Yes that is a old trick that's been used for a long time. It always did a good enough job for the one's of us with little money. Disrupt the flow of air out the tail pipe. Was almost to simple to make a person think it would ever work. But it always did make believers out of the skeptics. The old bikes you could always tinker and try different ways to improve how they ran. Today's computer run bikes are just blah and boring. Great video and for showing today's generation what us old timers do to make our cycles run like a top! 😎
Yeah I don't want a stupid computer on my bike 🤣 I'll be honest, this was something that always sounded too good to be true, but boy am I believer now! Thanks for watching and the nice comment
We were using allthread with a washer inserted in our drag pipes using two nuts so you could vary the pitch for back pressure in the 70s. Glad to see old school coming back.
I had the same results with an Ironhead fitted with drag pipes. I welded penny washers onto bolt shanks and fitted those, just as you did. I experimented with the washer angle and found that 90 degrees worked best to reduce the lag. So satisfying to try something and for it to work for virtually no cost 👍
Another rite of passage for a shovelhead owner, this old timer learned the open pipe lesson decades ago, there's always that dead spot. I usually had the 'can opener' type baffles cut in half, now I've got the Khrome Werks HP-Plus baffles that are a pretty unique design and work well. Also, don't experiment 2" pipes, 1 3/4" pipes provide the proper exhaust speed through the pipe.
This Dead zone is typical of Drag pipes. Yea, they are loud and cool but if your going to Hwy ride distances, you might want to change pipes or add the lollipop. I’d never put drag pipes on my Fatboy because I like to hear my thoughts. I run Vance n Hines and they have a deep thump that’s not obnoxious on the Hwy. Be Safe!
I did the same kind of thing with some drag pipes on my evo softail. Welded some I-bolts to some washers and made one heck of a difference in the mid range. Currently running torque cones in my shovel and considering doing the same on those pipes too to see what happens.
You could always slip a set of aftermarket baffles in your straight pipes , I do that here in N.C. on my 79 ironhead come inspection time . Great content , keep up the good work !
Me too, i had some old short baffles i wanted to take the "edge" off the drag pipe bark. I opened some of the flutes and it's not too mellow and not too sharp. '73 shovel 74", Andrews A, dual plug, single fire H4, solids, KB pistons, S&S E, & drags.
I have Hooker drag pipes and to cheap and broke to buy new. I could see the difference in your Vidya when you rode. I'm gonna try it! Thank you Brother! 😁🍻
Awesome vid; I did the same thing to my bike (pretty built 93" S&S shovelhead with 24" drag pipes). The difference was like NIGHT AND DAY. I started them at 45°, which worked pretty well but gave the exhaust a funny whistling note. Then I tried 90° and that made an even bigger difference and the whistling went away. It was almost a different bike after that.
Lollipops break up straight pipe reversion at the open end of the pipe that stops exhaust pulses from going back into the engine on the exhaust stroke which kills power.
I just got an 1982 FLT, running dual fishtails, no baffles, last weekend. It's got a small primary leak (only a few drops, but it will be on my to-do list) this winter. No other leaks that I can find at this time. I haven't ridden it enough yet (less than 150 miles) to figure out what else it might need. (Appears to run great for now) No fairing, single headlight with dual running lights, 19" spoke front wheel, 16" apes, saddlebags, and low profile seat. I'll have to take it into the hills here in Virginia and see if it needs the exhaust mod in your video. I kinda feel like I stole it. $3,000.00 is what I paid for it, and it seems to have been well taken care of. The paint isn't original, dark metallic flake green, and just needs a little buff and polish to look new. Now, I still need to get my 78 FLH bobber/chopper back on the road. I'm 61 years old, and it's always nice to learn new things to make these old shovelheads perform better.
My slip ons have a spoon looking piece sticking up in them kinda like what you done here. So do my wife's. They're pretty open other than that like drag pipes. Great job working with what ya got.
How I made mine was for a 1st gen fxwg evo chopper, I used a 3/8 bolt and cut a groove in the head of the bolt to weld a 7/8 flat washer into the groove, and ground the outside of the washer to fit loosely in the pipes when welded to the bolt, I then drilled pilot holes all around the washer, this allows you to adjust the backpressure for dyno tuning, I set mine up at a 20 degree of the top of the washer towards the engine. I mainly did this because my chopper would run badly with actual baffling inside the pipes. My early evo has edelbrock heads on it and a monster cam. I even made my own hybrid intake manifold to mate the S&S carb to the edelbrock heads. As the port for the intake on the heads is square port. It took me a while to figure out why the bike was running hot. And it was not the carb. It was the baffling in the pipes, not wanting to piss off my neighbors. I decided to make the old school lollipops, and it should be what I described, not just a thumb screw the early 80s a old outlaw biker showed me how to make them, as he was teaching me to repair a shovelhead sportster I had acquired. And it absolutely works on bikes with a small exhaust port in the heads. Like the shovelhead and early evolution engine bikes. I mounted mine sideways, so the washer would be up and down. Of course my pipes are 2 inch inner diameter.
