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The Carolinas’ Full Throttle Magazine
Unlock Your Bike’s Maximum Potential By: Mike Humbles ould you agree that the longer we
ride we acquire the ‘feel’ of our bikes and can sense when something isn’t exactly right? In my past, I’ve built and raced cars, Jeeps and motorcycles. They all had what I call a “sweet spot” where they performed their best. If you’ve played sports like golf, tennis, or baseball you can relate to what I’m saying. When you hit the ball in the sweet spot, All the energy is going into the ball to create the outcome you want. At the moment of impact, you know the result is going to be good. The impact of the ball even feels different, and it seems like less effort is needed to get optimal results. Of course, there are those times when you don’t hit the sweet spot and the result is unpredictable. I’ve also had my share of those. I apologize for the broken windows to all who have homes on the golf course fairways where I played. I am 100% convinced that ALL motorized vehicles have unique sweet spots. It’s when the installed components, the tune, the fuel, etc. all work together in complete unison. In my racing days, the suggested timing from TDC (Top Dead Center) was only a starting point. The optimal tuning always happened on the track (and sometimes the back roads).
I’ve been riding motorcycles for about 50 years and I’m a fan of Harley- Davidson’s Knucklehead, Panhead, Shovelhead, Evolution, and Twin Cam engines. Now there’s a new one: Milwaukee-Eight. I was excited to try it out. The torque/ power and fuel efficiency are advertised to be the best yet. I must admit that I was impressed the first time I rode a bike with the M8 engine. However, after buying one and riding it for a while, I felt there was something missing. It felt like it was being held back and not performing at its optimal best. Don’t get me wrong; it was quick with lots of torque. But I remember riding at highway speeds and thinking I needed another gear to shift up to. The RPM seemed fine based on the MPH, but it just felt like something was holding the bike back. It didn’t feel right to me. If you’re like me, you’re tired of feeling shortchanged on performance output due to all of the restrictions programmed (yes, programed) into our bikes. In an effort to tap into the hidden performance of my M8, I added a Stage 1 (intake/exhaust systems) upgrade. The upgrade did improve the sound and stopped me from being able to sneak up on a church mouse. My bike was re-tuned using an available plug-n-play type map that was designed for bikes with similar components. I remember the instructions on my tuner stating to “contact tech support directly via email or a phone call for help choosing the closest combination of exhaust and air cleaner map for your motorcycle.” Closest? I drove it with the Stage 1 upgrade for several months and enjoyed it. My wife and I took long trips, and many local rides. However, there were still some performance parameters that weren’t being utilized. It still felt like the bike was being held back. It’s hard to put into words. Through The Carolinas’ Full Throttle Magazine, I found out about Widow Maker Custom Design & Repair. I met Hank Thibodeau (owner of Widow Maker), and he explained what goes into the design and build of today’s bikes. Walk-
