Funny Motorcycle Engine Noises

1. By the time I had gotten back to the shop from our office to pick up my camera, Devin and Shop Tech Kazoo had the top-end off to inspect the pistons and the cam cover was removed.

2. The heads were dirty and one of the exhaust valves was cracked and chipped, the pistons were showing signs of wear and had a lot of carbon build up.

3. Once Kazoo had the cam out of the bike he could see the damage to the cam lobe (arrow) for the rear exhaust. That would match the cracked rear exhaust valve.

4. The tappets were the next thing that Kazoo put under the microscope and found that the roller bearing for the rear exhaust was bad with a groove worn into the side (orange arrow) and so much play in the roller you can see the bearing (white arrow).

6. Kazoo got started with the rebuild. Here he installed the SEH-57 cam and checked for clearance. The new SEH-57 cam lobe is a bit taller and the case had to be relived for clearance. (arrow)

7. Once the cam clearance was good, Kazoo installed a new cam bearing into the case. He then installed the cam and checked the cam cover for clearance. Everything fit just right.

8. Devin also replaced all the cylinder stud bolts, some of them had come loose and he felt that it was best to just replace them. Cost on a set of studs is around $80.

10. Next, the new H-D Hydraulic tappets were placed in oil to soak. This will help with the bleed down once it comes time to adjust the pushrods and start the motor. They were installed onto the tappet block and then the motor.

11. With all that going on Devin had honed the stock cylinders to fit the new .010 over Screamin' Eagle pistons. Cost around $110.

12. Here Kazoo is checking the piston ring end-gap on the freshly honed cylinders.

15. A new set of Screamin' Eagle heads were ordered out for the bike. The bike owner could have had the stock heads cleaned, reworked, and all new valves installed to save a few bucks, but he was looking to get the bike done in time for a trip he wanted to take.
Cost for heads around $950. The cost to re-work a set of heads is around $650.

16. A new set of Screamin' Eagle head gaskets cost around $45.
A complete motor gasket kit is about $165.

17. Kazoo placed the new heads and gaskets onto the cylinders and torqued them down to factory spec. He then installed the freshly powdercoated rocker box assembly, pushrods, and tubes.

18. Then the S&S carburetor was installed, followed by the gas tank and exhaust pipes. This is where we are going to leave off. We are still waiting on a few pieces to come back from powdercoating, then we are going to log as many miles as we can, then we'll put the bike on the dyno for the results.
The cost of all the parts plus miscellaneous things like oils and filters cost between $1,600 and $2,000. The labor estimate was approximately 10-15 hours (rates vary, $75-$95 an hour or more depending on the bike and shop).