We did this back in the day with a bolt. The cops would stick their Night stick up your exhaust to see if you had a baffle, so we put a bolt on the back side so not to be seen and the coper thought you had baffles and no ticket.
Awesome fix for small money ! I have drag pipes on my 83 ironhead but havent gotten around to riding it enough to notice the sag. Still needs some TLC before that.. (brakes, indicators, air filter that was never installed, missing engine bolts). Definitely will keep this in mind thanks for the tip!
Honestly, ive heard that long ago, guess i should have listened at 20. Ill be doing that soon. Meeting you in person was pretty cool. Hopefully i can make it to Charlotte this year, probably just be me and one son. Little much for the entire family. Bike sounds great Paul. Thanks.
anything that disrupts the flow of gasses works, The older M1A1 Abrams tank barrel works in a similar way to prevent gasses from going back into the crew area from the breach, that's why there is a bulge in the middle of the barrel. What I did was reverse and used a pressure clamp and squeezed the pipe down about a 1/4", no drilled holes and it looked like it was suppose to be there, worked great. Adapt and overcome
I've owned 6 shovelheads. ALL of em had straight pipes. Never bothered me bout the dead spot, but thats a great tip. And ya that clutch is slipping, so easy to fix. Nice shovel.
Deja vue! Back in the 60s, Honda riders would remove muffs to gain flow and installed commercially made "Snuff-or-Nots" to ease the bark and add backpressure. Just about standard procedure on Scramblers. They had a sprung knob to turn a big washer in the pipe.
@@stan5513 second comment so far calling those out by name! Glad to see the old stuff is still working all these years later, and I'm happy to keep it alive
Dang, I wish I had seen this video 42 years ago. Very early on, I put drag pipes on my '81 FXEF. While the flat spot wasn't as pronounced as yours, it was there. And mine was cammed, a 440 Sifton flat tappet. With the S&S and Barnett clutches. It was always a reliable machine but never lived up to my perception of its potential. As you might imagine, I have been following this project with more than a little interest.
Ah yes, the dreaded 'drag pipe sag!' I put 2.25" drag pipes on my EVO years ago, but I added anti-reversion cones AND baffles. She ran good and I LOVED the way they looked and sounded. A few years ago after replacing the transmission, which necessitated new pipes, I put 1.75" shotgun drag pipes on it. Initially, I ran it without baffles, LOVED the way it sounded, but every time I leaned into it, it fell on its' face. Put some baffles in it and the flat spot went away - along with the cool sound! I have it apart again, doing some upgrades, and I'm going to try a set of DKCustom THUNDER TORQUE INSERTS in place of the baffles. The TTIs are basically the same as your lollipops. I'm interested to see how it will react with the TTIs v the baffles.
I like the look & sound of my drag pipes & they came with the bike. So, I`m keeping them! They`re about the only non stock item on it. I`m poor, living on social security & I`m not going to find or afford original exhaust for it. Up til now my "fix" has been big jets & aggressive throttle, but the condition became worse when I put the stock air cleaner back on with a foam filter. So, I think I might put a smaller intermediate jet back in & do the lollipop trick at some point. Which is all good until I change altitude from my current Florida sea level. Old HD`s are forever a work in progre$$ Thanks Paul!
This comment is concerning your clutch and shifting issues. Paul, I really hope you get to read this comment. The lillipop washer is an old trick and it works. Have a serious look at the Rivera Pro1 clutch for your Shovelhead. I've got one on my '74 FXE. This is a clutch the way H-D should have had a long, long time ago. They are a bit pricey but are super easy to install and set up. I'm running a Baker 6 speed tranny with O/D and my bike shifts super smoothly, not grabby and is quiet. I upgrded to the Baker tranny for the 6-speed feature. I can find neutral easily and no missing 1-2 shifts. And it's not all due to the Baker tranny. I know a couple of other guys that are using the Rivera Pro1 clutch on stock Shovelhead 4-speed trannys and their shifting and clutch operation experiences are the same as mine. It's worth the money, trust me.
