Zack First Person. Checking the gap is basic mechanic's. You should check the plug gap every time you check the way your bike is running. I've sen the tips burnt off of brand new plugs. If you don't know little things like this. You should never work on a Bike. Nor anything else for that matter!!!
Love your humble honesty so refreshing to see someone who doesn't claim to know everything im a diy guy myself got hit by a car while riding in December have spent every day since rebuilding my bike learning as i go so i know where your coming from and congrats on an awesome and honest channel cant wait to see more. Much respect brother.
Eric Grant. Hope you heel soon. No one knows everything. Use your phone as your memory card. Take a lot of pictures as you go. It's the little things that you'll miss. You'll remember them when you are broke down on the side of the road. Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!
Eric grant. Talk about getting hit by a car. A few years back I was up in the hills of California. Just riding at a nice easy pace. I was doing 42 in a 45 speed zone. Leaned into a corner & blew a front tire. My bike went straight to the ground. Lucky part was that I was on my Sport bike (Hayabusa) when I blew my front tire. First thing to hit the ground was the left side of my forehead. When I finally stopped I was stuck in a 6x16 guardrail post. Now comes the lucky part. The paramedics had been called out to an accident at the top of the hill. They couldn't find anyone so the turned around and started back down the hill. I had come in from a side road just ahead of them. I went down, I hadn't even come to a stop when they came around the corner to see me hit that guardrail. They had to intubate me, jump started my heart. Then cut my broken body out of that 6x16 post. I broke everything from my hips up except. (This is the good part.) I broke everything from my hips up except for my spine & neck. Had a flail chest. Broke every rib 3 times, lost my left lung. Shattered Both scapula's more than 10 times. My arms were free floating. I had broken everything that holds them to my neck area. Needless to say. I was Broken up pretty bad. I was in the hospital for more than 8& half months healing and doing physical therapy. When I got home finally I walked around my home with a Walker for the next 6 weeks. Then moved to crutches and then a Cane. I was a mess for a long time. About 5 minutes before my accident I was cruising down the road around 150 miles per hour. Crashing at that speed deffently would have killed me for sure! Instead of being Dead for just a few seconds. I got very lucky that day! The paramedics that saved me that day told me straight up. If they were called out for my accident instead of being called out for one they didn't find. I would not be here anymore. I pet who ever is riding on my shoulder. And say "Thank you" a lot!
Yes sir i was riding down my dirt road going to the post office and a girl on her stupid cell phone was parked on the side of the road and as i went around her she pulled dead left into the side of my bike my right leg ripped off the front bumper my bike ended up in the ditch on the other side of the road and i landed in the middle but was extremely luck a bit of road rash and 3 broken ribs was all i got but i tell you what that was a scary thing nothing like what happened to you. I think you had a guardian angel watching over you brother glad your still with us
@@ericgrant1593 Thank you. I could tell you stories but most just say. That much can't happen to one person. You think the bike crash was a good one. Around 40 minutes later when they got me to the hospital. The head doctor said to his team. "Don't cut on this guy. There is just something about him" wait until someone that knows his medical history to tell us what's wrong with him. So they did what they could to do until my girlfriend walked in. He said to her "what's wrong with him. Why am I getting the feeling I'm not suppose to cut him open & operate on him. She said to him. 30 days ago he had a major Heart Attack & he is on a couple of different Blood Thinners. If you had cut him open. He would have just blead out on you. So you would have killed him trying to save his life. The sowed up my lung, spleen, kidneys thru 2 little tiny holes they cut in my stomach area. (Othrascopicly) They also pulled 3 inverted ribs out of my left lung thru these same little holes. I've had 5 major heart attacks. 3 of which they jump started my heart. This doesnt even start to tell you everything that I've been thru. I'm a plumbing service contractor. I was talking to a long time customer a couple of weeks back. She asked me if I had "bought a new cat?" I said to her "What"? She then said to me. You've been through the 9 lives of your first cat. If I were you. I would buy another cat!! 😋
An old mechanic once told me to run my old bonneville flat out on an open road then kill the engine whilst at high speed then pull the plugs and check colour to ascertain correct jetting. Love your videos man ,keep it up you’re great to listen to🙂
We call that a "plug chop" in the UK. It's a reliable way of determining what happening with the main jet. Letting the bike tick over before you kill the engine to check the plugs doesn't give you a true reading.
Hi 👋, I am new to this bikers work shop, I am 70+ I have had old Bonneville Norton commando Norton dominator HD 1200s 1450FXR 1450 Deuce, I learn to ride a motorcycle when I was 11/12 years old, and passed my test at 17 , when I was in my teens I was told about this riding your bike, flat out, then hitting the Killswitch, this gives a very good indication, whether your bike is running rich or lean , and I have done the same with my cars, And I still believe at my age, you can still learn things, ride safe, PHIL FROM THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOULIN FRANCE.
I bought a springer softail in 1990...it had a mild cam and a Mikuni on it...still does, and I never had a problem. Still going strong. Can't beat the passing power of a Mikuni.
Have just done the same thing with my 87 electraglide evo , kept up sizing the main jet till the plug looked the same colour , running a andrews ev 13 cam , the bike has 104 thousand miles on standard bore and bottom end , still runs strong , thanks for your videos , cheers from Australia 👍
I certainly understand your frustration and am sure glad that no damage occurred during that trip. Could have easily burned a hole in a piston. Now you are at least in a safe area and can fine tune it from here. Best of luck to you and your honesty is a big part of why I watch your videos. You remind me of me, only 35 years ago. I still ride almost daily. 2011 Super Glide.
I just found you a short while ago and really like your honesty. I love Harley’s and love to do my own work if I can. I started riding when I was about 10 or so (mini bikes), then at 16 got my first motorcycle, had 6 or 7 since then. I’m 62 now and I t’s been several years since I’ve had a motorcycle due to kids, divorce, etc., but going to get another one soon. I’m retired now and looking to enjoy some “me” time. Anyway I’m rambling, but I do like your channel very much and as a Christian it’s nice to be able to watch a motorcycle video without the cussing and other trash in it. Keep up the good work and be safe!
If you put the Mikuni back on raise the needle up one or two notches you’ll get more fuel to the engine, it was designed that way. The Harley carb is not necessarily made that way. you can download the manual for the Mikuni and it explains everything. including setting the accelerator pump how to select which jet(s) needs to be changed and how to diagnose lean / rich conditions throughout the entire throttle range . A Mikuni by the way is far more responsive than a cv carburetor, and very helpful when needing to pass. Keep going, good luck.
Here's what I learned from this video. Much more important than Motorcycles.....I learned that you are a decent, good man with a dang good heart. I'll keep tuning in for sure. You teach me, or at least remind me of where I have been lacking. Thanks for being you. Here's my two cents. Looking at that plug, I think it's still running leaner than it should. Of course, I realize 20 miles isn't a great rest. Just saying, on a air cooled engine I want my plug really brown. Not black and sooty, but definitely knocking down any white look to the ceramic insulator. But, that's just me brother.
Hey Brother, Since it is an older bike, try checking your intake seals on the intake manifold. I was having same issue on my 98 Evo and the seals were cracked. Runs great now!
Just took my intake off seals look good but I could rock the manifold up and down.. sucking air.. it's an old 92 FXRT with a 42 mm Makune. Lots of motor work upper and lower. Getting seals tomorrow..
While timing get mentioned, no one seems to say anything about what to do other than it is like too far advanced. Make sure your VOES switch is working. One thing to note if the motor is high compression and built with a tight squish, you'll need to back the timing off over stock. Start with at least 3 degrees. I saw mention that you have a Hi4. You can try a slower advance curve also.
