I am going to check the cam chain tensioners soon in my TC88 and was talking to a mechanic about it the other day, he assured me that after taking the cover off you can see the rear tensioner by getting a screwdriver under it and lifting it.  So, my 1st question is - can you ?? Everything i have read so far on the subject is that you can only "just" see the rear tensioner with a dentist mirror. 2nd question - Can you remove the cover without taking the front pipe off ??  3rd question - do you need to replace the gasket and how much oil (if any) will i lose with the bike on the sidestand ??  Anything else i should know ??  Thanks for any replys.

No worries Scotty, it is the second time I have spoken to the Harley mechanic in question and he has told me twice now that you can see the inside tensioner by lifting it with a screw driver ?? Beats me, I trust your opinion though. What do you think about going with the later 07-09 chain and tensioner set up or changing to gear drive ?? I saw the later tensioner set up including oil pump for about $480 on ebay, do you know if that is a good price ??

What is supplied with the HD upgrade kit Scotty (or the finally admitting they made a mistake pack ) ?? I originally decided to check the tensioners because i am getting what can only be described as a sqeaking sound at cold start up which goes away after idling for a couple of minutes ? After thinking about it a bit more i dont think its a tensioner problem because it would be there when the engine is hot.  You can't shed any light on what would be sqeaking in the top end can you Scotty ? Anyone ??  A mate suggested it could be mice but i don't think so.

This is a definate squeak, not a rattle or typical tappety sound, if it is a lifter what is the next step ??