Ultra limited 103 lacking performance
Road Warrior
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,328
Likes: 154
From: Lake City, Florida
Iclick, you sound very knowledgable. So, please enlighten me. How does a crack shaft that has 360 degrees of revolution have pistons that fire at 405/315 degrees? The last time I rebuilt the bottom end of a harley was in 1975 and it was a 1948 Panhead, I do admit that their have been alot of changes over the years, intennal balancers, fuel injection, electronic ignition but I think that on harley's both connecting rods are still bolted to the crank shaft together, one connecting rod was forked around the other, hence they go up and down at the same time, causing that unique harley sound and vibration. Thank you.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 7,439
Likes: 884
From: 'Noke, VA
Depending on what you're looking for, the stock 103" package is pretty good. I had no issues riding with either my wife or daughter through the mountains. I've done a Stage 1 a little differently than the rest of the herd. I went with a D&D Fatcat exhaust (concentric baffle), a S/E Ventilator intake, and a TTS Mastertune. I'm still in the process of tuning, but it's made a decent seat of the pants difference in power and my mileage has actually increased a bit. I never felt that there was an issue with heat with the stock exhaust, and I don't notice a drastic change in heat with the new pipe.
I'm looking forward to completing the tuning and seeing where my dyno ends up.
I'm looking forward to completing the tuning and seeing where my dyno ends up.
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 11,615
Likes: 50
From: Baton Rouge, LA
Iclick, you sound very knowledgable. So, please enlighten me. How does a crack shaft that has 360 degrees of revolution have pistons that fire at 405/315 degrees? The last time I rebuilt the bottom end of a harley was in 1975 and it was a 1948 Panhead, I do admit that their have been alot of changes over the years, intennal balancers, fuel injection, electronic ignition but I think that on harley's both connecting rods are still bolted to the crank shaft together, one connecting rod was forked around the other, hence they go up and down at the same time, causing that unique harley sound and vibration. Thank you.
If I've misstated anything someone please correct me, as this is taxing the limits of my schooling in math and geometry, weak as it is.
Last edited by iclick; Apr 12, 2010 at 04:52 PM.
Road Captain
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 540
Likes: 3
From: Nooga, TN
I kind of agree with some of the previous posts. I am not sure why some people buy a Harley. Been riding them since 1974 and they have always been unique. We use to laugh at the guys that would come in the shop and ask "How fast does a Harley go?" we would just laugh and send them down the the Honda or KW shop. They are not designed to be a crotch rocket and they never will be, hell they ain't even american made anymore, just assembled here.
Now throw in the EPA with the MOCO and you get a bike that still is not designed to race and has restrictions on the intake and exhaust. SO changing the intake and exhaust along with cams is not the fault of the MOCO, but the ****i!g government.
My 2010 UC has all the power I need for 2up and cruising anywhere. Just rode it up the Cherohala yesterday and I had no problems going as fast as I wanted. So to all you x sport bike riders out there, continue to support the aftermarket parts suppliers cause it also helps the rest of us out. But much of what you "blame" on the MOCO is #1 required by the government and #2 is not what a HD has ever been designed to do.
You can turn a corvette into a lamborgini(sp), but it ain't designed for that and it will cost a lot of money. So maybe y'all should just relax and try to enjoy your HD a little more. I was doing 80 with the tunes sounding good and the wife on the back yesterday and life is good!
Now throw in the EPA with the MOCO and you get a bike that still is not designed to race and has restrictions on the intake and exhaust. SO changing the intake and exhaust along with cams is not the fault of the MOCO, but the ****i!g government.
My 2010 UC has all the power I need for 2up and cruising anywhere. Just rode it up the Cherohala yesterday and I had no problems going as fast as I wanted. So to all you x sport bike riders out there, continue to support the aftermarket parts suppliers cause it also helps the rest of us out. But much of what you "blame" on the MOCO is #1 required by the government and #2 is not what a HD has ever been designed to do.
