Hi Jokerman,

Bud, try looking at the E-3120 from K&N, it should work fine & should fit just right to replace the stock airfilter. Although I will confirm it & get back, but as far as my memory serves me this is the one which won't require any mods. Give it a look.

Take care.

Happy thumping,
Prakhar

Hey guys,

I wanted to add this as well yesterday itself, but then I highly doubt that the jetting & free flow can increase the HP of a motorcycle. The only thing that would happen is that the bike revs freely now & you can race the engine better & you accelarate faster & hence feel the increase in power. Also this can be seen from practical experience that the low end of an engine suffers due to these modifications, which shouldn't have been the case if the HP was actually increasing. It is just that the bike revs better, nothing more than that. The bigger jets just help in balancing the air fuel ratio which gets disturbed by adding a free flow exhaust & filter.

Also in the link provided here, at least one post sees a person rightly telling that the gain is experienced only in the top end, which is because you can now reach the same higher range of rpm with lesser resistance. Also it can be noted from this post that the guy is vary of running an otherwise stock Bullet engine at high rpms, the reasons of which even we all very familiar.

Take care.

Happy thumping,
Prakhar

Prakhar bhai,

If you observe the dyno charts closely, you can see that there is a good bump in power after 3000 rpm all the way to 4500 rpm.

And it is a absolute misconception that any high end power increase has to reflect on the low end power. Why does it have to? Can you give me a good reason? Power can increase at any point of the rev band without necessarily reflecting on low end. For example, race cams give huge increase in power at higher revs but almost no increase or even a slight decrease in power at lower revs.

This is what is represented in the first dyno chart for the 612 performance kit. And if a K&N, FFE and a rejet doesn't give you a good power increase, it is simply because it wasn't done correctly.

Coming to the CI bullet not doing too well at high rpms, it is true. The cruising speed for an electra 5s is about 80Ks. With these mods you can cruise comfortably at 90-95. The biggest gain is the mid range kick every time you get when you accelerate through the gears.

Now, the biggest reason I think why people find the low end performance with the FFE, K&N, rejet to be a little sluggish is because the power comes in very rapidly at about 3K rpm like the dyno chart indicates. This rush of power makes the motorcycle look like it has a real good mid range and top end but a weak low end. Which, precisely is the case here but when compared to the stock bullet, the power increase is a lot higher up the rev range.

IMHO, a Dyno readout from a reliable source(in this case Hitchcocks) is the most reliable source of accurate power ratings accepted world over. And if you guys still want to stick to your guns and say that the dyno chart is gibberish, I have nothing more to say. I rest my case.

I am not challenging your words. but i have personally seen the Hitchcocks built bike when i was in Northampton. actually the parts that they use to build a stock bike cant be compared to the ones to be found in india. so when we compare the local 500 with a 500 built by them its would be a sheer matter of stupidity.

any ways i have not come across even a single bullet here in india that matches the Hitchcock stuff oh yes Antonys bikes are real potent but the kind of mods done are just off the hook.

and above all its a proven fact that bullets are one of the most stupid and over expencive bikes when it comes to performance modification.

Take care
Desi

Hey jay,

I am not referring to bore & stroke increases as is the case with the 612c performance kit that has been referred to on the Hitchcock's page that you have provided the link for. That kit causes an increase in power for the same rpm because of the bigger bore & stroke than a stock 500 cc mill.

Without the cubic capacity increase, or compression bump, you cannot make a motor make more power although all that happens with a free flow & rejetting is an easier revving machine. The engine breathes easy & can do more cycles per minute than a stock engine with an obstructed exhaust (restrictive would be more appropriate here). And since with a stock exhaust, the engine faces resistance due to back pressure, energy is lost to push the piston against it, which reduces a lot with the help of a free flow setup.

Power (HP) = torque (lb-ft) * rpm / 5252 essentially remains the same, but the losses due to the backpressure resistance are reduced & hence the better power output, but it's just the rpm, nothing more, no actual increase in the capability of the mill.

Also the reason for reduced power or pickup at low revs is because, when a free flow is installed, the mixture gets an easy way out (which is the reason for better performance at high revs), & since the cycles are not running that fast at low revs, a lot of unused mixture escapes due to the free flow exhaust & the effective mixture in the combustion chamber is reduced. To counter this, tuners also fiddle with timings & advance it with such setup. Hence the low power feeling.

And about the comfortable rpm, I bet you cannot give your bike a more comfortable rpm without fiddling with the gearing or sprockets. Although with these changes (free flow & rejetting), you will definately get a lighter running bike (not as strained as now resistance at high rpms is lesser).

And the reason I believe in this, I have actually done this on my bike, not the bore & stroke part but the free flow & rejetting. Rest my case too.

Take care.

Happy thumping,
Prakhar

Prakhar Bhai,

See the dyno charts a little more closely. There is a chart which shows power increase for the stock 500 motor with K&N, rejet and FFE. It shows a clear power increase. I never talked about the big bore kit. Meanwhile, Hitchcocks are developing a big bore kit for the AVL LB500. Should be out this year end. I can't wait. And did you Rejet ?


Amber Bhai,

Isn't a 25% bump in RWHP for < $80 bang for buck. Show me any modern day Indian motorcycle barring the two strokers which can claim such figures for so less money.

true said man it is a bang actualy a big bloody bang . i would not mind paying even 100$ or even pounds for the same but only if it for sure bumps up 25%

Prakhar bhai,

Advancing timing increases pick, doesn't decrease it. I'm fiddling with my timing by plug gaps for the past couple of days and yesterday I increased the plug gap to retard the timing. Result: sluggish low end pick up.

