best performance for money

[blubyubusa]

Just purchased a 12 super glide with very low mileage. I have been riding a 09 vrod and was satisfied with its performance but have noticed the super glide is not as "peppy" as the vrod, that sounds better than the dyna is much slower. Going with the usual upgrades of exhaust, fuel controller and more air flow by less restrictive air filter, how much of an improvement can be had. I have heard a lot about cam changes, will the heads flow enough to make that change beneficial for a single rider and what changes the rev limit. By the way the dyna is somewhat more comfortable. I guess the mods begin. Thanks to all who respond. Even a response or thread for the information would be appreciated.

[guydoc77]

After the air cleaner and pipes that you mention, I think, by far, the best bang for buck is a bolt in set of cams. And yes, with just these mods, the stock heads will flow sufficiently. You can realistically expect an increase of 15-20 lb/ft of torque and 10-15 hp.

[59panhead]

K&N Air filter V & H 2 -1 pro pipe system, and a V&H ful pac You can do all the work yourself in 1/2 a day and you wont waste a ton of money on dyno tuning crap, and beating the you know what out of the bike! plus your motor will run about 40 degrees cooler and your right leg wont feel like its on fire!

[blubyubusa]

Guydoc you mentioned, I believe, 10 to 15 horsepower increase, I assume that is with the change in exhaust, air filter, fuel controller and cams, not the cams alone. On the crotch rockets of my past the cams are worth six to eight horsepower and the other items give about the same amount giving a total of 15. Sorry to be dense. I sincerely appreciate you kind response.

[guydoc77]

Yup. Pipe, AC, and cams is good for those increases. I'll give you an example.

Buddy of mine with an '07 EG.

Performance slip ons and high flow AC.
Bolted in SE 255 cams and is at 97 lb/ft and 85 hp.

Stock numbers are generally around 80-85 lb/ft and 70 hp. Not sure exactly what he made stock but have no doubt it was right in that range.

Check the dyno section on this and other forums and on some of the aftermarket suppliers sites.

[andij]

doc is right the bolt in cam plus air/pipe does wake up stock 96, the 204s work well as a trouble free cost effective upgrade ..

[FXDRYDR]

+1 what doc nd andji said. That will wake your Dyna up.

[billbeemer]

after a v-rod, fogettaboutit! u can spend all u want on hop ups, it ain't gonna run like somethig with 120hp. been there, done that. i just went from an '04 bmw k1200 to '06 superglide. the beemer ran better in third gear than any harley. they are what they are, get on the bike and putz along at 60 or so and enjoy the scenery and great noise it makes. that's what i do. if u can't accept that, get something that runs , like a bmw or v-rod.

[guydoc77]

billbeemer makes an interesting point.

HD bikes are fairly anemic in stock form though so the question is how far do you go in the quest for power without spending thousands.

The combo being discussed here is, I think, the best bang for buck. Riding up hills, passing, and, particularly where I live, riding in the wind all become much less of an effort with just these mods.

One thing we didn't mention here is that, with bolt in cams, the Fuelpak won't cut it any longer. A much more capable tuning device is required. That's a whole other can of worms and an additional expense. Doing SE 255 cams or SE 204 cams at the dealer however, you may get by with a dealer flash of the ECM. That can work sometimes but for best performance, mileage, and engine longevity most of us would recommend a tuning device and a dyno tune by someone who knows what they are doing. Devices I'd recommend are SE Super Tuner, Direct Link, Power Vision, or Power Commander V. Lots of us have used the TTS Mastertune device but I'm not sure you'll be able to get one in a timely fashion right now.

[blubyubusa]

Billbeemer, I went to sleep last night thinking exactly what you just posted. Enjoy the bike for what, it is and do not try to make a racer out of it. A friend of mine says the MOCO makes tractor motors and you cannot make a speed demon out of a tractor without an unbelievable amount of money. Again, thanks to responders

[Half_crazy]

It'd be expensive to make a big twin put out V-Rod HP... but with some inexpensive breathing mods and mild cams it will certainly out-torque the V-Rod.

[Dave in Texas]

Originally Posted by billbeemer

after a v-rod, fogettaboutit! u can spend all u want on hop ups, it ain't gonna run like somethig with 120hp. been there, done that. i just went from an '04 bmw k1200 to '06 superglide. the beemer ran better in third gear than any harley. they are what they are, get on the bike and putz along at 60 or so and enjoy the scenery and great noise it makes. that's what i do. if u can't accept that, get something that runs , like a bmw or v-rod.

Exactly right.

[jojo2dog]

I HAVE A 2008 SUPERGLIDE, made some small changes and the bike runs alot better,changed to a stock K&N replacement air filter,xieds,and rush slipons,cheap overall and made the bike cooler and quicker,put on a rinehart churchill exhaust for looks last week and the bike runs about the same. for a small investment I"M happy the way it performs it"s not a crotch rocket and never will be,I have a fuelpak and when it warms up will install it and see what changes it makes

[Heathen68]

Take your time, First thing is put a 30t pulley up front that'll make it a lot more "peppy"
I'd upgrade suspension and brakes first then a 2:1 pipe, by then you should know what cams you wanna put in.Aren't the 2012's now a 103 engine?

[FXDRYDR]

Whatever you decide to do now, you can always change your mind later!