Anybody know the average life of oem rocker arms and the bearing/bushing upper and lower? Do they typically hold up for several valve jobs? Just wondering for down the road.
Thanks.......
Life expectancy of rocker arms/rocker bearings
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Cotten
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Re: Life expectancy of rocker arms/rocker bearings
One of the reasons that Pans gained a reputation for durability was the the dinosaur simplicity of the rocker arm design. (Chubbles were designed so they would wear out sooner!)
The angularity sucked, and eats valve guides, but the rockerarm assembly itself has been known to outlast many a lower end.
Pay attention to the pad on the arm that contacts the valve, however! Many have been destroyed by stuck hydraulics and loosely adjusted "solids" kits.
Ignore sideplay. It's a fart in the dark, until your hear it change tune as you lean into corners!
The angularity sucked, and eats valve guides, but the rockerarm assembly itself has been known to outlast many a lower end.
Pay attention to the pad on the arm that contacts the valve, however! Many have been destroyed by stuck hydraulics and loosely adjusted "solids" kits.
Ignore sideplay. It's a fart in the dark, until your hear it change tune as you lean into corners!
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108
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Re: Life expectancy of rocker arms/rocker bearings
DJ, If the oil supply has always been good they could out last both of us! I had the heads off my '48 this winter to fix oil an leak and the original rockers bearing blocks were as tight as the last time I touched them over 20K ago. Compared to other engines , these rockers have huge bearing surface so I would exspect them to have a very long life .I did tighten them up a little by grinding the mateing surfaces on a emery sheet on glass to a .002 fit. All the old Harley parts I see at swap meets , etc., were damaged by poor lubrication.
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dj
Re: Life expectancy of rocker arms/rocker bearings
Cotton & 108.......
Great! Yes they do seem to be very robust units. It's good to know they last so long because the aftermarket replacements are somewhat pricey. One should probly look for scoring and galling on the inner surfaces, and touching them up with emery cloth is a good tip.
Great! Yes they do seem to be very robust units. It's good to know they last so long because the aftermarket replacements are somewhat pricey. One should probly look for scoring and galling on the inner surfaces, and touching them up with emery cloth is a good tip.
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wheels
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Re: Life expectancy of rocker arms/rocker bearings
are there any indications(sounds when they start to fail. does it happen all at once. the reason i ask is that my bike has been running great all season and now that the best time of the year is here i've statred hearing the dreaded strange noise. its kind of a chirp in the front pan. its not as bad when i first start the bike but seems to get worse as i ride. don't notice it much going down the road but when i slow down to stop or turn i can hear it. its the only thing i reused in my new std heads installed last winter. any thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated. i guess i should take them apart and have alook. i have never messed with rocker arms before.