I did the Stage II upgrade from 96 to 103 on my 2011 Road King. I have V&H Power Duals, Monster Round slip-on mufflers, and a Fuelpak. It runs great! I love the power difference between the 96 and 103. The SE 255 cams came with the Stage II.

 

I disagree.
I did a 96 to 103 on my Fatboy a couple of years ago and I used the 255's. No releases needed on the stock compression for my build. The cam worked great. I was making 86hp/96tq with a Big Sucker, Big Shots and a Power Commander.
I think you'll be satisfied with the 255's considering the range you ride in. Just for reference, I currently ride a 103" StreetGlide with 555's making 103hp/113tq. The power is great and it pulls hard but...the range at which it delivers said power is raised. These cam's really start working at 3k. I ride pretty aggressive so it fit's how I ride but I could see people not liking these cams because of where & how the power is delivered.
You'll like the 255's.

 

Yea I know there are many out there running the 103 255 setup & I wish for you all many trouble free riding miles...

There is no way i will suggest to a guy running a touring rig to plan a build with the CCP that comes along with that setup. I know better & so do most experienced builders.

CCP target 185 & no more the 190 for a heavy touring rig.

Yes you can manage a build with 205 CCP, I have done it, but not free of trouble or expense and the additional Tq & power (small marginal gain at best) from that additional cylinder pressure sure ain't worth the expense IMO & IME.

 

What kind of trouble? Not trying to start a feud , just like to know what kind of long term problems could arise.

 

starter trouble/kickback without cr's could happen. also as the gas gets worse pinging issues could arise. Not everybody will have troubles and lots depends on the quality of the tune. I see lots of good numbers with 255's and then I see lots of mediocre numbers too.

 

My 09 96" Ultra has exactly the same gearing as a 2012 Ultra with the 103" and I haven't noticed any difference in pulling power when I rode one. Since the 103" comes with the same wimpy cams as the 96", 7 more cubic inches in displacement is negligeable. To me, it's more marketing than anything. You'll wake up the engine with 255 cams but I'll wake up mine with 255s too and the difference between the 2 will still be negligeable.
Fire back......

 

I don't get all the haters of the SE 255 cams. They work very well for his application, heavy bagger conservatively ridden. I have been riding my stage II 103 for two seasons now and can say that I have NEVER experienced the nose diving torque every nay sayer attests to. Yes the torque drops off up high but the horsepower is coming in at that point (kind of the way the balance of torque and horsepower are intended to). My bike pulls right up to 5500 but I seldom go there on the the bagger. My bagger will run 80 miles an hour (3000 in 6th gear) two up loaded and still get 43 miles per gallon doing so.

To the OP, check the torque curves, no cam out there pulls down low numbers like the SE 255. It is a perfect torque cam for a bagger. I base this statement on actually having ridden a bike with one, not what the paper trails say. Can the compression cause problems on hot restarts, sure that is why I had manual compression releases installed while the heads were off. Lot's of 96 and 103 bikes running around with SE 255's in them.

Woods cams produce but they also all make noise and to achieve optimal results everyone attests to do need the compression adjusted. Will they work with stock compression? Fuelmoto says they do.

 

I have the 103 kit with the 255 cams in my bike and am very satisfied with the results. I think for a tour bike its great. I ask alot of people before the build and most people agreeded, its a good kit.

 

kuddos on the project. Don't forget to check into the cam bearings. If you do it yourself....piston ring end gaps and valve clearance measurements are important. Make sure you do not get oil in thread holes....there's been some cracked heads allegedly due to hydrostatic pressure from the torquing process.

One of the things you will find is that after your upgrade, you might not be as wow'ed as you were during your test drive. Some other factors are possible changes in the gearing ratios from year to year. For example, I'm doing the same upgrade, but will also be replacing my tranny output sprocket from the standard 32T to a 30T and the rear ISD sprocket from a 66T to 68T.

 

I have a 103 with 255 cams, a ported throttle body, '09 headpipe, Klock Super Saver Mufflers, 'Ness big sucka intake, and a Power Commander 5 with autotune from Fuel Moto (they also ported the throttle body).

Bike flat HAULS ***. the 255 is an OUTSTANDING bagger cam.

~Joe