Cam Chain Tensioners

[One For The Road]

Hi all,

I was watching YouTube the other day. Subject was spring loaded cam chain tensioners. The host said he knows of several people who have just taken out the tensioners and ran without them. They said the motor ran okay.

Seems to me the loose chain would cause cam timing problems. Also too much slack might cause the chain to 'wip' about when changing engine speeds.

On the other hand If Harley could save the cost of these they would have not used them at all.

Any thoughts.

Steve

 

[ThunderRogue]

Don't do it.

 

[Jeff Klarich]

Bad idea, they are there for a specific reason. YouTube is a great source for a lot of things but they do have some wingnuts on there as well.

 

[joel]

You can also wear your boots without socks.
But why?

 

[Roadking-1960]

HD designed it like this,so no other way to go.
There are enginedesigns,like chevrolet I thought,which have the same setup,without tensioners.
Seems HD wants us to buy ,parts regularly.
Ride safe!!

 

[dolt]

I don't have words but would like to see the videos; very bad idea and don't believe the YouTube claims for a minute. Evos were single cam and gear driven, M8s are single cam and chain driven but without tensioners (by dedign). The later hydro/roller chain setup is much better than the early spring loaded tensioner but still a maintenance item. There are aftermarket replacements for the troublesome TC tensioners that will last longer; they will wear but do not have a history of catastrophic failure like the OEM tensioners. Gear driven cams for the TC is a bit more expensive but eliminates the chain/tensioner issues forever, particularly a good idea for a perfoamnce built motor.

 

[One For The Road]

Thanks for the replies. I hadn't planed to do it ... just wanted to see what the brain trust here had to think about it.

Thanks again

Steve