easy there cowboy, no need to be so grumpy..what I was saying anyway is..what the MOCO says, including the part about gently riding until oil gets up to temp in order to properly lubricate its components or engine damage may occur...I follow their instructions to the letter, and consequently we have not had lifter problems in 17 years, several Harleys each bikes and over 165,000 miles combined..people report noises, problems, etc...we don't always know what they used for lubricants or what modifications were done or if they mistreat their machines and beat on them etc.,..I suspect all that latter stuff is responsible for some problems having been reported..we're just one example of owners who follow manufacturer recommendations and don't experience these particular problems..luck, or coincidence? who knows, but no sense in doing anything different

 

I certainly do, which comes straight from the Horse's, er', HOG's mouth in this case

* Harley Davidson motor oil does not have a professional rating from a 3rd party, or do they mention how their oil compares to API or JASO ratings. Their official reason for not having an API rating is:

"Harley-Davidson® does not recommend any lubricants that have not been tested and approved by Harley-Davidson® engineering because we do not control the formulations. Lubricants are reformulated frequently to meet changing American Petroleum Institute (API) Ratings. API Ratings are developed and tested for use in water-cooled automotive engines and diesel applications. There is no API Rating (classification) for Motorcycle Engines.

Other motorcycle motor oils have API and JASO ratings that are printed on the oil container labels including motor oil from motorcycle manufacturers like Honda and Kawasaki. HarleyDavidson oils are certified and tested in house and do not have these ratings."

anyway, HD fluids are all we have ever used, have served us well so see no need to change after this long

 

My 2019 Triglide 114" does it every cold start and lasts about 2 seconds. It has done it since I test drove it and still does it with 23K miles.

 

They do not need to. Its fluid is only marketed for HD Motorcycles. They make no claim to any other brand they do not own.

 

OK, that's your experience. Didn't mean to pop off, but maybe somebody else has a different one. Which is usually the case. Hence the question asking about other owners who might have had a different experience.

 

Have 34k on a '18 114 heritage. I ride year around from 20 degrees to 100 and especially when it's below 40 it'll rattle for 5 seconds or less. Has done this for quite some time. My local shop has heard it when I've left it there for a few days and says it's normal. They've had bikes with well over 100k stock making the same startup sounds and it's just the lifters. I run harley filters and oil and am not concerned. Like others said it's normal and just have fun riding. If your really concerned I'd just drop in a 131 crate engine and call it a day. 😆

 

Don't really feel like dropping $6,000.