Carb Help, want to eliminate air box any suggestions ?

[webman64]

Hey Thanks for reading my post ! I love this club, sorry newbie here

Anyway, I have a 1980 XS1100 I think its a G or D model, square headlight, speedo goes to 85,etc.

I want to eliminate the air box completely and use K & N's Kit for it, comes with 4 separate filters and clamps. Here is a link to it, http://www.knfilters.com/search/prod...x?prod=RC-0984

My question is would I have to rejet the carbs if I was to do this ? Has any ones here done this yet, if so, please let me know how it worked out for you.

Any help before I switch it would be great !! Still have like 3 weeks, so lots of time to get it right~!

Thanks GUys/Gals

Johnny V..

[crazy steve]

Yes, a rejet will probably be needed...

If you're looking for a performance increase, don't bother. It does make removing the carbs much easier (the usual reason for doing this) and some do it for looks. There's much cheaper alternatives too, so it might pay to look around. MikesXS carries some that are decent....

The stock airbox is a pretty good piece performance-wise, drop in a K&N replacement filter for the most bang-for-the-buck....

[motoman]

+1 what Steve stated. If your looking for a performance increase........urban bunk. These CV carbs work the best vacuum wise using the stock air box. With a couple times removing the carbs and air box (lower portion removed along with filter, upper pulled back and DOWN out of way WITHOUT total removal) there's no reason it should take more than 15min. for carb removal, tops.

[jetmechmarty]

Even if you go to the XS650 forums, the people who know what they're talking about say to stick with the stock airbox if you're going to stick with the stock CV carbs. They perform best with the still air of the airbox.

FWIW, I have never deviated from the airbox. There are some people who have opinions that should be trusted. That's what these forums are for.

[Rasputin]

I did the K+N pods on one bike. The tuning hassle was incredibly tedious. Every bike I have worked on since has the air box. I refuse to install pods for other riders who want me to. There are ways of dealing with the pods but the stock box and other equipment will out perform it every time. Do what you want as it is your bike, but I would not.

[webman64]

Hey Thanks for reading my post ! I love this club, sorry newbie here

Anyway, I have a 1980 XS1100 I think its a G or D model, square headlight, speedo goes to 85,etc.

I want to eliminate the air box completely and use K & N's Kit for it, comes with 4 separate filters and clamps. Here is a link to it, http://www.knfilters.com/search/prod...x?prod=RC-0984

My question is would I have to rejet the carbs if I was to do this ? Has any ones here done this yet, if so, please let me know how it worked out for you.

Any help before I switch it would be great !! Still have like 3 weeks, so lots of time to get it right~!

Thanks GUys/Gals

Johnny V..

Hi again,

Ok, I got all your replies so far. Yes, the reason was mostly to make the bike look better and stuff. I think the bike is fast enough the way it is

Well, looks like its better to just keep the box and get a new filter..

Thanks for the help @

Johnny V.
http://www.HeavenlyHerbalz.com

[fredintoon]

- - - I want to eliminate the air box completely and use K & N's Kit for it, comes with 4 separate filters and clamps. Here is a link to it, http://www.knfilters.com/search/prod...x?prod=RC-0984
My question is would I have to rejet the carbs if I was to do this ? Has any ones here done this yet, if so, please let me know how it worked out for you. - - -

Hi Johnny and welcome,
those pods are magic. Well, the ones that MikesXS sells at half that price and have XS embossed on the endplates are magic.
Like most folks, my XS11SG was suffering from extreme PO neglect when I got it.
Carbs came off, got cleaned, reinstalled, repeat repeat repeat. I was so sick of the hours of labor and bloody knuckles involved in removing and replacing the airbox every carb cleaning cycle that I went to pods instead.
And the magic? Ever since the pods went on I've not had to remove the carbs.
I did go one size up on the main jets.
The bike don't run any better on pods and the carbs not crudding up any more could just be a coincidence.
I'd say try the pods if you like the look but keep the airbox safe in case you want to switch back.

[trbig]

Like Fred, I've had the pod filters on my bike for the majority of the time I've owned it. I also went up one size on the mains. The XJ is even tougher to remove/reinstall carbs on than the XS due to the airbox not being able to move back any further. With the pods, my bike is faster than most, but slower than some, but like you, I'm not going to worry about a couple HP plus or minus. I don't understand peoples' problems with tuning them, but it is what it is. If you are trying to wring out every single HP, then yes, the airbox is going to be the best bet, but those that don't have an absolutely perfectly tuned bike aren't going to see any better performance by keeping the stock airbox.

The thing I really love about the pod filters are the ease of remove/install, but what I REALLY love is the sound you get from them. At low RPM, it's a really throaty growl. At high RPM, they just sing to you.. I don't know if you've seen this video or not, but I love the sound as much or more than the video..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3geieNEGmQY

[TopCatGr58]

Hey there Webman,

Like Marty/JetMech said, there are lots of opinions around. Figuring out WHO's opinions you want to believe may be the hard part!

