So my intermittent electrical issue never was and what was keeping my bike from starting was a non functioning ACR valve which I was just informed sucked the plunger out of the valve into the front cylinder where a borescope confirmed 2 things...my piston has a number of dings in the top and the plunger itself is mia...we're hoping it got sucked out the exhaust valve real quick and the heads being pulled for inspection but here's the big decision I'll be facing...

The custom shop builder said we shouldn't just throw another ACR in there and cross our fingers and is insisting the piston and rings be replaced and I absolutely agree as he then went on to say...and if you're going to replace the front piston & rings?...ya might as well freshen them both up together and again?...I agree but then he went on to point out <insert Clint Eastwood here> for a few dollars more?...and since your bike is rocking a $1,700 Rinehart full exhaust?...and you're doing both pistons anyway?...you might wanna go ahead and jump up in bore size and just do a complete big bore kit.

Now when he suggested that?..I was hesitant but mentioned...well since the bike has a RS468 cam already (unless I was lied to by the dealer which wouldn't be anything new)...yeah...big bore kinda does make sense since we're only talking a couple jugs and we're in the dirt for new pistons anyway but then?...he said...oh..."well we'd probably need to bump the cam too for the big bore kit"...which I sure is a rabbit hole that will necessitate dyno tuning and at this point?...I'm wondering if I wanna throw my savings at it and go whole hog or just apply the KISS acronym and just R&R OEM pistons and rings.

I'm waiting for a call back now (for several hours) as he's digging into it to see how much head damage exists and giving me pricing options for either going big bore or sticking with what I got.

any thoughts/suggestions/advice? cause either way?...this is gonna hurt.

 

Are you planning on keeping it say at least 3/4 years? That will make it hurt less, you will have a ten year old bike in 2030. Not that you wouldn’t have fun with it now, but if I was tending to lean towards trading it, probably just fix it to ride it.

 

Just remember in that rabbit hole can lurk other issues......

When I did my 103" to 110" Twinkie with a Bob Woods 777 cam, I ended up having to put the AIM clutch weights in to keep the plates together and eliminate slippage.

Plus the cost of the license and time on the Dyno. (do not go with a canned tune, IMHO)

I'm sure you will like the new sound the new motor will make.

Let us know how it all turns out.....

 

Dang dude sorry to hear about your bad luck.

If it were me I'd be tempted to go with the 122 C.I. jugs and pistons. Harley sells those in a kit with their 447 cam, so I'd think your cam would work fine with them, but I'm not a smart guy.

I'd also be tempted to get a custom tune from Fuel Moto ($99 if you already have a tuner, free if you buy the tuner from them). I just had a good experience with them. I got a tune from them, ran some data logs and emailed them to their tech support, and got an even better tune back.

I have been talking myself out of those 122 jugs for ages now. I realize I could easily cause problems I don't already have, but if I had to buy jugs and pistons anyhow, I'd probably do it and hit up Fuel Moto.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.