Jeez, I love this forum! Theeffort expended by those who respondedwas truly astounding! Thanks to everyone!!! BTW, I wished I had asked how to open the reserve on the 3.3 tank before I needed it. I foolishly assumed it would be like, well, any other bike I'd ridden, but they were all UJMs. Who'd'a thunk on a Harley you have to turn the lever, not 90 degrees forward, but 180 degreesto the inverse vertical. The rush-hourSo. Cal. freeway is nerve-racking enough without running out of gas in the car pool lane and having to slooooowlly work your way to the right shoulder as the bike comes to a complete stop in the #3 lane on a four-lane stretch. Good thing I just tried turning the lever every which way and found the secret!! Thanks again to all!!!
YIKES!!! need to practiced that little flip of the petcock. It's the only time you can "play with your petcock in public" and not get arrested.
On the EFI bikes the dealer can reprogram your idle speed, but on the Sportster EVO engines you don't want to lower the 'hot idle speed' below 975 or so RPM. If so you could have a problem with sufficient oil pressure and circulation, especially to the top end of the engine.
You WON'T be able to get an EVO to sound like the old Panheads (or even the Shovels) no matter how low you adjust the idle, and all you are doing is risking possible engine damage.
Also, with the carb'd engines, I don't believe in the "tuning by ear" that many do, especially if you want to optimize performance. Each bike responds differently to carb jetting and adjustment, and what works for one might not be ideal for another. The only way you can verify correct A/F mixture on your specific bike is to either have it dyno tuned, or at the least, hook up some gauges to get an accurate fuel mixture reading.
That being said, if your carb is adjusted correctly it's not going to hurt a thing by adjusting the idle (either slightly higher or lower). That's why there is a 'idle adjustment screw' on the carb.
We've done a lot of experimenting with the Sportster EVO engines, and the best performance seems to be with the 'hot idle speed' set between 975 and 1025 RPM.
On my 2005 1200C (once the carb was optimized for the correct A/F mixture throughout the operating range), the bike liked a hot idle speed of right at 975 RPM. Once we installed higher lift and performance Screamin' Eagle "E" cams the bike was happy at 1,025 RPM.
Here is a small audio/video of my Sportster at idle (1,025 RPM) with it running the SE "E" cams. The little internal mic on the Sony digital camera doesn't reflect the full tone, but it gives you an idea of how the bike sounds. It also gives you a better idea of how the bike actually looks with the color matched covers, 44* 8 inch over 41mm WD front end, etc....
Anyway, on a EFI bike you need the dealer to program in a new idle speed. This can be done yourself if you have installed a Race Tuner (SERT), but if you install a Race Tuner you might as well get the bike dyno tuned for best performance, and have the idle speed set where you want it at the same time
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Anyway, here is that little audio/video I was talking about.
02-14-2008, 08:16 PM
RE: Idle Adjustment