I had a 1994 Heritage. Purchased New. After playing around with the CV with no luck, I put a crane 490 cam in it, bought some header pipes and got rid of the crossover pipe, knocked out the plugs in the mufflers which left some back pressure, put an S&S E model carb and Toyota U-groove plugs, ND16 gapped at 38 and the bike cranked and ran like a sewing machine for 60,000 miles before I sold it. To this day I wish I had kept that bike. Toyota plugs have nickel cad plating that will not seize and I never had one to fowl. You need the S&S carb.
My 98 Evo had a stock CV with a Dyno Jet Thunderslide kit when I bought it. Took it off, and put on a S&S Super E on. Took me a bit to get it dialed in. I live at 4,875' in altitude. I love it. It came with a variety of Jets I will experiment with this winter,but I can't be more satisfied with this carb..
All carbs are goood just DEPENDS on your taste and motor set up !! I RUN A CV CARB IM AT 4,800 ALTUDE I HAVE NO ISSUES WITH CV CARB ! LIKE I,SAID I HAVE OVER 45+ YRS AS HARLEY DAVIDSON MECH!! WE DONT KNOW IT ALL WE LEARN AS WE GO! SADDLE TRAMP DROP ME LINE I BE HAPPY TO HELP YOU OUT BROTHER!!
Awesome video. I have had a constant battle with my carb on my Fatboy and you have definitely given me some direction. Good to see a humble person like yourself doing videos on here.
No one knows everything like you just said and we all learn every day. I have been wrenching for about a dozen years now and I love it and learn every day also. Just keep doing what youre doing. I know I have a long way to go also and if people want to constructively criticize my videos then so be it. Sometimes there are different ways to skin a cat and people need to remember that. Glad you got it figured out.
Touch and go. Live and Learn. Start with the simple solutions and move to the complex. No one should criticize but a suggestion should be welcome. Sounded good on the Hwy. Keeping an old bike on the road is a service to everyone.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Think about what it was like before RUclips. As you said, you learn from your mistakes, experience and shared knowledge.
With today's gas and so many other variables making it difficult to read plugs accurately, I'd recommend getting a wideband AFR meter (AEM or Innovate) to dial-in your carb precisely. Like your style man 👍
I was told the only way to really read plugs correctly is to install new plugs, take the bike at highway speed’s for 5+ miles, pull in the clutch and quickly cut the engine. Then coast to a stop and read the plugs. But I’m not a mechanic nor do I play one on TV.
It's called a plug chop, much more finicky on two strokes than four strokes. Put new plugs in, ride it wide open and kill it immediately, then pull them and look at the porcelain. Should be a gray color. His bike still needs to fatten up the jets a little.
It's called a plug chop, much more finicky on two strokes than four strokes. Put new plugs in, ride it wide open and kill it immediately, then pull them and look at the porcelain. Should be a gray color. His bike still needs to fatten up the jets a little.
At 65 today, I started doing performance work on sport bikes way back in the early 80's.....Mikuni & Keihin CV's mostly. A few years later I got more into Mikuni flatslides when doing high end Suzuki and Kawi engines, later transitioning to dwarf car engines. If you can do a bank of four carbs, and do them right, one carb is a walk in the park. Fast forward to about 15 yrs. ago to present, once they heard that I use to do banks of carbs, I started having Harley guys bringing me their single Keihin CV's to mod them. They are an extremely good carb for what they are and to be honest, if you follow a given pattern with them, you can get them spot on almost the first time every time regarding EVO's. I've done a couple dozen at least and I think I had one or two come back for very minor tweaks.......Main jet 180-195, pilot jet 45-48, set your float per instruction, possibly shim your needle (usually one thin machine washer), adjust your idle screw 2-3 turns out, and bingo.....most often your done. Even with pretty substantial engine, breather, & exhaust mods, the CV does fine in most cases. Flatsides are great......got a bunch of performance out of them, but done right, CV's can cover a huge range.
Love your videos brother keep doing what you do don't let no one get you down we were put on this Earth to help one another thank you for being the man you are God bless you
Just glad to watch somebody that is real and is keeping it real. You got more guts than I do in that respect. If ya put yourself out there criticism is gonna come. Myself I’m glad your doing the videos and putting yourself out there cuz I enjoy them all, so keep on going and hey brother “ take care of yourself”
I love everyone of your videos. I'm still new into learning the in and outs of a motorcycle. Luckily we have good friends we make through the motorcycle community that will always be a helping hand. You are the man!
Sounds like your going the right direction. All I know is my Shovelhead runs good with a Mikuni VM38. Ran good with a Delorto 38 pumper too. Mine has solid lifters 440t Sifton Cam and Sifton valve Springs.
Mate, thanks for such a humbling video. I just inherited a rather rough, yet beautiful 87 Softail. I'm going to do this bike justice and take my time learning what she needs. This video has already helped me so much! Stay upright, love from down under.
Keep doing what your doing, that's why the subscribe numbers are shooting upwards. Your logical trouble shooting process is so clear to follow. Thanks.
Lately I have been fine tuning my CV carburetor on my stock 93 EVO because the factory set it very lean to please the EPA standards. I recently installed a Yost brass air idle adjustment screw that is designed to protrude under the carburetor so you can make adjustments on the fly without taking your air cleaner off. I can now make rich/lean adjustments between the cylinders on the left side of the motor as I do spark plug readings every 100 miles. Yes that spark plug gap is critical! I have been restoring old vintage British sports cars for a very long time. I can tell you this, I had a brand new coil burst/explode i which threw oil all over my engine bay, yes.. coils are filled with oil to keep them cool. The reason why my coil burst was because the gap on my ignition points where set to small causing The coil to over heat. Thanks to your video showing when you first bought your EVO you heard some strange mechanical sound you thought where your lifters, but turned out to be a loose nut and worn parts in your primary. I am beginning to experience the same thing and immediately thought of the video you put out. So, thanks so much for sharing with all of us! I always do the same in my responses even though I don’t have a RUclips channel. Anyway, I will pull the primary cover off this morning and do a inspection and at the very least adjust my primary chain. Keep the videos coming and let’s keep helping each other! Glad to see your sorting out that overheating issue. Actually, my EVO runs nice and cool, I’m sure yours will too once you dial things in. Your heading in the right direction!
I learned the most from an old 1971 BSA 650 lighting. I was Young didn’t know what I was doing, and just had to have an old bike. The bike had been used and abused for 20 years when I bought it, and the work that had been done to keep it running was sub par at best, it cost me a lot just to keep it on the road. I’d fix one thing then something else would break. I finally sold the bike for half what I had in it, but it was a great teacher. Left hand drive too, which was fun, I’d toss the keys to a friend and watch as they made a fool out of themselves, and it would make a fool out of me on occasion too.
...Now I'm gonna check the gap in my plugs. I've been running a Mikuni on my 88t.c. since I changed out my cam-plate, etc. This engine has run hot for the 10 years that I've had it, even with the original CV. Thanks Amigo. I get an education with every one of your videos...!
Mikunii has notch adjustment if I recall, but anytime you change oil, check your plugs, it doesnt hurt, and reading your plugs will tell you a lot about the internal condition of your engine..i used to have an engine with a lot of mods, it was getting a gap creep about 1000 miles, improved the grade of gas, it solved the problem. You never know till you try, good vid, great advice! I ran a dellorto one time
Pretty much all the comments about running a chop test burn on the plugs is on target. While your pulling up to the house run at your normal speed for that area and chop the engine before slowing down for your driveway. Get it to the garage and check the plugs. Repeat for top end run and for a two up run, this should give you a good idea as to your rich/lean setup. Idle off and up is pretty much a matter of accelerator pump settings and not as important as mid range and up. I like your videos, keep em coming.
