Been wondering/worried about the cam chain tensioner issue for my 01 RK w/33,000+ miles. Read about splitting open the oil filter to look for debree and decided to have a look see. Once the element was free from the cartridge, I took a popsicle stick and dug between the folds. Didn't see anything at first. Not until the oil had drained away better. In the photo three of the flecks were found in other areas and staged. This bike is grounded until further notice. Thank you HD-Forums for the critical info you provide.

 

Good catch...Now what'cha gonna do.

Go back with stock replacement...

Update to hydraulic tensioners..

Update to gear drive...

 

When disassembling, take a good look at the pump gears. If they show signs of wear, and the cam plate is toast, do the conversion. It is the cheapest way out. Don't forget to clean out the oil tank and change the inner bearings

 

+1 what he said but a RK with an oil tank? I definately had to clean out my oil pan and pump etc...

 

It's time to consider a gear driven system. Replacing the tensioner boots is an option, but you may not be lucky enough to catch it next time. I seared out my oil pump because of the brokern tensioners.

 

Gear driven is a thing of beauty.

 

You're right, it is a Pan! But I still call it a tank. The funny thing is that when I cleaned mine out I did order an oil pan gasket.

 

It's hard to get the "old school" out of the blood isn't it?

What would have happened if you had ordered an oil tank gasket?

 

Good Thing that you have parked it.
If you are going to keep the bike spend the $1200 and put the gear drive system in it. You will have a piece of mind and will not have to replace chain parts again. I replaced the chain with the gears and love it. A little bit of noise but that is ok.

 

From the wear on mine at 15K I would check or change at around 30K, some folks have had failures earlier and some folks have 100K with no problems,, on the flip side you're going to find traces of the tensioner shoes in the filter as they wear which is normal.

Gear drive is the way to go or you need to replace the shoes, either way unless you pull the heads you'll have to cut the old ones and get some adjustable push rods, so if you have the funds I would just go gear drive and be done.