Author Topic: Holeshot Stage 1 and stock exhaust....Bad idea??? (Read 8429 times)

rider123 · « **on:** November 22, 2005, 03:14:58 PM »

I was perusing the Holeshot site and there is a modified stage 1 kit there with 5 degree advancer for a very reasonable $130 bucks or so. Eventually I would like to get an aftermarket pipe but due to financial constraints I have to do it in stages. I was wondering if it's worth it to get the stage 1 kit to clean up the stock jetting on my 2G Bandit or is it a total waste of time untill I can save up for both items? Has anybody installed a stage 1 kit to clean up the stock jetting before? I guess I could buy the kit and hold on to it untill I get a pipe, but it might be a nice easy winter project.

PaulVS · « **Reply #1 on:** November 22, 2005, 03:47:37 PM »

Dale recommends pipe first, jet kit second.

I would get a slip-on, and just shim the needles until you get the jet kit.

WEINERDOGBONE · « **Reply #2 on:** November 22, 2005, 05:14:28 PM »

Quote from: "PaulVS"

Dale recommends pipe first, jet kit second.

Thats what I did to my B12. I did it that way because I wasn't sure how much I wanted to modify the bike. Once you get started its kind of addictive though.

I added a Yoshimura pipe and just drilled the pilot screw plugs and opened the screws up. The bike ran fine w/o the shims. I have since added the stage 1 Holeshot kit and have lived happily ever after.

rider123 · « **Reply #3 on:** November 22, 2005, 09:46:18 PM »

How is the Yosh slip on? Bikebandit has it on sale for $284.00 the Zyclone model or whatever it's called. Did you notice any power increase without jetting? My bike is already a little lean from the factory at 3.5 turns out. How many turns did you do before you bought a jet kit. I'm assuming down low it wouldn't be much of a difference. Do you know what your factory settings where?

PaulVS · « **Reply #4 on:** November 22, 2005, 10:33:56 PM »

We have the same bike, and I did feel there was a noticeable power gain when I went to a Yosh RS-3 race slip-on. (Without any carb mods.)

Here's a pic of a Yosh RS-3 on my bike: http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y156/PaulVS/bike-nye.jpg

I picked up my pipe on Ebay for $150 brand new. If I hadn't gotten that price I'd probably would have bought the Holeshot can. The Holeshot can is much smaller than the stock can, the Yosh is a little bigger than stock.

From what I've read of your posts... and considering your bike is brand new... it seems you have one of two problems:

1. You're overly sensitive about the throttle response of a B12.

or

2. Your bike has some abnormal carburetion problems going on.

You may have a badly tweaked carb set-up from the factory, but given that it's minor... you're probably not going to find a dealer that says "Yep... we'll fine-tune your carbs under warranty until they're perfect!".

So in my opinion.... the only way to fix either/both of those issues is to get both a slip-on and a jet kit.

I personally recommend either Holeshot or Yosh exhausts, although just about any aftermarket exhaust is going to improve your HP.

As far as jet kits... either the Holeshot Stage 1 or Ivan's Jet Kit are probably the best option. Factory Pro also makes a well-respected jet kit for the 2nd Gen Bandit.

I would stay away from D&D exhausts and Dynojet or K&N jet kits as I've heard they are the 'bottom-end' of the quality spectrum.

rider123 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 22, 2005, 11:54:12 PM »

Well you're right Paul, the Carbs were a little wonky from the factory but even with my very limited carb tuning experience I have got it very very close to good(plugs are gone now). I think what's holding me back right now is the weather(obviously) I'm pretty confident I can tweak the last little bit of weirdness in the spring(thanks for the help guys!). However it seems alot of people are very satisfied with the power gains and smoother responses that can be had with a jet kit and a slip on. The extra power always helps as well as we all know you can't have too much power

. I'm just trying to figure out the best way to go by asking people that have had good experiences with their set ups and then I can do any mods with confidence that a particular setup has been tested and worked out already. How loud is the RS-3 can is is super obnoxious or is it just a nice in line 4 cylinder sound? Wow that's a nice bike Paul! I like the look of the Yosh is it slightly lighter than the stock exhaust? I have a Yosh on my GS750EF and I'm very happy with it.

terrebandit · « **Reply #6 on:** November 23, 2005, 01:01:24 AM »

No problem adding the jet kit with just the stock pipe. Tons of guys have done this. The bike will run and start better.