I'll check out the clutch, I'm thinking about ordering a clutch set soon, I really need to change the shifter as well, there's so much slop in it. Anyways, thanks for stopping by and the advice
I enjoy your channel. While watching this video it appeared to me that there’s a pretty serious crack line in your rear caliper bracket. Might want to check that.
If you're talking about the vertical line running from the axle down to the bottom of the bracket, that is just anti seize from the axle that's run down from being rained on a few times. But appreciate you watching out for broke stuff on my junk 🤣 thanks for watching
I used some of those cheapy exhaust whistles from ScAmazon to accomplish the same on my XS650... with the whistle bit removed of course. $8 with overnight/same-day delivery. No drilling required, of course. I may take them out and revert to thumbscrews though, this is cool.
Man that is a nice bike you have and I appreciate you for the advice I went to hardware store and got me some stuff to do my exhaust which are hooker exhaust pipes with no baffles and I am fixing to try it our
the first thing I did on mine is replace those open pipes for something with a little silencer on it, it gave me way more low end torque, those open pipes are only good enoug to hang on my wall in the shed
Had 3 shovelheads with drag pipes and SS carbs!!!! All of them had the dead spot but I would just get past that and open her up and run at 65,70,75 and have a nice day!!!!!! And I kept the drag pipes and pauhco up swept fishtails on !!!!
The lollipop mod helped 2023 Road Glide ST with Bassani 2 into 1 shorty pipes a lot. Noticeable improvement in low end and middle range torque. It’s a great mod.
I have these Vietnamese "Dominator" 2-1 pipes with a cable to the butterfly that you adjust while riding, (like a choke) but really, once you find the torque, you never touch it again!
I tried this on my Sportster and hated the change in sound. To me it sounded louder, and I couldn't tell any difference in performance. I removed them. I remember a product for dirt bikes that divided the carb with a horizontal aluminum flat piece and what it did was make it real snappy with a very responsive throttle at lower rpm. I don't think it actually made the bike go any faster at high rpm though. However, that was a real noticeable difference. The name of the product was Power Now, I believe and that's what it felt like at lower rpm. It lived up to it's name.
Are you sure it's the carb or cable flex before it actuates the carb? I've had cable flex that did the same as you describe. Nice bike. Love the shovelheads. For the straights: I always carried a set of slip in spark arrestors when needed. They were not packed with any fiberglass but had louvers stamped in a round hollow tube that went inside the straight pipes. They were held in place by cotter pins. Only 4 inches long but worked perfectly. I've used that type stuff for 50 years. Don't have to re tune either. This is for old NON COMPUTOR bikes. P.S. I used the Mustang fuel tank also. It looks like the one on your bike but is a (1) piece unit that holds 4.5 gallons. Put a speedo & track above the headlight. Love those Buckhorn bars too.
If you’re running an s&s carb. They recommend drag pipes but you need some exhaust back pressure. Cut down baffles do the trick. Also the air cleaner is designed for the carb so after market air cleaners might not be the best option.
I have watched the S&S video that you were talking about, and saw the differences on the dyno with the changes in the sag. It showed quite a bit less sag with the thumb screw at 90 degrees. I wonder how this would change if you added a second thumb screw in each drag pipe offset about an inch or so away from the others.
I just bought a '04 FXDLI , the previous owner had a problem similar to what you're talking about. He found an autistic mechanic that really got down and dirty and figured it out it was a hairline crack on the inside of the butterfly.
Great video and you've got A New Subscriber. I'm from Arizona and I purchased a 94 883 sportster that was converted a 1200 that came with drag pipes and had no real issues it was just to loud for the neighbors So I added the thumb screws as you did only I did it to quiet it down some, but something was just not right after I that. If I could ask what size jets are you running or if you have any suggestions what size jets a 94 883 converted to 1200 with drag pipes should be running...or any changes I may need to make in jets? I'm going to drop the float bowl and check what size jets are in the carb but would like to get your Honest feedback first (If Not To Much Bother). Thank's and Agian Great Info And Video.