I have my CV off my 94 Low rider now. Waiting on a slide from HD of Danbury Ct. 700 more miles and she flips 50k, i want it to happen before the snow flies, so ride on brother I'm out there with you!
I have a 2000 deuce twin cams,I ordered a Mikuni 42 ,took the stock carburetor off and put the Mikuni on.This was in 2003 I just had a problem with the carburetor,i ordered the rebuild kit.And before I had the problem my bike ran great.
Love what you do and love the idea of people working together to solve a problem. You have a great platform for this. I'm quite interested in what you're dealing with cause I do have a '99 Evo Softail with a CV carb and a '02 Road King with the Mikuni carb. . I think you're on the right track and my Harley dealer says that the CV carb is hard to beat for trouble free performance. I don't have much to offer at the moment other than I would suggest letting the engine cool off before pulling the plugs on aluminum heads so the threads don't gall and get pulled out. I'd rather wait if possible than take the risk. I also use a touch of anti seize.
Glad your back home safe. When you mentioned the spark plug i laughed😂 i cant tell you as a young man how many time i had non gapped and pre gapped plugs and it took my uncle showing me how to gap these and how many times i had a vehicle run kinda shit cause the gap was starving or killing the vehicle. Not enough spark shut off, too much spark runs hot. I just be blown away by small mistakes like that
If you have a stock displacement engine, mild cam, 10 to 1 compression, aftermarket pipe, you need a 180 to 190 Large round Mikuni main jet as a starting point
Yo bro I like what you said steel sharpen steel. I got traded a 68 Galaxie 500 for a 883 that needs throttle cables and a rear tire but a nice bike. Im planning on puting a HSR42 carb on it when I replace the throttle cables . Im glad you mentioned your plug gap. Cause its something I generaly dont think of but will from now on. We tend to overlook the simple but important things some time. Its when you think you know is when you really dont know but if you know that before hand that's when you wise. I try to be smart enough to know I don't know. But you know how us guys are we don't stop for directions.lol
Great video! I have a 1995 Wide Glide with a Mikuni, and a couple of years ago was having the same overheating issue. Sitting in traffic the engine would start sputtering and popping until I got back up to speed and the engine cooled off. After trying just about everything I could think of and research, it turned out I had plugs that were too hot! I went back to the stock plugs and no more overheating.
I have a 1961 Harley pan that I finally replace the worn out linkert with a 38 Mikuni round slide ,used the plug chop method to find main jet size first then the idle jet and last set the needle height. Bike pulls strong through off idle to full throttle, starts 90% of the time on first kick.
Dude ... you are a good genuine man! ... down to earth and way far from being showoff that you know everything ... as I mentioned in my comment from another video of yours ... I bought the same exact bike in beginning of August this year ... and I do not know jack crap about being a mechanic on a motorcycle or on my Harley ... but so far with RUclips's help I have changed the main Oil (purge style), Prime and transmission .... and still learning to do the more challenging stuff ... even though wife keeps telling me "just take the darn horse to the dealer" ...LOL ... I know I will learn a lot from you man ... and also others who like to share like you ... peace brother ... you good man! and I enjoy your videos ...
One thing I learned with checking plugs...your carb has three stages. And if you're trying to adjust your needle (midrange) you need to shut the bike off while it's in midrange. If your lean on your needle and good on your idle...if you let the bike idle it can effect the color on your plugs....
Official Factory Manual for Softails Models 1995-1996 (part# 99482-96A) on page 8-13 says: "A plug with white, yellow, or light tan to rusty brown powdery deposit indicates balanced combustion..." I suppose then that your plugs do not have to be "chocolaty". The Manual also says that: "An overheated plug can be identified by a light brown, GLASSY deposit ...". I learned about it myself not so long ago.
If you still suspect lean issues, check the intake manifold seals, spray a bit of brake cleaner or similar around the manifold and see if the rev increase. They go bad for a pass time. If yo do replace them smear the new ones with a little silicon or rubber grease to help them seat and take care lining up the manifold when tightening it down. What air cleaner and back plate are you running under that stock cover?
I put 58mm mikis on a bored 750 Honda in a Amen frame with a Springer. It ate kz 1000 for lunch. Wrenching is a lifetime skill. Anyone can drive a rice grinder. It's like it was born as. A skill.
I have an 883 sporty bobber I hopped up with a 1275 hammer kit and beefy cams and a bunch of other goodies, dyno tested at 113 hp and I've had zero issued with the cv carb, just gotta play with jetting and find what makes it happy
Agreed!! I was just pointing out that the CV is a great carb that can handle more than most folks realize! ;) the 100hp was not a cut off just pointing out to him that it is more than adequate for his set up.
Berserker Nick, did you do the work or do you know a good shop. I've got a1200 that I've thought about being up for years. didn't know you could get 100+, the ads say so, but no one I know has it on a sporty. ..well except the crazy Swede who built a124ci sporty.
Nice vid. I also like your edits and flashbacks. On the overheating - a couple of thoughts - your idle sounds good, but still might be worth it to check for an intake leak - thats a quick overheater. Also, had an old racer tell me to never let the bike idle before checking plugs for color - idle circuit may be rich so not reflecting running condition. Good luck!
Nobody knows it all .at least you have the brains to learn.im going out to check my plugs ive been having some of the same problems running hot.thanks bro an keep the videos coming. 👍
I had a old 85 virago single carb conversion took me a while but finely plugs were tan ran great they had main jet bored out to 1/8 i ended up with a 110 kehine scooter carb jet in it wich fixed it got 34 mpg
Might try colder plugs if your not getting any color. Too hot of a plug will look lean also due to additives in fuel can make it tricky. Keep in mind the plug will color in different areas depending on which metering circuit. Idle will color the tip/threads, midrange will color the middle 2/3 and main will color the root (cant really be seen without a 10x mag or plug chop). Needless to say you cant really tune based on a plug youve been leasurly riding in all areas from idle to wot. If temps are still high check your static timing and adv curve. More isnt always better, typically the laziest curve is best. Just because its not pinging or pepering the porcelen doesnt guaranty its not over advanced causing excess heat. Also check to see where your VOES is adjusted. I believe you mentioned it wasnt hooked up at first, that can effect mpg/performance/heat if its coming in too soon. Id suggest reading Mikuni's HSR tuning guide as theres a lot of great info. Also search variouse forums etc. These carbs can be rather touchy but once dialed in they are night and day in performance while maintaining good mpg (MPG will largly depend on acc pump size/adj and needle size/height. The taper of the needle doesnt factor until 1/4 throtlle and above. Bellow 1/4 is dependent on the needle shaft diameter and idle air adj. Easist way to tune your needle hight and main jet is how the bike responds when you roll off the throttle at these given positions since the engine is momentarily going rich with lack of air. For ex if at wot you roll off to say 3/4-7/8 and bike picks up speed you are lean. Lastly make sure it has the correct choke spring and plunger as the HD will not close completely resulting in poor mpg. You can count the number of coils and compare to the HSR tuning guide. Also make sure you have to VAC leaks (check voes switch as well for leaks). Like I mentioned in the other vid with your iron sporty chopper, make sureyou have a fan blowing at air cleaner when checking for leaks just the slightest vapor trail will give you false results.
good show I didnt think about the plug gap either. If it still seems lean I would recommend a CV tuners kit be installed very easy and you will notice the difference.I also would recommend a dab of anti seize on those spark plug threads on all your bikes when reinstalling them.
