Below is what I had posted on the Stage 1 kit manufacturers help forum and I am still having the same issues after trying their suggestions. Any input would be greatly appreciated

********************************************
Working on a 2006 Sportster 1200C.

The bike was towed in so I have no reference as to how it was really running before this install. Based on my friend it would barely stay running (which I did test) and it was bad enough to even try taking out on the road. I can say that whoever worked on it last removed the stock backing plate and had the air cleaner element just sitting up against the carb throat.

I installed both the Stage 1 and rebuild kit over the weekend. This went along with a K&N RK-3929 complete Air Filter kit. The bike was running a 180 main and 42 pilot jets. Based on the kit and its application I went with the 185 main and the 46 pilot. Everything else was as per the installation instructions. Entire carb was cleaned and rebuild kit installed along with the EZ-Just mixture screw and new packing kit. The slider has not been drilled.

Problems I'm now having: erratic dead spot / hesitation off idle under load (pulling off from a stop) both at cold & warm engine; I need to really ride the clutch to keep this from happening. Also will get a sporadic single pop through the carb while just cruising at around 35-40-50 mph; not giving any throttle at all, just a "cough", the bike bucks a little and then back to normal. Again, this is either cold or hot. I have adjusted the EZ-Just so many times and nothing makes a difference. Right now I have it set at 3 1/2 turns out. Frustrating part is one time I take the bike out all is well. The next test ride the problems are back.

After much searching of the forum I have run all the different tests I could find; checked for vacuum leaks, swapped out the accelerator pump, double checked the needle jet position, float level, etc.

I will say that ever since installing the kits the bike fires right up. At cold I set the choke, give the throttle one twist and it fires and runs good at idle; no hesitation or coughing when I do a quick snap of the throttle. Once warmed up I don't have to give it any fuel at all to start it, just hit the start switch and it fires and runs.

However, I don't feel comfortable giving the bike back when it is apparent problems still exist.

Any and all input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks much,
Brian
********************************************
Also, as a follow up to what I posted on the their forum I have checked and double-checked the DTCs to make sure nothing has been stored - all is clear. Customer wants to pick up the bike tonight and I have already warned him about the situation. Guess I'll see what he thinks. Problem for me is if it's not 100% up to my standards then it's not good enough.

Brian

 

good luck and I hope this helps.

2006 Sportster 883L (carb)

The bike was purchased new in June 2006. From day 1, it had an intermittent problem. Occasionally, when it was ridden in warm weather and motor was warmed up, it would cough/fart thru the carb when trying to start up from a stop light. To keep the bike from dieing at lights, you had to keep twisting the throttle. Accelerating hard, there was a flat-spot where the bike would just limp along for quite a while before taking off.

We took the bike back to the dealer and he explained that HD sets these bikes far too lean in order to meet EPA standards. He rejetted the carb – replacing the low speed jet with a #48 jet. (Stock is a #42.) He did not drill out the plug for the mixture screw, so I know he did not adjust that.

The bike ran okay for a short time, but then the same intermittent issues started again. I installed the SE intake/breather in the spring of 2007. The bike ran fine all 2007, so I assumed installing the SE intake had solved the problem.

Fast forward to 2008, and the same intermittent cough/fart thru the carb starts again, and all the other symptoms. I took the carb apart and found no crud and no obvious problems. I put in a #45 low speed jet, drilled out the mixture plug, and set the mixture screw 2 ¾ turns out. This made no improvement and all the issues were still there.

I tore carb apart again. Replaced the needle and spring with the needle and spring from a Dynojet kit. (I did not drill out the hole in the slide.) I put the needle c-clip in the 4th slot from the top and put in 3 washers. I also replaced the breather washer that had come with the SE intake kit with a couple washers that were a little thinner. (The washers in the SE intake kit were slightly thicker than 1/8” - .137”. I replaced them with washer that were slightly thinner than 1/8”) I thought this would allow the carb to fit a little tighter in the gasket between carb and manifold, perhaps giving a better seal.

At the same time, I replaced the crank position sensor because I had heard of similar issues to mine being caused by a bad crank position sensor.

After all these changes, the bike appeared to be running absolutely flawlessly. Now the question was, did the mods to the carb solve the problem or was it a bad crank position sensor??? I ran the bike a few more days to make sure the intermittent problem is really gone. Then I put the original crank position sensor back in and ran it for a while. Sure enough, the intermittent problems returned when the bike was hot. I put the new sensor back in and it has run flawlessly all season. Conclusion – Crank Position Sensor was the culprit!

 

Thanks for the great write up....

By chance do you know if the bike had set any DTCs with it being the CPS as the culprit?

Tonight I'm going to put the carb back to stock (factory jets & air cleaner) now that it's been cleaned and see what, if any, differences it may make. It's hard to do the whole process of elimination when you don't have the additional parts to swap around.

Brian

 

I've seen the crank position sensor implicated in enough posts around here as the cause of many weird problems, that I bought a spare to keep in my toolbox.

 

Yup....

Just located a CPS and will grab it for this weekend's testing process of elimination. In the mean time I'm going to put the carb back to stock (jets & air cleaner) and see what difference it may have now that the carb is all cleaned and flushed out. Will also most likely drain the fuel tank and do a refill since the owner can't tell me how old the gas in the tank is.

Being an '06 the bike only has 6900 miles so it certainly isn't run on a very consistent basis.

Brian

 

My wife's bike did not throw any Diagnostic Trouble Codes. Her bike had these issues from day one when she purchased the bike new with stock carb, jetting and intake. At first we assumed it was just running lean and rejetted it to richen it a bit. Didn't change a thing with the way it ran. Then I added SE air cleaner. Again no change in the way it ran. Disassembled carb and cleaned it numerous times with no improvement. In our case, I am certain that it was the Crank Possition sensor because since 2008, it has run flawlessly after replacing the sensor.

 

Well, for $55.00 is worth having for testing and if nothing else just to have one around the shop.

Brian

 

Ok, so here's the rundown.....

Gas in the tank was very dark. It just looked old especially compared to the new gas. Drained the tank, removed the in-tank filter for inspection / cleaning, drained the carb and put 2 gallons of new gas in the bike. No change - problems still existed.

Back to the shop, removed the carb and put everything back to the way it was when the bike came in (180 main jet, 42 pilot jet, emulsion tube, needle, factory diaphragm spring, etc.) except I left the EZ-Just mixture screw in there because it certainly is convenient. Reinstalled the factory air cleaner even with the backing plate missing.

The bike ran great - no hesitation from a stop, no "coughing" through the air cleaner and I even tried to make it do it by riding the bike at 35 mph in 5th gear. So I have to wonder if the the K&N kit I was using just flows more air then expected and the #46 pilot isn't big enough to flow the required fuel in the low to mid-range scale.

At a loss as to what to do now. I know the customer wants his bike back but I can't say I'm looking forward to eating the cost of both the K&N kit plus the carb Stage 1 kit - not to mention all the time I have into this. Even as it stands I would still need to get a factory backing plate for the stock setup.

Any thoughts about getting a couple different larger sized pilot jets just to test my lack of fuel theory or am I more nuts than I'm letting myself believe??

Inputs - suggestions - ideas.....

Thanks to all,
Brian