First let me say thanks for evrybody's replies. Keep em' coming.
I called an independent shop today and he said the way I described it that it could be the cam bearing or lifters. Said he'd take a look when he got a chance if I'd bring it and drop it off. He said prob. between 700-1200 dollars to fix it. I called another guy who said this model is notorious for having cam bearing problems and he could fix it for about 700. Soooo I took it to Renegade cycles. A one man operation who seems more interested in hot rods shovel heads and chrome. Thats all good but I want mine running with dependability. He listened to it and tried tightening the exhaust. Then he took the cover off and said that the timing pick-up nut was tight. He then said bring it to him when I could leave it because he would have to tear into it to find the problem. He said he didn't have any idea but could find it if I'd leave it. I asked about the cam bearing and he said if thats what he found he'd put a bearing in and leave the cam that I have because it's probably not hurt. Does this sound like a good idea? The other guys wanted to put cam, bearings, lifters, and push rods in. That would sound reasonable to me. Who can you trust around here? This is killing me! I want to ride but don't have a fortune to spend on this.

 

grbrown, when this thing is all over I want to talk to you about that fairing on your bike. If I got any pennies left I want one. Something to hide the dash on mine; it sucks.

 

This is going to sound completely off the wall, but does it make the rattling sound with the kickstand up or down ?? If it does it with the stand down its maybe in the motor like already stated. A bad lifter or the roller on the end of the lift bad, or a bent pushrod or a loose pushrodwill make a loud tapping noise all over the right side. However, if it is doing the rattling with the stand up and changes differently when the motor is revved, check and see if your rubber stop on the frame has moved or rolled and the kickstand is hitting the frame. You will here it mostly at idle and at stop signs and traffic lights. The sound could sound like on the right or left. Just a thought.

later.....................

 

yeah, thanks paco. That would've been bad hahaha. Nah, it does it on the kick stand and I'm sure it's coming from inside there. It actually hit pretty loud a couple of time while the guy was listening. It's more consitent than I remembered too. But not so consistent that I think it's a connecting rod. It's coming from in the case. The guy at Renegade said it could be coming from anywhere and sound travels thru the engine.......It honestly sounds like someone opened the engine dropped a marble in there and put it back together. Something just bouncing around.

 

Most Evo owners here on the forum seem to be DIYers. If you have any mechanical ability, checking out the lifters and cam is not rocket science. If you follow a good manual(HD, Clymers) you will have no problem. It does involve alot of disassembly/reassembly but will really familiarize you with the basic workings of the valvetrain. Cams and Lifters are cheap compared to the labor cost at a shop.
Just be sure to mark everything so it goes back the way it was(lifters, spacers etc.). Much simpler thana V8. Go for it!

 

Wrknman,

Get a couple of opinions on this before guys start openning your engine up and you get to pay big $$.

1) The cam was changed by last owner, soI ASSUME a new cam bearingwas put in. Good miles for a 91 Evo, so mileage is not an issue. Hopefully, the miles are long distance once (like you describe), rather than hotdogging.
2)Lifterscan go bad on Evos circa 30K miles
3) Drain oil and check for metals first. A decent mechanic should be able to use a stetoscope and pinpoint what is making the noise. Gotta know if it's top or bottom noise---very important $$ decision.
4)Any possibility that your primary chain is loose and slapping, but that will be more on the left side.

Man!I fishing now. Anyway, ask twice, pay once.

dave

 

Everyone else seems to cover the potential engine issues. I think by 'cam nut' they may have been referring to the compensator nut, which leads to think maybe it came loose again. I have heard similiar sounding noises coming from a loose compensator bolt. Also, I would wonder about the wrench that says that your model was notorious for cam bearing problems. The cam bearing problems didnt start until late 1992, your 1991 should be ok. I had a bad lifter roller which made a knocking noise similiar to what you describe, and it would come and go until it got worse. And yes, sometimes it's hard to find someone you can trust. I started doing my own wrenching 20 years ago because in my area the local wrenches couldnt be trusted.

 

Hey, do what you think you need to do, but I would be leery of someone wanting to tear into my motor with no iedea of what is likely going on. Could get $ quick. Question, does the bike run good and the same with or without noise. If it seems to run well, I would look for the simplest solution first. Something loose externally causing the noise, I had a lose chrome exhaust cover made an interesting noise once. Start asking around and try to find a good EVO mech, there are many out there (usually an old guy). Good Luck.

 

Thanks everybody! I'm gonna go get a manual tomorrow. I talked to an old hot-rod buddy and he's agreed to help me. He's got a pretty nice shop but has never been in a Harley either. He did say he adjusted the tensioner on a old metric one time that sounded kinda like I describe.....haha I'm just a little woried about checking clearances and stuff. Sounds like theres gonna be shims for the cam? I'm hoping the problem is obvious when I get in there.......on a note: the other guy did say something about a sprocket on the other side sending sounds thru so that it seems that it's on the right side. I dunno just don't have much faith in him. I'll keep ya'll posted. Hell, even if I don't fix it I'll have a manual that I will need anyway, right?

 

This site is a great site as I replaced my cam for the first time and didn't know squat. Got a manual, read to make sure that I knew what I was doing, came on the site, asked questions, was told to replace my cam bearing while I had the cam out, needed a bearing puller, came back on the site, was told about the bearing puller from Autozone, replaced everything, even put in new lifters and adjustable pushrods. The next day my 93 ran good and with no problems. Cost, about 500.00 bucks and the satisfaction that I did it my self and the help from the guys here. You can do it, really.