For good reasons that I will describe in a separate thread IF the answers to this first set of qualifying questions are favorable, I want to consider changing the final drive ratio on my 2014 HD Breakout (103 inch engine, 6-speed trans).

So, could someone(s) with the technical knowledge answer the following questions:

- What is the diameter (or tooth count) of the FRONT drive belt pulley ("sprocket") on my 2014 Breakout with 103 engine / 6 speed transmission?

- How much would an HD dealer likely charge for a new, 10% smaller pulley (sprocket), parts and labor (need not be exact )?

- is there in the HD parts listing a pulley that is in fact "about" 10% smaller in diameter (tooth count) and that fits the transmission output shaft on my transmission?

- IF I had this change made, would my speedometer then become 10% incorrect? i.e. is the speedometer fed a computer-calculated speed signal that will not "see" the change in finals rive ratio? If so, can this be corrected by an HD technician using an electronic tuner connection to the computer?

Jim G

 

You can change the front drive pulley on the tranny from the stock 32 to a 30 tooth. You belt will then be near the back of the adjustment area. 30 tooth pulley of a Harley trike will fit or you can get aftermarket.
Retail on a pulley probably $150. Gaskets to do the job $60. Dealer labor probably 3 hours.

 

Thank-you! So, based on what you said, I am understanding that the stock is a 32 tooth, and that a 30 tooth is available, which is only a 32/30 = 6.7% change (6.7% increase in engine rpm at any given road speed/ gear combination).

But:

1. There is no smaller yet pulley, ideally a 29 tooth? (which would give 10% ratio change), even in the aftermarket? (like e.g. Andrews pulleys)

2. What about the speedometer error introduced by this? Can an HD technician correct that via electronic tuner access to the bike's computer?

The reason by the way for wanting to do this is that the dealership is installing a Stage 4 kit that moves the power band up quite a bit. Rev limit changes from 5500 to 6200 (13%) and torque peak changes from 3000 rpm to 4000 rpm (33% !!). So, the engine "should" be operated at higher rpm in general after the install. Otherwise, it will feel sluggish at low and moderate rpm (2000 to 3000 rpm).

Another way of looking at it, when you move the power band up on an engine and increase the rev limit rpm, if you do NOT change the gearing, it is in effect exactly the same as changing the gearing the OTHER way - i.e. making the gearing "taller" where at any given road speed in the same gear as "before" the install, the engine is now "too low" in its power band to feel comfortable.

Yes, you can simply stay in a lower gear where you would have before shifted up, but that does not help you in 1st gear where you cannot "shift down", and it also means that at moderate highway speeds, like 60 mph, you can't be in 6th anymore.

I elected 10% simply because the stock engine rpm at 60 mph in 6th is 2170, and raising it 10% gets it to just under 2400 rpm, which is still moderate for an engine that makes peak torque at 4000 rpm and peak power at 6000 rpm. Going to a higher rpm for steady state 60 mph cruising makes me feel a bit uncomfortable.

Jim G

 

i have an andrews 30T pulley that i put on years ago and made a huge difference. bike runs way better than stock. to me the stock gearing is horrible

at 60 mph i am in 4th gear just thinking of going into 5th even with the lowered gearing, i really cant think of any reason to run on the highway at 2170, the way my bike is camed it would barely be running and doing some serious lugging. If i am criusing easy i shift into 6th between 70 and 75, if i am riding hard the bike runs great into triple digits in 5th



i am still using my stock belt and there difinatly ways to correct the speedo but i don't know the best answer for that. mine is an 06 and has a power commander 3

 

This is what you need for the speedo:

http://bakerdrivetrain.com/cruise-dr...libration-unit

I don't know of anybody making a 29 tooth.

 

Thanks, Mark! How much does that calibration unit cost?

Jim G

 

$135 minus your 10% HDforums discount.

 

Jim,

The opportunities for changing gearing on recent models are very limited. On earlier bikes it was actually easier to change the primary, by swapping the compensator (there were several sizes available), but with the TC96 and later the MoCo changed the design and nipped that in the bud. If you want greater flexibility a chain conversion will help.

 

I hear you about the chain, but, being spoiled by both belt drive and shaft drive, I never want to use chain lube again!

Chains require maintenance every few hundred miles, are dirty (fling the lube off), susceptible to lube-stripping in rain, noisier, and when they break, they do way more damage to bike and rider than a belt does! I recall being hunched over a chain, trying to squirt PJ-1 lubricant onto the chain (and only the chain), in 40 degree weather, in rain, in a 30 mph wind, with 300 more miles to go that day . . . nope, no more!

Jim G

 

Chains are just SO last century, agreed! Unfortunately H-D hasn't been as kind to recent owners as in the past. I changed a 25T compensator for a 21T on my TC88 Dyna, which really woke it up, but the newer compensator isn't available in alternative sizes AFAIK.