Got caught in the rain the other day on the way back from a day trip to Columbus. A light to moderate rain for about 20 miles or so. Enough to get me wondering.....has anyone with a HD Heavy Breather intake been caught in a real downpour out on the highway ? One that lasted for too damn long ? Just wondering if the Rain Sock does an adequate job so that you can keep on riding even in a frog-strangler. I just leave the sock on all the time, and (so far) haven't really been in a situation to test its' real effectiveness.
as always, Thanks & Respect,
ed

 

I keep the sock in my fork bag. Two weeks ago i got caught in the rain for about half hour. I had pulled over and threw it on. Didnt have any problems with the filter being wet when I got her back home. Looks like it works ok

 

I leave the rain sock on all the time. Replace it every 4 years or so. Been through some really heavy downpours, it works very well. If I stop it's only because I can't see anymore, and not because of water getting in.

 

I got caught is a huge downpour and the air filter got soaked. Going uphill, fully loaded with two people on the back got the bike to cough and sputter a little bit, but no problems. I got to steam clean the heads a little bit.

 

I have an open element air cleaner too, just not the heavy breather. Was on our way from Nashville to Memphis the other day and of the 202 miles it rained probably 120 of it. Hard torriental rain. I had forgotten my rain sock and we couldn't just stop and wait the rain out, so we continued on. Bike coughed, spit and sputtered a bit but after about 20 miles of no rain it cleared itself up and ran fine.

 

I rod just over 100 miles in poring rain on the way myrtle beach ralley last year. The rain sock kept my filter 100% dry

 

I've never had a problem with the heavy breather, but I did stall out with a Kyurakin Hyper-Charger once in a down pour. Took about two miles to get the rear cylinder firing again.

 

Thanks everyone for the replies. Looks like we'll be OK on the road when the monsoons set in. Appreciate all of your insights.
Respect,
ed

 

I thought that's what the sock was for. Its supposed to be water resistant, right? And it looks cool! But I've seen a lot of bikes without them and wondered why. Maybe they never get caught out in the rain. I know I'd leave it on..

 

Mine stays in my saddle bag. Been caught in some down pours and never bothered to pull over and put it on. Haven't had a problem yet. If I'm headed out and I know it's going to rain I'll slip it on. Most of the time I don't even think about it.