Question #1: So I have a 2013 softail slimand I installed a K&N 63-1125P air cleaner. I am now have just a bit oftrouble using the rear brake pedal. I am wondering if there is a rear brakepedal extender that would extend the brake pad outward a bit? Question #2: Alsonow that I have this K&N AF installed do I have to tune the bike to matchthe air intake?

 

You should be fine without a tuner. I don't know what to tell you about the brake pedal.

 

The necessity to have your bike tuned discussion can be found in a zillion posts in The Forum. Have a look in the tech section. There are so many "expert" opinions on both sides of the question depending on the AC and what else has been changed (pipes?). I suggest you do whatever keeps your warranty valid and gives the best engine performance.

I have a Heavy Breather on my bike and my right knee does rest against the intake elbow at times but I can't say that it interferes with my foot getting to the brake. You'll get used to it.

 

Thanks to you both for the reply. I would guess I would say that interfering is the wrong word. It is difficult to turn my foot left to get to the brake while my knee is up against the elbow portion of the intake. I am sure I can get use to it but thought if there was an extender I would be lazy and get one.

As for the tuning, yea there are a ton of discussions but was not sure which one to follow as there are a ton of opinions. I am going to do pipes over the winter so I am sure I will need to do something at that time.

Boy, I went from Honda to Harley and I heard this was an expensive hobby

 

Browse through the Harley Catalog. Harley sells a "Large" brake peddle pad. Drill a hole in the brake peddle towards the outboard side then mount the Large pad in this new location. You can gain 2 inches of extension and still retain a pleasing cosmetic appearance.

 

Personally I would do a tune. With your new air cleaner allowing more air flow into your engine which is gonna make it run even leaner.

 

'13s are a little easier to work with as their ECM are more self adjustable to changes. Of course a tuner is always a good idea to get optimum performance but not absolutely necessary at this point in his mod process.

 

I generally avoid discussions on engine tuning after installing upgraded air cleaners since I don't consider myself an expert and those who do are always looking to trash other's thoughts and opinions. I tried researching the topic on here but the opinions are not only split on whether or not you should, but also on which method to use (tuner, dyno-tune, etc.).

In order to try to simplify things for myself I stepped away from the public discussions and started reading what the manufacturer of the bike and air cleaners (in my case, Harley Davidson) recommended and what to look for to see if making a air cleaner change was causing ill effects to my bike. What I read was that installing a high flow filter without tuning the motor would cause it to run hot. I then read in my service manual what to look for (besides actually taking temps, obviously) to see if my motor was running hot. One thing I learned was to check my spark plugs and see what color soot was on them. I learned that if my motor was running hot I would see white deposits. Knowing that I regularly check my plugs and that they always display the "normal temp colors" I felt I had enough info to start with. I installed my Screaming Eagle air cleaner and ran the bike for about three weeks without any tuning of any kind. Everything "felt" normal. The engine didn't "feel" any hotter and the bike performed as expected. After those few weeks I checked my plugs and sure enough, the deposits on them were almost white. Based on the research I did, this meant my motor was running on the hotter side. I cleaned the plugs, re-installed them and re-installed my stock filter. Ever since I reversed the change my plugs always look "normal". So to me, the answer on whether or not to tune the motor after an air cleaner upgrade was "yes". I felt much better about it knowing that it was based on tests I did versus a bunch of second hand information.

The second part to figure out was which method to use. Again, the opinions here are even more varied. So for the most part, I went with what I felt best fit my needs and was in my price range. In my case, a simple tuner from Vance and Hines was the solution. It was affordable, it did what I needed it to do and it works without any issues. There are a lot of opinions out there in regards to this tuner but ultimately none of them matter if its working for me.

I guess my advice is for you to do a bit of research. There is a lot of objective information out there that gives a lot of facts and figures instead of opinions. Decide what your needs are and what works for you and go from there.

 

For the re-tune, it all depends on what you have done already and are planning on doing. If the bike is 100% stock with no other mods (besides the intake) then you do not need to re-tune. The intake was designed to increase horsepower by removing restriction on the air box, but keep the airflow within the range the computer can adjust for.

However, if you have any mods of any kind, including just slip-ons, chances are you will be running too lean and need to have the bike Dyno'ed and retuned. If you plan on doing any other mods, wait to re-tune until you have them performed.