Stock air box

[dgeorge]

Ok I used to fight for any where from 10 minutes to 1/2 hour or more trying to put the stock air box on, after having the carbs off. Well I replaced both sets of boots ( the ones going from the air box to the carbs and the ones from the carbs to the head) when I went to reinstall the carbs I had them back on in less then 5 minutes. If you are having these kinds of problems instead of going to pod filters, then trying to rejet, just replace the boots and it will solve a lot of the problems. Oh and I also replaced all of the clamps at the same time. Now not only are the carbs much easier to put on, but the bike runs like it never has before. I didn't think my old boots were stiff or anything until I compared them to the new ones, there is a world of difference.

[Anonymous]

Re: Stock air box

Ok I used to fight for any where from 10 minutes to 1/2 hour or more trying to put the stock air box on, after having the carbs off. Well I replaced both sets of boots ( the ones going from the air box to the carbs and the ones from the carbs to the head) when I went to reinstall the carbs I had them back on in less then 5 minutes. If you are having these kinds of problems instead of going to pod filters, then trying to rejet, just replace the boots and it will solve a lot of the problems. Oh and I also replaced all of the clamps at the same time. Now not only are the carbs much easier to put on, but the bike runs like it never has before. I didn't think my old boots were stiff or anything until I compared them to the new ones, there is a world of difference.

well i bought stage 3 jets and new foam filters cause mine had that problem, but are u say with the stock air box back on the bike it will run and perform better????

[Anonymous]

Re: Stock air box

Ok I used to fight for any where from 10 minutes to 1/2 hour or more trying to put the stock air box on, after having the carbs off. Well I replaced both sets of boots ( the ones going from the air box to the carbs and the ones from the carbs to the head) when I went to reinstall the carbs I had them back on in less then 5 minutes. If you are having these kinds of problems instead of going to pod filters, then trying to rejet, just replace the boots and it will solve a lot of the problems. Oh and I also replaced all of the clamps at the same time. Now not only are the carbs much easier to put on, but the bike runs like it never has before. I didn't think my old boots were stiff or anything until I compared them to the new ones, there is a world of difference.

well i bought stage 3 jets and new foam filters cause mine had that problem, but are u say with the stock air box back on the bike it will run and perform better????

[Pete Logan]

Normally, yes.

It's conventional wisdom with these bikes that getting them to run even as well as stock with non-standard air filters, let alone better, is something of a labor of love.

It can be done, but it'll take a lot of experimenting for, at best, very little improvement.

Most of the time, it's only worth it if you are taking the engine quite a long way from stock for other reasons, and the stock carb setup doesn't work well any more because of that.

Pete

[Anonymous]

well i took the bike to a local bike mechanic and he said there might be a flat spot when i take off and there might not be, i am just wondering if i just blew almost 200 bux for aftermarket parts that won't make it run right?????

[Anonymous]

well i took the bike to a local bike mechanic and he said there might be a flat spot when i take off and there might not be, i am just wondering if i just blew almost 200 bux for aftermarket parts that won't make it run right?????

You can certainly make it run right with pods and a jet ket. It will take some effort, but you should get very close to the same running as the stock set up. Whether the effort is worth it to you is another thing. If you enjoy tinkering and working on your bike, it is not that bad. If what you want to do is ride it and never touch a wrench, then leave it stock.

It can be done, but it'll take a lot of experimenting for, at best, very little improvement.

You can make significant improvements in performance by adding a pipe, pods and a jet kit. It will run much stronger everywhere (at least mine does), rev faster, look better (my opinion of course, I love the look of pods) and be easier to maintain. And you get to listen to some sweet intake noise every time you roll on the throttle. Again, YMMV - it depends on what you want from your bike. Pods are not for everybody, but they will give you a performance increase if you that is what you are looking for.


Mark

[Anonymous]

yeah i wasnt really looking for performance but i wanna ride it and finding replacement parts for the stock air box would take even longer, thats why i went with the foam pods. i wanted to get K&N but the mechanic said the foam ones perform pretty much the same, he said i would need stage 3 jets so i bought them too, now all i am looking for is the exhaust. you say it give u more power with the air cleaners, jets and exhaust, how much more power is that do u think??????????

[Anonymous]

you say it give u more power with the air cleaners, jets and exhaust, how much more power is that do u think??????????