Mark, I usually don't get hassled, we don't have helmet laws, no inspections, only need one mirror, hell a seat belt ticket in a car is only 25$ here in SC. If you're being an idiot you'll get to talk to the cops, but I've only been pulled once on a bike, and it was because I forgot to throw a tag on (bike was legal I was just washing it and got distracted)
Drag pipes are impossible to make run properly without back pressure unless you are drag racing. That's why they are called drag pipes! We used to call those things "snuff-r-not". If you want your bike to run its best, get some mufflers.
cool always wonted to try toque cones store bought ones but price of 50$ for a set thur me off & have often wondered if Thumb screw would be close same thing ..Now I Know ..Thanks
Dont buy a throttle by wire bike. They all have a hesitation . It drives me insane.ps the oul leak could be from an ove active chain oiler. My last bike was a 71 and like you i always ran either fish tails or muffers.
your biggest problem is the S&S carp get a 40mm CV carb , .the thumb screw idea can be improved on too , by getting a washer 3/4 of a inch the ID of the drag pipe , weld on a bolt and install it 1/4 turn to the ID of the pipe ,leave the hole in the washer
If your clutch slips you might try (If you haven't already) A. Make sure you don't use synthetic oil or probably even simi synthetic. B. Use more powerful clutch springs. C. Sell the Harley and get an Indian. (Just a joke).
You might want to wear earplugs to save your hearing. I had 3 shovelheads all with straight pipes w/no baffles. I enjoyed the sound of the bikes but the hearing loss and tinnitus from it ain't worth it.
Yes that is a old trick that's been used for a long time. It always did a good enough job for the one's of us with little money. Disrupt the flow of air out the tail pipe. Was almost to simple to make a person think it would ever work. But it always did make believers out of the skeptics. The old bikes you could always tinker and try different ways to improve how they ran. Today's computer run bikes are just blah and boring. Great video and for showing today's generation what us old timers do to make our cycles run like a top! 😎
Yeah I don't want a stupid computer on my bike 🤣 I'll be honest, this was something that always sounded too good to be true, but boy am I believer now! Thanks for watching and the nice comment
F today's bikes.
We were using allthread with a washer inserted in our drag pipes using two nuts so you could vary the pitch for back pressure in the 70s. Glad to see old school coming back.
That's a good way to do it too! Gotta keep the old stuff alive or else it will disappear, thanks for watching
I had the same results with an Ironhead fitted with drag pipes. I welded penny washers onto bolt shanks and fitted those, just as you did. I experimented with the washer angle and found that 90 degrees worked best to reduce the lag. So satisfying to try something and for it to work for virtually no cost 👍
Another rite of passage for a shovelhead owner, this old timer learned the open pipe lesson decades ago, there's always that dead spot. I usually had the 'can opener' type baffles cut in half, now I've got the Khrome Werks HP-Plus baffles that are a pretty unique design and work well. Also, don't experiment 2" pipes, 1 3/4" pipes provide the proper exhaust speed through the pipe.
Yup, amazing how a little back pressure works! I'll check out those baffles, this bike could certainly be quieter for my tastes
This Dead zone is typical of Drag pipes. Yea, they are loud and cool but if your going to Hwy ride distances, you might want to change pipes or add the lollipop. I’d never put drag pipes on my Fatboy because I like to hear my thoughts. I run Vance n Hines and they have a deep thump that’s not obnoxious on the Hwy. Be Safe!
I used eye bolts as lollipops in drag pipes they worked pretty good. I think the hole in the middle made the whole exhaust breathe more efficiently.
I did the same kind of thing with some drag pipes on my evo softail. Welded some I-bolts to some washers and made one heck of a difference in the mid range. Currently running torque cones in my shovel and considering doing the same on those pipes too to see what happens.
I was honestly very surprised with the difference! Glad it's working for other folks too
I just can't understand how one of the realest guys working on bikes has only has 7k subscribers. I am early for once I guess.
Haha appreciate that so much
You could always slip a set of aftermarket baffles in your straight pipes , I do that here in N.C. on my 79 ironhead come inspection time . Great content , keep up the good work !
Thank you! Yeah I might try some baffles, need to do some research on a quality set, what are you using?
I just throw a set of Milwaukee twins 12" baffles in , cheap and easy , about 10 bucks !
Me too, i had some old short baffles i wanted to take the "edge" off the drag pipe bark. I opened some of the flutes and it's not too mellow and not too sharp. '73 shovel 74", Andrews A, dual plug, single fire H4, solids, KB pistons, S&S E, & drags.
I have Hooker drag pipes and to cheap and broke to buy new. I could see the difference in your Vidya when you rode. I'm gonna try it! Thank you Brother! 😁🍻
"Too cheap and too broke" describes me on most days 🤣
Man! Beautiful shovel and pricessless tip! Thanks very much!
Glad you liked it!
Cheers to you for still supporting the Buckhorn bars! Looking at that tank too I think I figured out how you came up with buttcrack cycles.
I like the buckhorns, my kid came up with the name actually 🤣
Buckhorns are the best! Gives you a much better riding position!😎Bike sounds really good,like one is supposed to sound!
