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I've been looking at covered air cleaner covers and see that they are offered in both 7 and 8 inch. I know the factory one is 8" but like the smaller looking 7" covers. After doing some research it seams that the flat (exposed filter) covers are 5.5" for a stage 1 filter and 7" for a stage 2. It doesn't look like the stage two is tapered outwards so I'm assuming both filters are about 7" at the base (engine side). With that being said, will a 7" cover be restrictive on either filter? I've seen the 7" ones being used but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a good idea. What's your thoughts?
-Chris
Last edited by Ironhead.Chris; Aug 25, 2014 at 11:26 AM.
You may want to do a quick measurement, the 8" cover may end up pretty close to the tank. All the exposed round air cleaners move the center bolt of the cover up a little which means the cover gets closer to the tank. On my Fat Bob, I had issues with the stock tear drop cover mounted to my Fuel Moto AC being too close for comfort and its about 8" across.
If your questions about whether one will be more restrictive than the other is referring to air flow, the answer is no. All the high flow air cleaners flow more than enough air to handle any other performance modifications you make to your engine.
Thanks for the info guys. My question is more about air flow. If the base (engine side) of air filter is 7" in diameter and I cover it with an air cleaner cover that's also 7" how much air is gonna be able to get through that opening and into the filter its self? I'm wondering if these 7" air cleaner covers are for carburetor setups instead of FI.
I think the point people are trying to make is that unless your engine is heavily modified it won't matter. Either cleaner is going to supply all the air your engine can breathe so go with the one you like the look of.
The difference between Carb and FI will just be fitment.
I've just put the K&N on my 88. They boast an extra 10 ponies on a 96 from stock but I'm not convinced. Looks good though imho
Thanks for the info guys. My question is more about air flow. If the base (engine side) of air filter is 7" in diameter and I cover it with an air cleaner cover that's also 7" how much air is gonna be able to get through that opening and into the filter its self? I'm wondering if these 7" air cleaner covers are for carburetor setups instead of FI.
-Chris
Trust your instincts on this.
A 7" cover tight against a 7" base plate is restrictive...
(I drilled 1" holes in the bottom of the round part on mine.
I'd like to hear from people who have tried this as well. As I said the 8" cover on a Dyna or at least on my Fat Bob will be too close to the tank. My factory tear drop was tapping the tank, once I installed the round Fuel Moto AC. I went with the open look.
The 7" cover should be far enough away from the tank but might be too tight to the backing plate. I measured mine and it is about 5 1/4" across at the base of the filter. So that leaves about 7/16" all the way around. Is that enough? It seems like a lot more area than the stock filter air hole.
The other thing is depth. My air filter looks taller than the 7" cover is deep. So that should even leave more room for air.
I have the open look for now but the rain sock is a PITA and the filter only looks nice when the red oil is fresh, a shiny chrome cover might be a nice change.
I put a 7 inch round air cleaner cover on my 2009 Night Train that has a Screamin' Eagle stage 1 air filter set up on it. Even going from an open filter set up I can't tell any difference in the performance of my bike. The air cover I have is a little shorter than the filter so I enough room to run my finger all the way around between the filter and the inside of the cover. I ran this set up all season last year and it worked fine.
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7" vs 8" Air Cleaner Cover
