Been watching this thread with great curiosity. I also have some valve train noise, but mine is not nearly as loud as what Mike is describing. In fact, I really dont think its a "terminal" problem....just a little annoying. My only issue is that I first noticed any noise at all after my 1,000 service with the dealer. I remember asking the mechanic that performed the service if everything was looking ok....and he responded that things looked great, but he did indicate that the drive belt was bit loose and asked me if it was making any noise....I reponded no. The bike was definitely quieter than before the service.....so I guess my question to forum would be if tightening the main drive could make the valve training noice go up a bit, or could they make any other adjustments that may have done that? I'm thinking I might just return to the dealer and ask them about it, but just as was said earlier in this thread.."all noise is normal to the dealer". I can certainly live with it because its not real loud.....I'm just real in tune with before and after changes.

Thanks!!

 

>>tightening the main drive could make the valve training noice go up a bit,

No connection between the two

The TC engine by design is fairly noisy over other bikes, maybe the noise you hear could be considered not abnormal (clever way of saying it) for the engine.

 

First off , take a deep breath relax ahhhhh now we can get this handled. I know about about the hd t/c motors and have been seeing a high number of lifters that are noisy. They do not fail but clatter like they are out of adjustment. Swap out the lifters and install a bypass oil shim or spring they both do the same thing. DO NOT REPLACE WITH HD LIFTERS. Comp cams is making a great lifter, and they are 23 grams lighter, they fix the noise issue. And when you are in the cam chest you can inspect the cam chain tensioners, this may be some of the problem. I have seen them last 60k+ and seen ones that are starting to fail at 6K take a peek at macs post on the 98. WE just pulled his last weekend and as you can see they are starting to pit and pieces are missing. HD says normal well I tend to disagree as you have to think those pieces are in the cam chest and can get into lower end, cause problems with cam bearings also. Really they can go anywhere as they are not going to get filtered out until they get suck back through the oil pump ( not good) and back to oil tank. Not trying to freak you out only telling you what I have seen since I do this once and a wheil

 

This is the wear that he is referring to after only 6K



I'm not sure the picture does it justice, but if you look at the wear compared to the size of the pad...it was significant given the number of miles, and riding habits, which were mild.

Mac

 

whats the part number for the tc lifters you recommend on your site?

tia
steve

 

well....... I had it checked out on saturday,this time they had a mechanic come out and ride the bike around,his conclusion............. not loud enough to recommend tearing into it,yes there is valve noise,and could possibally be a wrist pin,however.......... the master HD mechanic stated to me that he "will not" recommend to HD to tear into the motor,not sever enough for Harley to waste money on tearing the motor down to fix this problem,"it's only valve train,if it comes apart,no big deal"as far as a possible wrist pin,he said run it till it gets alot louder,then bring it back and they'll repair /see if in fact it is a wrist pin noise,told him the factory warranty is up in january,he said "then you'll be paying for it out of your pocket" not harley's problem What a a$$hole this guy was.
his recommendation,put in a radio,and add some pipes if the noise bothers you! what good is a factory warranty if this is what i'm getting from the dealer,about a problem"under warranty" so.......... guess it's time for some pipes and a stereo, and a factory repair manual, the two dealers i've dealt with on this get the "one finger wave from me"

if your riding through NH and break down,push it past these two dealers,lol
(seacoast HD & heritage HD)

Mike