Just stumbled on your video and I admire and respect your honesty we all learn new things every day by experience or by others I just subscribed and honored to join you on this RUclips journey
I would like to add a bit of advice about reading your plugs , you should take you spare plug wrench out on a ride and when up to hiway speed in a safe area shut the bike down and bring to a stop and check your plugs then to get a good read on the hi speed jet. Also today's gas dint burn as dark as from the earlier days so they are not gonna read that dark chocolate as you Cal it but more of a bronze color. Just some of the ways I was taught to get a good read on my hi speed jet
I have a 2000 Deuce and 1974 Ironhead. Like you said nobody knows it all. Only way to learn is by mistakes. I’m rebuilding my Ironhead and it’s a pain. LOL
Have you thought about an S&S carb? I have been running one on my 87 EVO since 1997. What brand of spark plugs do you use? Really enjoy the channel, Thanks
I had issues with my 2002 FLSTC it wouldn't idle without the choke out. the guy I got it from took great care of it but he had changed the air cleaner. first thing I did was a three hole oil change and put in new Harley plugs with correct gap. I then rebuilt the carburetor and it still did it. So I put a brand new CV I had on it and it still did it. What I didn't look at was the jets both carburetors had 45 and a 180 jet. I put in a 48 and a 190 in the old carburetor. It now idles but I have not rode it far enough to see what the plugs will look like. Too much gas can wash the oil off the pistons and damage the motor if it is too rich but I think this will be fine. No matter how long you been wrenching on Harley's you still miss obvious things.
Carb Woes - A Sad DIY Tale Way back when, I picked up my dream bike. It was a brand new 1997 FXDWG Dyna Wide Glide in Patriot Red ! Yup 80 cubic inches, 2 pistons, a single cam, electronic ignition and just a single carb ! Like how could anyone interested in the Zen of Motorcycle Maintenance wish for anything more user friendly ? As part of the dealer prep, the carb had had it's 'secret' cap covering the main jet removed. Rumour had it that this cap and main jet, being related to pollution control settings, was not even shown on the factory drawings, nor was there even a part number for this item. Time passed and as I got more comfortable with mods and maintenance, the "pop" from the carb became more irritating and I discovered it was related to a leaned condition. Now back in '97, there was no RUclips, so you had to depend on monthly Bike Mags and fellow rider's experience. So I gathered all the info I could and over the winter, removed the carb to my basement to get to the bottom of "it". All went very well and with jetting enriched I set up the main jet. Now I had been warned that the tip and seat of the main jet was delicate and if you ham fisted the seating you might damage it. Not to worry, I followed recommendations and carefully bottomed the jet needle before backing it out the appropriate number of turns (2 1/2 or 5 - I can't remember which.) On the road again I was anxious to experience my newly improved throttle. I took her on a 70 mile round trip with half being country roads and half being super slab. Half way into the return trip home via the highway the bike developed a sputter. With the enriched jetting I assumed I might have fouled a plug. I managed to keep her running (roughly) til I made it home. Into the garage and out with the tools ... Tiny screw driver that could just fit up into the 'secret ' port under the carb. I was prepared to micro tune by leaning the jet out a half turn in. Imagine my surprise and horror when the screwdriver went way up into the main jet port. There was no main jet. The damn jet had fallen out on the highway !!!! Yikes! With no part identified in the HD manuals, or even a part number available, I was facing replacing the complete carb !!!! Not to worry cause I was blessed to be a customer of a local custom bike shop - Motor City Custom in Oshawa Ontario Canada. I called them in a panic. I think they have dealt with pretty much every screw up DIY can produce. They said they had several carbs lying about and were sure they could retrieve a jet for me. These guys are amazing and never made you feel stupid for trying. So for $10 and a case of beer I had my jet and confidence restored.. Conclusion: When I installed the original jet, seeking to bottom it out prior to adjustment, what I had thought was 'bottom" was actually interference (crud) in the threads from the original setting. That meant that I had actually started my adjustment, (turning the screw out) was at the factory setting. So I probably doubled that and allowed the vibration of the motor to shake the jet screw out onto the highway. I'm grinning now, but back then I was pooping minibricks. :) Another tip when carb troubleshooting is to inspect the rubber fitting on the intake manifold for cracks. The carb slides into this gasket and over time via vibration and heat, it can harden and crack, allowing air to be sucked past the gasket and leaning out your mixture. Cheers and safe riding your way John
The days of getting a plug reading from the color are gone since ethanol. I used to go for a paper bag brown color but no more. You mentioned a few weeks ago about putting a thicker oil in. It will hold the heat in the motor longer. Harleys are mostly a roller bearing motor , they work on flow not pressure as much. They only have 3 to 5 pounds at idle. 20-50 is the best to pull the heat out of the motor. Unfortunately the old way of tuning a carb by the seat of your pants are gone. You need somebody good on a dyno unless it's a cv carb. Throw a 48 pilot in it and it will do the rest.
We wouldn't learn if we didn't make mistakes.
Paradise Lost your a great inspiration brother blessings from Houston tx
That is why they put erasers on pencils.😀
The only man not making mistakes is the man who does nothing.
@@Jay-cv1un Blessings your way Jay.
Nobody knows it all .
Stay humble man, you rock
I would have never thought about plug gap contributing to a lean condition. Nice job Dr. Tramp.
Lol. Dr.Tramp... That's funny. More like the Nutty Professor.
Zack First Person. Checking the gap is basic mechanic's. You should check the plug gap every time you check the way your bike is running. I've sen the tips burnt off of brand new plugs.
If you don't know little things like this. You should never work on a Bike. Nor anything else for that matter!!!
@@ltsgarage7780 wat a dick comment .
Love your humble honesty so refreshing to see someone who doesn't claim to know everything im a diy guy myself got hit by a car while riding in December have spent every day since rebuilding my bike learning as i go so i know where your coming from and congrats on an awesome and honest channel cant wait to see more. Much respect brother.
Eric Grant. Hope you heel soon. No one knows everything. Use your phone as your memory card. Take a lot of pictures as you go. It's the little things that you'll miss. You'll remember them when you are broke down on the side of the road.
Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!
Eric grant. Talk about getting hit by a car. A few years back I was up in the hills of California. Just riding at a nice easy pace. I was doing 42 in a 45 speed zone. Leaned into a corner & blew a front tire. My bike went straight to the ground. Lucky part was that I was on my Sport bike (Hayabusa) when I blew my front tire. First thing to hit the ground was the left side of my forehead. When I finally stopped I was stuck in a 6x16 guardrail post. Now comes the lucky part.
The paramedics had been called out to an accident at the top of the hill. They couldn't find anyone so the turned around and started back down the hill. I had come in from a side road just ahead of them. I went down, I hadn't even come to a stop when they came around the corner to see me hit that guardrail. They had to intubate me, jump started my heart. Then cut my broken body out of that 6x16 post. I broke everything from my hips up except. (This is the good part.) I broke everything from my hips up except for my spine & neck. Had a flail chest. Broke every rib 3 times, lost my left lung. Shattered Both scapula's more than 10 times. My arms were free floating. I had broken everything that holds them to my neck area.
Needless to say. I was Broken up pretty bad. I was in the hospital for more than 8& half months healing and doing physical therapy. When I got home finally I walked around my home with a Walker for the next 6 weeks. Then moved to crutches and then a Cane. I was a mess for a long time.
About 5 minutes before my accident I was cruising down the road around 150 miles per hour. Crashing at that speed deffently would have killed me for sure! Instead of being Dead for just a few seconds. I got very lucky that day!
The paramedics that saved me that day told me straight up. If they were called out for my accident instead of being called out for one they didn't find. I would not be here anymore.
