I imagine this is an old chestnut for this forum, so apologies in advance for reopening a topic that has problably been done to death

I'm debating weather or not to spend the $500+ on dyno tuning my bike and would value opinions.

I have an 08 RK Classic set up as follows:

• 103 Big Bore
• 255 CAMS
• Flat Top Pistons
• SE Heavey Breather
• V&H True Dual Headers (poor choice I think)
• Rinehard Slip Ons
• SE Super Tuner

The performance work on the bike is about 1,500 miles old and the bike has never been Dyno tuned.

I installed a stock map that came with the SE software for the Super Tuner. The description of the stock map matches my setup closely except for the exhaust which is described simply as "race exhaust" (I have true duals).

The bike runs ok, but nothing special and uses a little more gas than before (I get about 38mpg highway). I also get a lot of popping on decel now (don't mind this at all, but is it symptomatic of a poor tune?)

Out of interest, I also pulled the plugs last night to inspect them and they were extremely good but pointing slightly to the bike running a little lean/warm - but totally consistent front and rear, and definately nothing suggesting that much was wrong with the mixture.

I am not unhappy with the performance of the bike (and I love the sound of it now), but I am not really impressed either and would really like it to pull a little harder in the low to mid range. I don't really think I saw much improvement (other than sound) for the investment in performance parts.

By contrast my 08 Dyna Fat Bob now flies after the same mods, except I installed a V&H 2 into 1. I know there is a weight difference here, but still...

I think the true duals were a poor choice, but I'm stuck with them for the time being. So, my question is this; Is this as good as it gets and the stock map is lilkely close enough or might I see worthwhile improvement investing in Dyno tuning the bike?

After all I could spend that $500 chroming out the front end!

Thanks in advance for your opinion.

 

If you have a good tuner that can work with your chosen programmer, it will be the best money you can spend. Riding a properly tuned bike is like night and day from riding a canned download. Better throttle response, easier starting, better fuel mileage, better overall performance.

If you don't have a good tuner it will be the most frustrating money you have ever spent.

BTW - It is my opinion that the art of being able to read a sparkplug with today's fuel is a thing of the past.

JMO
Zach

 

Agree with Zach, especially on the reading the plugs part. Unleaded fuels have made it much different than in the past and really not a good indicator (except for extreme lean or rich conditions) of how the motor is actually running. AFR's by either O2 sensors or exhaust sniffers is really the only true way to know what's going on.

 

Thanks for your opinions. I understand your point about plugs and modern EFI / fuel. <sigh> Another skill from the past bites the dust!

I'm bought into the value of a dyno tune, but like you say, its the variability of the tech that worries me. So I guess I just need to try and find one of the local shops that can get in right! In the Seattle area there seems to be three dealers that do it. Two of them have a bad reputation and the third has no discernable reputation that I can find and is 1/2 the price of the other two.

It feels a little like a lottery, with the ticket costing $500 a pop.

 

Does the super tuner not have a feature like the v-tune on the TTS mastertune to do your on tuning runs and calibrations??

 

I would say with all the mods you had done a dyno would be a good investment. However $500 seems a little high to me. I paid $300 for mine

 

Sorry Thabull, I don't really understand the question. The SE Super Tuner is really just an interface between a PC and the ECM in the bike. It supports the uploading of a map to the ECM and supports real time monitoring of various engine parameters if you have a laptop / PC connected. The feature is kind of useless however unless you want to ride along with a laptop under your arm!

Seems to me that the Super Tuner is just a tool that enables the tech to connect the dyno to the bike. When the tuning / monitoring is finished and the map uploaded, the Super Tuner is removed from the bike. The actual fuel map is stored in flash memory in the ECM itself.

 

BennieSG, Eastside Harley now charge a flat rate of $440 plus tax and Sound Harley in Marysville not much less. I've since found out the new Downtown Harley in Renton only charges $285 + tax however so I'll probably give them a try. Trouble is knowing if they are any good or not!

Who did you use? A dealer in Spokane?

 

Got mine done at Big Sky in Great Falls. MT. I got lucky as they seem to know what they were doing. It is true that a good dyno is only as good as the tech doing the tune. I would look into the experience of the tuner in Renton. Maybe they are good and offering a lower price because they are trying to drum up business. Good luck.

 

I agree with biggzed. I tried using canned maps and couldn't tell any difference between them. Then I spent a few $$$ and had a custom map made for my setup. Night and day difference thruout the entire range of operation. Definately worth the $$$.,