Asking for a friend and for myself somewhat.

he has an 05 Twin cam with 70,000 miles. He is being told to change the tensioners and while in there he should replace the cams as well. He was told the cost would be between $800 & $1,000.


My question is that a reasonable price?
Does he really need to replace the cams?
I thought replacing the lifters would be more important than the cams?


He is at an indy shop and they have him scared now since he is planning a trip to the black hills this summer.


I know a lot of guys will say do the cams, the heads, get it tuned and blah blah blah. He is not interested in making 100 HP, just having a solid running HD that wont leave him stranded.

 

It's not that much more labor to change the cams since you are already in there. Plus you'd want to change the inner bearings as well and maybe add Baisley spring for better oil pressure. All very cheap and reliable with the bike running better than new.

 

The cams run in bearings and the lifters role on bearings across the cam surface. (Roller Cam) Cams should not be worn at 70k miles unless there was an oiling or debris problem. I upgraded my '03 to SE Billet cam plate with high volume oil pump, roller chain and hydraulic tensioners. Not sure what year that became standard but if his 05 has spring tensioners on the cam chain that is the upgrade I would make while in there.

 

I paid around $1200 for the upgrade without a new cam.

 

I did the SE billet upgrade as well. Parts alone were about $500. Added cams, adj pushrods, and lifters, and it added up pretty quick. But it was a different ride after I was done.

 

First, gotta tell your friend that at 70K miles, changing the tensioners is a must do; particularly if he is planning a road trip this summer. Many have not been so fortunate; my '05 FXSTD saw failed tensioners at 12K miles and my '02 FLHT saw them fail at 20K miles. Fortunately, I caught them both before any damage was done.

To answer your questions we need to know what work is being done. Most techs charge 6-8 man hours for a cam chest upgrade, so if your techs hourly rate is say $90, you are looking at $540-$720 for labor. If the tech is replacing inner and outer cam bearings and tensioner, parts are going to run $100 and change, plus any mark up the tech applies to his cost for the parts. Throw in another $50 for gaskets and oil and the $900 makes some sense.

I would agree that the lifters should be changed and would recommend a set of CompCams VThunder 850-1 lilfters, about $75 to his door but if he is willing to spend another $50, a set of S&S standards would be even better. It would be smart for your friend to jump on Ebay and look for a set of low mileage SE203/204 cams or a set of Andrews 21/26 or 48 cams; a set of S&S 509/551 cams would also work well. The SE cams are common and will go for about $100-$125 and, since the cams have to come out anyway, the tech should not charge any extra labor to install them.

You should also have your friend talk to the tech about replacing the OEM tensioners with the CYCO tensioners; better product.

To summarize, the price seems fair if the job is the work described above. The cams don't NEED to be replaced but if your buddy has an extra cash, picking up a used set of bolt in cams for the tech to install would be a smart move. Yes the lifters definitely should be replaced.

If the bike is carbureted and cams installed, re-jetting the carb would be wise. If fuel injected, a fuel management system might be required; he will know after he rides the bike to see how it starts, idles, runs at partial and full throttle, whether or not he gets a lot of decal backfiring and checking his mileage.

EDIT: If your friend knows anyone that has had work done at this shop he should talk to them and see if they were satisfied with the service. Additionally, he should request a written estimate from the shop separating labor and parts cost and listing all the parts that will be replaced to avoid any misunderstanding of what your friend is buying.

 

If it was me, with what I know now, I would just go with the SE 203 or 204 cam (or Andrews equivalent) and just change the tensioners. However, I would go with the tensioners from Cyco Gaskets (spelling?).
Then again, if he wanted to not worry about tensioners anymore, he could spend a few more dollars and go geared. Done right, geared cams are a good investment.
Really depends on how much of a fanatic you want to be.

 

thanks for all of the information guys. Sounds like the price is within range of where it should be but I will tell him to get a written estimate so he knows for sure if bearings are being replaces as well as the cams and so forth.


Appreciate the help, shortly I will have to do this to my 08 96" so some great information!

 

IMO The Harley kit that changes from the earlier spring tensioners to the later hydraulic tensioners is the way to go.

I would also replace the lifters at that mileage.

Going back with the SE adjustable pushrods might be a cost-effective "wash" labor $ wise.

Without knowing exactly what the Indy is quoteing it's hard to say if the price is right...

 

Your 08 has hydraulic tensioners and those should last over 100K from what I've read.