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· Pat's Fan
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363 Posts
Discussion Starter · #1 ·
I know this is very subjective but i want to hear your thoughts on which way i should go to make some more power. I have an 02 with V-Modded Se slip ons, with the SE air fliter and the flash that comes with getting the SE slip on's. I have a 28T pulley, running topless and am looking for more ponies.

Ive read about the PCIII, Race Tuner and a little about the Techlusion TFI BOX . Some questions are........how hard is it to use each one of these? Installation.....easy hard??? Do i need to have it dyno right after installing ? I know very little about any one of them and have hesitated becasue of that but it is now time for me to learn! I see that John is getting 117hp and that looks good. Im curious how much you got from adding the PCIII. Im currently getting 109.3. Is it likely to get another 8 or so HP just from tuning from any of the above choices.

Thanks in advance!
 

· SNAFU
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13,094 Posts
Since the ONLY way you are going to get that last few HP out of your bike is to dyno tune it you should use the Race Tuner. The only reason to get the PCIII would be to take advantage of maps that have already been done for combinations that are radically different from the Harley SE Combos. Your setup is very close to the SE setup, that's why you are getting 109.3 already. Using the Race Tuner will allow you to adjust for the 28T pulley, maintain good driveability, make maximum HP and still get reasonable fuel economy. A properly tuned V-Rod in your configuration should get between 37 - 40 MPG (depending upon riding style) and make 115 - 118 HP.

The only down side, there aren't as many techs up to speed on the RT as there are on the PCIII (at least that seems to be the consensus, my experience has been that if they are good on the V-Rod then they prefer the RT).

Oh, I almost forgot, you asked about easy...... If it was easy then you would have a lot of 115+ HP V-Rods out there. None of the fine tuning is easy with any of these products. The level of ease is also relative to your technical skills. For me the RT is easy, for many it's beyond them.
 

· Pat's Fan
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363 Posts
Discussion Starter · #3 ·
I guess i should ask who makes the Race Tuner? AND how exactly does this work copaired to the others?

Also ............ what other way is there to make HP without using the above mentioned products. (while keeping the motor general stock form)
 

· Color me Gone
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27,325 Posts
CW-VRod, the race tuner is genuine HD. That is why it can be a very powerful tool. It does not have to fool the control module it can actually re-program the module with new data.


Max
 

· Black Beauty Rider
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92 Posts
Just read this thread ...........

I have an '4 VRSCB with V-Mod SE slip ons, K&N filter and the HD race tuner. I get 107.9 rwhp and 73.4 rwtq according to the dyno at dealer where I purchased the bike. After reading this thread, it's obivous my tech is lacking either in knowledge or the correct attitude.
I do have the abilty to understand the race tuner software (I've been an IT manager for some time now) and plan on becoming my own 'expert' this winter.

I'm glad I found this thread. You guys are wealth of information.

Max, great forum!:plause
 

· If You Ain't Cav...
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2,069 Posts
All,
Go here to read the excellent "sticky" from Mark on the "verbology" of the EFI system and those products that can influence the fuel injection system. I will copy the sticky over to this forum as well as it is an excellent high performance reference!

Mike
:biker:
 

· Registered
Joined
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19 Posts
I am pretty sure that the boys at my HD dealer dont have much experience with the V-rod and the Race Tuner!! Is there anyway you can relay settings over the web and we can just use them?? I really dont understand what is involved with the Race Tuner but if that is possible I would be all over that!! Dyno Days are coming up and I want to lay down some sweet numbers!! So far I have the V-mod mufflers in a box......My bike is at RMDBillet so I havent been able to work on it. What else should I be looking at for performance items?? Are there any HD's that I should be worrying about that might put more ponies then me?? I dont know what kind of #'s 1550's put down??
 

· Black Beauty Rider
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92 Posts
Bartels,
I ran against a friend of mine that has a new '03 ElectraGlide standard that has 103" kit, ThunderCones and various other trick stuff. He is the type of person that has to have the throttle twisted to the max ALL the time. It's amazing he is still alive. Anyway, I smoked him with my V-Rod. Standing still or from a roll, he didn't have a prayer. He came running to me at a gas station (go figure?) and he said he couldn't believe how quick my bike was. I really did feel good about that. He couldn't believe how close to stock I was with just V-Modded pipes, SE air cleaner and the race tuner software. I think the real trick is that this bike was dialed in on a dyno. I'm so happy!!!
Fred
Just watch out for those pesky new ('04) R1 Yamahas. 180 hp an a little more than 300 lbs.! Yikes!
 

· Registered
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45 Posts
try J&L harley right in souix falls they might be able to help, where abouts in the dakotas u at i lived in souix foo for a while:icon_mrgr or you could drive the extra 3 or so hours to Fargo Hd i know they can help you
 

· Registered
Joined
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19 Posts
J&L is where I bought my bike. After talking to the Parts guys about the race tuner and the performance side..... I am not in that big of a hurry to let them mess around on the dyno with it! Maybe I should talk to the service side before I totally rule them out???
 

· Twisted!!!!!!!
Joined
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1,471 Posts
I have the RT in a box pending in tank pump replacement at dealer. Still the question remains are there any posts where you can get different calibrations for the RT. I will not have V-Mods. TurboTecs, D+D, or maybe Supertrapp. Are there better starting points than software provided in the CD.
If I sound ignorant maybe it is because I am about 1/3 through the RT manual. I need the most info possible since for the time being I don't have a reliable tuner I can trust.
RT seems easy on paper (.pdf I should say) but it may become difficult in practice, I think.
 

· Fireman/investigator
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1,965 Posts
Hello all,
New to this forum, but appreciate the wealth of knowledge and experience here. Saves us all some headache and time. I too am debating this issue, and am wondering if the R/T is tunable for someone without a dyno. It doesnt seem so, and I have no faith in my dealers techs. V-Mod has a custom map for the PC3R for the setup I am planning on... will that be adequate? My goal is better sound, and NO power loss. More power will of course be appreciated. :banghead




'03 stock, stock, stock.
 

· Fireman/investigator
Joined
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1,965 Posts
Thanks for the reply Val,
I was leaning towards Steves stage 2 package, which is SE V-mods, PC3R, SE air filter, 28 t pulley, speedo recalibrator, and topless. Steve has a custom map for the PC with this setup, and I think he has done a lot of dyno time. I love the look of the 2-1 setups, and I guess this is why I am still holding out on this change. Want to get the most bang for the buck, of course, but want to retain driveability and reliability. So far though, I love the bike... any problems I have had have been from ham handed mechanics.:blahblah:

enough rambling. Thanks again
Greg

'03 stock, stock, stock (still)
 

· Premium Member
Joined
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13,343 Posts
Steve is coming out with some stainless steel (lighter!) 2 into 1 pipes this winter. You might wait... I'm betting he will have a 'package' that does it all.
 

· Fireman/investigator
Joined
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1,965 Posts
I saw that post and am looking forward to the results. I wont be ready to do all the mods until about Feb anyway, so maybe that is fate? Steve was planning these earlier, but there wer complications. I access the internet from work, so MP3's are filtered and I have not heard the sound file for the Supertrapps. If anyone has a .wav file of their STs I would love to hear them, or even Kaz's Turbotechs. I have a feeling that Steves will be similar. He had said something about the current setups being too $$$$$ ro too much like a big twin for the V-rod.

Greg
 
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