Awesome vid; I did the same thing to my bike (pretty built 93" S&S shovelhead with 24" drag pipes). The difference was like NIGHT AND DAY. I started them at 45°, which worked pretty well but gave the exhaust a funny whistling note. Then I tried 90° and that made an even bigger difference and the whistling went away. It was almost a different bike after that.
Yup, big difference for sure!
Lollipops break up straight pipe reversion at the open end of the pipe that stops exhaust pulses from going back into the engine on the exhaust stroke which kills power.
👍🏼👍🏼
What he said
I just got an 1982 FLT, running dual fishtails, no baffles, last weekend.
It's got a small primary leak (only a few drops, but it will be on my to-do list) this winter.
No other leaks that I can find at this time.
I haven't ridden it enough yet (less than 150 miles) to figure out what else it might need. (Appears to run great for now)
No fairing, single headlight with dual running lights, 19" spoke front wheel, 16" apes, saddlebags, and low profile seat.
I'll have to take it into the hills here in Virginia and see if it needs the exhaust mod in your video.
I kinda feel like I stole it.
$3,000.00 is what I paid for it, and it seems to have been well taken care of.
The paint isn't original, dark metallic flake green, and just needs a little buff and polish to look new.
Now, I still need to get my 78 FLH bobber/chopper back on the road.
I'm 61 years old, and it's always nice to learn new things to make these old shovelheads perform better.
3k for that is a steal these days!! Sounds like a good start to what will be a nice bike, enjoy it and thanks for the nice comment
I have used torque tube inserts between the head and the drag pipes for years.
My slip ons have a spoon looking piece sticking up in them kinda like what you done here. So do my wife's. They're pretty open other than that like drag pipes. Great job working with what ya got.
Good video and nice, cheap fix.
DK Custom sells thunder torque inserts that do the same thing but for more than 5 bucks!
Keep the videos coming 👍
Thank you!
the thunder torques are legit. worth the money honestly, theyre not expensive and they make a difference.
DK has the solution.
How I made mine was for a 1st gen fxwg evo chopper, I used a 3/8 bolt and cut a groove in the head of the bolt to weld a 7/8 flat washer into the groove, and ground the outside of the washer to fit loosely in the pipes when welded to the bolt, I then drilled pilot holes all around the washer, this allows you to adjust the backpressure for dyno tuning, I set mine up at a 20 degree of the top of the washer towards the engine. I mainly did this because my chopper would run badly with actual baffling inside the pipes. My early evo has edelbrock heads on it and a monster cam. I even made my own hybrid intake manifold to mate the S&S carb to the edelbrock heads. As the port for the intake on the heads is square port. It took me a while to figure out why the bike was running hot. And it was not the carb. It was the baffling in the pipes, not wanting to piss off my neighbors. I decided to make the old school lollipops, and it should be what I described, not just a thumb screw the early 80s a old outlaw biker showed me how to make them, as he was teaching me to repair a shovelhead sportster I had acquired. And it absolutely works on bikes with a small exhaust port in the heads. Like the shovelhead and early evolution engine bikes. I mounted mine sideways, so the washer would be up and down. Of course my pipes are 2 inch inner diameter.
Cool stuff thanks for the good info
@@buttcrackcycles your welcome.
We did this back in the day with a bolt. The cops would stick their Night stick up your exhaust to see if you had a baffle, so we put a bolt on the back side so not to be seen and the coper thought you had baffles and no ticket.
That's a fun story about the night sticks
Been dere, dun dat!
Night stick up the pipe 😂😂😂
Yeah they stuck a nightstick up my pipes in New Jersey for inspection
Nice! Bike is looking real good man. I love that paint color. Cool tip to fix open pipes. Thanks!
👍🏼 thank you
Awesome fix for small money ! I have drag pipes on my 83 ironhead but havent gotten around to riding it enough to notice the sag. Still needs some TLC before that.. (brakes, indicators, air filter that was never installed, missing engine bolts). Definitely will keep this in mind thanks for the tip!
Honestly, ive heard that long ago, guess i should have listened at 20. Ill be doing that soon. Meeting you in person was pretty cool. Hopefully i can make it to Charlotte this year, probably just be me and one son. Little much for the entire family. Bike sounds great Paul. Thanks.
Look forward to seeing y'all, yeah I didn't think this would work but I was wrong
Hell yea dude! Awesome fix!!!....pretty cool feeling that pull...
Nice one Paul! Don't you just love it when a cheap fix works!