I also put Pod filters on mine many a year ago because of the R&R carb hassles, but also for the styling, and then found the SOUND benefit as Tod commented as well! The better quality Pods like the XS brand that MikesXS.net sells do NOT have a restrictive mounting lip, so they don't interfere with the carbs intake bells ports and vac. slide slot. But they are mounted close to the carb's intake bell, and so with the air coming in from the SIDE, turbulence can develop. The OEM airbox has long velocity stack type tubes that extend deep into the airbox which helps straighten out the airflow before it gets to the carbs.

Because of the interfering mounting lip on the "CHEAP" EMGO brand Pods, we learned to mount them onto modified velocity stack type mounts/tubes, etc. fashioned from a variety of materials...even household plumbing supplies!
Others used the stock airbox velocity tubes. This has helped straighten out the airflow from the filter to the carbs, and so tuning the carbs hasn't been any kind of problem. I also had aftermarket exhausts and a big bore kit, so I went up 3 main jet sizes, but it performs just fine, starts, idles, responds to throttle and all just fine. YMMV!

T.C.

[yamtom]

pods yes but

Ive got pods on two elevens, and have original pipes on both, but hardly muffs on the MNS. I used emgo s, the cheapo ones, dont recommend them, but they work ok. I am not the type to notice a diff of a couple hps, I put the pods on because I didnt like the r n r on the airbox. With stock pipes, I did no rejetting at all. I discovered with the emgo s, the main problem is that they are difficult to tighten on, such that they always stay on. On both bikes I have had one of them fall off onto the back of the engine, much to my chagrin. I havnt actually lost one yet, but have to be careful to tighten them just right. Better to go with the better quality ones, methinks. I like the louder air sound too.

[XS1100_OEM4ME]

R/I Carbs

As to R/I carbs, they are tough till you get the procedure right, then it is easy with the OEM air box, this vid shows the complete install in 5 min, and its easer to remove them then install them IMHO. Note the throttle cable hook up before putting them all the way in is a help

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwfALaur7Zw

[XSive-11]

Wow, that dude was bookin'!

[Rasputin]

As to R/I carbs, they are tough till you get the procedure right, then it is easy with the OEM air box, this vid shows the complete install in 5 min, and its easer to remove them then install them IMHO. Note the throttle cable hook up before putting them all the way in is a help

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwfALaur7Zw

Just a note for other members that this video is listed under the forums maintenance section so it is easy to find.
I did not say that the pods were impossible to tune just tedious. A good running bike can be done, I just won't do it again. This set of video's made me think that stock air boxes were just fine.
Best time so far for just the carb and air box R+R (not including fuel lines, tank, seat and all that crap) is just over 4 minutes. I do not see the advantage of the pods when I can do it as fast and easy as that.
Pods sound great...Look bitchin... You can see which carb is leaking...BUT!
They fall off at some point on almost every riders bike, should have a support on them so the weight is not all on the carb boots, are more expensive to buy (at least the K+N's are), tend to make the wind blow off the side covers, seem to require re-jetting on most rides, shrink if gas gets to the rubber portions (K+N will warranty this), you have to purchase/install separate filters on the breather lines (older carbs), make fuel line routing and inline filter installation a bit harder, on specials are harder to fit fuel lines to petcocks, when they are shiny new they look cool but once a bit dirty (when they are at their best for filtration) look bad, and then there is the whole question of whether to run velocity stacks to improve performance and all that stuff and some report wet riding conditions affect the pods (I have yet to find this to be a fact), and any order of other things that members have listed over the years.
Any one who is running pods and having good luck has worked on them and answered questions about the above listed problems. That or they have left a good deal of performance and economy on the table.
Any who run the stock air box do not have these issues. I do see the need on an XJ as those air box buggers are hard to deal with at the best of times.
It is a personal choice and kudo's to those who will spend the time and effort to get it right as many have done. It is your bike and it only needs to please you so do what you think is best and have fun.

[webman64]

Hi, Guys, I think I am going to go with the Conversion

Gonna go ahead and do this for cosmetic and access reasons.

I will need to get 4 new main jets correct ? What would they be in size I would need and would the actual needle settings be the same on each carb ?

If so, what size would I need ?

thanks guys 4 all your help

Johnny V,

[natemoen]

Gonna go ahead and do this for cosmetic and access reasons.

I will need to get 4 new main jets correct ? What would they be in size I would need and would the actual needle settings be the same on each carb ?

If so, what size would I need ?

thanks guys 4 all your help

Johnny V,

Well to answer this question we need to know for sure what model bike you have and if you do have an '80 they we need to know which type of carbs you have since '80 was a switch year and there are a couple types.

Also what other mods you have.