You can turn a corvette into a lamborgini(sp), but it ain't designed for that and it will cost a lot of money. So maybe y'all should just relax and try to enjoy your HD a little more. I was doing 80 with the tunes sounding good and the wife on the back yesterday and life is good!
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 2,476
Likes: 193
From: Las Vegas, NV
I am not complaining about Harley's not being a speed bike. If I wanted speed I would have kept my Yamaha because it will and has busted a lot of Harley's a$$ including your Harley sport bikes. I was just wanting to know if my bike may have a problem causing it not to run to its potential. One guy stated earlier he could cruise uphill in 6th gear, mine will not do that. I have to go to 5th gear. Actually 6th gear in my bike is pretty much useless. My buddies 2010 Ultra with the 96 will cruise up pretty steep grade with no problem therefore making me wonder if something is wrong with my bike. By the way I also ride the open road (you should use spellcheck).
Road Captain
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 695
Likes: 4
It's because you have a stock 103" kit. The 103" kits you can buy over the counter have better cams and more compression. Atleast that's what it has been in the past. I would consider installing the whole package of exhaust, stage1 and cams. Then have it dyno tuned by a GOOD tuner. Ask around at different shops in your area. You'll learn who is who and who not to go to.
Last edited by GMbagger; Apr 12, 2010 at 03:41 PM.
Road Warrior
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,328
Likes: 154
From: Lake City, Florida
Iclick, thank you. In the old days (Panheads / Knuckleheads) with the old points ignition system they fired on the power and exhaust stokes together everytime. As the pistons came up, one cyclinder would be on the compression stroke and the other cylinder would be on the exhaust stroke, they both fired together. 360 degree of crank shaft rotation later they would fire again but this time the cylinder that was on the compression stroke would be on the exhaust stroke and they would fire together again. That caused the unique Harley sound and vibration. With push rods and two valve per cylinder, an antequated 1920 design. Sounded good, but is very inefficient. So, like I originally posted, if you want speed, a Harley is the wrong bike for you. I'd suggest that you look at the Boss Hoss motorcycles with the 445HP LS3 Corvette motor.
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 11,615
Likes: 50
From: Baton Rouge, LA
Iclick, thank you. In the old days (Panheads / Knuckleheads) with the old points ignition system they fired on the power and exhaust stokes together everytime. As the pistons came up, one cyclinder would be on the compression stroke and the other cylinder would be on the exhaust stroke, they both fired together. 360 degree of crank shaft rotation later they would fire again but this time the cylinder that was on the compression stroke would be on the exhaust stroke and they would fire together again. That caused the unique Harley sound and vibration. With push rods and two valve per cylinder, an antequated 1920 design. Sounded good, but is very inefficient.
I agree that you don't buy a Harley to race. It's a unique engine design that hasn't changed much over the decades, but people like its primordial cadence and feel, which is why it doesn't change. People buy what they like. Improvements in metallurgy and machining has made it reliable, less leaky, and durable. It isn't unusual to find modern HD's run 100k miles or more without engine work.
So, like I originally posted, if you want speed, a Harley is the wrong bike for you. I'd suggest that you look at the Boss Hoss motorcycles with the 445HP LS3 Corvette motor.
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Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 2,034
Likes: 128
Isn't it amazing how most of the solutions here involved money. Not nickle and dime stuff either. We are talking big bucks. 1 grand. 2 grand. And that is after you have already laid down a good 20 plus for the bike. Who said it wasn't good to own a Harley shop? Owning one of these sobs is an expensive hobby. Somebody piped up once that owning a Harley was an investment. Like hell it is. My investments make money every month. This damn Harley is like a divorced wife that I end up writing alimony checks to each month. That is what I call an "expense", not an investment, which sends the checks to me.
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Cruiser
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 149
Likes: 1
From: Somewhere in the US
It's sort of ironic you called the guy out for not using spellcheck but you speak of your "buddies" 2010 Ultra instead of your "buddy's" Ultra. There should not be an apostrophe on "Harley's" in your first sentence. The second time you use "Harley's" is incorrect because the apostrophe should be after the "s" since it is assumed you are speaking of more than one Harley a$$. 