Dave

PaulVS · « **Reply #7 on:** November 23, 2005, 10:01:59 AM »

I don't know about other brands (they're probably similar) but the Yoshimura and Holeshot slip-ons weigh a lot less than the stocker.

As far as loudness goes... I was pretty shocked how quiet the RS-3 Race baffle was... it's not annoying at all - and not all that much different from stock. It's certainly quieter than 2/3 of the Harleys out there.

The only one I've heard is really loud is the D&D slip-on, but that's been debated by people who have them.

For the models that have a 'street' (zyclone in Yosh's case) or 'race' option... I'd skip the street baffle and go with the race version since they aren't that loud and probably give better performance gains.

I'm pretty skeptical that one aftermarket brand is noticeably better than another. They all are less restricive & lighter than the stocker. I would just make sure to get a slip-on that comes with a mid-pipe - since that's where a lot of the weight loss & power gain is. Some of the aftermarket brands are just the can - they utilize the stock mid-pipe.

Dave is right... you can go with either the jetting or pipe option first... but you're going to want to do both eventually to completely 'unrestrict' the engine.

I personally found that the combination of the Yosh pipe/needle shim/A-F screw adjustment mods gave much more power gain then the jet kit, although the jet kit did put a 'finishing touch' on it.

Just my $.02

JayRo · « **Reply #8 on:** November 26, 2005, 02:30:31 AM »

I hate to be Mr. Negative here but I would just like to say that I have had a bad experience with solely a stage 1 jet kit and 2 inch mod. Don't get me wrong the bike ran great performance wise, but it would foul out plugs every 300 miles or so, and that was with a hotter plug. No needle adjustment would help or anything. I finally had to toss the 127.5 mains in the drawer until I get a decent exhaust and threw in some 112.5 in. Now it runs great. I am sure alot better than the 102 stock jets. But I also have a 1st gen b12, so there could be some differences

Jason

solman · « **Reply #9 on:** November 26, 2005, 04:55:34 PM »

Quote

I finally had to toss the 127.5 mains in the drawer until I get a decent exhaust and threw in some 112.5 in

Going that much bigger with a stock pipe? I would've been more surprised if it didn't. If memory serves me correctly, I believe that I am running 110 mains with a Holeshot slip on and jet kit..

JayRo · « **Reply #10 on:** November 27, 2005, 03:30:08 AM »

Aren't 127.5 mains a standard jet for a stage 1 kit? That is what I had read somewhere. My bike came with em when I got it used so I did some research when I started fouling the plugs. I believe that was the original question which is why I brought it up. Putting a stage 1 jet kit in with all else being stock in my experience would cause problems.

But, if the jet size for a stage 1 kit is actually smaller than I will gladly retract what I have said previously.

solman · « **Reply #11 on:** November 27, 2005, 08:00:50 AM »

Quote

Aren't 127.5 mains a standard jet for a stage 1 kit?

For mains, my kit came with 107.5, 110, 112.5. 127 might be for a stage 2, but not stage one. 2 gen B12

JayRo · « **Reply #12 on:** November 27, 2005, 11:13:27 PM »

http://www.banditsrus.com/fastlarry/banditfaq.htm#fuel_system is where I got my info from. But I can see that looking at it a second time, 1st gen, and 2nd gen bikes are different when it comes to jet sizing.

terrebandit · « **Reply #13 on:** November 29, 2005, 10:27:19 PM »

The question asked pertained to a 2G bandit.

The HS stage 1 works perfect (at recommended settings and airbox mod) without any modifications to the exhaust. This kit utilizes the stock needles and shims to rich up the mixture.

Dave

rider123 · « **Reply #14 on:** December 17, 2005, 08:14:18 AM »

Well I just ordered a Muzzy exhaust online. Will this jet kit work with it? How hard to do is the 2" airbox mod? Any pics? WHere is the 2" hole made? Does it have to be in a certain place? I'm a little wary of permanantly modifying parts but if you guys have had good experience with it I guess it's ok. I hope it doesn't let in water or whatnot. Did you guys go up one pilot jet size for this kit (17.5?)