Today was the first day out without having to worry about RPMs and being able to twist the throttle to my hearts desire.
Keep in mind that the carbs are running rich. Richer than I thought at RPMs over 5k. I know this cause of the amount of black soot on my exhaust tips AND from feedback form my riding buddy today. He said that when I whack that throttle he can smell fuel. LIke I said before... right now Id rather be rich than lean.
Throttle response - you know how on the stock carbs when you whack the throttle there is that delay... or when your rolling on it doesn't seem like its doing anything so you roll a bit more then all of a sudden the surge hits and you have to back off... yeah, none of that exists anymore. With my current set up if you twist there is a reaction. No delay, just go!
Idling - I have a slight issue at idle. At long lights I get a cough then the bike wants to die. Carlos says this will go away once the carbs are tuned on the dyno. He has not said anything to me that has not been true so I have to believe this. There is a lot going on with these carbs and I think they are close. Right now very rich but close.
Power - hehehe... ok. 1st gear, whack the throttle and 7k comes up faster than you ever could imagine. My buddy today said that he saw my front end get light each time I nailed the throttle. From my perspective when I nailed it it felt as if someone was grabbing my collar and trying to get me off the bike. Not to an uncomfortable level but significantly more than I expected. The way the RPMs jump between 5500 and up is amazing. Like a NOS button. In all honesty I was not mentally prepared to go over 7500k. I only tried once today to get over 7500k and I did and I ran out of road really freaking fast.
The bike cruises at 70mph in 5th at about 3500 rpm (I have a 19T sprocket up front). I was coming up to an incline where in the past I always had to downshift. Today I went from 1/4 throttle to 1/2 throttle and watched my speed increase as I climbed the incline. I was impressed. I certainly did not expect to be able to do that.
Passing traffic is as simple as twisting the throttle, no downshifting needed.
Passing on a two lane (legally) is no longer filled with thoughts of "do I have enough room to make this pass?"... its pretty much a flick of the throttle and pass.
My buddy was on a Goldwing and granted he is fast on that thing. No way I can keep up if he really nailed it BUT today I was on his 6 each time he passed a car I was there in his mirror. In the past its always been me catching up.
So yes, the bike is faster the it used to be.
No, I don't go racing at each green light.
I feel the bike is now what it should be. Responsive, more fun to ride that it used to be and I no longer wonder if I have the power needed. I am more confident knowing that the power is there if I need it and when I need it it will be delivered quickly, smoothly and (after tuning) efficiently.
So... would I do it again? YES! I don't know how much the headwork adds but between the carbs, cams and HC pistons this is one hell of a great mod and IMHO worth every penny.
