Motorcycle Tips and Tricks

Banana Caliper Bangs and Squeeks

cost2 — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:15:42 GMT

What's the best way to get rid of that banging and squeeking on those old banana calipers?

What Is Your Biggest Bang For Your Buck? (OR BEST BUY)

Scott Eyer — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:40:01 GMT

I Know Headers

But for me it was buying the Panacea LED Taillight & LED rear Turn Signal ( for my 06 Sporty) It turned my stock rear turn signal ( only came on for a turn) into a LED--Stop, Runing & turn Signal

And The LED Taillight works as a Runing, Stop, & Turn signal as well. When you make a turn a LED Arrow comes on.

The Stock was pretty dark at night riding with 1 little light on as a running light did not make me feel to well where there were no street lights.

That was my best Buy------ So What is YOURS?

POOR MAN'S M/C LIFT

hdbikin03 — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 22:16:24 GMT

2 PCS OF 2X10 LUMBER 3' LONG GLUED AND SCREWED TOGETHER. ADD A 4'' WIDE PIECE ON ONE END. DRILL A 15/16'' HOLE THROUGH THE CENTER OF THE 4'' PIECE AND THE 2X10s. INSERT A PIECE OF 1'' STEEL PIPE 4 FEET LONG, THREADED ON THIS END, THROUGH THE HOLE AND SCREW A PIPE FLANGE TO THE END, THEN SCREW IT TO THE 2X10. YOU CAN USE A PIECE OF CARPET SCRAP OR RUBBER TO PAD THE EDGE THAT CONTACTS THE BIKE FRAME. I USE THIS SETUP FOR MY 03 SOFTAIL, WORKS LIKE A CHAMP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sporty Helmet Holder

lugnut55 — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 05:57:50 GMT

The Honda helmet holder #ZZ50310 specs seemed close to what would fit my 2004 Sporty, so I took a chance and ordered two. It's metric, 8mm to replace either lever pivot. My 5/16" pivot pin is only .0035" larger; difference is so slight you can't feel it. Perfect fit, with a 6mm nut locktight-ed on the bottom end.

And if you want matching, keyed-alike mini locks, you can go to the Wal-Mart hardware department and buy a set of 2 or 4 Master locks. My set of 4 is labeled 121Q. They require filing or grinding the corners of the lock bodies for clearance. Take off just enough plastic/aluminum to slip over the knob. If you take off too much you will expose the hollow insides of the body. You can see the modified lock profile in my pix,

http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff187/Jimwright_2007/IMG_1085.jpg

INTAKE LEAKS

Irish — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:15:16 GMT

Some people, long ago used to balk and make fun of people mentioning checking for intake leaks. But, its the quickest and easiest test I know to do.

If your getting some 'popping' or think your running lean, just take some WD-40 and spray the intakes where they meet the engine. If the idle smoothes out, more often than not, you have an intake leak and you should check the seals.

Be careful not to get the spray into the air cleaner tho. And make sure you spray a generous amount. (I didnt, and missed the leaking intake seals).

About VOES

Irish — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 11:59:11 GMT

On another site someone posted a link to this page, I found it interesting.

I think if your not sure how VOES works this will help a bit.

http://www.wildwestcycle.com/f_voes.html

New forum

Robert3469 — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 21:41:13 GMT

I think this is a great idea for a forum!!! I'm looking forward to see what shows up here.

Interesting Ideas about the Flow Bench

Xea — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 18:56:29 GMT

This is something sent to us unsigned via the new customer Survey. I havn't studied it to know if I agree with what it sez, but we thought it may be of interest.