Meanwhile, I am experiencing a very slight-just audible intermittent pinging at a particular low rpm. This pinging occurs in 1st, 2nd and rarely the 3rd gear when I vary the throttle(small opening), when I am stuck up behind some some slow moving vehicle. I am not lugging the engine as my speedo shows almost 30-40 in 2nd when this momentary pinging occurs. I first suspected a lean pilot jet as the ping occurs between 1/8th to 1/4th throttle and richened the pilot and set idle correspondingly. Didn't work. Next culprit could be timing. So, I retarded it by increasing the plug gap only to have a sluggish low rpm response but the pinging remained albeit with higher frequency than before. This is the only way by which timing can be varied by a layman like me on the TCI ignition(factory set-and-forget unit). So, a timing issue is not too probable. Now I am looking at a plug issue or the fuel. I use Shell Super Unleaded. So bad fuel very unlikely but not impossible. This tank up, I will switch to Speed93. I am buying a Mico and an NGK Iridium tomorrow. Hopefully the plugs/fuel or plugs+fuel should solve the issue over the weekend. If it still persists, a worn out pilot jet/carb slide problem could be the culprit. Lastly, I am looking at the entire TCI module/valves. Could valves be a cause, especially for low rpm intermittent ping? Someone please chip in. I am not going to the A.S.S. for this as they wouldn't be able to do much since the pinging occurs very intermittently and only with a hot engine.

Desibhai,

If dyno charts cannot prove it for you, I don't know what can. I have ridden a pimped up M500 with the above mods and it packs a real mean punch. So, I'm still arguing. Anyway, any inputs for the issue I mentioned above?

Hey jay,

For the last time, I would still like to say that it is not an actual increase in the capability of the motor. Although, like you have said in your last post, you are still arguing & you can do so for as long as you would please . And yes,I did rejet, with a 27.5 pilot,& 135 main.

And about the timing & pickup, give my post another read, I have written tuners advance the timing to counter the effect & the effect is what I have explained there. I never said that advancing the timing reduces pickup, rather what you said is what I have said, it's used to counter the low end losses.

And hey Jay, could you please throw some more light on how just changing the spark plug gap can change your motor's timing? As far as I know, all it does is change the intensity & nature of the spark. With a wider gap, you would get a hotter spark, but then there's a limit to it, as after that the ignition system won't produce enough voltage to make the spark jump that big a distance. But please do tell about this.

And about the problem, I feel the biggest reason for that is what you did with the plug, widening the gap. And if the pinging was still there, even before you fiddled with this setting, it can be because of a hotter plug, lean mixture, or carbon buildup in your engine or something as simple as bad fuel (try putting in a higher octane fuel). Valves ideally aren't responsible for this problem, until they are not sealing properly leading to a hotter running engine. Also, while you are at it, check the mixture for mid range & top end.

I would suggest, first get the plug gap back to what it is supposed to be irrespective of whether or not the problem was present earlier. The reason I am saying this is because that would get the motor back into it's original state & you will eliminate this reason from the list of probables causing this situation. Then you can start with a higher octane fuel, & then with getting the carbon buildup checked & finally going in for the TCI setup check.

Take care.

Happy thumping,
Prakhar

A goldie pipe with k&n and carb upjet, will give slight improvement for a stock CI350, it will revv out a bit more at the top end, but don't expect high gains with a goldie and K&N. 25% ?? Not even close. Just FYI a bone stock CI500 produces around 14WHP, in India.

A better designed megaphone exhaust (or a baffleless goldie) and a larger carburetor (for eg: a VM32) would produce some noticeable gains on stock 500s (both CI and AVL). With a CI 350 nothing much can be done without porting the intake tract since it is to small to flow well,even with a 28mm carb.

Adjusting the plug gap will effect timing changes slightly. A small gap would advance the timing and a large one will retard it. Too small and there is a chance that the carbon will foul up the gap. Too large and the spark may not have strength to jump across. Plug gaps don't affect spark intensity. Too advanced timing and the engine will overheat and self destruct, too advanced and the bike wil not revvout.

Prakhar Bhai,

I got an NGK BR9ES. This is one of the coldest plug in the NGK range and is OEM for the LB500. There is a notable increase in the smoothness of the engine now, especially at my cruising speed of 90 Ks.

Even, with the newer plug the slight, intermittent ping/knock continues. For now, I am running speed 93. There is no ping till the engine get's hot, which typically is about 10 Km of running. Tonight the plug will go under my magnifying glass for any signs of spotting or al deposits on the electrode. If the plug shows deposits, I can confirm that it is pinging indeed and I'l have to do something soon. As of now, I have ruled out the timing. Either it is the octane level or worse a malfunctioning carb. I will try some speed 97 octane first to check for the octane issue. Meanwhile, will ym engine have too much carbon in just 5000 Ks of running. My spark plug doesn't indicate a very rich mixture, just a light ring of soot. Also, I couldn't find larger jets for the BS29 in JC road.

I just bought a 98 Bullet 500. I have a few questions.

1. Can I slap a K&N filter in there? Which model? 1060 or 1100? Will fitting it harm my bike in any way?
2. Which spark plug? Can I use the OEM LB500 spark plug?
3. Also, where can I buy K&N filters in Hyderabad?

That looks like what I am looking for! Do I get it in India? A K&N dealer in Mumbai told me he can order a Bullet replacement filter, for 4000 rupees. Now thats purely stupid. I'd rather do some mods and fit a universal version I don't need pod-level freeflow.. just some more flow than the stock to go with a goldie and a bigger jet.