Briefly: changed my exhaust a month ago. Original setup was scream'n eagle full exhaust and high flow air cleaner with stage 1 download. Only change I did was swap to full exhaust Vance and Hines Big Shots staggereds. Bike runs perfect with no decel popping whatsoever. Had a local indy tell me yestreday, after pulling the plugs, that I was shortening the life of my motor. I'm not a mechanic, but both plugs looked very clean and light in color. He said they should be more darkened. He recommended some type of fuel management ( bike is EFI) like fuel pack, power commander, etc. Should I listen to his opinion? I've heard plugs don't lie, but like I said, I'm not a mechanic and don't know what the plugs should look like. Is there another way to check for sure that the fuel mixture is correct? This is my baby and I'm never going to sell her, so I'm concerned now and afraid to ride until I know.

 

Plugs will look clean with FI. Can you take pictures and post so we can see timing and heat? Is there a gray line on the porcelin? What is your gas mileage?

 

A plug with a white yellow tan or rusty brown powdery deposit indicates balanced combustion.
A light brown glassy deposit indicates an overheated plug.This condition may be accompanied by cracks in the insulator or by erosion ot the electrodes and is caused by an air -fuel mixture that is to lean,a hot running engine,valves not seatiing or improper ignition timing.
Good luck with your mechanic!

 

When you changed the exhaust you added a component that is not compatible with the factory download; the factory downloads are for factory added equipment, like you had before you change the exhaust. I don't know what the plugs look like but I would agree with the tech; you need fuel mangement with your new setup. Just because the plug insulators are clean and light in color doesn't mean the engine is in the proper state of tune.

If you want to learn how to read plugs, which BTW is a good thing to know because the don't lie, google "plug reading", read and learn. There are three elements to read; the ground strap, the base ring and the insulator. Most look at the insulator to judge the A/F mixture but the insulator should be read for detonation. The ground strap is read to determine if the heat range of the plug is matched to the combustion characteristics of the engine and the base ring is read to determine if the mixture is too rich or lean.

A lot will also depend on when you do the "plug cut"; obviously a plug will read differently after a full throttle run than it will after idling for 5 minutes.