K&N air filter - any improvement?

[Rattyratcliffe]

Hi any one got a k&n air filter and noticed much of a differance with it??

[Bibio]

i have in a k7 twin spark. little more bite to the throttle but that's about it. i got mine free for fixing a bike. its washable so i dont have to buy another air filter and as i plan on keeping my bike till it or i die then that's going to be a fair old saving otherwise the OEM one is good enough.

an SV is a basic v twin 650cc producing up to 70 BHP so enjoy it for what it is.

[Murley.]

The only reason I use one is because they are washable. If I want something with more power I'll buy a faster bike ;).

[Rattyratcliffe]

Fair doos!! Still only my first bike needs more power!! Didn't no if it would make a worth while differance.

[Bibio]

if your craving more power and your a new rider then i would suggest you calm down till you have a goooood few miles under your belt. jumping onto a more powerful bike when your road skills aren't honed might end up badly.

slow down, learn, progress.

[Rattyratcliffe]

Mmm I can see where your coming from. I just feel like I'm on a 125 again lol I feel like the bikes just making noise and not really going any where!!

[Bibio]

that's because its bigger and smother. look down at your speedo and you will be surprised.

[MJC-DEV]

About the only mod that makes a noticeable difference to the power is a big bore kit. Everything else, filters, exhaust, tail tidy etc is essentially cosmetic. Sure different cams AND a full exhaust AND fueling change will do something but a faster bike will give more bang for buck spent.
Discliamer: Average rider not a tuner/racer/expert etc

PS Unrestricted bike I guess?

[Rattyratcliffe]

Out of that little shopping list if probably just go for the exhaust And tail tidy lol. Yeah unrestricted. Just passed my test in time:D

[daveyrach]

The SV is more than capable, it will keep up with bigger IL4 SS bikes in the twisties may be lost on the straights.

You will also find the power on an SV being a V-Twin is all low down in the rev range with very little top end which is what I think you mean by making noise and not going anywhere. Peak power is around 8500-9000rpm, I tend to ride between 3-7k rpm on my commute and that take me up to the legal speed limit pretty darn quick.

I think as a new rider you need to learn how to ride a twin, going from and SV to an IL4 will be a completely different experience again.

[Rattyratcliffe]

I usually tend to find going round bends I'm in the middle of my rev range sort of between 6500 and 8000, It's when I'm coming out the corners I don't feel like there's enough power :/

[Rattyratcliffe]

Although I am a new rider I would still class myself as a quite confident and a quick learner:thumbsup:

[daveyrach]

8k rpm is near peak power hence why the bike has very little extra to give. I find taking bends much lower down the rev range like 3-4k rpm is much better and you can feel the bike pull out of the corner. Not only that your MPG will suffer if you are ragging the engine all the time.

I tend to find people who say I am confident and a quick learner are the ones who end up as stats, you must remember you will never stop learning on a motorcycle and confidence is great until you run out of road or meet another vehicle half way round a bend.

[Pricey12]

You will also find the power on an SV being a V-Twin is all low down in the rev range with very little top end which is what I think you mean by making noise and not going anywhere. Peak power is around 8500-9000rpm

^^ This

Another advantage of a twin over an I4 is that you can open the throttle in more or less any gear and and have decent pull, without tap dancing down the gearbox. Very useful if your feeling lazy ;)

[Rattyratcliffe]

What do you mean stats?

[daveyrach]

What do you mean stats?

A statistic (I.e more likely to have accidents)

[Rattyratcliffe]

Ah gotcha;)

[Bibio]

vtwins are about torque not revs. it also depends on how you are cornering and jumping from a 125 i think you are trying to carry speed threw the corners. you don't need to stir the box as much on a vtwin as a 125 to make progress.

it will click one day and you will then see.

i came back to biking from a very very long break which back then was strokers which you have to keep on song or they do nowt. it took me a good long while to get used to not having to ring the neck out of the bike and instead use the torque but once my brain clicked it was a revelation. the SV is a very forgiving bike to ride as it will pretty much pull from 2k rpm if need be e.g. completely messing up corners by not being in the right gear and the corner being tighter than you think.

so stick with it and learn how to ride a vtwin which is low revs and the right gear. if your coming out a corner at 8k rpm in 3rd gear then you only have till 10k before the power drops right off. try exiting at about 5k in 4th/5th gear and see how you get on.

the speed is deceptive on a twin as your not screaming its head off but trust me your going fast.

[Rattyratcliffe]

Thanks for the advice