help!!!! i have a 1997 fxd that ran like a champ. i wanted to make her a lil more peppy so i went to a local shop to get an s&s carb. the guy talked me out of it by saying that if i wasnt planing on doin my heads and pistons in the future it would be a waste. he said they could re-do my carb.....something about honeing the throat and installing a yosh kit or some crap like that......and it would be just as good as a s&s. i decided to go that route......big mistake. i got the bike back and that same night it started backfiring pretty bad....i called the guy when the opened up and told him and the first words out of his mouth was that it was not the carb....it must be a new problem and to bring it in and they would look at it. the next day i went to start it and it just kept on popping while it was cranking until the battery died. next day i tried again and got it started.....rode it out there backfiring all the way. the guy calls me one week later telling me the bike is running great and there was nothing wrong with it.......BULL$#!% !!!! i go to the shop take the bike 4 exits on the parkway and between 60-70 mph she stumbles and pops....WTF this guy keeps telling me that it is not the carb but i think he is full of
sh$#. can anyone help me on this.....am i crazy? i really think they screwed up and wont admit it . he told me that the pop was more of a neusance than a problem. i think with the amount of money i paid them i could have bought an s&s like i wanted to begin with and put it on my self. it has been a couple of weeks now and i still have no bike. he is basically telling me that the backfiring is here to stay. is it the carb? thanks for you help

 

Mike, your story would be more common if others had the ***** to admit it. It would go like: "My bike ran great, until I decided to modify it." The "bargain carb-mod" that you seem a little vague on didn't work out. The "local shop" may have been an unwise choice. Why screw around? Find a pro to sort this out.

 

my next move is to take it right to harley. if i get it back and it still is stumbleing at 60-70 mph or at any speed i will just take the bike back and bring it in. i thought i was doing the right thing cause the shop i brought it to has been in business for a long time so i thought i was doing right by my bike.....lesson learned. to be honest i really am not gonna be comfortable riding my bike when i get it back........so much for long trips.

 

Find a good indy and get an S&S or Mikuni carb and be done.

 

They got it jetted wrong, at that speed its still on the needle though. Pity you can't pullit apart and give us the numbers from the jets and needle.

 

There are all kinds of needles, passages etc. in a carb. that can get plugged up and cause the motor to run lean at certain speeds. If they plugged any of these passages during the honing process you can get the problems your relating and, unfortunately, it can be difficult to get these passages cleaned out. I had a motorcycle that had all four carbs ruined during the winter and they could not be cleaned. So much trash. Had to repace them all. Another condition that can cause backfiring at speed is a weak battery. Motorcycles generally have weak ignition systems and there might not be enough energy from the battery to get a good spark under stress.

 

the guy said that they completely tore the carb down and cleaned everything....i think he is full of crap. i would love to now what happend to "the customer is always right" all he keeps on doing is telling me its not the carb and it must be something else ......just trying to figure out how to get more money from me. i not a mechanic but im not a moron either.....the bike ran great b 4 i took it to him. i guess i will just have to get it back and go somewhere else and just take the hit.

 

Forget the Yost kit. It's crap, just like the CV carb.

Get a Mikunni, or a S&S

 

I had a 87 fxr went through the same thing they had it for 2 months (every body say there good bin in business years) got it back run likes s--t put on a Mikuni carb and it ran great

 

Nothing wrong with CV carbies at all......