I do not have a stock baseline for my bike, having bought it already modified with the back half of the airbox removed, a large K&N filter in place of the stock one, 4-1 Kerker pipe installed and jetted on the dyno. It made 102hp/69ft-lb in that configuration. I have heard numbers around 90-95rwhp for dead stock 1100's. I have not dyno'd it since degreeing the cams and adding pods, but it is noticeably stronger now, especially above 6000rpm. My intake cam lobe center was WAY off the correct position (it was at 117deg the first measurement I took, stock is 110deg) so I know I picked up some hp there. Also, it had 130 mains in it with the modded airbox and I am now at 145's with the pods, so I know it is moving a lot more air than before.

I would expect to pick up at least 8-10hp when jumping from stock to a pipe/pods/jet kit combination. Degreeing the cams is also very worthwhile if you have the ability or can pay for it. My experience with the OEM cam timing being way off is not unusual at all and everything works better when set correctly.


Mark

[Anonymous]

Wow, 145 mains! It'd be pretty expensive to move up from 107.5 in 2.5 increments. The cheapest I've seen mains for is 3 bucks a pop X 4.

Steve

[Pete Logan]

Mark illustrates the point nicely.

Nobody is saying it can't be done. Just that it takes a little more than popping one part off and another on.

My point is, if you don't already know what you are in for, then you have a choice. Go back to stock, or go forwards. Either way is gonna be $$$, and if you have the interest, going forward is gonna be a wonderful learning experience as well. And more $$$.

My own choice, since I just ride for fun and am not too interested in speed, was to go back to stock. It helped that my bike was not too far off that anyway.

Pete

[Anonymous]

yeah the guy told me it would take some time to find the one door for the air box and like i said the rubber boots on it were hard as a rock so i had no choice, the guy found me some foam air filter and said that the stage 3 kits is what runs the best with them filters, the filters ran me 70 bux for the 4 and the jet kit was about 125 bux, maybe i heard him wrong but i am almost sure thats what he said...

[Anonymous]

yeah the guy told me it would take some time to find the one door for the air box and like i said the rubber boots on it were hard as a rock so i had no choice, the guy found me some foam air filter and said that the stage 3 kits is what runs the best with them filters, the filters ran me 70 bux for the 4 and the jet kit was about 125 bux, maybe i heard him wrong but i am almost sure thats what he said...

[James Branagan]

Thats what your lookin at!

well i took the bike to a local bike mechanic and he said there might be a flat spot when i take off and there might not be, i am just wondering if i just blew almost 200 bux for aftermarket parts that won't make it run right?????

Ya gotta remember, as one cylinder is exhausting, another is intakeing! The airbox is working like a vortex to draw air in! That small hole that the air first comes into! The rest of the box acts like a wind tunnel. When the next cylinder is ready for air , its there and already moving inward towards the carb!
When you run pods, each cylinder has to fight to get its own air from the air thats PASSING it as you ride!
K&N makes an air filter that fits in the box! I have one on my 850, with stock air box! 4 to 1 headers with 3 inch exhaust, and jetted up with jets from a 1000 GS!
SCREAMIN, BABY!

PUP!

[andyjohnson]

maybe I'm just lucky, but I put 2 UNI foam filters on my GS450 last week and rode off. didn't have to rejet or do any adjustments to the carbs. There is no noticeable boost in horsepower, but I'll never have to deal with getting that airbox in and out again. This is a cheap and easy air filter option, if you find a good deal on the filters they will be about $10 each. They are supposed to be washable/reuseable, though I can't say from experience.

[Anonymous]

maybe I'm just lucky, but I put 2 UNI foam filters on my GS450 last week and rode off. didn't have to rejet or do any adjustments to the carbs. There is no noticeable boost in horsepower, but I'll never have to deal with getting that airbox in and out again. This is a cheap and easy air filter option, if you find a good deal on the filters they will be about $10 each. They are supposed to be washable/reuseable, though I can't say from experience.

thats weird cause i got the same filters the UNI's and it recomended that i use a stage 3 kit (which i got), my carbs have been completely rebuilt so it runs great most of the time but every once in a while i smell gas and it runs funny so i think its loading up a bit, i just shut it off and let it sit for a few minutes then its back to running great so maybe a few more adjustments now that its all broke in will make it run great all the time.