Chad, what weight of oil do you use and were is it in the oil window?

When did you last adjust your valves?

When did you last adjust your decomp solenoid?

You mention a rebuild, did you take great care to get the cam sprocket back on with the timing chain in the correct orientation?  

Clue, if this was wrong the bike would run like shite.

How long has it been since this rebuild?   If you blocked off an oil passage to the cam journal bearings with a gasket or some sealant it could take a week or so for the hard knocking from the cam area to start.

You need to tell us what has gone on recently with your engine.  From reading your last 25 posts you talk a lot like the bike has been down for frame mods -- has it ever really run before now?

Question about the decomp shaft return spring, etc.   Check that whatever you removed did not allow the decomp cam to rotate over time, bringing the lift arm up into the ticky ticky on the rocker range.

PS   Yamalube isn't good oil for a Savage, not enough ZDDP in it.  Expect some early tappet & cam wear if you keep on using it.

pulled the head cover, at TDC both cam lobes facing down correct? well it looks like i need to retard my timing one tooth, it just doesnt make sense i go 5000 miles with no ticks or knocks and one morning i crank it up and it sounds like nuts, never had any problems like this before

At top dead center on the compression stroke the lobes should be down towards the oil bath and the stamped line on the cam sprocket should line up with the machined housing.  Remember, you also get a TDC on the other strokes so you got to watch the valves actuate to get the rotor timing alignment right after the intake valves close.

Getting one tooth off can happen RARELY during a backfire event with some looseness in the cam chain adjuster -- really very very rare.

Now that you are in there, check for any wear on the tappet faces and tips of the cam lobes.  Stick your finger into the oil pool and rub the bottom feeling for wear damage swarf and hard trash.   Look at your head bearing journals and look for wear or scuffing.


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Now this is reaching a bit, so bear with me.   Your longer set of rocker arms have a high strength bent steel thrust washer on the shaft with the rocker.  If you didn't rebend it or replace it when you did the rebuild your longer set of rockers may not have enough "rebound dampening" to keep them from rattling like a set of clockwork teeth when they reach their uncontrolled portion of their travel.   This can get worse if your engine had a low oil episode and the head got really really hot as the washers can get partially annealed by high heat.  If this happened they will be light blue to dark blue now.

You can check for "easy rattle can motion" by finger when the valves are all closed.

Eliminate as many things as you can before you button it back up.  

Do you see signs that the oil pressure and flow was getting everywhere properly?