My new to me 2013 CVO 110 is in near showroom condition and runs great, with no unusual mechanical noises. This bike was purchased from the original owner and has 40,000 miles on it. Also has new tires and brakes. Meticulously maintained, he always used S3 in all 3 holes, and he said that it has never had any engine work. It's all stock other than Vance and Hines mufflers. After reading up on the 110 Screaming Eagle, it appears that the springs/lifters are the weak link in this engine. I would think that depending on wear, it would also be a good idea to replace cams and push rods as well. Bike has enough power, and would like to keep it dependable. Please let me know your thoughts.

 

IMHO..... my thoughts...

Yes, it has the substandard "C" lifters.

Yes, it has the strong double spring valve springs.

The added pressure of those springs, in combination with the substandard "C" lifters, has caused issues on several bikes. People smarter than me, consider them the wrong springs for that application. Many will dump the 110 double springs for beehive springs. Others will stick with the double springs, but use springs with less pressure.

You could be fine, or you are at a mileage where an issue could raise its ugly head....

If I were using it as my only bike, and planning on multi-day trips with it... I would do the preventative maintenance. I would get a machine shop knowledgeable in Harley heads and the 110' issue specifically (like Larry's Motorcycle & Machine) to do the springs. It would be a lot easier to deal with it as preventative maintenance, than deal with it on the side of the road 1000 miles from home...

If it was just going to be a local cruiser, I would wait until the first signs of an issue, like increased lifter or valve train noise.

In any case, if you decide on doing the preventative maintenance, while in the cam chest, I would also replace the OEM INA brand caged inner cam bearings with the better Koyo (formerly Torrington) brand captive needle bearings...

Good luck with your decision....

Enjoy the new ride!

 

2013 was the first year for CVOs to come stock with the better cam bearings (24018-10). I believe the factory lifters and inner cam bearings should be replaced as preventative maintenance, somewhere between 25-40 thousand miles. If the cam shows no wear, reuse. If it shows wear, use the TTS100 or TTS150 as a replacement cam. Inspect the tensioner shoes and oil pump, replace failing/worn out components. I also believe the stock valve springs were overkill, and prefer the AV&V beehive springs.

 

Disclaimer: I don't own a 110, never have. All I know about them is what I read, and that tells me SOME 110's have lifter issues, but I've never seen anywhere that ALL 110's have lifter issues. If it was mine, I'd just ride it and maintain it by the book. If it starts having issues, then tear into it. I'm a big fan of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it". Seen lots of examples of bikes that were "improved" and ended up with more problems than when they started. If you do decide to change lifters, etc, be very sure you have a reputable, experienced shop do it.

 

I would not hesitate to change them out.

We lost a lifter on an M8 and it totally trashed the engine. No fun!

A friend of ours many years back now was on the way to Sturgis on his CVO Ultra 110 and his let go with about 20k miles on it. Still under warranty for him back then.

Nice bike by the way. Enjoy

 

This happened to someone I know. Low miles

I don't know about your year. But in general, I think you are approaching time when you should start thinking about when you want to do lifters, tensioners, and breathers. Might as well do cam bearings when open. Atleast if it was a twin cam.

 

Today I took a ride down to the closest Harley dealer (1 hour away) that I have dealt with in the past, a large H-D dealership. Talked to the Service Writer and explained my concern with this engine. She basically said if it's not making any loud ticking sounds not to worry about it. She said that doing the lifters/springs etc. is an expensive job. Didn't seem too interested in just replacing stock parts. Said if you are thinking of doing that might as well do a Stage 2 or Stage 3 job. She said that they did a 110" to 117" Stage 3 job for a guy last week. Not really interested in dropping $5K to make the bike into a hot rod though. Bike is new to me, have only ridden it a couple of times so far. For me, my bikes are for relatively short day trips, not long distance touring, etc. Probably run it and see how it goes. Thanks for all of the input.

 

She is right and she isn't. Yes you will hear a noise when lifters are bad, but then it is to late. I don't know about your year, there have been some bad ones lately. Normally I would say 50k start thinking about it. even then not a rush,

She is right when you have it open, good time to do other work.

I wouldn't worry about it this year, unless the lifters are known to be bad.

 

That's the way I look at it too...by the time that you are hearing those noises damage is already being done. I will run it this year and see how it goes, thank you.

 

Doing it yourself, is tedious job, second guessing, but bolt on and off. Finding TDC is probably the most screwing around, Something to think about over the winter, get a factory manual. I