Oil question

[T. Cotten]

There was a great variety of solid replacements for hydraulics, Freeman,...

Not only aluminum pushrods instead of the more desireable steel, but various "slugs" and adjustors that replace the hydraulic unit were sold over the years, and care must be taken to assure the pushrods match the lifter replacements:

LFTRCUPS.jpg
(Early OEM on left..)

LIFTERS.jpg
(Left to right: Early OEM tappet and pushrod with hydraulic (not shown) at top of pushrod;
An aluminum pushrod with the adjustor in the "slug";
An aluminum pushrod with the adjustor in the pushrod;
and the OEM hydraulic assembly with a steel pushrod.)

Colony produced quality 'slugs' for the late OEM pushrod, but other aftermarket replacements should be inspected closely:

SLUGWEAR.jpg
(Note the extreme differences in contact wear on a matched set!)

And please inspect the top of the pushrods as well; I have found Shovelhead replacements crammed into a Pan...

Looking forward to your observations,

....Cotten

[otis71]

I agree with T Cotton about aftermarket solids. I recently dealt with and posted the same problem on a 60FLH. I only had solid lifter parts when I assembled the motor. Oil pressure would drop to 0 psi after running 20 minutes. Scared up some parts at Davenport for hydraulics and it now never runs lower than 5psi when hot. I never had noise though.

[otis71]

Check gasket thickness also. James replacements are way too thick at .010.

[vph-d]

Back in the 70s dealership wisdom was 75w for hydraulics, 105w for solids. 40 weight/60 weight I use H-D 60 in my rigids, 40 in my 65.
vph-d

[T. Cotten]

'Dealership wisdom' is an oxymoron, Vph-d!

And let us not confuse harley's proprietary oil "weight" numbers with conventional ratings.

The only ways oil can contribute to over-heating is if it is so thick it will not flow, or missing altogether.

....Cotten

[Freeman]

There was a great variety of solid replacements for hydraulics, Freeman,...

Not only aluminum pushrods instead of the more desireable steel, but various "slugs" and adjustors that replace the hydraulic unit were sold over the years, and care must be taken to assure the pushrods match the lifter replacements:

LFTRCUPS.jpg
(Early OEM on left..)

LIFTERS.jpg
(Left to right: Early OEM tappet and pushrod with hydraulic (not shown) at top of pushrod;
An aluminum pushrod with the adjustor in the "slug";
An aluminum pushrod with the adjustor in the pushrod;
and the OEM hydraulic assembly with a steel pushrod.)

Colony produced quality 'slugs' for the late OEM pushrod, but other aftermarket replacements should be inspected closely:

SLUGWEAR.jpg
(Note the extreme differences in contact wear on a matched set!)

And please inspect the top of the pushrods as well; I have found Shovelhead replacements crammed into a Pan...

Looking forward to your observations,

....Cotten

Perfect answer, thanks again.

[T. Cotten]

Perfect answer, thanks again.

It is imperfect, Freeman,...

In that it only addresses a possible source of noise.

If indeed we have over-heating, the manifold should be bubble-inspected;

Vacuum leaks are a very common cause.

....Cotten

[ryan]

Cotten, no golf cart here, I road my 69 flh with sidecar around Davenport for 3 days, I do not know how we didn't meet up. Great information about the push rods!

[Freeman]

It is imperfect, Freeman,...

In that it only addresses a possible source of noise.

If indeed we have over-heating, the manifold should be bubble-inspected;

Vacuum leaks are a very common cause.

....Cotten

The overheating problem occurred after replacing the parts in the photo, and I wonder if it was caused by the early ignition time.

[Freeman]

It is not hot before replacement, but it is not easy to start, and it will rebound.

[Freeman]

There is a misunderstanding about the description of noise, which is overall, not specific.

[T. Cotten]

Over-advanced timing can certainly cause over-heating, Freeman!

And beware your 'timer' is a problematic aftermarket design, using Shovelhead advance weights and springs, and a points cam that is very different from the OEM automatic-advance Panhead timer. (The base appears to have suffered abuse as well.)

The springs that are installed look stressed; The springs upon the other assembly look more familiar (there was a variety...); Why was the assembly replaced?

Let us hope that an experienced forum member can tell us how to make it run correctly; Otherwise, I can only suggest strobe-timing the ignition for a trial.

....Cotten

[kitabel]

H-D oil grades are expressed in Saybolt Universal Seconds (SUS).

[Freeman]

Over-advanced timing can certainly cause over-heating, Freeman!

And beware your 'timer' is a problematic aftermarket design, using Shovelhead advance weights and springs, and a points cam that is very different from the OEM automatic-advance Panhead timer. (The base appears to have suffered abuse as well.)

The springs that are installed look stressed; The springs upon the other assembly look more familiar (there was a variety...); Why was the assembly replaced?

Let us hope that an experienced forum member can tell us how to make it run correctly; Otherwise, I can only suggest strobe-timing the ignition for a trial.

....Cotten

The engine was assembled and sold by VTTWINS and the ignition system was configured.

[T. Cotten]

You must now configure it correctly yourself, Freeman,...

The springs on your installed advance weights are destroyed; The assembly shown on the right in your photo has a better chance to function.

Static timing should then be checked, and if it starts, timing should be checked again with a strobe.

....Cotten