The Magical Myth of Flowbench - Porting Once upon a time... The flowbench is a machine that measures the airflow through the ports by sucking air thru like a vacuum cleaner. The vacuum gauges on the bench actually measure the resistance to the flow thru the ports, and the result is converted into CFM. That means "how many Cubic Feet of air will flow through the port per Minute." Anyone who buys a flowbench and a dremel tool is "qualified" to flowbench - port heads. The Superflow flowbench owner's manual says that: " For every 1 CFM of increase in intake flow, you'll gain .43 horsepower. " If you want more water to flow through a pipe, just make the pipe bigger. There's something wrong with this though. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It's easy to understand why so many people automatically think Flowbench - Porting, or "more is better" is a way to improve power. , Without closer examination, it seems quite logical. Okay, Let's examine it a little closer !! We were all taught to think of a 4 stroke engine by the traditional textbook explanation of Intake, Compression, Power & Exhaust. Textbooks and magazines achieve a sort of instant credibility that comes from the association with $$. Example: "This source must be right ... after all, there's obviously some big money behind it ..." Because of this association, the vast majority of people never question the things they learn in school, or read in mainstream publications. In the last issue of Power News you learned to think of a four stroke engine in a whole new way... 8 Phases !! In the 8 phase engine article, you'll remember that the intake "stroke" actually consists of 3 phases. ( Overlap, Suction and Charging. ) , Stock Yamaha R6 Intake Port Uh - Oh ... It turns out that a flowbench measures the least important aspect of intake cycle efficiency !! Stock Yamaha R1 Intake Port It's true !! When you stop to think about it, a flowbench only measures the efficiency of the "suction phase". That's not the right thing to measure. Why ?? Because, it doesn't matter how well the cylinder is filled at that point in the intake cycle ! What ... that sounds crazy !!! It's 100% true ... it's simply a matter of the sequence of events ! The success of the last event, the charging phase, determines the success of the entire intake process. What happens when a low velocity port fills the cylinder really well, but too early ?? The result is a slower intake charge that stops flowing into the cylinder. Then some of the charge gets pushed back out of the cylinder and into the port as the piston returns up the bore during the intake charging phase. The gain in flow doesn't offset the loss in port velocity. . Here's an analogy: It's just like a roadrace; you can lead for 3 laps, then run out of steam and end up in 7th place. In racing, only the last lap counts, because the one who leads at the checkered flag wins. In the intake cycle "race" the last lap is the charging phase, and the checkered flag is the intake valves closing. So in the final result, the first 2 phases don't matter if the 3rd phase is unsuccessful !! The total intake volume that will be burned is determined by the amount that remains in the cylinders after the intake valves close. That means that an early gain during the suction phase can be easily lost during the charging phase. And, if the intake charge returns back into the port during the piston's upstroke, the result is going to be a net loss !! It gets worse ! On a carbureted bike the reversing charge will create an effect called double carburetion, which means the mixture will become even richer with fuel as it passes back over the main jet nozzle for a second time. Have we lost enough power yet ?? Wait... it gets even worse !! Here's a real "out of the box" idea: high flow ports also flow really well backwards !!! All that work on the flowbench comes back to haunt you when the piston now has even less resistance to pushing the intake charge back into the " high flowing port " !!!!!!! When you begin to consider the consequences of all this, the whole idea of "more flow is better" comes crashing down like a lead balloon. What's The Secret ?? Using the race analogy, if you increase the Port Velocity, by making the port smaller, the intake cycle "race" starts out slower, gains momentum and makes a tremendous charge on the "last lap" to overtake the high flow port and win the "race". The interesting thing is, this type of port will always lose in a flowbench contest !!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- . . Remember The Scientific Method: Evaluate one set of conditions. Make only one change, test the result and compare it to the first set of conditions. Hey MotoMan, If "they" could put a man on the moon, why hasn't anyone else thought of this before ?!?! One reason is that people only think of "Scientists" as scientists. Everyone can and should be a scientist !! That means you !! In real world situations, many people forget to apply the simple principle that all productive science is based on: The Scientific Method. When someone builds a superbike engine, they usually port their cylinder heads and make other modifications like higher compression, valve job, different cams and big bore kits. The combination of all these modifications usually results in a net gain in power. The problem with attributing a gain to the porting in this scenario, is that it goes against the scientific method, because there are 4 other variables coming into play. Know the difference between association and causation ! In this case, flowbench porting of the cylinder head has been associated with horsepower gains for so long that no one bothers to question it. That doesn’t mean the porting actually caused any of the gain. Could More Flow = Less Power ?? Flowbench Porting has always been associated with more power... Superflow even says more flow equals more power in their official owner's handbook !! Yet, in most cases, Flowbench Porting motorcycle heads actually results in less power! (Actually, a few creative thinking tuners in Europe do already know about this. They're not anxious to reveal this info, because their success on the racetrack is somewhat dependent on it remaining a secret.) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What happens when we apply the scientific method to intake porting ?? To find out, let's test 2 progressively smaller porting specs against a stock head, without changing any other variables ... I chose the Yamaha R6 for this test, because it has the least flow and the smallest valves of all the current 600's !! Then I asked the question: Are the stock ports still way too big ??? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Verdict ?? Smaller Volume = Higher Velocity = Better Power By reducing the intake port size by 30 percent: The Yamaha R6 increases 5 hp. from 103.1 to 108.3 That's a 5 percent gain in top end power ! Notice that the power gain at 8,000 is from 60 to 65, also 5 hp... That's the same hp increase, but it's actually an 8.4 percent gain where it makes the biggest difference, at the turn exit. 30% Smaller Ports make the most midrange & top end power !! - Stock Ports 103.1 HP - 20% Smaller Ports 104.1 HP - 30% Smaller Ports 108.3 HP !! Click Here For The Full Size Version -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How do High Velocity Ports work on the racetrack ?? " Incredible !! " With most common superbike modifications, the rear tire either spins up too fast and threatens to highside you, or it grips and ungrips, which makes the bike drift wide and run off line. Either way, the rider has to wait longer to roll on the throttle !! What's the point of modifying an engine if you can't actually use the new found power ? The enhanced power delivery of the High Velocity Intake Porting allows for perfectly controlled rear wheel sliding, which is actually more important than the gain in peak power !!

