i bought most of parts by ebay in USA. Even with customs sometimes, the deal is a lot better. But for that and some other stuff i want to do it at my dealer (it's not an official) for 3 reasons : first, it's a friend; second, i trust him; third is that i want him to stay open.
In France, lots of little shop like him have stop their business. They could not beat internet and prices (french taxes, import taxes and so on). If all close, we will have the only solution to go to MoCo dealer with their more expensive labor prices and their look on our ape and 21"...
i want the best bank for the buck and i think that changing pads and bearings is not a bad solution for an '04 (an very old bike for afficial dealers). And i could keep my money for new fenders and a new paint for exemple.
I hope you understand my thoughts even if i'm not fluent

 

Is it the solution you went with? you have change old tensioners for new ones? No problem since? Did you have change your cams?

sorry for all that questions but if you have went where i'm thinking going to, i'm a lot interested.

 

Pit, you are plenty fluent, we understand you well. We don't know about import tax, etc, but your quote on your original post is just plain high. Changing cams is not that big of a job that requires such a high labor cost, if adjustable pushrods are used, so you don't have to pull the heads.

Also, your bike should be worth more at the time of sale if you have taken care of the cam tensioner problem once and for all.

 

At first glance, the prices you were quoted appear over the top but not knowing what is included, can't say for sure.

You have the right idea. Save the $$$/francs/euros and replace the stock tensioners, change inner and outer cam bearings and either of the cams you mentioned will boost performance a bit but they both like more compression than stock and would perform better if you could get your hands on a set of '06 or later heads, deck them a bit for more compression and install them with a .030" Cometic MLS head gasket. You will get a seat of the pants kick from cams alone but more compression is necessary to optimize the bump.

You won't have to change tensioner every 12,500 miles. The old chain is "polished" from the previous miles and shoudl not wear down the new tensioners as fast. The problem with the old tensioners was the high, constant spring pressure applied. Just check the tensioners for wear every 12,500 miles; they should last a long time.

 

Save your money. Have your friend replace the tensioners,inner and outer bearings and call it good. I had mine changed at 33000 miles and also went with SE211 cams. Alot cheaper than the upgrades,and if I get another 33000 out of these,I'll change them again! I'm not worried.

 

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I priced the pads out and they will cost around $120 + gaskets, Is this a job I can do myself? Will I need special tools?

 

If you have any mechanical knowledge you can do the work easily.. Yes you will need a blind bearing puller rent it from auto zone and a bearing driver... Pretty straight forward job!! But if you are that far in to it might as well go for the Andrews 26g cams I did mine myself at 24,000 mi and never looked back or worried since then... After the cam change it pulled like a truck and I had a real sense of satisfaction.... Also you don't have to pull the heads to change the cams... Just use adjustable push rods and use a set of bolt cutters to cut the old ones out... I also went with the S/S gear drive loved it.. Harbor freight also has blind bearing pullers and bearing drivers for about 40$ for both if you want to own your own I renter mine from auto zone and the sold me a high end one for i think it was 274$ but the one for 29$ and some change will work just as good...P.s. I'm not stupid just didn't see the one at harbor freight till I was done with the job... I have since traded my 04 off on a new 103 but my 04 88 ran very well.... Hope this helps you get a feel for the job !!! Jerry

 

Gentlemen, Pit is in France, so comparing prices is not helpful. Here in Europe we pay much higher prices than in the USA and even if we buy cheaper from the States shipping and import taxes, at our end, can bump up prices a lot!

Pit, while changing the stock tensioners is a viable solution, the best solution IMHO is to fit the SE hydraulic kit, plus a set of new cams. The gearset is even more expensive and I can see no benefit, whether or not crank runout is a problem. I have an S&S motor in my evo so am a fan, but have yet to tackle my TC88 and have no plans for gears for that.

 

That dealer is hitting you dry!!!!!!! Have someone in the US buy it for you and ship it to you or you do it yourself. I just did my 04 EGC, TC88 with the SE upgrade kit, oil pump, SE 204 cams, Timken bearings, gasket kit, SE oil breathers, Stage 1 carb kit out the door, work myself, for just at $1100. Everything!!!! Done the work in just about 8 hrs. take your time, get the shop manual, and rent/borrow the bearing puller/installer and away you go. We made our own puller and it worked great.