Cam Project Final Write-Up
Tourer
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 358
Likes: 24
Road Warrior
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 1,534
Likes: 10
O.K., another proud A-Train/Iclick cam-school graduate here.
Followed their directions, and everything went smoothly.
Downloaded the canned TTS map for SE255 cams, and the bike fired right up. No ticking sounds, funny noises, cams shooting out of the side of the engine, etc.
Hardest part of the job? Installing the Fuel Moto head pipe & heat shields.
I can't give enough praise to the two Gentlemen, atrain & iclick, who helped me through every phase of this job. Their patience knew no bounds.
I only wish I had the skills & knowledge to reciprocate the favor.
Thank you, again.
Followed their directions, and everything went smoothly.
Downloaded the canned TTS map for SE255 cams, and the bike fired right up. No ticking sounds, funny noises, cams shooting out of the side of the engine, etc.
Hardest part of the job? Installing the Fuel Moto head pipe & heat shields.
I can't give enough praise to the two Gentlemen, atrain & iclick, who helped me through every phase of this job. Their patience knew no bounds.
I only wish I had the skills & knowledge to reciprocate the favor.
Thank you, again.
Last edited by drspencer; May 29, 2011 at 04:21 PM.
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 11,615
Likes: 50
From: Baton Rouge, LA
Diploma is in the mail.
Voila! 
It's a Harley, so something's definitely wrong here. 
I would have to say that futzing with the exhaust and rocker paraphernalia is the worst part of the job. Working in the cam chest is pretty straightforward.
Gentlemen? Who walked in? I guess Atrain must have.
You do. I'll be the first to accept a beer next time I'm in your neck of the woods, wherever that is. I'm always looking for an excuse to start a ride. 
Followed their directions, and everything went smoothly.
Downloaded the canned TTS map for SE255 cams, and the bike fired right up. No ticking sounds, funny noises....
Hardest part of the job? Installing the Fuel Moto head pipe & heat shields.
I can't give enough praise to the two Gentlemen, atrain & iclick, who helped me through every phase of this job.
I only wish I had the skills & knowledge to reciprocate the favor.
Last edited by iclick; May 29, 2011 at 01:33 PM.
Thread Starter
|
Road Warrior
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,377
Likes: 8
From: Atlanta, GA
O.K., another proud A-Train/Iclick cam-school graduate here.
Followed their directions, and everything went smoothly.
Downloaded the canned TTS map for SE255 cams, and the bike fired right up. No ticking sounds, funny noises, cams shooting out of the side of the engine, etc.
Hardest part of the job? Installing the Fuel Moto head pipe & heat shields.
I can't give enough praise to the two Gentlemen, atrain & iclick, who helped me through every phase of this job. Their patience knew no bounds.
I only wish I had the skills & knowledge to reciprocate the favor.
Thank you, again.
Followed their directions, and everything went smoothly.
Downloaded the canned TTS map for SE255 cams, and the bike fired right up. No ticking sounds, funny noises, cams shooting out of the side of the engine, etc.
Hardest part of the job? Installing the Fuel Moto head pipe & heat shields.
I can't give enough praise to the two Gentlemen, atrain & iclick, who helped me through every phase of this job. Their patience knew no bounds.
I only wish I had the skills & knowledge to reciprocate the favor.
Thank you, again.
Tourer
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 491
Likes: 5
From: Manitoba, Canada
Another A-Train/Iclick grad today as well .... probably wouldn't have tackled it without the inspiration from your write ups .... I have done tons of wrenching on snowmobiles but have never touched a 4 stroke engine before ... I printed all your write ups and had them in a binder as reference as I went along .... awesome, thanks guys!
Just finished installing wood tw-555 cams and RB Racing LSR 2-1 in black ceramic. The bike fired right up and oil pressure light went out right away .... huge smiles! Still got a few things to finish up .... install new base map from FuelMoto and my Autotune, a couple of heat sheilds on the exhaust and Jerzees customs oil pressure guage then good to go.
Thanks again!
B
Just finished installing wood tw-555 cams and RB Racing LSR 2-1 in black ceramic. The bike fired right up and oil pressure light went out right away .... huge smiles! Still got a few things to finish up .... install new base map from FuelMoto and my Autotune, a couple of heat sheilds on the exhaust and Jerzees customs oil pressure guage then good to go.
Thanks again!
B
Last edited by Northern B; Jun 9, 2011 at 08:38 PM.
