Unofficial Royal Enfield Community Forum
Royal Enfield Motorcycles => Bullet with the UCE engine => Topic started by: prof_stack on September 25, 2010, 04:12:13 am
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Tomorrow I plan to test ride the C5 with the cool-looking upswept muffler. It costs $300 from the dealer (only). Installation would cost about $90 at my shop here in Seattle.
The EFI silencer in the Nfieldgear catalog lists for $150.
Does anyone here know how they compare in loudness and in fit and finish?
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While I love the look of the upswept, I only ran it for a few months. To me it was too loud and blatty. It never had the sound I wanted so now I'm back to running a Electra muffler that looks and sounds great. I don't know about he EFI silencer but it's very much like what I have, I think it's English made so the quality would be better.
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I have the upswept now and don't find it to be offensive at all....that said, I wouldn't pay $90 to have it installed. it is SOOOOOO easy to do yourself.
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@r80rt I would say that straight silencer looks much better than the upswept, and perhaps sounds good too. Where did you source this from.
bradey.
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I got it from dealer here in Arkansas. I wasn't really looking for one, but he had a great deal on it because the guy that ordered it never picked it up. It has a good deep thump that I like.
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r80rt, did the Electra muffler fit right on? It doesn't mention being a fit for the C5/G5 but I could see where it would be fine. As long as the pipe is the same diameter and the hanger bracket is in the same spot what's not to fit? Oh, and it looks a little shorter than the EFI silencer.
I have to say, I kinda like the look of the stock bazooka. It reminds me of either an old model or old picture of a bike I saw with a huge, long muffler. I also like the cat, green is good, but I wouldn't be opposed to it growling a little more.
Scott
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r80rt, did the Electra muffler fit right on? It doesn't mention being a fit for the C5/G5 but I could see where it would be fine. As long as the pipe is the same diameter and the hanger bracket is in the same spot what's not to fit? Oh, and it looks a little shorter than the EFI silencer.
I have to say, I kinda like the look of the stock bazooka. It reminds me of either an old model or old picture of a bike I saw with a huge, long muffler. I also like the cat, green is good, but I wouldn't be opposed to it growling a little more.
Scott
+1
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I made a shim out of a piece of old antenna pole to take up the difference in pipe sizes, and I had to drill a hole 3/4 on an inch lower in the rear bracket, other than that it was pretty easy, I also used a universal heat shield to cover the joint. it's a little louder than stock and thumps nicely, and the performance increase is noticeable.
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The short british silencer for the C5 is identical to tho one fitting on the G5. I decribed the installment here: http://www.enfieldmotorcycles.com/forum/index.php/topic,8458.0.html
I´m very satisfied with both sound and look. When fastening the screws and nuts, however, toothed washers should be used, otherwise they will vibrate off.
For 300 USD for the upsweep silencer you should awaite a flawless item with eternal life. For 90 USD for the installment a Thai massage should be included ;D
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At least you'd get a happy ending
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At least you'd get a happy ending
Bada...... bump..... bump...... ching.
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Wow, dont pay $90 to get it installed. Its very easy, assuming it was actually made for the bike, not like the megaphone I got from nfield. I have the EFI and it required minor modification to fit (which in my experience is normal for RE parts).
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It looks to me that r80rt's muffler is very period correct. I was looking at some old RE pics and came across this 1956 Clipper.
http://www.royal-enfield.net/old_bullets/1940-1959/1956_250_Clipper.jpg
Looks like a C5 to me.
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Wow, dont pay $90 to get it installed. Its very easy, assuming it was actually made for the bike, not like the megaphone I got from nfield. I have the EFI and it required minor modification to fit (which in my experience is normal for RE parts).
Yeah, I agree with you. Thanks!
When I bought the pillion I was told that the shop had a devil of a time getting the demo pillion on the red C5. So I knew it wouldn't be a bolt on job. Probably took 45 minutes. So I'll tackle the Upswept job myself and be patient with the time it takes.
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It looks to me that r80rt's muffler is very period correct. I was looking at some old RE pics and came across this 1956 Clipper.
http://www.royal-enfield.net/old_bullets/1940-1959/1956_250_Clipper.jpg
Looks like a C5 to me.
Yea, looks like r80rt's C-5. ;)
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I’ve tried both the short silencer and the upswept curly one (both RE accessories supplied by the UK importer), the latter is currently fitted. Fitting both was easy.
In terms of noise and looks I prefer the short straight one, it retains the original heat shield and doesn’t affect access to the chain adjusters. The sound is nice and deep but it blued badly and caused a loud backfire. I could either exchange it for another or swap it for the upswept silencer, I swapped it.
