30K miles and running basically DINO oil. I'm most likely going to be switching to synthetic. As far as interval goes every 3000 miles, plus the end of the season. I will say the riding i do is generally 'aggressive', but who knows if that really even plays a roll. Mainly just enjoy the peace of mind to know its not an issue at this point. As far as the hyd. tensioner...i guess i really don't have an opinion...still trying to get used to the new cam more than anything.
If you change your oil at 3K intervals the difference between the Dino oil and synthetic is so minimal that cam tension wear would be show virtually no difference. The wear comes from the rough spots on the chain. The cam tensioner material is a relatively hard phenolic material but it still is softer that the chain. Guess who wins in the wear department. I had my changed out at 40K when I had my Wide Glide. Believe me they were almost completely gone. I asked several techs where I got my bike serviced and at other dealers and got the same answer. At 3k intervals the wear issue here would not have changed the way the pads wore.
I checked mine a couple weeks ago and they looked just about like yours (maybe a bit less wear). I bolted the cover back up and said good for another year.
I changed mine at 22,500, they were worn, but fine for a while longer I guess. The next 20,00 will see a new drive, possibly these hydraulic tensioners. My ? is, can I use My SE 203 cams?
If you change your oil at 3K intervals the difference between the Dino oil and synthetic is so minimal that cam tension wear would be show virtually no difference. The wear comes from the rough spots on the chain. The cam tensioner material is a relatively hard phenolic material but it still is softer that the chain.
I'm not sure if I agree with your first 2 statements. I disagree with the synthetic statement, my opinion on synthetic is it would make a difference. This is just an opinion based on the noticeable drop in wear metals on UOA's for trucks and bike both. I am not saying synthetic will fix HD's **** poor design.
I believe the chain tensioner wear comes from having a spring loaded tensioner applying too much pressure on chain all the time. When I replaced chain tensioner on my 02 I could not believe how much tension the springs had. If the chain was the problem wouldn't HD have changed the chain instead of the tensioner design?
HD changed the design and material of the tensioner pads and the chain as well. The kit includes a new chain, sprockets, higher capacity oil pump and billet cam plate.
Last edited by carpetride; 04-11-2009 at 11:02 PM.
04-09-2009 | 11:22 PM
Cam Tensioners