Changing a lifter

Xea — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:26:24 GMT

This was sent to me by Sleeping Eagle. I think will work well here.....

Lifter Change for Twin Cam HD Engine.

Most of this will apply to the majority of HD engines. I happen to use J&P Cycles for many of my parts due to the variety of parts they carry, price and good customer service.

Tool List; 5/8 plug socket, 7/16 socket, 3/8 ratchet handle, (2) small jumper leads, (2) 10mm open end wrenches (short length), (1) small flat blade screw driver, allen wrenches, torx bits, small flash light, (2) spring type clothes pins. Ice pick or angled pick tool. Bolt cutter with 3/8 jaw opening. Pump type oil can with 10 or 20 W oil in it. Masking tape. Motor cycle jack if you have one. News paper. I use newspaper to lay parts out on.

Parts List; I used Crane adjustable push rods and Crane Hydraulic Lifters. Lifter galley gaskets (2) and 8 push rod tube O’rings. For some reason HD lifters don’t live much past 30,000 +/- 5,000 miles.

You don’t need a motorcycle jack, but it is much easier to work, if you get the bike off the floor. These steps are for bikes that have original HD non-adjustable pushrods, (fixed length pushrods).

Step 1. Be sure the bike is in Neutral. Remove plug wires and then remove spark plugs, Reinsert spark plugs into the plug boots and attach and ground a jumper wire to each plug. This will prevent blowing your electronic ignition when bumping the engine with the starter to find TDC (Top Dead Center) of each cylinder. Alternative method for TDC; use the rear wheel with tranny in 4^th or 5^th gear to rotate the engine.

Step 2. Remove the air filter cover, then the air filter. Note the condition of the rubber breather hoses from the breather bolts to air filter back plate. Remove the breather bolts to remove the AC base. The right side is now unobstructed.

Step 3. Turn ignition on, turn engine kill switch on. Place a finger over the front cylinder plug hole to seal. Bump the start button until you feel and hear compression spit by your finger. You are on compression stroke and both valves are fully closed. You want all pressure off the valves for the next step.

Step 4. With a small flat blade screw driver, insert the tip into the pushrod tube retainers next to the head. As you twist the retainer rotate the retainer out. This releases the spring pressure on the tube allowing you to collapse the tube. Follow the same procedure on the second tube. Now lift the bottom of the tube and let it slide up over the top of the tube. Note; the outside pushrod is black and is the exhaust pushrod. The inner pushrod is silver and intake. The exhaust pushrod is slightly longer than the intake pushrod. We already have TDC, lift the inside pushrod tube and clip a clothes pin to the pushrod to keep the tube in the raised position exposing the pushrod. Lift the outside tube and rotate the clothes pin to support it, otherwise use the second clothes pin. With the pushrod exposed, take the bolt cutter, slipping the jaws around the pushrod and cut the pushrod. Reach in and remove the bottom piece and slide the top piece out. Now lay the tube on the news paper beside you. Repeat the same cutting steps on the second pushrod.

Step 5. Now remove 4 allen bolts holding the lifter galley (block) cover in place. Remove the O’rings from the lifter cover and with the pick reach up into the head and remove O’rings. You will have 4 O’rings. Remove the lifter cover. Clean the old gasket off the engine base around the lifter block. Reach in and lift out the lifter retaining pin laying across the block. As you remove lifters note the position of the oil hole in the lifter. They should point away from the engine towards you. Flats on the lifter point front/back of engine. Both lifters removed, take a new lifter and oil can, put the tip of the oil can and pump oil into the lifter until no air bubbles come out the pushrod seat of the lifter. Put the new lifter in the lifter bore, sliding in gently, with the flats pointing front and back. Repeat for second lifter. Now replace the retaining pin. Replace the gasket. Use a small piece of masking tape to keep the new gasket in place.