The upswept one doesn’t backfire and hasn’t blued yet but it is louder and the sound is more blat than thump, a bit like a big jap single. It also gets in the way of the rear wheel nuts so it’ll have to come off for chain adjustment.
All things considered I wish I’d exchanged the shortie and tried to sort out the backfiring. I checked everywhere for air leaks but couldn’t find any so not sure what else I could have done.
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Yup, there's definately some hooligan rocker in that upswept sound ;) ....not as much as a Goldie though!
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Today I tested the C5 demo at Royal Enfield Seattle (aka Ducati Seattle) with the upswept muffler. It really brought out a more traditional THUMP sound that one hears when an older big-single goes by. It wasn't as loud as I thought it would be when I was on the road, doing about 40 mph. With ear plugs on it would probably be pretty mellow.
I couldn't feel that much difference in power output from the stock torpedo. But the demo only has 200 miles on it and I didn't want to thrash it around.
BIG BONUS today was meeting Eamon (in Seattle) and his Electra-X riding brother (my old brain thinks his name is Kevin, but I could be wrong ... sorry). Eamon had his iron barrel there, too. I wish I had my camera to capture a Three-Gen photo. Next time for sure!
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After a great sunny day 70-mile ride today on my C5, I stopped at the Seattle dealer and ordered the upswept muffler. I like the sound and the looks. Any advice for a "fool" proof install will be appreciated! :D
FWIW,
Royal Enfield Seattle (aka Ducati Seattle) is now an island of sorts since the city started a 3-year project to alleviate traffic woes from the I-5 freeway to the Seattle Center (think Space Needle). There's also sewer work to, in part, pave the way for the new Google and Microsoft buildings there. The only way to the shop is in the back alley after going by a street closed sign and then into their garage down the ramp. It was a ghost town there yesterday and today.
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My dealer was kind enough to let me "audition" both of the C5 / G5 silencers in the nfieldgear catalog (i.e., the EFI Silencer and the Megaphone Silencer) before I took delivery of my G5 Deluxe. The stock silencer was too sedate for my taste, the megaphone silencer, with no baffling whatsoever, was too loud and the EFI Silencer with some baffling was just right. He also ground off the bracket on the end of the header pipe so I could slide the muffler farther forward and eliminate the heat shield for a cleaner look. After 200 miles of riding, I'm very pleased with the results.
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Now that my EFI has broken in a bit (450 miles), I like it too. When I first installed it, it was too quiet, but now its nice. Not as loud as the megaphones I had on there (RE and emgo) and not nearly as quiet as stock.
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BIG BONUS today was meeting Eamon (in Seattle) and his Electra-X riding brother (my old brain thinks his name is Kevin, but I could be wrong ... sorry). Eamon had his iron barrel there, too. I wish I had my camera to capture a Three-Gen photo. Next time for sure!
Dang, I missed this earlier. It was great meeting you as well! Hopefully we can get some Enfields together again before too long. It was fun seeing my iron barrel Deluxe, Kevin's AVL Electra, and your C5 all in a row. Kind of like a family portrait!
Eamon
ps - maybe we'll see you at Backfire one of these days? Actually, i think this month's one is tonight!
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Dang, I missed this earlier. It was great meeting you as well! Hopefully we can get some Enfields together again before too long. It was fun seeing my iron barrel Deluxe, Kevin's AVL Electra, and your C5 all in a row. Kind of like a family portrait!
Eamon
ps - maybe we'll see you at Backfire one of these days? Actually, i think this month's one is tonight!
Dang, sorry I didn't know about the meeting (in Ballard, right?). I'll get on their mail list or find out when the events are. Dry cool weather tonight would have been a fun but short run. I put some Klotz synth oil in on Sunday (bought it from Nfieldgear) and a new filter (said Purolator on the end of it, it did). Looking forward to the new muffler.
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Dang, sorry I didn't know about the meeting (in Ballard, right?). I'll get on their mail list or find out when the events are. Dry cool weather tonight would have been a fun but short run. I put some Klotz synth oil in on Sunday (bought it from Nfieldgear) and a new filter (said Purolator on the end of it, it did). Looking forward to the new muffler.
Yeah, it's at The Shelter and the 2 Bit in Ballard (ususally the 3rd Thursday of every month). My brother Kevin and I stopped by for a while and had the good fortune to run into Gerry and Brad (aka 500KSGerry and Blltrdr). Nice seeing both of them and BS'ing about bikes etc. Both of their bikes are looking cool, by the way. I'm looking forward to seeing (and hearing) your bike with the new exhaust!