I pet who ever is riding on my shoulder. And say "Thank you" a lot!
Yes sir i was riding down my dirt road going to the post office and a girl on her stupid cell phone was parked on the side of the road and as i went around her she pulled dead left into the side of my bike my right leg ripped off the front bumper my bike ended up in the ditch on the other side of the road and i landed in the middle but was extremely luck a bit of road rash and 3 broken ribs was all i got but i tell you what that was a scary thing nothing like what happened to you. I think you had a guardian angel watching over you brother glad your still with us
@@ericgrant1593 Thank you.
I could tell you stories but most just say. That much can't happen to one person.
You think the bike crash was a good one. Around 40 minutes later when they got me to the hospital. The head doctor said to his team. "Don't cut on this guy. There is just something about him" wait until someone that knows his medical history to tell us what's wrong with him.
So they did what they could to do until my girlfriend walked in. He said to her "what's wrong with him. Why am I getting the feeling I'm not suppose to cut him open & operate on him. She said to him.
30 days ago he had a major Heart Attack & he is on a couple of different Blood Thinners. If you had cut him open. He would have just blead out on you. So you would have killed him trying to save his life.
The sowed up my lung, spleen, kidneys thru 2 little tiny holes they cut in my stomach area. (Othrascopicly) They also pulled 3 inverted ribs out of my left lung thru these same little holes.
I've had 5 major heart attacks. 3 of which they jump started my heart.
This doesnt even start to tell you everything that I've been thru.
I'm a plumbing service contractor. I was talking to a long time customer a couple of weeks back. She asked me if I had "bought a new cat?" I said to her "What"?
She then said to me. You've been through the 9 lives of your first cat. If I were you. I would buy another cat!!
😋
Knowledge not shared is knowledge wasted.
Keep up the good work.
An old mechanic once told me to run my old bonneville flat out on an open road then kill the engine whilst at high speed then pull the plugs and check colour to ascertain correct jetting. Love your videos man ,keep it up you’re great to listen to🙂
We call that a "plug chop" in the UK. It's a reliable way of determining what happening with the main jet. Letting the bike tick over before you kill the engine to check the plugs doesn't give you a true reading.
Wonder if that guy was at a shop in Chicago in the 60s cause a Mechanic at a triumph BSA shop told me the same thing..
Chris Crookson you’re spot on!
Pete R this guy came Melbourne Australia and did his apprenticeship at Frank Mussets in Melbourne. Frank was a retired Aussie racer from the 50’s.
Hi 👋, I am new to this bikers work shop, I am 70+ I have had old Bonneville Norton commando Norton dominator HD 1200s 1450FXR 1450 Deuce, I learn to ride a motorcycle when I was 11/12 years old, and passed my test at 17 , when I was in my teens I was told about this riding your bike, flat out, then hitting the Killswitch, this gives a very good indication, whether your bike is running rich or lean , and I have done the same with my cars, And I still believe at my age, you can still learn things, ride safe, PHIL FROM THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOULIN FRANCE.
I bought a springer softail in 1990...it had a mild cam and a Mikuni on it...still does, and I never had a problem. Still going strong. Can't beat the passing power of a Mikuni.
BTW, it is a 1989.
Have just done the same thing with my 87 electraglide evo , kept up sizing the main jet till the plug looked the same colour , running a andrews ev 13 cam , the bike has 104 thousand miles on standard bore and bottom end , still runs strong , thanks for your videos , cheers from Australia 👍
“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble”. You’re walking the right side of the line.
I certainly understand your frustration and am sure glad that no damage occurred during that trip. Could have easily burned a hole in a piston. Now you are at least in a safe area and can fine tune it from here. Best of luck to you and your honesty is a big part of why I watch your videos. You remind me of me, only 35 years ago. I still ride almost daily. 2011 Super Glide.
I just found you a short while ago and really like your honesty. I love Harley’s and love to do my own work if I can.
I started riding when I was about 10 or so (mini bikes), then at 16 got my first motorcycle, had 6 or 7 since then. I’m 62 now and I t’s been several years since I’ve had a motorcycle due to kids, divorce, etc., but going to get another one soon. I’m retired now and looking to enjoy some “me” time.
Anyway I’m rambling, but I do like your channel very much and as a Christian it’s nice to be able to watch a motorcycle video without the cussing and other trash in it. Keep up the good work and be safe!
If you put the Mikuni back on raise the needle up one or two notches you’ll get more fuel to the engine, it was designed that way. The Harley carb is not necessarily made that way. you can download the manual for the Mikuni and it explains everything. including setting the accelerator pump how to select which jet(s) needs to be changed and how to diagnose lean / rich conditions throughout the entire throttle range . A Mikuni by the way is far more responsive than a cv carburetor, and very helpful when needing to pass. Keep going, good luck.
Here's what I learned from this video. Much more important than Motorcycles.....I learned that you are a decent, good man with a dang good heart. I'll keep tuning in for sure. You teach me, or at least remind me of where I have been lacking. Thanks for being you.
Here's my two cents. Looking at that plug, I think it's still running leaner than it should. Of course, I realize 20 miles isn't a great rest. Just saying, on a air cooled engine I want my plug really brown. Not black and sooty, but definitely knocking down any white look to the ceramic insulator. But, that's just me brother.
Hey Brother, Since it is an older bike, try checking your intake seals on the intake manifold. I was having same issue on my 98 Evo and the seals were cracked. Runs great now!
Just took my intake off seals look good but I could rock the manifold up and down.. sucking air.. it's an old 92 FXRT with a 42 mm Makune. Lots of motor work upper and lower. Getting seals tomorrow..
I'm three years late lol. Just found this channel..
Dude, I love your chill attitude and your willingness to share what you are learning with the rest of us.
While timing get mentioned, no one seems to say anything about what to do other than it is like too far advanced. Make sure your VOES switch is working. One thing to note if the motor is high compression and built with a tight squish, you'll need to back the timing off over stock. Start with at least 3 degrees. I saw mention that you have a Hi4. You can try a slower advance curve also.
Trial and error plus honesty keys to education. Loving the channel.
I had a 1994 Heritage. Purchased New. After playing around with the CV with no luck, I put a crane 490 cam in it, bought some header pipes and got rid of the crossover pipe, knocked out the plugs in the mufflers which left some back pressure, put an S&S E model carb and Toyota U-groove plugs, ND16 gapped at 38 and the bike cranked and ran like a sewing machine for 60,000 miles before I sold it. To this day I wish I had kept that bike. Toyota plugs have nickel cad plating that will not seize and I never had one to fowl. You need the S&S carb.
My 98 Evo had a stock CV with a Dyno Jet Thunderslide kit when I bought it. Took it off, and put on a S&S Super E on. Took me a bit to get it dialed in. I live at 4,875' in altitude. I love it. It came with a variety of Jets I will experiment with this winter,but I can't be more satisfied with this carb..
S&S Makes good carbs.
All carbs are goood just DEPENDS on your taste and motor set up !! I RUN A CV CARB IM AT 4,800 ALTUDE I HAVE NO ISSUES WITH CV CARB ! LIKE I,SAID I HAVE OVER 45+ YRS AS HARLEY DAVIDSON MECH!! WE DONT KNOW IT ALL WE LEARN AS WE GO! SADDLE TRAMP DROP ME LINE I BE HAPPY TO HELP YOU OUT BROTHER!!
Awesome video. I have had a constant battle with my carb on my Fatboy and you have definitely given me some direction. Good to see a humble person like yourself doing videos on here.
