As the title says...i have what i think is just one noisy lifter.
tw222 cams. FM pushrods. Johnson lifters, the stock type.
Sounds like the front exhaust pushrod is making more boise than any solid lifter harley ive ever had.
Bike runs great as it is. At first, I had the pushrod turned 3.5 turns. Did some reading, and from what i saw on Johnson's website was that was too deep, so I backed them off to 2 turns. Bike runs better with the 2 turns, but makes a lot of noise on just that one valve. Is this common with my setup? Thr pushrod didnt turn very freely with th 3.5 turn adjustment, seemed really tight. Maybe turn these 3-4 more flats and see what that gets me? Or should i just toss those lifters, and get something like s&s? Bike is 2012 103.

 

Are you talking two turns or two flats; big difference. Plus or minus two turns is a lot and could definitely be the difference in noise level from a lifter. Set the pre load back to 3.5 turns and go from there.

 

Did you oil soak the lifters before you installed them?

 

And it could be just a bad lifter and I will say I am running the Johnson lifters in my 110 and it is one of the quietest twin cams I have ever heard but I am running the slow leakdown version with roller pin oiling

 

Yes, talking turns, not flats.
I did soak the lifters before installation. Actually, I filled them full of oil with a small oiler, then soaked them overnight, just to be sure they were full.
I'll tighten them up one more full turn, for a total of 3 turns. See what that does. If the noise hangs around, I'll just go with s&s.
This noise does seem to be coming from up top, around a rocker arm, but I guess the sound is traveling up the pushrod. It does sound a lifter that is bled down, very click and clacky.

 

The push rods are Smith Brothers. Three full turns sets preload at .089" so by backing off two full turns, the OP has reduced preload to .0329"; no wonder he hears noise. The generally accepted rule for lifter preload to reduce or eliminate valve train noise is .135"-.140". Suggest to the OP that he set preload at 4 full turns (.132") or even 4 full turns plus two flats (.142"). If the noise still presents, a lifter could be bad or the rocker shafts are rotating in the support plate.

BTW, a lifter has to pump up to be fully primed; soaking overnight or filling with oil does not "prime" the lifter.:icon_wink"

 

So you're saying 4 full turns, plus possibly 2 additional flats? The pushrods set at 3.5 full turns barely wanted to turn on the lifter cups after they bled down. Aren't the pushrods supposed to turn freely, after the lifters bleed down? I dont have anyway to measure depth of lifter cups, so I'm just going by what I have read.

 

Yes, that is what I am saying provided the push rods are Smith Brothers which FM sells. IIRC, those push rods are 32TPI or .0313" per full turn. I used .0329" based on Smiith Brothers data that three full turns sets preload at .0989". Either way, it will take 4 full turns to set the preload at .125" or .132" which is a good staring place. If noise presents at 4 full turns, try 4.5. If noise still presents, start looking elsewhere, i.e., lifter or rocker shafts.

You don't need to measure depth of lifter cups; they will stay up top. Verify the TPI (thread per inch) of the push rods which will tell you the depth of preload and shoot for .145".

 

Fm pushrods are 24tpi

 

OK, my bad on TPI; Smith offers both, but same thing applies. 3.5 turns should solve the noise issue, if not, lifter or rocker shafts.