Finally got back into the HD world. Just bought a used 06 Street Bob - very custom. Fell in love at first sight and was able to get the "used buyer's" discount. I wish my first post was different, but...I've had some bad luck so far.

Stator went bad 10-days ago - replaced under warranty - no big deal.

6-days ago the motor let go. Turns out the primary timing gear at the front of the crank broke - lost 3 teeth. Bike is at the dealer and will be covered under warranty.

I've heard this is not that uncommon on the 06's. Any insights?

My question to all...It has a Woods cam set with the gear drive - no chains. Very aggressive lift and duration. Found out this engine did the same thing when it was at 95 cubes (now a 103) and had chains with an aggressive cam profile...

I am thinking 2 things: 1) weak /poorly designed cam support plate 2) cams are simply too aggressive. Should I pay the extra money and go with the Screamin' Eagle billet cam support plate? Could this be the common theme/weak link? And/Or should I go to a milder cam with the chains as opposed to gears?

What do you guys think? I can't get the HD extended warranty with my current cam grind, so tuning down would allow that, and my dealer is offering me the warranty at a VERY good price, due to the issues I've had(current warranty expires this February).

I could ask a lot more questions, but I'll start with these. I am going to post this in the tech section as well...I'll post a pic of my babe later.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

Pic...

[IMG]local://upfiles/46792/90BF452DD5B043C4985259962BC5267B.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]local://upfiles/46792/9B13EF292CE64CB986D0154C51E18119.jpg[/IMG]

 

Unfortunately, I don't know the answers to your questions, but I wanted to say great looking ride ya got there. NICE. I'm sure somebody on here will be able to give you some good advice. Good luck....

 

Bike looks great! I don't think the problems you're experiencing are common amongst the 06s that are not modified (engine-wise, that is). The majority definitely run solid.

Whiff

 

The billet support plate uses bearings like the older models, and would thus require the use of custom machined cams since the 06 and later models are bigger at both ends. It seems to me that the gear drive may have been at fault. Its hard to say since we arent looking at the parts, but I would use the late model chain drive cams if it were mine. The first thing I would look at is the valves, (see if one hit a piston ie valve float, or not enough valve to piston clearance. Also, and more likely in the case of the woods cams (which like the mackie cams usually have a ton of lift) is valve retainer to valve guide clearance, or valve spring coil bind. If any of these clearances were too tight, the top end would bind up, and the small teeth on the gear drive cams would be pretty easy to break. The stator / rotor assembly on the 06 bikes uses bolts from the back of the compensating sprocket to the rotor. Mine fell apart at 10,000 miles, and I replaced the whole mess with the 07 parts which are welded from the factory. Good Luck Brother, and keep us posted on what went wrong.

 

Thanks for the ideas. I have received some good insights on the tech forum as well - copied my latest post from there below. They have yet to tear down the top end - I will definitely be curious as to what they find. I will definitely ask them about going to the 07 parts! As noted below, I am leaning towards milder cams and chains as well...

Thanks for the good insights. The crank run out was at .014 when they tore it down, BUT the disintegrating gear may well have caused things to bind and knocked the crank out...Tough to say cause versus affect.

I'll make this more interesting and tell a bit more of the story...The same exact thing happened to this motor (before I bought it) when it was at a 95 cube with chains and not gears. Common themes that I have found: 1) Same aggressive cam profile 2) Same/stock cam support plate. The motor received a new crank (obviosuly) when it went to 95" and again when it went to a 103" (the build to 103" occurred on the heels of the first crank gear failure.

There is obviously an issue with 1 or more parts or design. I am really leaning towards going to a screamin' eagle cam set with chains that will allow me to get a factory HD extended warranty...

 

Some members will know what I am referring to here . . . is that tire-eater's or peg-dragger's bike (I forget his 3rd username)????

Kevin

 

dont think its tireater

 

Never heard of anyone wanting to convert back to chain driven cams. Also, a 95 incher doesn't require a different crank,a 103 would though.....

alot of people run aggressive cams, and they don't cause parts to break.

Getting rid of your gear driven cams and going back to chains is really a dumb thing to do, IMHO. You can get a milder grind gear driven cam set for the same price as buying all the stock chain crap.

~Joe