No one knows everything like you just said and we all learn every day. I have been wrenching for about a dozen years now and I love it and learn every day also. Just keep doing what youre doing. I know I have a long way to go also and if people want to constructively criticize my videos then so be it. Sometimes there are different ways to skin a cat and people need to remember that. Glad you got it figured out.
Touch and go. Live and Learn. Start with the simple solutions and move to the complex. No one should criticize but a suggestion should be welcome. Sounded good on the Hwy. Keeping an old bike on the road is a service to everyone.
Anyone who makes no mistakes is doing NOTHING! Love you videos. Learned a ton from this one. Can't wait for the next one.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Think about what it was like before RUclips. As you said, you learn from your mistakes, experience and shared knowledge.
With today's gas and so many other variables making it difficult to read plugs accurately, I'd recommend getting a wideband AFR meter (AEM or Innovate) to dial-in your carb precisely. Like your style man 👍
Good on you for having the balls to admit you made a mistake, most wouldn't have your honesty. Like watching your channel.
I was told the only way to really read plugs correctly is to install new plugs, take the bike at highway speed’s for 5+ miles, pull in the clutch and quickly cut the engine. Then coast to a stop and read the plugs. But I’m not a mechanic nor do I play one on TV.
This is what I was told as well. Correct reading is from engine under full load.
@@stevemcconnell9102 That's something to consider. Next time I'll have my Mrs with me on a test run.
I found too that if you clean the plugs real good on a wire wheel, they are as good as new.
It's called a plug chop, much more finicky on two strokes than four strokes. Put new plugs in, ride it wide open and kill it immediately, then pull them and look at the porcelain. Should be a gray color. His bike still needs to fatten up the jets a little.
It's called a plug chop, much more finicky on two strokes than four strokes. Put new plugs in, ride it wide open and kill it immediately, then pull them and look at the porcelain. Should be a gray color. His bike still needs to fatten up the jets a little.
At 65 today, I started doing performance work on sport bikes way back in the early 80's.....Mikuni & Keihin CV's mostly. A few years later I got more into Mikuni flatslides when doing high end Suzuki and Kawi engines, later transitioning to dwarf car engines. If you can do a bank of four carbs, and do them right, one carb is a walk in the park. Fast forward to about 15 yrs. ago to present, once they heard that I use to do banks of carbs, I started having Harley guys bringing me their single Keihin CV's to mod them. They are an extremely good carb for what they are and to be honest, if you follow a given pattern with them, you can get them spot on almost the first time every time regarding EVO's. I've done a couple dozen at least and I think I had one or two come back for very minor tweaks.......Main jet 180-195, pilot jet 45-48, set your float per instruction, possibly shim your needle (usually one thin machine washer), adjust your idle screw 2-3 turns out, and bingo.....most often your done. Even with pretty substantial engine, breather, & exhaust mods, the CV does fine in most cases. Flatsides are great......got a bunch of performance out of them, but done right, CV's can cover a huge range.
Thanks for the info!
Love your videos brother keep doing what you do don't let no one get you down we were put on this Earth to help one another thank you for being the man you are God bless you
God Bless you too, Amigo.
Just glad to watch somebody that is real and is keeping it real. You got more guts than I do in that respect. If ya put yourself out there criticism is gonna come. Myself I’m glad your doing the videos and putting yourself out there cuz I enjoy them all, so keep on going and hey brother “ take care of yourself”
I love everyone of your videos. I'm still new into learning the in and outs of a motorcycle. Luckily we have good friends we make through the motorcycle community that will always be a helping hand. You are the man!
Thanks, man.
Sounds like your going the right direction. All I know is my Shovelhead runs good with a Mikuni VM38. Ran good with a Delorto 38 pumper too. Mine has solid lifters 440t Sifton Cam and Sifton valve Springs.
Can appreciate your honesty, plugs always tell you alot, that being said we all forget the simplest thing's.
Mate, thanks for such a humbling video.
I just inherited a rather rough, yet beautiful 87 Softail. I'm going to do this bike justice and take my time learning what she needs.
This video has already helped me so much! Stay upright, love from down under.
Awesome. Glad this was useful to you.
Proper gap makes the engine run so much better. I was having some weird starting issues turned out bad gap.
Keep doing what your doing, that's why the subscribe numbers are shooting upwards. Your logical trouble shooting process is so clear to follow. Thanks.
I really appreciate your honesty it takes a good man to say I was wrong!
Hi.
Ive got a Mikuni HSR 42 on my
Evo and it runs great and never had a problem with it.
Great carby.
Cheers from Australia.
Lately I have been fine tuning my CV carburetor on my stock 93 EVO because the factory set it very lean to please the EPA standards. I recently installed a Yost brass air idle adjustment screw that is designed to protrude under the carburetor so you can make adjustments on the fly without taking your air cleaner off. I can now make rich/lean adjustments between the cylinders on the left side of the motor as I do spark plug readings every 100 miles. Yes that spark plug gap is critical!
I have been restoring old vintage British sports cars for a very long time. I can tell you this, I had a brand new coil burst/explode i which threw oil all over my engine bay, yes.. coils are filled with oil to keep them cool. The reason why my coil burst was because the gap on my ignition points where set to small causing The coil to over heat.
Thanks to your video showing when you first bought your EVO you heard some strange mechanical sound you thought where your lifters, but turned out to be a loose nut and worn parts in your primary. I am beginning to experience the same thing and immediately thought of the video you put out. So, thanks so much for sharing with all of us! I always do the same in my responses even though I don’t have a RUclips channel. Anyway, I will pull the primary cover off this morning and do a inspection and at the very least adjust my primary chain. Keep the videos coming and let’s keep helping each other!
Glad to see your sorting out that overheating issue. Actually, my EVO runs nice and cool, I’m sure yours will too once you dial things in. Your heading in the right direction!
I learned the most from an old 1971 BSA 650 lighting.
I was Young didn’t know what I was doing, and just had to have an old bike.
The bike had been used and abused for 20 years when I bought it, and the work that had been done to keep it running was sub par at best, it cost me a lot just to keep it on the road.
I’d fix one thing then something else would break.
I finally sold the bike for half what I had in it, but it was a great teacher.
Left hand drive too, which was fun, I’d toss the keys to a friend and watch as they made a fool out of themselves, and it would make a fool out of me on occasion too.
Nobody is perfect & humility goes a long way. I'm glad to see that you got your Iron Horse squared away. Keep up the good videos!!!
The Mikuni is a superior carburetor
I like the honesty on this channel. Totally respect that
...Now I'm gonna check the gap in my plugs. I've been running a Mikuni on my 88t.c. since I changed out my cam-plate, etc. This engine has run hot for the 10 years that I've had it, even with the original CV.
Thanks Amigo. I get an education with every one of your videos...!
You just keep doing what you're doing you're doing fine. This is how we learn. You're a smart man.
Always set the spark plug gap but never realised that it made that much difference!
Mikunii has notch adjustment if I recall, but anytime you change oil, check your plugs, it doesnt hurt, and reading your plugs will tell you a lot about the internal condition of your engine..i used to have an engine with a lot of mods, it was getting a gap creep about 1000 miles, improved the grade of gas, it solved the problem. You never know till you try, good vid, great advice! I ran a dellorto one time
It doesnt make very much difference! maybe a tiny tiny bit!
Pretty much all the comments about running a chop test burn on the plugs is on target. While your pulling up to the house run at your normal speed for that area and chop the engine before slowing down for your driveway. Get it to the garage and check the plugs. Repeat for top end run and for a two up run, this should give you a good idea as to your rich/lean setup. Idle off and up is pretty much a matter of accelerator pump settings and not as important as mid range and up. I like your videos, keep em coming.