Absolutely, pretty great feeling
anything that disrupts the flow of gasses works, The older M1A1 Abrams tank barrel works in a similar way to prevent gasses from going back into the crew area from the breach, that's why there is a bulge in the middle of the barrel. What I did was reverse and used a pressure clamp and squeezed the pipe down about a 1/4", no drilled holes and it looked like it was suppose to be there, worked great. Adapt and overcome
Nice!
I've owned 6 shovelheads. ALL of em had straight pipes. Never bothered me bout the dead spot, but thats a great tip. And ya that clutch is slipping, so easy to fix. Nice shovel.
Yup I'll knock the clutch out soon
Great Information thanks for the idea, I have drag pipes on mine, i guess i have to make a trip to the hardware store this weekend👍
I’m 71 years old and have been using that “trick” on straight pipes on motorcycles for as long as I can remember
Deja vue! Back in the 60s, Honda riders would remove muffs to gain flow and installed commercially made "Snuff-or-Nots" to ease the bark and add backpressure. Just about standard procedure on Scramblers. They had a sprung knob to turn a big washer in the pipe.
@@stan5513 second comment so far calling those out by name! Glad to see the old stuff is still working all these years later, and I'm happy to keep it alive
Dang, I wish I had seen this video 42 years ago. Very early on, I put drag pipes on my '81 FXEF. While the flat spot wasn't as pronounced as yours, it was there. And mine was cammed, a 440 Sifton flat tappet. With the S&S and Barnett clutches. It was always a reliable machine but never lived up to my perception of its potential. As you might imagine, I have been following this project with more than a little interest.
Thanks for the comment, that sounds like a pretty sweet ride you had
@@buttcrackcycles Rode it 9 years, about 80K miles.
Ah yes, the dreaded 'drag pipe sag!'
I put 2.25" drag pipes on my EVO years ago, but I added anti-reversion cones AND baffles. She ran good and I LOVED the way they looked and sounded. A few years ago after replacing the transmission, which necessitated new pipes, I put 1.75" shotgun drag pipes on it. Initially, I ran it without baffles, LOVED the way it sounded, but every time I leaned into it, it fell on its' face. Put some baffles in it and the flat spot went away - along with the cool sound!
I have it apart again, doing some upgrades, and I'm going to try a set of DKCustom THUNDER TORQUE INSERTS in place of the baffles. The TTIs are basically the same as your lollipops. I'm interested to see how it will react with the TTIs v the baffles.
Seems like those DK ones are very popular reading the comments I've gotten so far, hope they work well for you
I’d like to see if removing the screw if it would still do the same thing without the screw in it?
Well executed video. Clean shovelhead dude!
Thank you!
THATS A BEAUTY BROTHA ... AND ITS A KICKER TOO SHOOSH ... THANKS FOR THE VIDEO 😊❤
Thank you for watching
I like the look & sound of my drag pipes & they came with the bike. So, I`m keeping them!
They`re about the only non stock item on it.
I`m poor, living on social security & I`m not going to find or afford original exhaust for it.
Up til now my "fix" has been big jets & aggressive throttle, but the condition became worse when I put the stock air cleaner back on with a foam filter.
So, I think I might put a smaller intermediate jet back in & do the lollipop trick at some point.
Which is all good until I change altitude from my current Florida sea level.
Old HD`s are forever a work in progre$$
Thanks Paul!
Hey, try it! Let me know if you do! Good hearing from you as always
Little nit picky projects are great. Thanks for the vid.
This comment is concerning your clutch and shifting issues. Paul, I really hope you get to read this comment. The lillipop washer is an old trick and it works. Have a serious look at the Rivera Pro1 clutch for your Shovelhead. I've got one on my '74 FXE. This is a clutch the way H-D should have had a long, long time ago. They are a bit pricey but are super easy to install and set up. I'm running a Baker 6 speed tranny with O/D and my bike shifts super smoothly, not grabby and is quiet. I upgrded to the Baker tranny for the 6-speed feature. I can find neutral easily and no missing 1-2 shifts. And it's not all due to the Baker tranny. I know a couple of other guys that are using the Rivera Pro1 clutch on stock Shovelhead 4-speed trannys and their shifting and clutch operation experiences are the same as mine. It's worth the money, trust me.
I'll check out the clutch, I'm thinking about ordering a clutch set soon, I really need to change the shifter as well, there's so much slop in it. Anyways, thanks for stopping by and the advice
I enjoy your channel. While watching this video it appeared to me that there’s a pretty serious crack line in your rear caliper bracket.
Might want to check that.