Step 6. Place two new O’rings in the head. You might use a small dab of grease to keep them in place and as a lube. Slip an O’ring on to each tube bottom. Loosen the set nuts on each push rod and place one long and one short on the paper beside you. Assemble the retainer base, tubes and pushrods as a unit, with the adjuster ends down at the lifter. Remember, long pushrod to exhaust, short to intake. This gets a little tricky; gently slide the push rods up into the head making sure they are seating in the rocker arm cups. Now slide the push rods into each lifter while holding the assembly up and in position. Remove tape and position lifter block cover in place and finger tighten the block cover allen screws. Make sure the pushrod is seated in the rocker cup by wiggling and rotating. Now lift the rear pushrod tube up into the head and slightly rotate to be sure it is seated. Finger tighten the pushrod adjuster until it is firmly against the lifter and lock nut is there to be seen also. Now slide one 10mm open end slightly up into the tube to engage the flats on the rod and hold in place the tube at the same time. Use the second 10mm to adjust the crush. Crush is the preload adjustment on the hydraulic lifter. This prevents noisy tappet sounds. Follow manufacture suggestions for this adjustment. Because I had 32 thread rod ends, my crush was 3 – 3 ¼ turns. Those are measured as full turns. Lock the adjustment with the lock nut. Now do the same for the other rod. Squirt some top oil on the lifters.

Step 7. Slide the tubes up into position and rotate to be sure they are seated and extended. Insert the top of the retainer into the head. Using the screw driver placed against the slide collar, lift and slide the retainer into position until it clicks into place. Do the same on the second tube.

Repeat steps 1 – 7 for the second (rear cylinder).

Step 8. Remove jumpers from plugs. Reinstall plugs and snug up. Reinstall plug wires. Lower bike to ground if using a jack. Start you bike and let oil pressure build up and warm up. You should be ready to test ride.

Internal Wiring for Handle Bars

dtodd — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 13:48:32 GMT

Internal wiring can look extremely difficult but it is actually pretty easy if you are patient. As far as the hole size in the bars that depends on the gauge wiring that you are using and what switch housings. Most late model bars have the option to order them dimpled and drilled for internal wiring. First you have to determine the tools you need.

I use: Soldering Iron, Solder, Heat Shrink, Electrical Tape, Hair Dryer, small length of nylon string, Long piece of bendable wire, and Electrical Pin removal tool part number 381-087, wiring diagram of the bike, or digital camera to take pictures of Stock wiring.

1. You need to determine the length and gauge wire that your motorcycle uses. This is based on the motorcycle and switch housings, and factory wire size.

2. It’s a lot simpler to do everything off the bike until you are connecting the wires to the bikes main harness. .

3. Once you get all the wires cut to length you need to get them through the bar. The easiest way I have found is if you get a small piece of nylon string, tape off all the holes that you do not want the wire to go through starting with left side and working to your right. Once you tape off the holes in the right side of the bar. Start feeding the nylon string through the hole once its started you want to use the hair dryer to blow the string all the way through the bar and it will come out the bottom of the bars. (This will be a little harder on T-Bars and you will have to keep working the string in and out of the bar until it comes out the correct hole, Patience is the key).

Once you have the string out both holes, tape your wires to the string using the electrical tape (stagger the wires so that you do not have a large bundle coming through at one time). Do not use the string to pull the wires through only use it as a guide for the wires. Push the wires through the bars and gently pull on the nylon string. .

Another Method is to use a piece of bendable wire to navigate through the holes and tape the wires to the bendable wire and pull the wires back through the bars. (Old Broken Clutch cable or Throttle Cable works well for this)

4.Once you have all the wiring through the bike use the Pin removal tool and remove the stock wiring out of the connect or cut and re solder the wires. I prefer removing the wiring from the connector to prevent damage to the wiring or the connect while soldering. Important (Extend one Wire at a time)

5. Make sure you use great quality solder and heat shrink to prevent any damage to the motorcycle or wiring harness.

Good Luck and Hope I answered your questions.

Extended Control Cables, Brake Lines, and Handlebar Wiring

speedking72 — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 14:10:10 GMT

Some of the most frequently asked questions we receive are with regard to extended control lines for oversized handlebars. For example, “I would like to put a set of 20” Wild-1 Psycho Chubby Apes on my bike. What length cables and brake line do I need to order?”

If there were some scientific formula to calculate the proper cable and brake line lengths for every possible combination of bars and risers on every single model of bike, it would make ordering a bit easier. Unfortunately, there is not so we recommend that you mount the bars first, then take an accurate measurement for the proper length cables and brake line.

One method to do so is by using some thin gauge wire. Once you have the bars in position, route the wire in the same manner that you would like the cables to run. For example, for throttle cables: start at the carburetor (or throttle body) and route the wire up to the throttle housing on the bars. Be sure to turn the bars all the way to the left and then back to the right to assure that you will have enough cable to cover your full turning radius. You are now ready to take your measurement. Use the same method to measure for the clutch cable and your brake line. Once you have these measurements, subtract the length of your stock cables and brake line to find out how many inches over stock you will need to order (for example, +6 or +8 over stock).

Do not overlook the fact that you will also need to extend your handlebar control wiring. This method of measuring will work for them as well. We offer handlebar wiring harness extension kits that are available in +4 through +24 inch lengths. These kits are also available for the new Harley-Davidson Touring models with the electronic throttle control.