32k and now has 75k on the clock. Don't know if and when they have ever been changed but the bike has Andrews cams in it. One was worn about 25% and the other 50% with 2 pieces broken off which I found in the bottom of the cam chest. He dodged the bullet this time.

 

[NEWHD74FAN]

Hey Lucy, 'splain to me how this happens:s

Sorry, was thinking about two things when I should have been typing about the one...:newsmile07: Can I go to sleep now...:51:

 

[glazier]

Finished the project last night. New Torrington inner bearings, new SE-203 cams, new oil pump, new upgraded support plate w/ hydraulic tensioners, and adjustable pushrods. Everything went real smooth until what I figured would have been the easiest part of the job. Installing the pushrod covers. Everything seated real well, but getting the retaining piece on was a pain. Extremely tight. Finally got them all in. Put the tranny in 5th gear with the spark plugs out and pushed the bike slowly at first to make sure there was nothing binding, or maybe I had adjusted the pushrods in the wrong position and didn't want to bend a valve. Seemed to be fine. Filled up the oil tank, put in the spark plugs, and was very nervous about hitting the start button. Well she fired right up. Yeah baby!!!!! I could tell a big difference in the sound of the motor from the new cams right away. She sounded good. Went for a ride. Rode good. Even though it sounded a lot different, there was only a small difference in performance, but it was still noticeable. Took it easy on her to let it "break in" again, and I was still nervous something was about to screw up. Got out on the highway and it ran strong. Felt good knowing my handy work paid off. Only went about 20 miles and then back to the garage to check things out. I noticed it seemed to run a little cooler (maybe from the high volume oil pump), but also when I start it, it seems to take a lot longer than it used to for the engine light to go out. Only thing thats not right is there is a little oil leaking from one of the front pushrod covers. I'll have to take that off and check the O-rings today and then give it a good test ride, and then a good cleaning. Overall I'm very happy with the results. Thanks TQ for your help :small3d028:

 

[TQuentin1]

You need to make sure that the inner slider on the pushrod FULLY seats up inside the head. It is possible to have it hang up on the lip, but would take a Herculean effort to snap in the expander if it was.

As you said, good idea to collapse that PR cover and see if the oring at the top of the slider is OK. After years of fighting it the hard way, I finally bought the tool to remove and install the clip. WAY worth the $20 for the tool!!

TQ

 

[glazier]

You need to make sure that the inner slider on the pushrod FULLY seats up inside the head. It is possible to have it hang up on the lip, but would take a Herculean effort to snap in the expander if it was.
TQ

It took a Herculean effort to get the expander in and the sliders were fully seated. I took a small screwdriver and pushed it all the way up into the head before attempting to get the retaining piece in. Used all new O-rings, so not sure what's up. Going to watch the Rangers beat the Yankees now with my son, or I'd be back in there trying to solve the mystery. I guess if thats the only problem I'm encountering, I should consider myself lucky.

Pulled off the expander on the push rod cover (front exhaust was where oil was dripping down) and the top of the expander was slightly distorted and out of round. Probably from prying on it with a screwdriver to get it in. I could tell it wasn't seated all the way against the slider tube in the head, so that had to be the problem. I gently bent it back to original shape, got it back in and seated properly, and no more leaks.
Also went back to the 48 jet since I have slightly bigger cams now. Seems to be running great. Very happy with the outcome of the upgrade kit and all the help from this forum. I wouldn't have even known there was a problem with the original tensioners if not for this site. And since there was a corner of the tensioner floating around in the cam chest, was probably a good idea to tear it apart and get that little thing out of there before major damage was done to my motor.
And on a side note, I went to play poker in Oklahoma last week, took a 10 minute cigarette break, decided to give a slot machine a whirl, and hit the progressive jackpot for $1,081.67 and that's about exactly what all the parts and tools cost me for the upgrade. So I pretty much got it done for free. And now the parts guy at the local HD shop wants to buy my cam bearing puller/installer and all my old parts, so thats even better. Maybe I'll go buy a lotto ticket so I can get me one of the new Ultra Limiteds. Is that CVO really worth another 12-13 grand??? We're talking close to 40K out the door for one of those. Anyway, I'm off to ride. If the wind wasn't blowing 30 mph, I'd go back to Oklahoma :bigsmiley14:

 

[Joyflyin]

Sounds like a great deal for you Glaizer, just remember all your friends here at HDT when you win the lottery.