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I took my feuling lifters out, took them apart and cleaned them out. Put them back together properly. Question I have is, I pumped them up with oil, they help pressure, and didnt leak when I pushed on them. I left them over night and when I went back to them they had lost pressure. Is that normal?
You check lifters with a certain weight pressing on them and time their leak down.
Google how lifters work and see YouTube how to check.
They leak down. If they didn't, they would hold the valves open. (Valve springs override there lifter's strength)
I checked all the lifters I put back in the motors I rebuilt over the years. However I never thought to check if they leaked down on their own over night.
Check your's properly. There probably OK unless the roller is bad or surfaces looks bad on the lifter
I have never seen a worn out lifter in the hydraulic part other than the Jeep YJ four cylinder I rebuilt. They had a flat washer with a + plus shape pressed into it and no ball. The bleed + plus shape raised ridges were worn almost flat.
They were still working but I replaced them.
Originally Posted by Another Experienced user
There is no need to disassemble lifters during their lifetime. The most common failure point on Harley lifters is the needle bearings at the roller, or the surface of the roller, not the hydraulic components.
Often times the less you mess with anything mechanical the better off the machinery will be.
Post in old thread for reference..
Last edited by Jackie Paper; May 3, 2026 at 07:29 AM.
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Hydraulic lifter question
