Save on gas

I get better'n 40 around town and can break 50 mpg on the hwy if not pushing it on the FJR1300. With a 6.6 gallon tank (starting to cost $20 a fillup now), have ridden as much as 330+ miles on a tank. Can get at least 5 bags of groceries in the bags and trunk when food shopping.

I know lean will do it but I've looked at every possibility for air leaks and can't find anything...even changed the intake seals to be sure. The carb had a 45 pilot in it when I bought the bike and it took forever to warm up. I moved up to a 48 pilot and now quick warm up, no coughs, and still 50+ mpg. Like I said... I don't know why.

In 40 years I have too. Back in 1969, when I thought I'd just die if I couldn't get the new Sportster I wanted, but didn't have the $$$ and Mom wouldn't give it to me (I was 16), the "cool" guys rode Sportsters. But I bought a 1947 Knucklehead "chopper" I did have the $$$ for from a newspaper ad & I thought I was pretty "cool" too :roflmao: I'm an idiot for ever selling that one - but teenagers ain't got the sense God gave seafood

Rode some pretty nice Japanese bikes on & off & wish I'd never sold the 1987 Yamaha Fazer either. Didn't get a Sportster until '99 & by then the "starter bike" deal had been established - I believe from the days that you could buy a new Sportster & "upgrade" to a BT within a year & get the original retail price of the Sportster as trade-in value.

I've heard both sides of that deal - "Starter bike", "Girl's bike" & old-timers with BT's walking past a Sportster in a parking lot - "Y'know, I used to have one of those & it sure was fun - wish I'd kept it." I don't look down @ any motorcycle or rider, no matter what they choose. I may not like the bike for what I want, but that doesn't mean it's a bad bike or that the rider is a fool for choosing it.

Harleys like lean - but they don't live very long that way. That's one of those deals where what works @ the racetrack does not work on the street.

My Sportsters' mileage is typically 47-53, but road conditions & riding style have a lot to do with it. I don't push the road bikes all that hard (normally), but I'm on the backroads which are twisty & hilly most of the time. At a steady speed out on the interstate you'll get better mileage. Stop & go city riding you'll get less.

And the advice about tire pressures is good - too low will definitely drop your fuel mileage & also make the bike less responsive. Too low & it's dangerous to ride. I keep a gauge in the fork bag or in my jacket pocket @ all times & check tire pressures before every ride. At gas stops too - if the pressure goes up more than 4 psi, it was too low to begin with.

My RK gets anywhere from 40 to 50 mpg depending on conditions and terrain. The SofTail stroker gets a consistant 50 but it has an S&S carb. I kind of figured the efi would get better mileage than the carb but it doesen't appear too. It also runs leaner showing a much lighter tan on the plug than the carb which is a nice dark tan. As far as additives getting better mileage for you, the stuff I've tried doesn't seem to make much difference. It seems that if you could make it burn slower it would increase your mileage, like the aviation grade premium 100+ octane they used to sell years ago at Sturgis, now that did make a difference in performance and mileage. Al

Just for grins I raised the needle one notch and took it out for a quick test. Seemed to pull a little harder and ran on up to 110 before backing off. So far I haven't been able to make this twinkie go too rich. Setup is: 48 pilot, thunderslide, 185 main, needle in 5th notch, mix screw out 2 3/4. The next main in the thunderslide kit was a 195 and I think would be too much. For more grins I may give the last notch on the needle a try but I'm pretty happy with what I got. :rocket_bike:

LOL !! You know how fond I am of those I was just looking @ the "Stage I" carb kit "kenfuzed" deals with & that's the same type deal the best tuners have used for years - the stock needle is usually a problem so change it (I like the N65C), get the jetting right, get the idle mixture set right & you're done.

Some change the slide spring to a slightly lighter one & that can be beneficial, but if you go drilling the slide or go with the plastic slide deal, the slide will "hunt" - always trying to find the right spot, but it never does. Oh yeah, it'll raise quicker & WOT on the dyno it can look like a good thing - but not going down the road.

When the slide goes up so does the needle, allowing more fuel to come out the main jet & the whole idea of the CV (constant velocity) carb is to keep the *speed* of the incoming air the same all time, even though the *volume* of air changes with throttle position. But if the slide goes up too fast, the mixture goes rich because now you're pulling on the main & the *speed* of the incoming air has dropped.

