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Sportster CV Carb Rejetting

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Old 12-12-2005, 07:16 PM
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Default Sportster CV Carb Rejetting

Differs slightly from the big twin method..

The author strongly encourages you to stay out of the top of the carb. The slide diaphragm can be extremely difficult to reinstall without splitting or pinching the rubber. But the main reason is that there is seldom a reason to go into it, and there are several reasons not to.
The slide vent hole is the size it is for a reason. Like a shock absorber, it damps the movement of the slide. If it is drilled to 1/8" as is commonly done, the slide will open too fast when the throttle is whacked open suddenly and it will overshoot where it should be, then as a result, fall back down, but do it too fast, overshooting where it should be again. This results in oscillation, and a huge variance in mixture. The diaphragm spring establishes the constant velocity. Changing to a lighter spring, or worse yet, cutting coils off the spring, lowers the constant velocity, and this is the velocity that creates the vacuum that sucks fuel up from the fuel bowl. Even if you increase the jet sizes to compensate, the mixing becomes erratic. You can see evidence of a drilled slide or lighter spring as a dip in the torque curve just after the throttle is opened.

Blindly shimming the needle up or replacing it is not recommended. Late model needles are richer, sometimes more so than aftermarket. The only time this is required is when dyno tuning. In the process of dynoing, starting with a small main jet and doing runs with progressively larger main jets, if going up one main jet size causes high rpm horsepower to fall off (i.e. if you've just gone past the optimum main jet size) but low rpm power improved, go back to the previous main jet size, and shim the needle up .030" or so with a small washers. This is not common, and seldom required.

And finally, although it may result in less than optimum idle mixture, you CAN temporarily skip the part about drilling the plug off the idle mixture and setting the idle, if you are concerned about warranty issues. By increasing the size of the slow jet, you are automatically making the idle mixture richer, and the factory setting is often pretty close. Idle performance is usually adequate. The sign that it isn't is an occasional stumble when the throttle is applied at idle. The author encourages you to "do it right" and perform this step if possible.


Rejetting

After removing the old air cleaner per the instructions, but before installing the new high-performance unit:
Turn the fuel valve off.

Find the fuel bowl drain hose end (front of the engine behind the oil filter and put it in something (non-glass) to catch the gasoline.

Looking at the backside of the carb between the cylinders from the left side of the bike, find the fuel bowl drain screw on the bowl and using a long skinny screwdriver open it counterclockwise about 3 turns which will let the fuel bowl drain, then close it back.

Using an 11/16" open end wrench, loosen the nut on the backside of the choke **** bracket and slide the choke ****/cable assembly out of the slot in the bracket. Don't rotate the plastic nut on the front... it adjusts the tension on the choke ("enrichener") cable.

You'll have to use an awl, skinny screwdriver, and perhaps needlenose pliers to remove the one-time-use hose clamp on the gas hose at the tank, destroying the clamp in the process, so have a replacement worm-drive hose clamp from the hardware store for later reassembly. Slide the hose off the tube on the fuel valve. You may have to grab the hose with pliers and rotate it back and forth to break it loose, but don't let the plier's teeth cut into the hose. Do not remove the vacuum hose (behind the fuel hose) from the fuel valve.

Back on the right side of the bike, find the vacuum hose that plugs into the top of the carb behind the black plastic cap and pull up on it until it slips off the tube coming out of the carb. Note here now the routing of the fuel hose going to the tank an
 
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