5th Gear
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 9
Likes: 0
From: New Hampshire
cam alignment question
This is a great write-up as many have said. I have been into this project and have questions about cam alignment, timing marks, and cam sprocket positions. I've installed the cams into the cam baseplate and made sure the timing marks line up using a straight edge. After installing the cam plate assembly into the crankcase I prepare to install the cam sprockets following the H-D manual process for aligning the sprockets in the chain. When I apply the two sprockets/chain assembly onto the ends of the cam and crank they don't just slide on. There is a very slight misalignment. The H-D manual says to "rotate the rear cam sprocket in a clockwise direction until the timing mark on the root is aligned with the timing mark on the crank sprocket tooth." How much do you move the rear cam sprocket to get this alignment? 2 degrees, 358 degrees? Doesn't this take the cams out of alignment now? Also, it seems to be the opposite direction I need to go to in order to get the sprocket/chain assembly to slide into place because I can see that if I nudge the rear wheel very very slightly I can get the crank sprocket to 'square' up and get the alignment without moving the cam sprocket. Will this f**k up the timing? Or will this still be okay? I notice in a picture for this procedure in the Day Three write up that the crank sprocket dot is not exactly lined up with the line on the base plate or the cam sprocket. It's very close but not spot on. The H-D manual says "Misaligned sprockets will make the engine run erratically." How erratic? Will it run but have too high compression in one cylinder? Will it run rich in one cylinder and be difficult to tune? Any help here would be much appreciated. I'd hate to have to undo everything (exhaust system, pushrods, etc) again and have to come back to this alignment issue with no confidence. Thanks in advance for any help!
Last edited by ride1; Jun 11, 2011 at 01:59 PM. Reason: correction
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Harley-Davidson Needs to Fix in 2026
Verdad Gallardo
Southpaw Super Glide: A Left-Hand-Drive 1979 Harley FXE Built to Fit the Rider
Verdad Gallardo
The Best and Worst Harley-Davidson Moves of 2025
Verdad Gallardo
Thread Starter
|
Road Warrior
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,377
Likes: 8
From: Atlanta, GA
This is a great write-up as many have said. I have been into this project and have questions about cam alignment, timing marks, and cam sprocket positions. I've installed the cams into the cam baseplate and made sure the timing marks line up using a straight edge. After installing the cam plate assembly into the crankcase I prepare to install the cam sprockets following the H-D manual process for aligning the sprockets in the chain. When I apply the two sprockets/chain assembly onto the ends of the cam and crank they don't just slide on. There is a very slight misalignment. The H-D manual says to "rotate the rear cam sprocket in a clockwise direction until the timing mark on the root is aligned with the timing mark on the crank sprocket tooth." How much do you move the rear cam sprocket to get this alignment? 2 degrees, 358 degrees? Doesn't this take the cams out of alignment now? Also, it seems to be the opposite direction I need to go to in order to get the sprocket/chain assembly to slide into place because I can see that if I nudge the rear wheel very very slightly I can get the crank sprocket to 'square' up and get the alignment without moving the cam sprocket. Will this f**k up the timing? Or will this still be okay? I notice in a picture for this procedure in the Day Three write up that the crank sprocket dot is not exactly lined up with the line on the base plate or the cam sprocket. It's very close but not spot on. The H-D manual says "Misaligned sprockets will make the engine run erratically." How erratic? Will it run but have too high compression in one cylinder? Will it run rich in one cylinder and be difficult to tune? Any help here would be much appreciated. I'd hate to have to undo everything (exhaust system, pushrods, etc) again and have to come back to this alignment issue with no confidence. Thanks in advance for any help!
The reason you remove the rear cam and crank sprockets and chain is so the rear cam pulley will not rotate the cams out of position when you rotate the crank to its correct position. If I understand you correctly, this is not a major problem.
5th Gear
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 9
Likes: 0
From: New Hampshire
You're right!
There was a misalignment of the front cam..........by one tooth. I took the sprockets off and looked at the line up as it was showing on the outboard face of the cam plate and recognized that per your advice. Had to remove the cam plate and reset the front cam. Made sure the dots on the face of the cams lined up. I noted that on the outboard side, the rear cam "flat" would line up (center) with the projection of the cast-in diagonal line on the front of the cam plate and the dots of the front and rear cams were in a straight-across alignment. After the cam plate assembly was reinstalled I double-checked the crank flat alignment and then I was able to just slide the two sprockets right into place. The sprocket alignment dots are in the correct position along that same cast-in diagonal line. As an aside: I do have the rear cylinder at TDC. Thanks for the help. Now, could you come over and adjust my pushrods for me? They sure take a lot of wrench twisting! Just kidding. Should be good to go. Raining for the next three days so plenty of time to wrap it up.