If you're talking about the vertical line running from the axle down to the bottom of the bracket, that is just anti seize from the axle that's run down from being rained on a few times. But appreciate you watching out for broke stuff on my junk 🤣 thanks for watching
I used some of those cheapy exhaust whistles from ScAmazon to accomplish the same on my XS650... with the whistle bit removed of course. $8 with overnight/same-day delivery. No drilling required, of course.
I may take them out and revert to thumbscrews though, this is cool.
Glad you thought it was cool!
I did it on my 78 sportster with drag pipes. I used a washer & bolt & tack welded it. Works great, and adjustable.
Man that is a nice bike you have and I appreciate you for the advice I went to hardware store and got me some stuff to do my exhaust which are hooker exhaust pipes with no baffles and I am fixing to try it our
the first thing I did on mine is replace those open pipes for something with a little silencer on it, it gave me way more low end torque, those open pipes are only good enoug to hang on my wall in the shed
Had 3 shovelheads with drag pipes and SS carbs!!!! All of them had the dead spot but I would just get past that and open her up and run at 65,70,75 and have a nice day!!!!!! And I kept the drag pipes and pauhco up swept fishtails on !!!!
Very good tip and cheap at that. There is a co. that makes those little baffles just for that problem.
Alright next episode of the Storys from the chicken Coop 💪🏼 shovel on brother 👊🏼
Haha you know it
The lollipop mod helped 2023 Road Glide ST with Bassani 2 into 1 shorty pipes a lot. Noticeable improvement in low end and middle range torque. It’s a great mod.
I use a wingnuts with lock washers on the outside of the pipe.so it stays put and adjust on the fly.
I have these Vietnamese "Dominator" 2-1 pipes with a cable to the butterfly that you adjust while riding, (like a choke) but really, once you find the torque, you never touch it again!
Did the same exact thing on mine, worked great, DK customs sells some that almost fill the pipe, they are about $50.
Yeah sounds like those DK ones are pretty popular
I tried this on my Sportster and hated the change in sound. To me it sounded louder, and I couldn't tell any difference in performance. I removed them.
I remember a product for dirt bikes that divided the carb with a horizontal aluminum flat piece and what it did was make it real snappy with a very responsive throttle at lower rpm. I don't think it actually made the bike go any faster at high rpm though. However, that was a real noticeable difference. The name of the product was Power Now, I believe and that's what it felt like at lower rpm. It lived up to it's name.
Are you sure it's the carb or cable flex before it actuates the carb? I've had cable flex that did the same as you describe. Nice bike. Love the shovelheads. For the straights: I always carried a set of slip in spark arrestors when needed. They were not packed with any fiberglass but had louvers stamped in a round hollow tube that went inside the straight pipes. They were held in place by cotter pins. Only 4 inches long but worked perfectly. I've used that type stuff for 50 years. Don't have to re tune either. This is for old NON COMPUTOR bikes. P.S. I used the Mustang fuel tank also. It looks like the one on your bike but is a (1) piece unit that holds 4.5 gallons. Put a speedo & track above the headlight. Love those Buckhorn bars too.
If you’re running an s&s carb. They recommend drag pipes but you need some exhaust back pressure. Cut down baffles do the trick. Also the air cleaner is designed for the carb so after market air cleaners might not be the best option.
Oh New Sub ... Thanks brotha stay Vigilant ... N always stay safe ....
This is what I need to do, my Cobra pipes, well, real rowdy.
Drop a comment after you do it and let us know how it worked
that rooster stole the whole video!
He does that 🤣
Well done Paul!
Thanks John
Been running those on my 1980 fxb for 24 yrs, same drag pipes.
A torque cone in the head works pretty good if you don't want to drill your pipes.- Lefty "Under the Blood M/M"
A good running shovelhead with straight pipes is the second most beautiful sound there is.
I have watched the S&S video that you were talking about, and saw the differences on the dyno with the changes in the sag. It showed quite a bit less sag with the thumb screw at 90 degrees. I wonder how this would change if you added a second thumb screw in each drag pipe offset about an inch or so away from the others.
That might be a fun thing to try!
I've got to admit, I do prefer a good set of mufflers on my bike. Presently it has Screamin' Eagles on it but they are not staying.
Same, this bike is too loud for me
Sounds pretty happy
Helluva tip, thanks!!!
You bet!
Exactly, Been there ;-)
Thanks, i was thinking I'd have to play with the jets to fix this
If you didn't want to drill holes in your drag pipes, try the torque cones. They worked well for me.
Have you tried changing the ignition timing to get rid of that flat spot?
This has been around since the 60's! They were called Snuff-or- Nots!
