TODAYS UPDATE:
Well today was the day of final testing. Or so I thought. The 62 mm HPI TB showed up today and we got it on the bike. It doesn't allow fitment of the S&S Tuned Runner or other traditional backplates. It came with it's own backplate and filter. Does that mean I'll have to give up the S&S Tuned Runner or the S&S Teardrop?

So we tested with the 62 mm. Uh oh! It got better! The friggin' thing tested great! It pulled the TQ up to max at 1700 and went pretty much straight across. There was a slight dip around 2800-3200, but not bad at all. And the line was smooth! Overall peak numbers were about the same as before, 120 HP/130 TQ. But the rideability down low was so much better. And it pulls past 6 Grand now before dropping, instead of at 5800 before. He said it pulls right thru the RPM's fantastic and doesn't bog at 1500, which he thought it might with that large a TB. It needed the larger injectors too. The 4.89's are cycling in the 40%-50% range now. They were too big in the 58 mm. The engine runs even cooler with the gobs of flow going thru it now. The 62 is staying! Who would have believed it!

Well, that should have been the end, and Joe should have proceeded to final tuning. But this guy's great! He still isn't satisfied. He's going to jury rig the S&S Tuned Runner in the morning and retune and retest it. He expects the Tuned Runner to pick up the dip, and raise the overall numbers 4 HP and 4-6 Ft-Lbs TQ. If it turns out as he expects, I'll be leaving the bike there so he can fabricate an adapter to be properly to mount the Tuned Runner. Then he'll final tune it next week. A little disappointing if I don't pick it up tomorrow, but a few more days to get it perfect is fine by me! I'll take the Amtrak up during the week to get it. I'm hoping the Tuned Runner tests good again. I've grown to really love that thing!

This whole process has been really exciting! We learned a lot by testing these various things, and proved scientifically what worked well and what didn't. I hope ya'll got something out of all these tests too, and that it helps your future builds. I'll let ya'll know tomorrow if I'm picking it up, or I have to wait til next week, for the last step (engine wise!

) on my perfect running SERK!
Hoist!
