[hutch]

There is virtually no market for points ignitions - and there is a reason for that.

Matt

I sure hope they keep making them for me. I am not the only one with a dislike for elecronic ignition. I like to continue my vacation with new points, not cut it short and go home. I know they last longer, but when they quit you are done. That is all I was trying to point out in a nice way.    Hutch

[hutch]

Hutch, it appears you are the poster boy for bad karma!   

In 20 years with 2 Harleys I never had a problem with ignitions or belt drive.  The Electra-Glide belt had a rock imbedded in it and the dealer for years said not to worry about it.  I didn't. 

As for being stranded on the road, that's a pain but very rare.  Towing insurance is cheap.  Barring that, a pickup truck works nicely.  However, I do admire your do-it-yourself approach to the RE.

It kind of bums you out to cut your vacation short and call a freind to drive miles and miles to pick your bike up. I thought I was the poster child until I deciced to change my Suzuki Savaga 650 to a chain. At first everyone on the Savage forum thought I was nuts and couldn't do it. After a lot of searching I figured out the sprockets off  another Suzuki would work and changed over. In the mean time several people told me of there horror stories with belts. I didn't feel alone anymore. I got stranded twice on 2 different Harley's. One lady broke her belt just from the little stone that they use to mix with tar to patch the roads on her Harley. I like carrying a spare half link and master link. I wouldn't know where to carry all the tools and a spare belt on my bike. I like simple, even it does not last as long, at least you can fix it on the side of the road and continue on your way without AAA. Several people have changed over their Suzuki Savage now and can't believe what a difference it makes to choose your gearing instead of being stuck with the factory gearing. Mine will now do 95mph and cruise at 75mph all day.plus my mileage went up to 70mpg from 50. With the belt stock gearing it was screaming rpm's at 70mph. What can I say, I am a compulsive tinkerer. It gets me closer to my bikes. I remember my dad had a fit when I tore his broken record player apart, I was 10 , I put it back together and it worked. I was hooked on those gears in there. He had a nother fit when I spent my life savings on my first bike at fifteen and tore the motor apart to see how it worked, it was still under warranty and not broke. Just got hooked and continued with rebuilding any motor I found.  Hot rods, tractors you name it. I love to tear a motor apart, put it back together and I get the greatest feeling when she fires up and purrs like a kitten.Uncle Sam even had me rebuilding truck and tank motors for a while. I can't sleep at night sometimes when trying to come up with a new way to fab up a suicide shift or chop a fender and relocate this or that. It has been the same thing for 40+ plus years. I guess it is just in my blood. I love bikes, most any bike, but I always simplify what the factory complicates I love to take a bike down to the basic things it needs to run and stop, the rest is not needed. I never have to buy electrical wire. I always have a pile of it in the corner from the last bike I stripped all the useless stuff off of. Simplicity and fixability anywhere is my goal. Been stranded to many time with the factory stuff. Even if something went wrong on my stripped down bikes I could fix it and get home, have never been stranded once on one of my stripped bikes. That I like.  I must be a bike nut, in the winter I have 3 bikes setting in my house on new carpeting. One in the living room, one in the den, and one in the dining room.  Wouldn't want them to get cold all winter. Besides I come up with my best ideas when just staring at the lines of the bike for hours. Yup I am a bike nut, always have been. I just had my gravestone delivered, it has my Iron cross and skull avatar on it and a simple inscription,  " GONE RIDIN"      Hutch

[dewjantim]

I totally disagree.  EFI is so much simpler than carb tuning that you can't even compare the two in the same breath. 
It is a common misconception that you have to re-map the computer when you change something.  That is flat wrong.  An EFI system is engineered to keep the engine running at optimum fuel / air ratio regardless of atmospheric conditions.  Therefore if you do things like changing out an air filter or add a performance exhaust, the EFI system automatically compensates and keeps the A/F ratio within a set range at all throttle positions and under varying loads.  A carburettor simply can't do that.  A carb is at best a compromise, it can never constantly adjust itself like EFI can. 
The reason that many people re-map their EFI system's VE (Volumetric Efficiency) tables is to remove lean running under certain conditions that are put in place for emmisions reasons.  Most have been sold a bill of goods, that they need these piggy-back boxes to adjust the system for the pipes they have installed.  To a very small extent, that's true.  But only with regard to absolute peak performance across throttle position and loads.  For 99.9% of street riding the stock maps will work just fine, regardless of which pipe has been installed.
For me, even if I have to hook up a lap top to my system and take 15 or so seconds to download a new map, that sure beats the crap out of busting out the tools and rejetting a carb (or multiple carbs), where you're looking at an hour minimum, and you'd better hope you guessed correctly on jet size, or you'll have to do it all over again.

