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Completed the Revo ARCs in the rear and getting ready for a day on the road - gorgeous weekend here in north Jersey.
My first impressions on the engine mods as they relate to my goals (quieter valve-train, bit more "soul", cooler-running engine and some more get-up and go)...
Valve-train seems a bit quieter. I say "seems" because the engine is way louder. The Torquer 450s are big and there's nothing in these mufflers that is doing anything to "muffle" the exhaust tone. That said, the valve train seems to have more of a mechanical hum now rather than the sewing-machine ckickety-clack noise pre-mod.
Absolute homerun in the "soul" department. The bike sounds phenomenal. There's a great gallop in the idle and the snap of the throttle is real nice. Happy camper here!
Engine appears to be running cooler. Tough to tell in these Fall temps, but at the end of my ride yesterday in the mid-60s with my lower fairing vents closed my oil temp was 203 degrees - previous lows for me were consistently in the 220s. I've got a few weeks in FL later in the month that should provide a better feel for the engine temps.
Get-up-and-go is still out for debate. My riding thus far had been around town and back-country, lower gears and lower RPMs. That said, the engine currently feels mildly weaker below 2,500 RPMs, and stronger at and beyond 3,000RPMs. Definitely not "weak" below 2,500 - just a bit weaker than the stock cam / SE pipe / Street Cannon config. This is in-line with what I've been told and is not unexpected.
The bike is currently running a Fuel Moto PW map for this config. I plan to play with the auto-tune function in the coming weeks to see what that brings. I've see a ton of discussion re: M8 "back-pressure" on-line and the impact to torque right off the line. Two shop / tuner guys also suggested this might be my experience with my exhaust swap. V&H Torquer 450s have louvered baffles and I've read these provide a bit more back-pressure / designed for the M8 (?).
The only place this was noticeable was right off the line, but a minor adjustment to my approach to clutch and throttle made it a no-biggie. I am just beginning to look at inserts and/or other options to improve this area a bit if necessary.
More to come - gotta get those rear-shocks moving!
Last edited by Old Sport; Nov 7, 2020 at 07:34 AM.
Definition of absorb?
Does it mean you won't feel them? No.
Look, most of us have roughly 3 inches of total travel.
1/3 of that is sag. to ask 2 inches of travel to absorb one inch or more road issues simply isn't going to happen.
What does happen when the suspension is setup properly is the bike will soften or deaden the bumps.
Like going from a square edged bump you feel the sharp corners vs. a muffled road imperfection.
You feel it, just much less.
I notice the better suspension the harder I push the bike in turns, low speed and especially higher speeds. It stays planted and doesn't "wallow" is the best word I can use.
You won't feel the road imperfections as much, the tires will stay in contact with the ground much better, but there is no such thing as a cloud of air ride.
At least not on the roads I travel... If the roads others travel on are so smooth, I'd question the need for better suspension or the metric being used to measure quality and ride performance.
Ok thanks. Thats about the best description I have seen yet. The wallow comment hit home. The road home where I ride has one downhill right turn. Hit it at 50 or less and no prob but over 60 and coming out of the turn feels like a passenger is back there shifting their weight around. Not real assuring. I am guessing thats the poor rebound.
Definition of absorb?
Does it mean you won't feel them? No.
Look, most of us have roughly 3 inches of total travel.
1/3 of that is sag. to ask 2 inches of travel to absorb one inch or more road issues simply isn't going to happen.
What does happen when the suspension is setup properly is the bike will soften or deaden the bumps.
Like going from a square edged bump you feel the sharp corners vs. a muffled road imperfection.
You feel it, just much less.
I notice the better suspension the harder I push the bike in turns, low speed and especially higher speeds. It stays planted and doesn't "wallow" is the best word I can use.
You won't feel the road imperfections as much, the tires will stay in contact with the ground much better, but there is no such thing as a cloud of air ride.
At least not on the roads I travel... If the roads others travel on are so smooth, I'd question the need for better suspension or the metric being used to measure quality and ride performance.
Yes, exactly this. ^^^
I was out yesterday for most of the day. It was almost an hour in before I even thought about the suspension. Meaning, I hadn't noticed anything to distract from my ride: no jolt, bump, wobble or weave to grab my attention. Bike is solid - loving the ride.
Boy not me. The last 5 miles to my house is a curvy country road, that is filled with about 1" high pressure ridges, and I feel every one of them. I dread that part of the ride every day.
Boy not me. The last 5 miles to my house is a curvy country road, that is filled with about 1" high pressure ridges, and I feel every one of them. I dread that part of the ride every day.
Yep, I call 'em freeze joints...and they suck.
I can deaden them a little, still gonna feel them.
Good suspension should allow you to not feel like you're getting tossed out of you seat.
Couple main roads around here are littered with them for miles...sucks.
Couple hundred miles in the Florida sunshine and I can say definitively the suspension swap has made this a brand new ride. The front-end is especially stable and noticeably improved.
I am reminded of just how good it is whether running through some twisties or simply coming to a stop. Happy rider right here!
So I'd been thinking-through this mod and I've been happy with a lot of it... For example, while riding with my wife she says to me: "Why does it sound like that now when we stop? It sounds like it's galloping!"
Me, all smiles, "That's what I paid for!"
But on the other-hand, I've been mildly concerned about the increase in volume and the loss of power below 3K both of which will negatively impact our long-road riding enjoyment. @DK Custom to the rescue!
I looked long and hard at a number of options and settled on the Thunder Torque Inserts. I bought all three sizes and decided to go with the 258s, bolting them in about ž" back from where the end-cap meets the baffle. Pics below:
Mounted about ž" back from where the baffle meets the end-cap. Stacked the bolt with a locking-nut (McMaster Carr!).
Torquer 450 baffle-core is about 2˝" but expands to 3" where it meets the end-cap the TTI 258 fits nicely in this space.
View into the pipes.
Based on a quick 50+ miles this afternoon this seems to be the icing on the cake! The bike still sounds great but has quieted down a bit. More importantly, the bike once again has great usable power from 2,000 RPMs. I'll run it this way for a bit and begin playing with the PowerVision auto-tuning to see what more can be gained. I'll hit the dyno in the Spring and share additional details then.
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Oh yeah!
Torque Update!