Then the slide drops to correct - but it drops too far with a lightweight or drilled slide & soft spring. Then it goes back up to correct again. Over & over again. It won't do this on the dyno @ WOT, but it will going down the road in normal riding conditions & whether the "seat of the pants dyno" tells you or not, the carb is never working properly.

Another thing is the plastic slide "galls" on carb body - it can stick in certain spots & doesn't move as smoothly as a stock one. Some guys polish the stock ones & that's fine, but the original design is pretty darn good.

And working right, the CV will adjust itself to altitude changes because as the density of the air changes, so does the slide position - again the idea is keeping the *speed* of the incoming air the same. I know folks who see as much as 5500' of altitude change on a day's ride & they don't need to do anything to the carb because the jetting's right & the slide/needle are doing what they're supposed to do.

Here's an article a fella I've corresponded with for quite a while wrote about the CV carb which you may be interested in: http://www.sportster.org/tech/carb/rejetting-bussy.shtml

So somebody tell me, is the acetone BS ?? Im tired of the 14mpg my F150 gets.....Its killin me

:roflmao: Yes, the acetone deal is BS. What - you need some fingernail polish remover? :roflmao:

If I knew more about your F-150 I could tell you how to get the mileage up in that truck though & with gasoline costs as high as they are, the 10 cent/gallon difference (in this area) between grades regular, mid-grade & premium is nearly irrellevant.

I did some things including advancing the ignition timing on my old E-250 van enough that it'll only run on premium without "pinging" - but increased the mileage more than enough to pay for the 20 cent/gallon higher price. Different engines respond differently though, so it's not as simple as bumping the timing up.

My Dakota has a 360 in it and what helped a little for me was putting on Flowmaster pipes and a K&N cold air induction system, I also switched to Mobil 1 after break in. On a real good day I break over 20mpg but usually about 18mpg. It was getting 14mpg. An added bonus, it sounds good and you can feel the power boost in the seat of your pants. Of course getting it on defeats the whole purpose, but I usually only do that on a full moon. AL

"Usually only on a full moon" - yeah - like we believe that But Ultra Al's point is right on - it's like "paying the Harley Tax" on a bike to get the engine to breathe.

my 1983 ironhead gets 41-42 mpg unless im heavy handed lol

MY TRUCK IS GETTING GREAT GAS MILAGE AT SOMEONE ELSE'S EXPENCE NOW:roflmao: GOT RID OF THE GAS GUSSLER

That's how I fixed my big Chevy too. :roflmao:

I had an extra cab, 4x4 with 8' bed and it wouldn't do any better than 12 mpg on a good day, down hill with a tail wind. I wasn't workin it enough to justify the fuel so off it went.

Now I have a Toyota truck I got for nuthin. I'm even beginning to like the thing.

well while were on truck talk/ bike talk scoot gets close to 50, the stats on my sons sporty 883 is still pending and if I don't try to be the first one to the wreck in my 3500 cummins dodge, it will bump up to 28-30 the tahoe is around 20 avg and the horse was only 1/3 bale a day running or not.

If I could carry a load of gravel or pull my boat or my trailer with my Dyna Id do it....but I have no choice....I dont know what kind of mileage Im getting when Im towing but Im sure it aint good.

Might want to tweak the Dodge a little bit. I've got a 98 1/2, the 1st of the 4 valve/cyl. electronically controlled models (yours has a better fuel pump & injection) & it gets 18 mpg just about all the time. And mine's a 4x4 auto trans. with 4.10 gears & 12.50 x 33 x 16.50 BFG mud terrain tires. Friend of mine's got a 6x6 "Dually" auto with the standard 3.57 gears & highway tires - his gets 21 mpg all day long & that's with loaded Pepsi machines in the back too (he owns a small vending machine co.).

All I've done to mine is remove the tailpipe, muffler & resonator, put on a Flowmaster, run a pipe out in front of the right rear tire & change the stock air filter to a K&N, which drops right in the stock airbox. I could tell the difference before I even got up to the end of the driveway. And I could sure tell pulling my travel trailer that weighs 9300 lbs.

I haven't added an aftermarket electronic tuning device but I will 'cause I know a couple guys who have - one on another '98 1/2 auto & the other on an '06. They're expensive as the dickens, but with free-flowing intake & exhaust, will pick up mileage & power both. Both those trucks are Dually's but do not have the 4x4 front axle & they run the standard gears & highway tires. Their mileage is consistently over 22 in this rural area & the '06 with a manual trans. will get 25-26 if you keep your foot out of it & the rpms down.