March 23, 2011 8:41 PM PDT
The guys on the Valkyrie owners message board aren't reporting adverse effects from ethanol, other than a very slight drop in mpg, about what would be expected from running 92 octane, rather than 87. There seems to be some disagreement whether ethanol attracts water or if it dries out rubber parts. Hopefully that scam has seen its best days.
Valkyries are water cooled right?
Being air cooled makes a big difference seeing ethanol burns hotter.
Yes, Valks are water cooled. I hadn't read anything about ethanol burning hotter. Have you had any problem with pinging due to higher operating temerature?
We can still avoid it around here so I haven't had to run it.
Folks that have run it have come to me about heat issues.
Harleys fire both plugs at the same time, reguardless of where the piston is in the stroke cycle, with the extra heat in the combustion chamber
this could cause the cylinder to fire in the non-compression stroke in non-fuel injected engines.
I'll admit, it worries me due to the fact that I have friends involved in drag racing some in the alcohol (ethanol) classes, after racing they must clean out all the fuel system parts due to corrosion issues reguardless of percentage.
And if you were to run straight alcohol in a Harley engine you would have to convert to a single-fire ignition.
March 25, 2011 2:38 PM PDT
I'm a firm believer in Seafoam. Did a 4095 mile cross country a couple of years ago on my Boulevard C-90. Experimented running with and with out it across I-40 as did my Brother. We both saw better performance AND mileage WITH Seafoam. I use it in everything from my boat to my lawnmower.