Hey everyone, just looking for some input. I have a 2006 1200C with 66k miles, daily commute bike about 85 miles a day. My Sportster "tick" has got louder recently. I have not made any changes so I'm just curious if its time to open the engine up to investigate.

I have SE intake and V&H Short shots installed and change the oil every 3k miles, use Harley 20w50 and a stock filter.

Any ideas or input would be great!

 

Where's the ticking coming from? Is it limited to certain RPM ranges?

 

the croc is getting closer....

 

Following

 

At idle, my idle is set to 950 RPM. It sounds like it is coming from the rocker area front and rear cylinders. The bike has the same power in all gears and RPM range as it always has, I have not lost any performance.

 

The sound's coming from your valvetrain, then. That doesn't necessarily mean it's a problem, especially if your bike's still performing normally across the board.

Sportsters and Big Twins use hydraulic lifters, which pump up with oil to maintain zero valve lash. It's normal to hear the valves ticking while the lifters build up pressure for a little while after start-up. If there's too little oil for the lifters to build adequate pressure, that ticking is a symptom. One reason you might be hearing the valves now when you weren't before is that engines will often burn oil more rapidly as they age.

Next time the bike's fully warmed up (I'd take it for at least a half-hour ride, just to be thorough, though that's probably overkill), listen to the rocker boxes again. If the ticking's still there, check your engine oil level and make sure there's enough.

All that being said, there could be a problem with the lifters themselves, or it could just be harmless Sportster "character" noise. Sporties are noisy bikes, and the engine racking up miles will tend to add to that.

 

So I have been away for a bit, I found the source of the "ticking" i have been hearing. The top engine stabilizer link is bad, metal on metal vibration in perfect sync making it sound like it was coming from the valve train.

The sound disappeared when I dismounted and the bike was on the jiffy stand but if I was stopped at idle and leaned the bike the right it was much louder. That's it, simple fix!

 

Glad you figured it out. I'll file that one away for future reference.

 

 

Glad you got the new tick gone with your link taken care of.

For the "normal" ticking, there is a way to get rid of it!

Rocker Lockers!

Check em out HERE.