I just replaced the football air cover with a 7" round that just covers the front face of my air filter, which is a K&N type. It exposes the entire fiter media and my question is, are there any negatives to running open. The obvious would be water in the intake, I don't ride in the rain but there is always that possibility. I have read where some will carry a plastic bag for wet conditions but then how does the engine breathe? I will put a bag over it on the rare occasion that I wash it but how do you run the engine with no air?

 

Check the K&N site; they make a special "breathable" sock for a lot of their filters. Here's a picture of the one for my H-D SE HB...same-same.

 

K&N makes a rain sock, which wraps around the filter. Blocks out water but lets air thru. I have a 3inch K&N filter which sticks out from under my S&S cover. Bike sat in the rain while I was at work. Even without the rain sock, no problem with water getting thru the air filter when I started the motor.

 

For me nnooo.really don't like the look of a big sucker on a bike,unless it is some sort of a custom build,the ham can yeah not the best looking but with just a stage one its good,plus you don't have to worry about it...my .02

 

What do you mean by "K&N Type ? If it is a filter that you OIL, like K&N, Ness B/S and others, then I wouldn't worry. I ran that way for many years and never bothered by rain. I've changed to the SE Heavy Breather (K&N Filter) and it comes with a rain sock. There is also a rain sock available for K&N HD-0800 filters and filters of that type.

 

The only ones that I have seen that require a sock are the fully open cone type. I have run S&S intakes for years on all of my Harley's and never had a problem.

 

I ran open for awhile more than anything else I didn't enjoy digging bugs out of the pleats of the filter.Now I have a round cover with the opening turned toward the rear.I think the bike runs a tini bit smoother with a cover of some kind and I have been told by a tuner that you get a few more HP with a less restrictive cover than you will running wide open. That said I run open K&Ns on my Suzuki and have never had a problem.

 

The HD SE Cone type heavy breather doesn't require a sock, it can be run in rain like any other oiled K&N. The sock just happens to come with the a/c and socks are available for other types of K&N filters.

 

I've ridden in the rain with my round SE filter with out any issue.

I say don't worry about it, but put a shower cap over it if it's going to be parked in a down pour.

 

I run mine open and always have. I'm not one to set out in the rain on purpose either but have gotten caught in it before and once was for quite a while and in a considerable amount of rain. I had no issues riding or after riding. I wouldn't ride with a plastic bag over it - that would be way worse than riding in the rain. I always throw a gallon size plastic bag over mine when I wash the bike just to be careful but other than that, I just keep it cleaned and well oiled.