Sportster Service and Modifications

[ThomWV]

My wife's 883 turned over the 1,000 mile mark last week so we did the 1st Scheduled Service on it over the weekend as well as a couple of modifications that made it a nicer bike to ride. I know there are a couple of Sportster owners here so these may be of interest to a few.

First off thanks to KC2 we lowered the bike an inch in the rear. KC2's post* led to an extremely well made set of lowering blocks, probably the sweetest one's I've ever seen - machined aluminum billets rather than stamped steel and beautifully chromed with very nice hardware included. The lowering made all the difference in the world for my wife.

The bike already had the Vance and Hines (V&H) Screamin' Eagle-II (SE-II) mufflers on it when we bought it so we were OK on the tail end. These mufflers have a nice sound while being reasonably quiet. However although the original owner had the exhaust put on the bike when it was purchased he/she did not go any farther performance-wise. They should have.

The first thing we did was open the Service Manual to Chapter 1 and find the matrix that showed what service is required at various mileages. The first service is crucial and covers almost everything - I do not trust any dealer to do it and do it right plus I really wanted my wife to at least know how to do it all even if some of it came from watching me do it. Most important is changing the oil and filter, next in importance is everything else. The matrix shows you what must be done, the Service Manual's succeeding chapters go on to tell and show you how to do every step. Much of the rest of it is just checking, lubricating, tightening, and adjusting.

Next in line was making the clutch pull easier. I bought an "Easy Pull" for the clutch and installed it while changing the Primary/Transmission grease and of course re-adjusting the clutch. An "Easy Pull" is a common device on Harley's of all ilks; they reduce the effort to pull in the clutch lever by about a third. The thing is an extension of the arm on the clutch release ramp. They cost about $30 and make the bike easier to control for people who do not have forearms like Popeye.

After that - and this is slightly out of order for a reason - I put on a SE-II intake. This makes a big difference. The stock intake is a mess of restrictions, low flow disposable air filter, and sin of sins - one of the nastiest stepped inlets to the carb you can imagine. The SE-II intake is much less restrictive, has a clean flow (much like a velocity stack) inlet, and of course uses a cleanable and reusable air filter. I bought the unit on E-Bay for less than $100 simply because I had no interest in the HD reusable air cleaner, just the attaching hardware. I bought the appropriate K&N filter for it (caution, there are two versions - one for the stock intake and one for the SE-II).

Then the necessary "Stage I" work had to be done on the carburetor. Sportsters prior to 2007 came with carbs, not injection. Boo! I love fuel injection and have come to loath carbs. To deal with this I picked up a rejetting kit from Dynojet**. This kit is actually available through Harley but I got it elsewhere for considerably less money. Although the kit comes with very good instructions its instillation is not something for the faint of heart or a first time wrench twister. The kit includes a large assortment of main jets and instructions on which one to use. It includes a replacement needle (as well as retaining clip and spacers) that is tapered differently from the stock one, a new and difference emulsion tube. It includes a replacement slide spring too. Also, and this is the part that will terrify the squeamish, it includes the drill bits you will need to enlarge the slide vent hole and to drill out the aluminum plug that hides the low end adjustment screw. So you replace some parts, drill a couple of holes, stick in a new jet, adjust things as they tell you too in the well-written instructions, and then put the carb back on the bike. Its easier than it sounds. The results are astounding.

So now its all back together. Actually the complete job, complete service and modifications, only took a couple of hours. The bike runs much smoother now. There is no more popping on deceleration*** which is the most noticeable difference but also now low end throttle response might be called telepathic - all you have to do is think about going faster and the bike does, and does it smoother too.

So overall things went well. The bike had a mild performance exhaust on it, we added performance intake, rejetted and otherwise modified the stock carburetor to match the intake and exhaust, changed oil and grease, checked, adjusted, and tightened**** everything, and took the time to clean the bike back to showroom standards while we were at it.

Boys and girls, let me tell you something. There are worse ways for a husband and wife to spend a couple of hours together; even old husbands and wives.


* http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=393&topic_id=765&mesg_id=765

** http://www.dynojet.com/jetkits/motorcycle/harley.aspx

*** EPA emission standards require that a bike run lean, causing problems solved by the "Stage I Kit" which include excessive heat, blued pipes, deceleration popping, hard cold starting, and sluggish low end throttle response.

**** ESSENTIAL! http://www.loctiteproducts.com/products/detail.asp?catid=10&subid=48&plid=153

[Haole Girl]

1. Oh, I just saw this!

You're welcome... So glad the lowering kit worked on your wife's Sportster, too!! :hi: