Undoing the Counter Progressive throttle pulley on the 06

[Fred H.]

By the way....wouldnt this totally void your warranty??RR

Who cares. Warranties are over rated anyway. Most of the time when you take something in for a warranty repair, they say, "Oh, that isn't covered, that is a normal wear item".

Besides when was the last time a dealership inspected your bike from top to bottom to make sure it was exactly like it left the factory before doing any warranty work?

 

[jjsC6]

Fred,Great work! You can count me in as a customer...BUT I am going to stop at your house when I bring my feejer out west from Florida...and YOU can do it. I know what would happen if I did it...I would clamp the thermostat on something and drop the windshield into the engine bay....that would happen before I screwed things up. Keep your reports coming though - I want to make sure you arent dong that 180 mph school zone thing! lol By the way....wouldnt this totally void your warranty??

RR

Not THAT was funny

 

[radman]

Technically, nothing voids a warranty unless it can be shown to have caused the problem warranty is being asked to fix.

 

[dcarver]

Does the throttle cable ride on top of the wire? Not yet sure how this works..

 

[Fred H.]

The cooper wire shim rests on the pulley, and the throttle cable now rests on top of the copper wire shim I added, which effectivly increases the diameter of the pulley.

It actually is a pretty simple little mod. The only tricks are getting the shim made to the right length and with the right curves so it holds in place properly, and then getting it into position. Now that I have done it one time, I bet I could do another one in about 15 minutes.

There are probably a dozen other ways to make a shim to increase the diameter of the pulley a bit, this is just the first one that came to mind. A small piece of string of the right diameter might also be able to be worked down into the groove of the pulley, as well as a piece of plastic wire insulation. You might experiment with an idea of your own and see what works. The copper wire worked nice cause I could put a loop on the front of it and hook it onto the tab on the throttle pulley to hold it in place.

If you were really brave, you could remove the pulley from the bike which would probably give you a lot more options, like filling the groove with JB weld to build up the diameter. There are probably a 100 ways to skin this cat.

 

[Woodstock]

It actually is a pretty simple little mod. The only tricks are getting the shim made to the right length and with the right curves so it holds in place properly, and then getting it into position. Now that I have done it one time, I bet I could do another one in about 15 minutes.

WFO "farkle station"

 

[bmwhd]

The cooper wire shim rests on the pulley, and the throttle cable now rests on top of the copper wire shim I added, which effectivly increases the diameter of the pulley.
It actually is a pretty simple little mod. The only tricks are getting the shim made to the right length and with the right curves so it holds in place properly, and then getting it into position. Now that I have done it one time, I bet I could do another one in about 15 minutes.

There are probably a dozen other ways to make a shim to increase the diameter of the pulley a bit, this is just the first one that came to mind. A small piece of string of the right diameter might also be able to be worked down into the groove of the pulley, as well as a piece of plastic wire insulation. You might experiment with an idea of your own and see what works. The copper wire worked nice cause I could put a loop on the front of it and hook it onto the tab on the throttle pulley to hold it in place.

If you were really brave, you could remove the pulley from the bike which would probably give you a lot more options, like filling the groove with JB weld to build up the diameter. There are probably a 100 ways to skin this cat.

Well, you convinced me to try it. I made and installed my shim this evening. Took about 15 min. once the tank was off. A little tricky to get it in place but once there, it will stay put.

12 gauge wire is exactly the right width (once you beat it with a hammer a couple of times).

I only had time to ride around the block but it seemed to work as advertised.

Ride report tomorrow...

 

[Bounce]

I'll admit that it's been a few months since I had the tank off (and at the time I was doing plug swaps and TBS, so the throttle pulley wasn't something I focused on), But aren't pre-06 models also "progressive" as well? Perhaps the 06 increased how progressive the diameter is?

I do know that this is the first week I've been able to ride since my knee surgery. What I noticed was how the bike litterally LEAPS forward with each upshift (this is a fun thing)! I attribute it to less finesse than I was using in the past when blipping the throttle for the shift. This could easily be exacerbated by a (more) progressive pulley.

--hijack--

The last thing I did to the bike before hurting my knee was to swap out plugs (iridiums at 12k to 16k miles on them for more of the same) and a TBS. MAN! This thing idles and runs smooth! I don't think it was that bad before but I really noticed it as I only got one ride after the work before being sidelined. Don't let anyone talk you into skipping these tasks as scheduled. Not much time involved and the results are well worth it.

