After searching endlessly, I'm confused. I'm gathering that if you run solid lifters you need a solid grind cam. I've also gathered that you can run solid lifters in a stock Harley Evo. with a stock cam. What gives?

I've recently had a lifter (front exhaust) failure and I'm looking for an economical yet efficient fix.

Thanks in advance.

 

If your only problem is with the front lifter, then why not just replace it with a new stock lifter. That would be your most economical and efficient fix.

Switching to solids are ok if you are running a race bike, but for a street machine, you're better off staying with the hydros. Or, you could try the "Hydrosolids". They offer a good compromise in performance and reliability. Stock lifters work perfectly for any build, no matter how powerful. They just need to be replaced every 40-60k miles. It's a cheap and easy job to do.

 

Mine are dead after 12k and I've heard that's not unsual. That's my reasoning for a better solution. Who makes the Hydrosolids and what is required to run them. Do they need the maintenance of the solids, I'm assuming not. Additionally, what's a powerglide lifter?

 

Never heard of a Powerglide lifter. My advice is still to use the stock lifters. They hold up well, even in my 120+ ft. lbs. race bikes. Your's may have failed because either they are the older version (use 1997 and later lifters) or they may not have been adjusted right before, or using bad oil. I've heard of people using hydrosolids, but they haven't mentioned any difference over stock. I'm not sure about maintenance, but you can call the manufacturer if you need that info.

Stock is the way to go, unless you just want to spend more money for some fancy ones that offer no real increase in performance and reliability. Using the newer stock lifters will ensure at least 40k+ miles.

 

Powerglides are made by Jims. They are hydraulic.

 

Thank you. If they cost much more than stock lifters, then it's probably not worth using them. You won't get any better performance from different lifters.

 

Thanks, I installed the 97+ lifters. So far, so good.

 

GMRPerformance.com lifetime gaurantee on performance lifters for 100 bucks

 

Is that 100 bucks for the set? I would never pay that much for each lifter, lifetime warranty or not. Stock lifters work perfectly and cost a lot less.