Eamon
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After a great sunny day 70-mile ride today on my C5, I stopped at the Seattle dealer and ordered the upswept muffler. I like the sound and the looks. Any advice for a "fool" proof install will be appreciated! :D
FWIW,
Royal Enfield Seattle (aka Ducati Seattle) is now an island of sorts since the city started a 3-year project to alleviate traffic woes from the I-5 freeway to the Seattle Center (think Space Needle). There's also sewer work to, in part, pave the way for the new Google and Microsoft buildings there. The only way to the shop is in the back alley after going by a street closed sign and then into their garage down the ramp. It was a ghost town there yesterday and today.
My install was pretty straightforward. There are only 2 mounting points. Only issue was there is a spot on the rear bracket where it has to clear a bolt head on the frame. The mount "looks" like there is a cutout which "should" line up and help it clear, but on mine it didn't.Really odd. It took some wiggling aroind to get it where I could lock down the rear mount, and that bolt head never did fit into that cutout. Easy otherwise.
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Today the upswept exhaust got installed. I had to drive to the dealer (2 miles) to check out their installation to make sure I didn't goof up.
The big difference between the attachment points is the upswept exhaust goes on the OUTside of the passenger footpeg bracket rather than inside. The second attachment point was interesting in that the prewelded nut on the exhaust was not square with the bracket, so the screw had to go in at an angle.
What took the longest was getting the heat shield bracket attached since its bolted nut was even more cockeyed. After doing the rear pillion install, I pretty much expected this type of finishing glitches. But its on (see photo) and completes the look of the C5, IMHO of course.
In doing the install I found that the head bolts to the exhaust port were loose, sigh. But that helped with the wiggle of getting the pieces on and tightened. But I do have a question: Look at the second photo of the lower bolt. Does it appear the plate that the bolt secures is angled correctly? When I started the bike, I could feel a small amount of air coming from the area around there and I wonder if there is a tightening procedure that should be followed.
Any help is most appreciated. Thanks.
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Not sure about the alignment but it sure looks really good to me. Thanks for providing the pictures. I just wonder how the sound compares to the short EFI silencer.
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If there´s an air leak you should tighten the bolts. Carefully and evenly left and right. Before you do that, however, it´s probably a good idea to drive a couple of kilometers to allow the parts wobbling together to avoid restraint.
Unfortunately the photo doesn´t allow a statement about the correct angle, but usually the gasket is flexible enough to forgive smaller inaccuracies.
The silencer looks nice btw!
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If there´s an air leak you should tighten the bolts. Carefully and evenly left and right. Before you do that, however, it´s probably a good idea to drive a couple of kilometers to allow the parts wobbling together to avoid restraint.
Unfortunately the photo doesn´t allow a statement about the correct angle, but usually the gasket is flexible enough to forgive smaller inaccuracies.
The silencer looks nice btw!
Thanks! When Seattle weather changes from very wet to somewhat dry I will get out and ride to test it.
The weight loss changing from the stock torpedo to the upswept was not as much as I thought it would be. It was about 6 pounds in total. I think the EFI Silencer is lighter still (at half the price it should be).
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Seattle's weather dried out enough to get and put 20 miles on the C5 with new muffler.
I like the sound, it's not THAT loud, but there definitely is BACKFIRING at times upon deceleration. I wonder if an improperly tightened headpipe allowing air out there has much effect. I don't like the extra gas fumes that this non CC pipe puts out.
The muffler is set wider than the stock one and the lack of a longer heat shield put the first blem on it when the ballistic pant went against it. Luckily I got it off before the pipe went cold,so it looks fine and new again.
It does seem more willing to rev higher with the new muffler. Perhaps getting the upcoming low-restriction air filter will complete the package.
Where is the idle adjustment screw? I need to lower the idle. Thanks.
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Prof,
I am pretty sure you cannot adjust the idle. The fuel injection module controls it.
-Quinn
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You adjust the idle by the large inset brass screw at back of the throttle housing. You'll need an angled screwdriver, and it only takes a very slight turn to adjust. Idle speed tends to increase as the engine gets run in and loosened up. Less than a quarter turn put mine right and steady after a couple of thousand miles.
Backfiring on after market exhausts is normal and doesn't necessarily signify a leak. And yes, it revs higher and easier without that gawd awful stock torpedo tube of a silencer blocking up the works.
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Thanks for the info on lowering the idle. At 800 miles the idle is definitely higher than it is supposed to be.
Back to the muffler: When I mentioned to the service boss that the headpipe nuts were loose when I went to install the upswept muffler, he said I should bring the bike in and let them go over it all carefully to make sure all the fasteners are correctly tight. He also said they would get any leaks at the head stopped. Nice.
