I recently purchased a 1979 FLH with a stock engine setup. Compression is 75 in the front and 75 in the rear cylinder. I noticed what I would consider a heavy tick ( I wouldn't consider it a knocking sound) in the front cylinder which begins approximately 4-5 seconds after startup. The engine noise / light ticking seems normal for the first 0-4 seconds. I adjusted the hydraulic lifters after it sat cold overnight by loosening the pushrods and tightening them until light contact and tightened an additional 18 flats. Still ticked heavily. So, today I tried adjusting the lifters by tightening the pushrods until they bottomed out then loosened them 9 flats. the tick seems heavier now. I am not sure what I am screwing up here and can't seem to find a definitive way to adjust the lifters. Any thoughts on what I am doing incorrectly or what the issue may be? Thanks for the assistance.

 

put 3 1/2 in the ones making noise

if that does nothing then a replacement may be in order

also check the screen in the block next to the oil pump, debris - it will affect the front as its the furthest away from the line pressure

 

Thanks Johnjzjz! It worked! Sounds as it should now.

 

its a wear thing sometimes a little more fixes it not all the time but most times

 

Are you suggesting 3 1/2 turns from contact or and extra 3 1/2 turns? I'm fighting a 74 inch engine that ticks after warm up. I'm assuming it's lifters ticking from too much slop after growth.

 

3 1/2 turns from light contact i.e. no free play with the lifter. The idea is to compress the hydraulic unit about half way and in the case of worn lifters sometimes a bit more to add some extra cusion at 0 cam lift.

One note of caution - Make sure your dealing with hydraulic lifters and not solids! Have seen cases where people thought they had hydraulic lifters in a motor they knew little about and adjusted that way, but actually had solids which casued the valves to come off their seats ending very badly when they hit the starter button! Always make sure you can spin the push rod by hand after the lifters bleed down and if you can't then there is something wrong.

 

I've got Jims lifter blocks and Jims hydraulic lifters. Seems like there is a definite sweet spot that works and anything else makes noise. For my 32 TPI adjusters I guess I'll try the 3 1/2 turn method and see if that does the trick. 18 flats, or 3 turns, doesn't seem to do it.

Thanks for the advice.

 

I've been running Jims hydros for many years and never had any issues using the standard 3 turns on 32tpi rods, might want to check your sifter screen for crud before anything. You can double check the adjustment by measuring the hydraulic unit in relation to the snap ring, it should be 0.100" below when adjusted properly. Also Jims take a while to bleed down and shouldnt feel spongy at all when you push down on them. If one does, it could be a broken spring in the lifter. The only noise I have is due to high valve closing velocity from the Leinweber cam profile, never from tappets.

 

a lienweber cam with its matching valve springs is not a home owner camshaft -
it requires a very skilled hand to get it right as he has a completely different take on the 020 setting and the lobe separation angles

and most pushrods on the lower end are 28 threads so 4 becomes possible using 32 count - but i only take them 3 flats at a time and see what happens - almost all will respond to being quieter at a 1/2 more into the lifter

 

This is good info. I will add an extra half turn and see if it's quieter. I will continue to experiment with adjustment as well.

One more quick question. Is the port near the rear lifter block the place to take the pressure reading?

thanks!