That's the best way to check n tune any engine is see how the plugs look... Good job
I thought Evos run a little on the light side rather than chocolate color.
@@wanaraz .. Of course there's many variables, climate and load etc but usually side on rich coz gas is also coolant and lubrication
Great video man. I dig your honesty and the way you break down your process man. Keep up the good work
Think I'll be checking the gaps on my bikes today...thank you for sharing
You said it yourself success is built on failure. To a guy like me who knows absolutely 0 you are a guru mechanically and in life! Very wise!
I have my CV off my 94 Low rider now. Waiting on a slide from HD of Danbury Ct. 700 more miles and she flips 50k, i want it to happen before the snow flies, so ride on brother I'm out there with you!
All trial & error, if that was me I wouldn't have a clue what to do, at least you're exploring options good on you 👍😎
i learned same as you, friend. now i'm old now and evidently starting to forget all of it.
I have a 2000 deuce twin cams,I ordered a Mikuni 42 ,took the stock carburetor off and put the Mikuni on.This was in 2003 I just had a problem with the carburetor,i ordered the rebuild kit.And before I had the problem my bike ran great.
Love what you do and love the idea of people working together to solve a problem. You have a great platform for this. I'm quite interested in what you're dealing with cause I do have a '99 Evo Softail with a CV carb and a '02 Road King with the Mikuni carb. . I think you're on the right track and my Harley dealer says that the CV carb is hard to beat for trouble free performance. I don't have much to offer at the moment other than I would suggest letting the engine cool off before pulling the plugs on aluminum heads so the threads don't gall and get pulled out. I'd rather wait if possible than take the risk. I also use a touch of anti seize.
Still rolling through your old videos. Great job thinking of spark plug gap.
Thanks, Randall! Don't be too unimpressed as you go backwards. Lol
Glad your back home safe. When you mentioned the spark plug i laughed😂 i cant tell you as a young man how many time i had non gapped and pre gapped plugs and it took my uncle showing me how to gap these and how many times i had a vehicle run kinda shit cause the gap was starving or killing the vehicle. Not enough spark shut off, too much spark runs hot. I just be blown away by small mistakes like that
If you have a stock displacement engine, mild cam, 10 to 1 compression, aftermarket pipe, you need a 180 to 190 Large round Mikuni main jet as a starting point
The happiest a mikuni carb ever made me was when I tore it off .... for the last time & hummed it into an overgrown vacant lot ... RTLLTR ...
Yo bro I like what you said steel sharpen steel. I got traded a 68 Galaxie 500 for a 883 that needs throttle cables and a rear tire but a nice bike. Im planning on puting a HSR42 carb on it when I replace the throttle cables . Im glad you mentioned your plug gap. Cause its something I generaly dont think of but will from now on. We tend to overlook the simple but important things some time. Its when you think you know is when you really dont know but if you know that before hand that's when you wise. I try to be smart enough to know I don't know. But you know how us guys are we don't stop for directions.lol
Great video! I have a 1995 Wide Glide with a Mikuni, and a couple of years ago was having the same overheating issue. Sitting in traffic the engine would start sputtering and popping until I got back up to speed and the engine cooled off. After trying just about everything I could think of and research, it turned out I had plugs that were too hot! I went back to the stock plugs and no more overheating.
I have a 1961 Harley pan that I finally replace the worn out linkert with a 38 Mikuni round slide ,used the plug chop method to find main jet size first then the idle jet and last set the needle height. Bike pulls strong through off idle to full throttle, starts 90% of the time on first kick.
Sound good, man!
Dude ... you are a good genuine man! ... down to earth and way far from being showoff that you know everything ...
as I mentioned in my comment from another video of yours ... I bought the same exact bike in beginning of August this year ... and I do not know jack crap about being a mechanic on a motorcycle or on my Harley ... but so far with RUclips's help I have changed the main Oil (purge style), Prime and transmission .... and still learning to do the more challenging stuff ... even though wife keeps telling me "just take the darn horse to the dealer" ...LOL ...
I know I will learn a lot from you man ... and also others who like to share like you ... peace brother ... you good man! and I enjoy your videos ...
One thing I learned with checking plugs...your carb has three stages. And if you're trying to adjust your needle (midrange) you need to shut the bike off while it's in midrange. If your lean on your needle and good on your idle...if you let the bike idle it can effect the color on your plugs....
thanks for that information I'm going to check my plug gap I'm having similar problems
There are no mistakes, only multiple ways to not do something!
Well said. As a fellow evo owner I very much appreciate the knowledge.
harley is made for farmers in Wisconsin, they work all summer and ride the motorcycle DEC JAN FEB from 4am til 12 noon .(nice and cold out )
Loved the video. Did my old heart good to hear you quote Gods word to make your point. Good stuff. Thank you.
Official Factory Manual for Softails Models 1995-1996 (part# 99482-96A) on page 8-13 says: "A plug with white, yellow, or light tan to rusty brown powdery deposit indicates balanced combustion..." I suppose then that your plugs do not have to be "chocolaty". The Manual also says that: "An overheated plug can be identified by a light brown, GLASSY deposit ...". I learned about it myself not so long ago.
Thanks for another great video and I agree with everything you said and we can all learn from our mistakes
If you still suspect lean issues, check the intake manifold seals, spray a bit of brake cleaner or similar around the manifold and see if the rev increase. They go bad for a pass time. If yo do replace them smear the new ones with a little silicon or rubber grease to help them seat and take care lining up the manifold when tightening it down. What air cleaner and back plate are you running under that stock cover?
I put 58mm mikis on a bored 750 Honda in a Amen frame with a Springer. It ate kz 1000 for lunch. Wrenching is a lifetime skill. Anyone can drive a rice grinder. It's like it was born as. A skill.
Trial & Era, I think it was the plug gap. Keep up all the informative information... B Safe on You're trip this weekend. 👊✌& GOD BLESS
Little tip... CV carbs perform great up to 100 hp (with proper jetting of course)
I have an 883 sporty bobber I hopped up with a 1275 hammer kit and beefy cams and a bunch of other goodies, dyno tested at 113 hp and I've had zero issued with the cv carb, just gotta play with jetting and find what makes it happy
Don Juan. I'm running a "52" mm carb with 166 hp. I have no problems what so ever!
Agreed!! I was just pointing out that the CV is a great carb that can handle more than most folks realize! ;) the 100hp was not a cut off just pointing out to him that it is more than adequate for his set up.
Don’t forget to raise the needle a bit as well as the jetting!
Berserker Nick, did you do the work or do you know a good shop. I've got a1200 that I've thought about being up for years. didn't know you could get 100+, the ads say so, but no one I know has it on a sporty. ..well except the crazy Swede who built a124ci sporty.
Nice vid. I also like your edits and flashbacks.
On the overheating - a couple of thoughts - your idle sounds good, but still might be worth it to check for an intake leak - thats a quick overheater. Also, had an old racer tell me to never let the bike idle before checking plugs for color - idle circuit may be rich so not reflecting running condition.
Good luck!
Nice job figuring out the issue...keep us up to date on it...
Nobody knows it all .at least you have the brains to learn.im going out to check my plugs ive been having some of the same problems running hot.thanks bro an keep the videos coming. 👍
I had a old 85 virago single carb conversion took me a while but finely plugs were tan ran great they had main jet bored out to 1/8 i ended up with a 110 kehine scooter carb jet in it wich fixed it got 34 mpg
Might try colder plugs if your not getting any color. Too hot of a plug will look lean also due to additives in fuel can make it tricky. Keep in mind the plug will color in different areas depending on which metering circuit. Idle will color the tip/threads, midrange will color the middle 2/3 and main will color the root (cant really be seen without a 10x mag or plug chop). Needless to say you cant really tune based on a plug youve been leasurly riding in all areas from idle to wot.
