Hawk Talk

[Mojo01]

What model Honda ? Do you use to look up a 45 tooth sprocket to purchase?

[chuck]

Originally Posted by mojo01

what model honda ? Do you use to look up a 45 tooth sprocket to purchase?

jtr269.45-45t

[Ariel Red Hunter]

To goat67. He engineered putting up my new avatar. Hope you guys like it.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by Jarwolf

Do I change the sprocket on the front or rear tire?

EDIT: Okay, I see that I can do a 16 tooth sprocket for the front and a 40 tooth sprocket for the rear and will be able to go up to 65.

EDIT again: I went to Hawk250 for the sprocket and it says to pick 17 tooth sprocket for front and 45 tooth sprocket for the rear, would that work, as in going 65, and 60 cruise?

There's more to this than just changing sprockets. First, the engine has to be run in. Second, main jet and probably pilot jet will have to be richer than stock. And, the mixture has to be enriched to avoid scorching the piston from too much heat. So go easy here. It's a step by step process...ARH

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Who was an acquaintence of my father who bought a new 1954 Packard Carribean with the big 212 hp engine. 359 cubes, 9 main bearings, crank shaft weighed 105 pounds. With Ultramatic II trans. But he answered my fathers question of how he was going to break in the engine with "I'll just run it to Las Vegas and back at 90 mph. It'll be fine" Well, it wasn't fine. Car always was trailed by a cloud of blue smoke. We were headed out to the high Sierras on the Vegas highway, running about 75 or so, when he passed us like we were tied to a post. Trailed by a plume of blue smoke. It was the only oil burning Packard I ever saw. My mothers car, a 1949 Victoria, didn't burn oil, so it wasn't normal. He just didn't break it in right. Metals and especially lube oils are a lot better now, but you can still abuse an engine, and not get the kind of life or performance you expected. Especially these engines that come way lean and very tight valve clearances. An over lean engine runs much hotter than a correctly jetted one. An over heated engine can stick a piston more easily than you would believe. So, my advice is don't overgear it, and run hard until you pass five hundred miles, and change the jets....ARH

[chuck]

Originally Posted by Ariel Red Hunter

Who was an acquaintence of my father who bought a new 1954 Packard Carribean with the big 212 hp engine. 359 cubes, 9 main bearings, crank shaft weighed 105 pounds. With Ultramatic II trans. But he answered my fathers question of how he was going to break in the engine with "I'll just run it to Las Vegas and back at 90 mph. It'll be fine" Well, it wasn't fine. Car always was trailed by a cloud of blue smoke. We were headed out to the high Sierras on the Vegas highway, running about 75 or so, when he passed us like we were tied to a post. Trailed by a plume of blue smoke. It was the only oil burning Packard I ever saw. My mothers car, a 1949 Victoria, didn't burn oil, so it wasn't normal. He just didn't break it in right. Metals and especially lube oils are a lot better now, but you can still abuse an engine, and not get the kind of life or performance you expected. Especially these engines that come way lean and very tight valve clearances. An over lean engine runs much hotter than a correctly jetted one. An over heated engine can stick a piston more easily than you would believe. So, my advice is don't overgear it, and run hard until you pass five hundred miles, and change the jets....ARH

Arh,I'm addicted to whiskey and your posts.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by chuck

Arh,I'm addicted to whiskey and your posts.

Whiskey can ruin your liver. My posts might ruin your brain!!...ARH

[chuck]

I prefer loosing my brain first.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

I know that when you get your new toy, it is very difficult to not run it wide open. And, even worse, change the gearing for more top end before your check even clears the bank. Please restrain yourselves. A combination of a tall top gear ratio with a new tight engine, combined with too lean a main jet, and balls-to-the-wall riding is a recipe for a fried piston. Not always, but often enough...ARH

[Ariel Red Hunter]

A few guys have been playing with the ideas of converting their carbureted bikes over to electronic fuel infection. Yeah, I hear yuh - but a carburetor is so - - - yesterday! My opinion is, count your blessings. And count your bankroll. Putting a $800 fuel injection on a $1200 motorcycle just doesn't make sense to me. But playing around with a $30 to $100 carburetor, plus a few jets, sounds like affordable fun, to me. It is not rocket science to tune a carburetor to get the most out of a 229cc motorcycle engine. There is a lot of information on this forum on how to set up a carburetor for these engines. Once you've done it, you will say "What's the big deal". The truth is--it's not a big deal! ....ARH

[Azhule]

Can't teach an old dog new tricks

[Megadan]

I play with carbs every day. Factually, a perfectly tuned carburetor is going to be better for power than an equivalent EFI system.

