Can you measure the width difference between the MM and Mik manifolds? If it's a relatively small difference I'd lay some sandpaper down on a hard flat surface and take the Mik down to match it. Equally L&R of course. It's not unheard of to need to do that. The heads or jugs may have been cut and the MM may have been adjusted for it.

Just guessing here.

 

I thought it was a defective manifold as well, but Mikuni was kind enough to send me another to test that. It was also out of a separate batch to ensure they would not be the same. I am going to test fit a stock manifold to see if everything fits, and measure it against the Mikuni.

 

I've read in several places that MM equipped bikes like it simple. Once you start changing heads, programmers and cams they start with the shenanigans.
I don't plan on building the engine so I hope mine keeps behaving for years to come

 

Mine was quirky which was all the excuse I needed to put a carb on it.

As self reliant as I try to be to keep it on the road I consider a AAA membership mandatory. Last Halloween I blew a tire and needed a tow and my towing company took the night off.

 

I hear you; 850 pounds is a lot of metal to push down the size of the road.

 

It will be interesting to see how the OEM manifold measures up..... Those Mikuni manifolds should fit...

 

OEM manifold fits like a dream. Not quite sure why the Mikuni was off the slightest, but I am not going to worry about it at this point. I was able to fire the bike quickly and it had a hard time staying running. Definitely still need to play with it to get it running good.

 

I believe S&S does make a 98 kit, but mine came from Hammer Performance. Dan was great to work with and the bike made great power.

 

I picked up a stock manifold and it fits like a glove. I completely forgot to take measurements to understand the difference, but I was too excited to get it mounted.