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WillW,
Thank you for correctin me on the idle adjustment, exactly what are you adjusting? I know, a brass screw :D, I mean what does that brass screw control? How does that feed back to the fuel injection to keep the mixture right?
-Quinn
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prof_stack,
I look forward to hearing your bikes bark at the spring get together ;D
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Quinn,
The brass screw is an air by-pass screw and is the only way to adjust the idle. You can loosen the clamps on the throttle body and rotate to access, and adjust with engine running, but easy enough to leave it in place and use a long or angled screwdriver. Clockwise to decrease idle speed - one quarter turn will reduce by about 200rpm. "Do NOT adjust the throttle stop screw on the side of the throttle body unless you are using the factory software to calibrate the base throttle opening."
This from the workshop manual.
Electronics & injectors is all just magic to me..... ??? ;)
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So it controls the idle by choking back some air. Hmm. OK. Thanks. I was not aware of that.
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Quinn,
The brass screw is an air by-pass screw and is the only way to adjust the idle. You can loosen the clamps on the throttle body and rotate to access, and adjust with engine running, but easy enough to leave it in place and use a long or angled screwdriver. Clockwise to decrease idle speed - one quarter turn will reduce by about 200rpm. "Do NOT adjust the throttle stop screw on the side of the throttle body unless you are using the factory software to calibrate the base throttle opening."
This from the workshop manual.
Electronics & injectors is all just magic to me..... ??? ;)
Thanks for the info. My scooter has 900 mi and the idle was a little fast so I adjusted it with the throttle stop screw, it seems to run just fine. After reading your post I have located the brass screw and will try it next time.
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regolazione del minimo efi
http://www.royalenfieldlesite.com/spip/spip.php?article403
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Thank you perri! Good Post, good pictures too!
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Will, thanks for explaining. I had heard that was how to adjust the idle but was curious since so much is set with computer on EFI. I should have guessed it was the air bypass screw, it's the only thing you don't need a computer for!
Scott
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Where is the idle adjustment screw? I need to lower the idle. Thanks.
Prof:
I had made a short video several months back on idle adjustment - it is on youtube. As Will has written in his post, it is an idle air by-pass screw. Only a slight rotation is needed to change the idle.
The brass screw can be rotated with a LONG flat screw driver - without the need of an angled screw driver. Keeping the idle on the high side has some benefits. Do you have a tachometer ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w51XKoubABI
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Prof:
I had made a short video several months back on idle adjustment - it is on youtube. Never mind the title (which says TPS on it, but as Will has written it is only an air by-pass screw).
The brass screw can be rotated with a LONG flat screw driver - without the need of an angled screw driver. Keeping the idle on the high side has some benefits. Do you have a tachometer ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w51XKoubABI
Oh yeah, that is perfect! THANK YOU!! Where can I get a portable tachometer? What does it plug into (besides being grounded on the fins)?
It's time to spend more $ on the C5.
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Oh yeah, that is perfect! THANK YOU!! Where can I get a portable tachometer? What does it plug into (besides being grounded on the fins)?
It's time to spend more $ on the C5.
I had bought it from a company called Design Technology Inc, of Illinois. They make hand held Tiny Tach and other tachometers. Mine is TT20K tech tach. Although it is supposed to pick up pulses when pointed towards the spark plug, but that did not work for me.
I had one lead of tachometer clamped to the cable from the ignition coil and the other grounded to engine and it worked fine. Perhaps if the lead of tachometer is wrapped around the spark plug cable, it may work too.
The advantage is that you don't need to connect direct to crank or open up engine.
http://www.tinytach.com/tinytach/index.php
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http://www.motosport.com/dirtbike/product/WORKS-CONNECTION-HOURTACH-METER/?psreferrer=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.google.com%252Furl%253Fsa%257Cequalto%257Ct%257Camp%257Csource%257Cequalto%257Cweb%257Camp%257Ccd%257Cequalto%257C7%257Camp%257Cved%257Cequalto%257C0CEMQgwgwBg%257Camp%257Curl%257Cequalto%257Chttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.motosport.com%252Fad%252F%253Fcode%257Cequalto%257COR-SP-CA-PRODUCT%257Camp%257CcatalogId%257Cequalto%257C119364%257Camp%257Ccsource%257Cequalto%257CGoog%257Camp%257CCAWELAID%257Cequalto%257C568174523%257Camp%257Crct%257Cequalto%257Cj%257Camp%257Cq%257Cequalto%257Chour%2Btach%2Bmeter%2B%257Camp%257Cei%257Cequalto%257CWv7QTI77Doa6sQPr2qyvCw%257Camp%257Cusg%257Cequalto%257CAFQjCNEUL1DwSHhWoRRv8bbWUfEXMQiJsw%257Camp%257Csig2%257Cequalto%257C56I-fq91LczkVJguqpo5wQ&catalogId=119364&CAWELAID=568174523&segment=badger
http://www.jcwhitney.com/hour/tach-meters/p2013826.jcwx
I think they both work with just wrapping a wire around the spark plug wire.
