I bought my 2007 Road King used in 2008. The previous owner left the stock fuel mapping and just installed a set of screaming eagle slip on's. I've resisted the temptation to change anything, as this stuff gets expensive quick. I keep hearing from a lot of guys that the bike will run a lot better, that it will run cooler, and that you basically have to do it to keep the bike running correctly due to how lean the EPA makes them run.

Is this really the case? It's a bit quiet for my tastes, and the bike could stand to have a bit more power for sure, but am I really losing that much?

I'm still not sure about the look of a 2-1 setup, but I've been told they run a bit better, so that's a consideration. It seems like sometimes I like the 2-1 and sometimes I don't. I don't see many of them installed, and it's hard to find a picture of the left side of the bike with a 2-1 on. All of the pictures I see are of the right side.

 

I did a stage 1 A/C on my Sportster and street legal slipons and there was a noticeable difference in the HP and torque, as well as an improvement in the sound. So far I have done nothing to the RKC's breathing system because (a) the cost, (b) I haven't decided what I want, and (c) I'm not dissatisfied with the way the RKC with the 103" currently runs. I think if I ultimately do, however, there will be an improvement.

 

I'd say slap a pair of XIEDs on it and fugeddaboudit

 

I've ran my last two bikes bone stock. Fat Bob pipes got louder with time and sounded pretty good when I traded it in with 12k on it. I did have to have it re flashed due to a hot stalling issue when I got it but it ran fine after that.
I don't know if I really buy the whole blaming the EPA for the bikes running so lean in stock form. Other manufactures don't seem to have the same issue to the extent Harley does where paying the "Harley Tax" is considered almost mandatory to make the bike run right.
My wife's bike is and air cooled 1854 cc V-Twin Yamaha Raider and it runs like a raped ape bone stock and they have to comply with the same EPA regs......

 

You give the same three reasons I have basically. I would love for it to run better, but it's not like I'm dropping two gears and holding it WFO just to keep up with traffic. I have the police model with the 103", and it seems like there should be a lot more power somewhere though.



Thought about that too.


This is tempting though:

It's cheaper with the power commander rather than the Thundermax, but I've heard that the thundermax is much better. I'm not positive yet, haven't done much research.

http://www.cyclesolutionsonline.com/...ing_black3.htm

 

I've thought of the same thing, why does the Harley 'need' this stuff to run right, but everyone else doesn't. Maybe the yamaha has something else going on inside it. Or it's possible that the yamaha isn't running right either, but it is a better designed motor that is able to make more power in a choked up form. If you think about it Harley is basing their design off of their old motors, and yamaha has engineers that also build 15,000 RPM sport bikes.

 

My Road Star ran lean from the factory. I rejetted the carb and did the rest of the stage one. Bike really ripped after that and fuel milage went up to about 44.

FWIW I can not think of a reason not to do it.

 

Fuel mileage went up? I wouldn't have though that. My Honda XR650r mileage went way down when I re-jetted it and changed the exhaust. It was pretty restricted stock though, I changed a lot of stuff to 'uncork' it.

 

Does anyone have any pictures of a 2-1 on one of the older touring bikes, before the frame change? I'm concerned that the left side of the bike wouldn't look right, but I can't find any pictures to go by.

 

If all you want is better sound just change the mufflers. If your right leg isn't burning from the heat just leave the stock headers on it.

Maybe put a PCV in it to richen up the fuel mixture if you want and have Jaime set the PCV for a "stock" bike (he'll just give it a slightly more rich mixture to eliminate pinging and excessive leanness) with this or that slip-on muffler.

I ran this RK for about 2.5 yrs totally bone stock. I finally did a gradual Stage I on it over a period of a year, starting with the PCV, then the V&H headers, then the SE Air Cleaner, then finally the mufflers. All except the PCV were from members here on the forum, just look in the Classifieds/Parts section and you'll find tons of things for sale in like-new condition.

The PCV I bought new from Jaime. Each time I made a change to a component I emailed him what I had done and how the bike was set-up. A day or so later Keith would send me a MAP and it's run fantastic. Every single MAP from FuelMoto was dead-on and no problems at all. Zero pinging, less heat off the exhaust, smooth power, etc.

But ultimately it's your bike. There's nothing wrong with running a bone stock bike at all. And most of the time the bone stock bikes run the best because when you start tinkering too much then you start to create problems for yourself. Usually just a conservative Stage I upgrade is no problem at all and few have any problems from it.