That's a great name! Yeah, I'm happy to see some of the old stuff still working
I just bought a '04 FXDLI , the previous owner had a problem similar to what you're talking about. He found an autistic mechanic that really got down and dirty and figured it out it was a hairline crack on the inside of the butterfly.
Great video and you've got A New Subscriber. I'm from Arizona and I purchased a 94 883 sportster that was converted a 1200 that came with drag pipes and had no real issues it was just to loud for the neighbors
So I added the thumb screws as you did only I did it to quiet it down some, but something was just not right after I that.
If I could ask what size jets are you running or if you have any suggestions what size jets a 94 883 converted to 1200 with drag pipes should be running...or any changes I may need to make in jets?
I'm going to drop the float bowl and check what size jets are in the carb but would like to get your Honest feedback first (If Not To Much Bother).
Thank's and Agian Great Info And Video.
Try 45/170 or 45/180, make are there are no intake manifold leaks.
GREAT INFORMATION
Thanks
Glad it was helpful!
How are the cops down south with choppers , drag pipes , ape hangers , etc ?
I've been curious about this . Thanks 😊
Mark from Maryland
Nobody in law enforcement cares in Louisiana. We don't get bikes inspected either, cops don't care.
Mark, I usually don't get hassled, we don't have helmet laws, no inspections, only need one mirror, hell a seat belt ticket in a car is only 25$ here in SC. If you're being an idiot you'll get to talk to the cops, but I've only been pulled once on a bike, and it was because I forgot to throw a tag on (bike was legal I was just washing it and got distracted)
🤘😎🤘
Sounds like not enough back pressure and you fixed it 😂
Haha yup
Drag pipes are impossible to make run properly without back pressure unless you are drag racing. That's why they are called drag pipes!
We used to call those things "snuff-r-not".
If you want your bike to run its best, get some mufflers.
Beautiful bike my man but that rear view mirror;) im not sure...awesome video tho sounds amazing.
I love my mirror!
@buttcrackcycles I hear ya man just messin with you ;)
Bike sounds good
Actually there has been for many years a productcalled "torque cones" just forthis problem; they go inside the pipe up at the exhaust clamp.
No holes.
I did something similar a while ago worked well
cool always wonted to try toque cones store bought ones but price of 50$ for a set thur me off & have often wondered if Thumb screw would be close same thing ..Now I Know ..Thanks
Yeah I would definitely try the screws for how cheap it is
Should have popped a set of torque cones in the headers - would improve the whole rev range only cost about £50.
Tatro machine would have a cam.for that motor....
Hahaha! Killer name!
Haha courtesy of my goofy kid 🤣
Lollipops or not, is tuning it an option?
Dont buy a throttle by wire bike. They all have a hesitation . It drives me insane.ps the oul leak could be from an ove active chain oiler. My last bike was a 71 and like you i always ran either fish tails or muffers.
Yeah I'm probably going to look into the primary leak this week, so we'll see!
How would I do this on straight pipe fishtails? Would I be able to get the lollipop in there?
D K CUSTOMS make thunder tork Inserts just for this problem They have three sizes Its a modern day lilypop but better They work 👍 👌 😊
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Will this work on the LAF drag pipes that shot out below dipstick , towards ground? On a Dyna model.
your biggest problem is the S&S carp get a 40mm CV carb , .the thumb screw idea can be improved on too , by getting a washer 3/4 of a inch the ID of the drag pipe , weld on a bolt and install it 1/4 turn to the ID of the pipe ,leave the hole in the washer
Cool trick
Exhaust "back pressure" is often forgotten. A two stroke engine will teach you this lesson. 😮
It’s more for reversion
"Back pressure" is uniquely a 2- cycle goal.
Anti reversion is what is needed on a 4 stroke.
Is that a vertical crack in the rear caliper bracket?
Grease running down from the axle
You’ve got to have some back pressure
correct way to do things ,,, --- try the cheap way first ;;
I don't mind spending money, but if I can fix it without... 🤣
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If your clutch slips you might try (If you haven't already) A. Make sure you don't use synthetic oil or probably even simi synthetic. B. Use more powerful clutch springs. C. Sell the Harley and get an Indian. (Just a joke).
You might want to wear earplugs to save your hearing. I had 3 shovelheads all with straight pipes w/no baffles. I enjoyed the sound of the bikes but the hearing loss and tinnitus from it ain't worth it.
I'll throw a set of in ear plugs for longer rides! The drag pipes are too loud for me honestly
I have baffles in my drag pipes ' works well
Nice!
stronger clutch springs
Sounds to me like timing chain