Issue #2...
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Tourer
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 326
Likes: 6
From: Idaho
Issue #2...
I have a '97 Road King that has supposedly been stroked out to a 93 ci engine. It has an aftermarket cam, Mikuni carb, Hooker pipes, Fireball Hi-4E Ignition, an Ultima 6 Speed transmission, an un-identified air cleaner and I don't know what else on it. I'm having a couple of issues with it.
Sixth gear has NOTHING to it. It won't even pull a slight grade without slowing down. It probably took me 1/2 mile to get from 70 mph-80ish mph on flat grade in sixth on the way home tonight. Is this normal? I'm also hitting neutral between 5th and 6th quite a bit. Today, I went to pass someone and hit neutral...thought I was going to blow the darn motor. Last but not least, I'm having a little bit of difficulty getting it into the real neutral...it's shifting real hard and skipping over it.
While we are discussing the 6 speed trannys, I understand you can buy a lower toothed engine drive gear to help compensate for the lack of power in 5th and 6th. With that being said, will this make 1st and 2nd geared even lower??? The reason I ask is b'c they are already geared pretty low. I would like to do something for my top end/cruising power.
Thanks again!
Sixth gear has NOTHING to it. It won't even pull a slight grade without slowing down. It probably took me 1/2 mile to get from 70 mph-80ish mph on flat grade in sixth on the way home tonight. Is this normal? I'm also hitting neutral between 5th and 6th quite a bit. Today, I went to pass someone and hit neutral...thought I was going to blow the darn motor. Last but not least, I'm having a little bit of difficulty getting it into the real neutral...it's shifting real hard and skipping over it.
While we are discussing the 6 speed trannys, I understand you can buy a lower toothed engine drive gear to help compensate for the lack of power in 5th and 6th. With that being said, will this make 1st and 2nd geared even lower??? The reason I ask is b'c they are already geared pretty low. I would like to do something for my top end/cruising power.
Thanks again!
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 12,878
Likes: 5,449
From: la la land jerzey
6 speeds dont work for evo gearing - you need a 100 plus HP motor at a 100 MPH to use it
we tried to make them work and YES we put a 22 tooth gear on the front sprocket and the first 2 gears will pull stumps out of the ground < gearing become the issue
harley used 4 different gearing platforms over the years the last 2 - 3.15 and the 2 .96 are what is in a later stock bike, we have geared them to 2.54 with a chain but it needs a powerfull motor to pull the bike at low engine speed ( 75 MPH ) with the air drag at that speed we even went to camshafts with low duration for high static compression and it still was a bust --
but i was told by this 400 pound guy who collect rocks on his Evo dresser his 6 speed works perfectly fine in summer in the desert sand
we tried to make them work and YES we put a 22 tooth gear on the front sprocket and the first 2 gears will pull stumps out of the ground < gearing become the issue
harley used 4 different gearing platforms over the years the last 2 - 3.15 and the 2 .96 are what is in a later stock bike, we have geared them to 2.54 with a chain but it needs a powerfull motor to pull the bike at low engine speed ( 75 MPH ) with the air drag at that speed we even went to camshafts with low duration for high static compression and it still was a bust --
but i was told by this 400 pound guy who collect rocks on his Evo dresser his 6 speed works perfectly fine in summer in the desert sand
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,898
From: Bedford UK
Your bike is over-geared, in other words sixth is too high. I have 101HP/107TQ and the stock 5-speed gearing, which is fine!
What you are discovering is that the 6-speed stuff has nothing to do with improving things for the rider, but everything to do with helping our poor bikes meet ever tighter EPA regulations. By using super high gearing, engine speed is reduced to lower noise levels, at the road speeds they are measured at.
Your US spec bike when new didn't have to meet the same low noise levels that my International spec bike did. I originally had a 61T rear pulley and 2.94:1 top gear, but changed to stock 1990 3.37:1.
I had a TC88 for a while and changed the compensator from 25T to 21T, which really woke that bike up! Harley made an SE kit with new chain, so a change of that sort may do the trick. Yes, all the 1-5 gears will be lower as well.
What you are discovering is that the 6-speed stuff has nothing to do with improving things for the rider, but everything to do with helping our poor bikes meet ever tighter EPA regulations. By using super high gearing, engine speed is reduced to lower noise levels, at the road speeds they are measured at.
Your US spec bike when new didn't have to meet the same low noise levels that my International spec bike did. I originally had a 61T rear pulley and 2.94:1 top gear, but changed to stock 1990 3.37:1.
I had a TC88 for a while and changed the compensator from 25T to 21T, which really woke that bike up! Harley made an SE kit with new chain, so a change of that sort may do the trick. Yes, all the 1-5 gears will be lower as well.
Last edited by grbrown; Apr 8, 2014 at 07:44 AM. Reason: Spelling!
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