Scott
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Thank You Br. D.S. !!
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That Tiny Tach is a great tool. Simple to use. Inductive pickup right off of the plug wire. I have a single cylinder ultralight aircraft that I fly, I use the Tiny Tach to monitor my RPM's. on the Briggs V-Twin.
Just a single cable with two wires inside. Wrap one around your plug wire and clip the other (Red it think) to a ground and start it up. It updates itself every half second or so. Can be permanently installed or stored in your toolbox for working on your lawn mower!
I bought a few for 20.00, used off of eBay. The guy was upgrading his karts at a go-kart track and parting out the pieces, he had a tiny tach on each kart so the attendants could tell at a glance if the governors were set right.
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Back on thread track:
I picked up the C5 today from the shop. They went over the bike and got the headpipe bolts properly tightened. I was advised to check the bolts from time to time.
The tech said that this C5 has more power than the others in the shop. 800 miles probably makes a big difference from the demo unit with 200.
The backfiring is mostly gone with just some reminders upon deceleration. It seems to have more acceleration now than before with the stock torpedo. The sound is MUCH better and not all that loud, imho.
I wish it didn't stick out as far as it does. The rear bracket attaches to the outside of the passenger peg. The stock pipe bracket attaches to the inside of the peg.
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"....It seems to have more acceleration now than before with the stock torpedo. ...."
It'll cruise along more happily at higher speeds too.
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"....It seems to have more acceleration now than before with the stock torpedo. ...."
It'll cruise along more happily at higher speeds too.
How long did you wait before fitting silencer? I had one deliverd allong with bike but thought best to give it 500ml-1000ml before fitting in case in run the bike too lean while on break in period.Don
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Some folk here have said it's best to wait until the engine is broken in. I fitted mine (goldstar from watsonian) after about 2000 miles. I doubt it'll run lean - the ECU is able to adjust to a wide tolerance. I still get around 85 mpg (UK Gallon). It backfires occasionally, but more a bit of burbling on the overrun.
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The upswept muffler went on at 750 miles. Most of break-in is complete, but I'm not yet running it like a wild banshee (if that is possible with 22hp).
This C5 has never been lean. The EFI computer is supposed to adapt and I believe it has done that just fine.
The stock torpedo never developed the CC hot-spot seen on some REs.
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The tech said that this C5 has more power than the others in the shop. 800 miles probably makes a big difference from the demo unit with 200.
Sounds like you've broken it in well, Norm!
Eamon
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The tech said that this C5 has more power than the others in the shop. 800 miles probably makes a big difference from the demo unit with 200.
Just wait another 800 ;)
I suspect the only reason not to fit a more free flow pipe from the start is not in the engine but the rider. Throaty exhaust notes make it harder to stick to a conservative break in schedule ;D
Scott
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DON'T fool with what looks like an old fashioned idle speed adjustment screw near the round pulley with the throttle cables. It is the throttle position sensor and has a LOT to do with how your bike runs. It is a key element in telling the computer where your throttle is and where things start at idle. If you have fooled with it I would suggest you get it reset. If you want to change the idle speed there is a limited adjustment on the top of the throttle body as others have indicated. It is a large brass screw.
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Just curious...
Restting the TPS, does that require any more than a manual and a volt-ohm meter?
Scott
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I suspect the only reason not to fit a more free flow pipe from the start is not in the engine but the rider. Throaty exhaust notes make it harder to stick to a conservative break in schedule ;D
Scott
Well, at 45 degrees in still air, somewhat colder at 60mph, it is clear that the air-cooled UCE motor likes the temperature more than my body does!
Anyway, I put 30 cold miles on the C5 today and I really like the exhaust tone from the upswept muffler. Who cares if the MPG dips a bit if the bike sounds that good?!
The motor feels like it is more willing to rev, and it also pulls harder under some load (but not too much just yet).
Oh, at 60mpg (66 on the dial) the C5 felt stable. No groovy pavement this time. Since the indicated limit was 50 I didn't go any faster, this day. ;D
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Yeah, motors run well in cool, dense air. Get a thicker jacket and enjoy!
Scott