S&S 510c cam question

[txmike]

Anyone have experience with the S&S 510c camshaft in a TC88 that is stock except for stage I intake & exhaust? What are the likes / dislikes of this upgrade both in town and highway use? Is this something that can be done by someone with average mechanical aptitude that can follow instructions in a service manual or would I be better off with professional installation? If so, how many hours are reasonable for this upgrade? I am considering this cam with the stock heads until I have them ported by Bean from bigboyzcycles.

Mike
'03 FXD

[swmnkdinthervr]

Originally Posted by txmike

Anyone have experience with the S&S 510c camshaft in a TC88 that is stock except for stage I intake & exhaust? What are the likes / dislikes of this upgrade both in town and highway use? Is this something that can be done by someone with average mechanical aptitude that can follow instructions in a service manual or would I be better off with professional installation? If so, how many hours are reasonable for this upgrade? I am considering this cam with the stock heads until I have them ported by Bean from bigboyzcycles.

Mike
'03 FXD

I purchased the entire kit: cams, adjustable pushrods, carb, gear drive...etc and I really like what I have, it's a nice step up and with the gear drine even more dependable...that said if you wish to further improve the performance you may wanna skip this kit and check out the other threads about cam selection by doing a search...

[Geezer-Glide]

I have the S&S 510's in my bagger. Nice, but pop the extra 300 bucks and go gears. You'll never have to worry about chains or tensioners ever again. I ran mine with stock heads until I could afford the SE High Performance heads. Put in the SE adjustable pushrods when you do the cams too. Trust us in here, put 'em in. What bike are you putting them in? Mine is 800# and it goes fine.

[klondike]

I have the C style 510 with heads, and barrels and flat top pistons. I like it on my bagger. No complaints what so ever. I changed out the tensioner and chain and pads when I had them put in just cause the tech wanted to. As for the gear drive well I didn't like the sound of them. I have no complaints whatsoever no matter what anyone says about chain drive cams. Matter of fact the fella that did the build talked me into sticking with this set up. I don't figure the MoCo would be using chains if they were so unreliable. keepem sharp

[HDWRENCH]

OHHHH Chuck where you at?? There are tow ways to look at the gear vs chain and I will not go into it but do a search and you will find plenty of info

[klondike]

I know I am in the minority on the board here at least about the chain vs. gear drive thing. I am sure there have been engines that have failed with the gears as there are with the chain. But I think more people run the chain not only mild builds but on stock bikes than gear drives so maybe the numbers looks scewed because more people run them than do gear drives. When I did my build I listened to a built engine with gear drive and chain drive. I liked the chain drive, just quieter. Until it fails which I think if you change the oil regular and inspect it once a year at the beginning of riding etc. you should be fine. Cars have been running them forever so I figure why not. keepem sharp

PS I used to run a Miehle printing press that was a sheetfed beast. Had the nicest cut gears and cams you will ever see. I mean I used to open the inspection plate over the oil bath just to look at them run. Driving the whole thing was a chain. Never ever once did it require adjusting or replacing. This press when i was laid off was just about 25 yrs old and had maybe umpteen million imprressions on it. So there ya go.