Not every bargain is a bargain! I've learned it so many times that you'd think it would stick by now!

 

I'm glad you discovered this with the pushrods. I was going to post here that you should remove the maddog rods because they are junk I had the same thing happen to me and did discover that valve train was noisier with maddog pushrods not sure why but when I removed mine and went with a more popular set everything was much more quiet.

 

Glad to hear that the cheap "Maddog" pushrods were the problem. Just a word of advice, the SE lifters were made by Jim's when they were having problems and still may. When winter happens, replace those lifters with a good reliable set. I have yet to hear of an S&S or V-Thunder lifter failure, some with the HD B's. Alot depends upon the cam profile and lift.

I originally purchased a complete SE lifter block and lifter set from HD that is now obsolete. I had to have the blocks honed as they were full of chrome and supplied SE lifters would not fit. Blocks are still good and on the bike now after three sets of lifters. Got rid of the SE's, installed V-Thunders (no problems with them) and just installed a set of S&S lifters with the new cam change. The VT tech rep advised that the lifters did not need to be changed. But everything went in new and I kept the original parts for spares.

 

Haven't talked to him for awhile, but I'll call him tonight and find out if he's O.K.

 

Yes, the Maddog stuff doesn't have a good name, read about some major failures with their lifters coming apart. I used the SE quick installs due to my Harley rewards program paid for them but not thrilled of the difficulty of adjusting them so I will pass that on.

 

Thanks for all the feedback about the Maddog stuff. Wish I would have know that before I bought them... should have done my research. I don't think the rod was the cause of the noise, but it may have been contributing to it because that rod showed signs of hitting the inside of the tube. For now I have only replaced the one rod. I'll wait for some cold, rainy day to do the rest.

1997bagger, I'm curious about the exhaust that you have on your bike. It looks like a 2 into 1 system but it looks like there is a muffler on the left side too. Is that there just to maintain the dual-exhaust look?

 

Couple of months ago I bounced the rev limiter and 2 Harley "B" lifters started clacking, I stuck a couple of older good Harley lifters back in it so I know what you mean by a cold, rainy day. I'm probaly going to try the S&S with the travel limiters in them.

I built a ghost pipe out of a Pro Pipe muffler and origional HD crossover pipe, cut the left pipe out of the right pipe and clamped it to the 2-1 system, it's a personal thing to have a dual pipe look. I have a set of Rinehart TD's hanging in the garage that by far look and sound better but can't get past the runability advantage of the 2-1 Pro Pipe.

 

I think I'll need an 18 pack by the time I have my clatter figured out. Replaced the INI bearing some time back, lifter at the same time. Had a distict ticking noise at the time that didn't change, with the new push rods and lifters. I hear it wth my ear on either side and can't tell if it's high or low. After a ride as far as Tenn with the RFTW crowd, and another out to Colorado springs, the noise is worse, if anything. Sounds like a lifter but you have the story. So now, I have new backfiring that may or may not be related and am about to get up and get that beer. Not much to go on when the sound can be coming from the gear box or the rocker box. I need to buy somebody a case who is a whole lot better at isolating this than me.

Regarding the backfiring: any clues as to why all the sudden. Milage was consistently 40+ riding two up and no backfiring on the trip to speak of. Plugs look a little on the light side across the ground strap but the base ring would indicate that it's running rich, being pretty dark. I have a PCIII but have not made changes since installing. FI and pipes remain the same. I'm scratching my noggin.

 

On the backfiring, it sounds like your ignition is shutting off momentarily. Check all your electrical connections and grounds to ensure that they are tight and not shorting out, and don't forget your plug wires/covers for the spark plug area. After that then it's time to diagnose your ignition system proper. Hope this helps

 

Any inputs helps... and appreciate the feedback. My backfiring is consistent at least. When under load there is seldom a pop but when I down shift or let off the throttle thats when I'll get a series of pops, almost like my old carburated 76 Superglide. I checked my wires like you said. And of course inspected the plugs. I thought if the base ring on the plug looked like I was running rich, maybe that was my issue. But why all the sudden? Just thinking out loud now. I suppose I would want to check timing before trying to recall how I set up that PCIII when I installed it several years back. Thanks for the ideas.