So, why do I want to convert to EFI? Carbs never stay perfectly tuned. Change elevation, it's off. Colder? it's off. Hotter? it's off. While generally putting around locally, depending on where you live, it's generally not a big deal. Let a carbed bike sit, even if you do it properly and drain the bowls, they can potentially be a nightmare - especially with modern fuels.

I honestly was just toying with the idea of EFI for mine, until someone pointed me in the direction of a kit that only costs 230 bucks, and is based off the same hardware as a Megasquirt, which I do have experience with. Now, it may be an eventual reality.

Worth it, probably not to most people. I guess I have just become tired of constantly fiddling with carbs over the years. Especially the model specific Keihin 4 carb setup on my Goldwing, which is especially a nightmare when they have any sort of issue, but a dream once you have them setup.

Besides, the way the kit is setup, you could convert back to carb in a heart beat if you decide to sell the bike, and use it on another bike, or sell it and recoup some money.

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by Azhule

Can't teach an old dog new tricks

I don't know what year you were born, Azhule, but if was 1960 or later, I was playing around with fuel injection before you were born...LOL...ARH

[Ariel Red Hunter]

Originally Posted by Megadan

I play with carbs every day. Factually, a perfectly tuned carburetor is going to be better for power than an equivalent EFI system.

So, why do I want to convert to EFI? Carbs never stay perfectly tuned. Change elevation, it's off. Colder? it's off. Hotter? it's off. While generally putting around locally, depending on where you live, it's generally not a big deal. Let a carbed bike sit, even if you do it properly and drain the bowls, they can potentially be a nightmare - especially with modern fuels.

I honestly was just toying with the idea of EFI for mine, until someone pointed me in the direction of a kit that only costs 230 bucks, and is based off the same hardware as a Megasquirt, which I do have experience with. Now, it may be an eventual reality.

Worth it, probably not to most people. I guess I have just become tired of constantly fiddling with carbs over the years. Especially the model specific Keihin 4 carb setup on my Goldwing, which is especially a nightmare when they have any sort of issue, but a dream once you have them setup.

Besides, the way the kit is setup, you could convert back to carb in a heart beat if you decide to sell the bike, and use it on another bike, or sell it and recoup some money.

On a multi cylinder engine, they make a lot of sense. On a multicylinder motorcycle, setting up carburation can be a never ending nightmare. Fuel injection makes real sense here. On a one cylinder motorcycle? Not so much. The only thing worse on a bike with Keihin carbs is - when there is more than one...ARH

[Megadan]

Originally Posted by Ariel Red Hunter

On a multi cylinder engine, they make a lot of sense. On a multicylinder motorcycle, setting up carburation can be a never ending nightmare. Fuel injection makes real sense here. On a one cylinder motorcycle? Not so much. The only thing worse on a bike with Keihin carbs is - when there is more than one...ARH

Keihin carbs aren't all that bad. What makes the Goldwing carbs a pain is that they are ALL internalized passages, and designed to work as mated pairs (right bank, left bank) with a common fuel feed through the split plenum. This means pulling the carbs all at once, which is a fun exercise in a strange combination of yoga and tetris. All of the internal passages are rather small, so they are prone to clogging up easily when they sit or any sort of crud goes through the fuel system. They are also full of lots of o-rings, and a plenum seal, where if any single one of them goes bad, it floods out, sometimes to the point of hydrolocking a cylinder. They are also a CV style carb with vacuum piston needles, and if they get even the tiniest bit of crud in the slide, they stick. Combine that with slide caps that have no sort of actual seal, just a machined seat, and they can get crud in them easily if not seated properly. I have started to use a thin layer of form-a-gasket on mine.
Picture of Goldwing 4cyl carbs if interested: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-flmgcOQHIX...587-773038.jpg

All of that aside, if everything is in good shape, they work brilliantly, and even handle elevation changes well. Synching them is an easy process too, and designed to be that way. Once tuned and synced - they never waiver. Their complexity is as much their saving grace as is their downfall.

On a single cylinder, I would agree that it makes less sense. It's just one carb that is easy to access, and for most people it will work just fine. For me, it's just a matter of being a tinkerer. I don't believe there is any substantial power to be gained from it. Maybe better fuel economy overall, less issues with sitting, and easier starts regardless of the weather. For $800...I wouldn't bother. For $230, I might do it, but I have no concept of money...