It takes about 10 minutes to change jets in my RE. On my airhead BMW I can do both cylinders in 5. On my ironhead, with weber 2 barrel carb, about 3 min and I just use a screwdriver on it. I know fuel injection is technically superior, but I just love those old carbs....Dew

[luoma]

After first reading this post, I went to Google and had a look at the G Model. Nice.

[rickmax]

 
I hear ya, Hutch! 

Towing service may be cheap, but they have to be able to find you.  Try breaking
down in the foothills of MO where you can't even get a cell phone signal.  After all,
everyone keeps saying Enfields are made for the backroads.  : >

I've probably broken down 30 times in 50 years.  lol.

In the 60s, it was a way of life.  Your tool kit weighed more than you did.

Progress is great, but only if you adapt to it. 

I own a Chevy HHR.  Great machine with Star Wars technology.  But gawd help me
if I ever have a problem.  There's nothing under the hood that I even recognize.

Ding Hao!

Rick

[hutch]

I hear ya, Hutch! 

Towing service may be cheap, but they have to be able to find you.  Try breaking
down in the foothills of MO where you can't even get a cell phone signal.  After all,
everyone keeps saying Enfields are made for the backroads.  : >

I've probably broken down 30 times in 50 years.  lol.

In the 60s, it was a way of life.  Your tool kit weighed more than you did.

Progress is great, but only if you adapt to it. 

I own a Chevy HHR.  Great machine with Star Wars technology.  But gawd help me
if I ever have a problem.  There's nothing under the hood that I even recognize.

Ding Hao!

Rick

I know what you mean about under the hood, at first I thought they left my motor out and it ran on electricty or some other thing. I remember STANDING under the hood with my feet on the ground taking heads of from a 327 Chevy motor, now you couldn't drop a marble under the hood and have it ever hit the ground, let alone ever find it..   Hutch

[rural earl]

Isn't it nice to see all that space around a Bullet engine?  I sure miss that in my current vehicles.  Simplicity is the big selling point for the RE in the US, if you ask me.  If EFI is the way the company chooses to go, they'd better make it simple enough for an average guy to replace or troubleshoot.

[indian48]

I had missed this thread,,,I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed the exchanges!! The one about dropping the marble under the hood was a gem!
But what has been interesting is that both sides to the argument have a valid point of view. Both sides have argued well, and with humor that I loved.

[cyrusb]

I hear you all on the advanced technology, Yeah its great, but I bought this bike for the "lack" of it. Also, don't forget the way the new engine looks. It has the charm of a stomach pump. Really, who's going to get down and "Take in every detail" of that mill? The differences are similar to steam and diesel locomotives.

[Kevin Mahoney]

I think these are the exact lines that the opinions will fall around. BTW I love the stomach pump analogy, I will try to remember it for another occasion.

[luoma]

It seems to me that the only performance upgrade you wouldwant to do is K&N filter and free exhaust. Pretty easy on the pocketbook.

[exiledcarper]

Have a look on the RE news board, there's a thread about an article on the U.C engine.  There's even a picture of an Indian 350cc CARBURATED (wink) version.  So maybe you'll be able to tinker with it after all, assuming Uncle Sam doesn't make it a capital offence to buy the appropriate carb?

[exiledcarper]

Oops, I just realised it's on this very board, DOH!!!  Immediately below this thread at the moment .

[David R]

 ::)I, for one and curious and a little excited about the new bike. I love the idea of a more modern working, but classic looking bike in the tradition of our Bullets!  I don't know how well it will sell, but so many cruisers now are so exaggerated in their styling, that a basic, functional, rational and beautiful bike, that is hopefully priced affordably has huge appeal to me. 

[stipa]

Sooo, what exactly does a stomach pump look like?