--back on track--

But the responsiveness is great and easy to adapt to. Not to discount a more progressive pulley or personal preferences to either pre or post 06 pulleys.

 

[bmwhd]

OK. I admit it. Fred is a genius. I had just enough time for a quick 50 miles this morning but that was enough to convince me. Having the shim on the pulley eliminated that sudden "surge" of acceleration in low gears at partial throttle.

I'd just assumed that's the way all high performance bikes felt. Having topped out at 100hp prior to the FJR (and that on a 850lb LT), I didn't know better.

Now I really understand what Fred was attempting to fix and can attest the simple little shim is worth its weight in gold.

So now with the shim, relaxed center spring, cable slack adjusted, and +7 on the CO, I'm totally at ease with the throttle response on this bike. Now if I could just get the right hand mirror to be as clear as the left...

 

[Wilson]

The same thing can be done at the throttle tube on the handlebar by using a dremel tool with cut-off wheel to reduce the radius of the throttle pull at off idle progressively to no change a full throttle. Start at the pull cable connection reducing the radius and taper to no cut at all using the do a little bit and ride method. The radius of the throttle tube is smaller than the radius at the throttle bodies so a cut less than the diameter of the 12 AWG wire will produce the same effect.

 

[Toecutter]

Now if I could just get the right hand mirror to be as clear as the left...

Just replace both with FZ-1 models.

The same thing can be done at the throttle tube on the handlebar by using a dremel tool with cut-off wheel to reduce the radius of the throttle pull at off idle progressively to no change a full throttle. Start at the pull cable connection reducing the radius and taper to no cut at all using the do a little bit and ride method. The radius of the throttle tube is smaller than the radius at the throttle bodies so a cut less than the diameter of the 12 AWG wire will produce the same effect.

You speak from experience? Got any pictures? This sounds a little more involved than the shim but I like the idea of it

 

[mindtrip]

Fred;

I noticed on another thread you asked a dealer about buying an '05 throttle pully, and I have to ask, why? Have you had any problems with this mod so far?

 

[FJRandy]

It is very possible this could help the 05 as well if you are having problems with throttle control on it.

The shim effectivly increases the diameter of the pulley. This means that when you twist the throttle, it will not move the throttle plates as much. The end result is that you will have more control and will be able to effect very small changes to power and RPM better.

If you go look at race cars you will see they usually try to give the driver large steering wheels or else they gear down the steering system. It is the same concept. The driver needs to be able to make small corrections at high speeds, and the best way to do this is to make his inputs to the steering wheel effect smaller corrections to the wheels. It also reduces the chances of pilot induced oscillations, or overcorrection. Pretty standard stuff in the man-machine interface and human engineering worlds. If you need more accurate controls, you reduce the amount of change that any given input causes.

So yes, if you are having issues you might want to try this. And there really is not much to loose, as the way the mod is done, you can easily take it out if you don't like it and go back to stock.

Larger grips will provide a similar effect as well, though I am not sure it will be to the same degree.

I have been riding the bike a lot since I did this mod, and I can tell you it is the single best thing I have done to it.

Fred,

Great work! You can count me in as a customer...BUT I am going to stop at your house when I bring my feejer out west from Florida...and YOU can do it. I know what would happen if I did it...I would clamp the thermostat on something and drop the windshield into the engine bay....that would happen before I screwed things up. Keep your reports coming though - I want to make sure you arent dong that 180 mph school zone thing! lol By the way....wouldnt this totally void your warranty??

RR

Ron, bring it to my house in NJ.

I'll only charge you half of Fred's price! And you only have to ride half as far.

You're a genius, Fred. Good work!

And don't remind me about the whole copper cost thing. It's killing me to try and keep the cost of my harness the same. Damn Chinese!

 

[bete]

Hey Fred, or anybody else thats done this mod. I did the mod today and have not put the tank back on yet because my throttle does not want to snap closed now, it will shut with a twist of the grip but does not close all the way buy its self. Anyone else incure this or any sugestions? Thanks. bete

 

[Thumperbike]

Put the slack back in the throttle cable that you took out before and this should cure the problem, otherwise the wire is too long.

 

[bete]

Thank you very much Thumperbike. You were right on the slack. Had me a little worried. bete.