If temps are still high check your static timing and adv curve. More isnt always better, typically the laziest curve is best. Just because its not pinging or pepering the porcelen doesnt guaranty its not over advanced causing excess heat. Also check to see where your VOES is adjusted. I believe you mentioned it wasnt hooked up at first, that can effect mpg/performance/heat if its coming in too soon.
Id suggest reading Mikuni's HSR tuning guide as theres a lot of great info. Also search variouse forums etc. These carbs can be rather touchy but once dialed in they are night and day in performance while maintaining good mpg (MPG will largly depend on acc pump size/adj and needle size/height. The taper of the needle doesnt factor until 1/4 throtlle and above. Bellow 1/4 is dependent on the needle shaft diameter and idle air adj. Easist way to tune your needle hight and main jet is how the bike responds when you roll off the throttle at these given positions since the engine is momentarily going rich with lack of air. For ex if at wot you roll off to say 3/4-7/8 and bike picks up speed you are lean.
Lastly make sure it has the correct choke spring and plunger as the HD will not close completely resulting in poor mpg. You can count the number of coils and compare to the HSR tuning guide. Also make sure you have to VAC leaks (check voes switch as well for leaks). Like I mentioned in the other vid with your iron sporty chopper, make sureyou have a fan blowing at air cleaner when checking for leaks just the slightest vapor trail will give you false results.
moparerrnocar thanks for the comprehensive advice.
Amen! Lets share our knowledge! Thanks for the great videos! Be blessed brother!
This is your channel and I am a guest. I would never disrespect you!
If your coming thru Bryan Tx again let us know. We'll take a ride around town. I live on the same road as the store where y'all picked up the two gals
good show I didnt think about the plug gap either. If it still seems lean I would recommend a CV tuners kit be installed very easy and you will notice the difference.I also would recommend a dab of anti seize on those spark plug threads on all your bikes when reinstalling them.
Just stumbled on your video and I admire and respect your honesty we all learn new things every day by experience or by others I just subscribed and honored to join you on this RUclips journey
Thanks, Walter!
No worries brother... just keep on keepin on.....
Love your channel and it's content... I have learned a lot from watching your vids...
THANK YOU!
I would like to add a bit of advice about reading your plugs , you should take you spare plug wrench out on a ride and when up to hiway speed in a safe area shut the bike down and bring to a stop and check your plugs then to get a good read on the hi speed jet. Also today's gas dint burn as dark as from the earlier days so they are not gonna read that dark chocolate as you Cal it but more of a bronze color. Just some of the ways I was taught to get a good read on my hi speed jet
You what I think? A smart person listens to all information then makes an informative decision on how to do something.
You come over as a cool dude ! But I can tell you one thing $200 on the Dyno is the best $200 you will ever spend.
You earned my subscription, because you were man enough to admit that you were wrong...Much Respect.
Thanks, man.
Your experiences are my gained knowledge. Thanks my brother!!!!!
Your on the right path Grasshopper!
I have a 2000 Deuce and 1974 Ironhead. Like you said nobody knows it all. Only way to learn is by mistakes. I’m rebuilding my Ironhead and it’s a pain. LOL
Have you thought about an S&S carb? I have been running one on my 87 EVO since 1997. What brand of spark plugs do you use? Really enjoy the channel, Thanks
I had issues with my 2002 FLSTC it wouldn't idle without the choke out. the guy I got it from took great care of it but he had changed the air cleaner. first thing I did was a three hole oil change and put in new Harley plugs with correct gap. I then rebuilt the carburetor and it still did it. So I put a brand new CV I had on it and it still did it. What I didn't look at was the jets both carburetors had 45 and a 180 jet. I put in a 48 and a 190 in the old carburetor. It now idles but I have not rode it far enough to see what the plugs will look like. Too much gas can wash the oil off the pistons and damage the motor if it is too rich but I think this will be fine. No matter how long you been wrenching on Harley's you still miss obvious things.
Your becoming a Topshelf old-school Harley mechanic ")
Carb Woes - A Sad DIY Tale
Way back when, I picked up my dream bike. It was a brand new 1997 FXDWG Dyna Wide Glide in Patriot Red !
Yup 80 cubic inches, 2 pistons, a single cam, electronic ignition and just a single carb !
Like how could anyone interested in the Zen of Motorcycle Maintenance wish for anything more user friendly ?
As part of the dealer prep, the carb had had it's 'secret' cap covering the main jet removed.
Rumour had it that this cap and main jet, being related to pollution control settings, was not even shown on the factory drawings, nor was there even a part number for this item.
Time passed and as I got more comfortable with mods and maintenance, the "pop" from the carb became more irritating and I discovered it was related to a leaned condition.
Now back in '97, there was no RUclips, so you had to depend on monthly Bike Mags and fellow rider's experience. So I gathered all the info I could and over the winter, removed the carb to my basement to get to the bottom of "it".
All went very well and with jetting enriched I set up the main jet.
Now I had been warned that the tip and seat of the main jet was delicate and if you ham fisted the seating you might damage it.
Not to worry, I followed recommendations and carefully bottomed the jet needle before backing it out the appropriate number of turns (2 1/2 or 5 - I can't remember which.)
On the road again I was anxious to experience my newly improved throttle.
I took her on a 70 mile round trip with half being country roads and half being super slab. Half way into the return trip home via the highway the bike developed a sputter. With the enriched jetting I assumed I might have fouled a plug. I managed to keep her running (roughly) til I made it home.
Into the garage and out with the tools ... Tiny screw driver that could just fit up into the 'secret ' port under the carb. I was prepared to micro tune by leaning the jet out a half turn in.
Imagine my surprise and horror when the screwdriver went way up into the main jet port. There was no main jet.
The damn jet had fallen out on the highway !!!!
Yikes! With no part identified in the HD manuals, or even a part number available, I was facing replacing the complete carb !!!!
Not to worry cause I was blessed to be a customer of a local custom bike shop - Motor City Custom in Oshawa Ontario Canada. I called them in a panic. I think they have dealt with pretty much every screw up DIY can produce. They said they had several carbs lying about and were sure they could retrieve a jet for me. These guys are amazing and never made you feel stupid for trying. So for $10 and a case of beer I had my jet and confidence restored..
Conclusion:
When I installed the original jet, seeking to bottom it out prior to adjustment, what I had thought was 'bottom" was actually interference (crud) in the threads from the original setting. That meant that I had actually started my adjustment, (turning the screw out) was at the factory setting. So I probably doubled that and allowed the vibration of the motor to shake the jet screw out onto the highway. I'm grinning now, but back then I was pooping minibricks. :)
Another tip when carb troubleshooting is to inspect the rubber fitting on the intake manifold for cracks. The carb slides into this gasket and over time via vibration and heat, it can harden and crack, allowing air to be sucked past the gasket and leaning out your mixture.
Cheers and safe riding your way
John
Glad you had a safe trip.
The days of getting a plug reading from the color are gone since ethanol. I used to go for a paper bag brown color but no more.
You mentioned a few weeks ago about putting a thicker oil in. It will hold the heat in the motor longer. Harleys are mostly a roller bearing motor , they work on flow not pressure as much. They only have 3 to 5 pounds at idle. 20-50 is the best to pull the heat out of the motor. Unfortunately the old way of tuning a carb by the seat of your pants are gone. You need somebody good on a dyno unless it's a cv carb. Throw a 48 pilot in it and it will do the rest.
I hear that if you keep your sockets oiled they don't rust. works for me. 8) cool video, glad y'all made it back safely.