Pods n' jets

[Anonymous]

The uni's flow pretty well, I had a set before the K&N's I have now. They do not flow as well as the K&N's though. I think the biggest difference is durability though, the foam on the UNI's will degrade after a while. As for the EMGO's, they have a paper element, and are not washable. They are disposable, like a car air filter. Other then that I don't know how well they perform.

BTW, if you keep an eye on ebay you can find K&N pods. That's how I got mine, for $50.

I was wondering about the disposability and cleaning business. no instruction or paperwork came with them. well they wil be good to experiment with using the stock carbs and then ill go for the K&Ns when i use the larger pots.

[Hoomgar]

Since I made comment earlier and this is still going around I just asked Paparo why he said that just now since I was on the phone with him for other business. He said this last time and just reinforced it now,

You get what you pay for. The Emgo's are way more expensive than the K&N over the long haul because the K&N are high quality parts and will last almost a lifetime as you can clean them and go again over and over. The Emgo's you basically run until they clog up and then you chuck them and buy new ones. He also said that in the time that he has been servicing vintage bikes he has had to replace several Emgo and other lower cost brand pod type filters because they are either disintegrating or they have actually started to collapse. He said they crush with the greatest of ease. He also said that it is much easier to setup jetting and the like with the K&N due to the available specs whereas the others can be a lot more work to dial in because they do not setup the same as K&N's. He also said the K&N's will flow much better and are more consistent. I asked him what he meant by that and he said that the Emgo's and other brands are known to flow differently from one filter to another. Now that one scares me. 8O

Again, not my words as I have no experience with them at all. I have only ever used K&N and have never had to replace them once purchased so I guess time will be the answer as to if any of this is true or not.

The only thing I would add to any of that that comes from me is that I value what Joe tells me more than mostly anyone else simply due to his level and amount of experience. He is a 52 year old man who has literally done nothing but this his entire life. So for me, I would just never even try them. You know, and I could be missing out because of it so it is good that some of you guys are. I have to believe that they will ultimately work OK as so many of them are sold and I too have seen them on countless bikes

Take that info for what it is worth to you.

[Pete's GS]

I picked up what I assumed was a MAC 4-into-1 header on eBay for my 550. Who knows, but I had it sandblasted though to get all the chrome and rust off, then painted it flat black for the rat bike look. The paint was Rustoleum B-B-Q and has rust inhibitors. No rust at all and I don't worry about it. The Rustoleum will get stained by oil and gas drips though so next time I'll spray excellent PlastiKote. BTW, I'm not sure any header makes that big a difference in performance. Maybe a tenth in the quarter-mile according to the tests the magazines used to run in the "heady" days of the '70 and '80s and Kerker and Hooker and RC and Yoshimura and SuperTrapp. But they look great and are so much lighter than stock and with the right meg can sound a lot throatier. About pods, I know K&Ns flow more than Uni's but if the Emgo's are just as good I can't say. I'd appreciate some user's comments.

[Detman101]

Well, I decided to go with the EMGO pods when I did the Stage-3 rejet of my GS750L. I like the sucking sound that they give though the only thing I have to compare it to is my cars' cold air intake. To me they seem like they will do the job just fine. The only thing i'm a bit concerned about is water intake. If I ever got caught in the rain i'm quite sure water would get in the carbs. Because of that I'm creating a shield to go over the pods so that they don't suck in water but still have open access to air. This shield will also help control the flow of air around and into the pods so as to allow consistent flow through the venturi and allow for good fuel:air mixture. I have never tried the K&N's but if I can ever afford them I will give them a shot just to see how they are.

Ride safe,
Dm of mD

[Anonymous]

GOOD INFO MARK. I WIL GET A SET OF k&nS AFTER I MESS WITH REMOIVING THE AIR BOX AND INSTALL THE LARGER CARBS. I MIGHT HAVE FIGURED THAT THEY WERE NOT WASHABLE.

[Anonymous]

You mentioned in your first post, you plan to keep the jet needles in their same positions. If they ARE in the stock position, I would at least raise the needle 1 position (lowering the clip) if your needles are adjustable. I can't tell you how well the Uni's flow but they will allow a lot more air in than the stock air box. In fact, 1 position richer may not be enough, but it's a starting point.
You spend the most time riding on the needle circuit, so don't overlook it. A hot running motor will be the result.

The stock needles were ditched when I had a jet kit installed for the 4-1 pipe. They are adjustable and set to the position recommended for the kit. I have a slight flat spot in the low-mid range so I'd raise them a notch or tow if I was keeping the stock airbox (minus cover). If I go with pods then I think the needles should stay put while I find the correct main jet.

I know carb tuning is half way between art and science so I was looking for a starting point to get a leg up. Disregarding the needles does anyone have a recommendation for an initial main and pilot?

BTW, I'll try the Rustoleum BBQ paint on the pipes. Haven't tried that one yet... And I think I'll consider the K&Ns more closely too.

[KEITH KRAUSE]

Did they give you two choices of main jets in your kit? If so, I would try the smaller of the two. If adjusting your mixture screw does'nt help enough, I would go up 1/2 size on the piot jets. Regarding the needle position, I have found the "base settings" to usually be lean if the filters are K&N's. At steady cruising speeds, do you feel any surging or hesitation or "spitting" out the carbs?
I would install the smaller main jets and adjust your mixture screws for the highest idle and re-set the idle. Also, take off the two floatbowl vent tubes.
I would then take your bike out for a steady 5 mile run at 75 mph and immediately shut off the throttle, pull in the clutch, turn off the key and pull over for plug reads. Adjust the needle according to what the plugs say. After the needle circuit is good, I would ride the bike again 5 miles at a steady 30-35 mph, note performance and chop the engine off as before and read the plugs. If rich, turn the mixture screws in a turn and re-test. If lean, turn the screws out 1 turn and re-test. If still lean and more than one additional turn out on the mixture screws does'nt work, I would return them to where they were and go up 1/2 size on the pilots.
Then I would open it up and see how the mains perform.
It's common to first install mains that are too large, and install the needles at a "base setting" that's actually too lean. The bike may feel good with the throttle wide open at first, but as you raise the needles the bike suffers and boggs at roll-ons from cruising speeds to wide open throttle. The hardest part of jetting (to me) is the "overlap" of the needle and main. It can be hard to find a combination that works well at all rpm's. Sometimes you can't have everything perfect. I will sacrifice a bit of top end to have a bike that rolls on without bogging/flat spots. Everyone has there own way, but I like to get the needles set first and then see if I can increase the mains.

[rodcwer]

filters

lounge guy.i'm in the same boat my bike is in pieces too.i hope to have it back together in about a month. then when yours is done maybe we can hookup for a ride. im up inthat area all the time. my brother lives in bradenton.my step brother too. they are deputy's in manatee and sarasota co. they also ride.although not gs's