DK Custom PROJECT TRI-GLIDE Report w/ Lots of Pics

[DK Custom Products]

So we did a bit more work today on the Tri-Glide.




First thing was we mocked up (just taped, and not even straight or centered) a vent to the fender well. I have been thinking about doing this for years.


There is a fair amount of air that hits this relatively flat spot, it can be quite warm, and some it flows up the side of the passenger.


I'm thinking with a vent there it may do a little to speed up the flow of air past the engine, and also reduce the amount of air that flows up the passengers side.


Here's my BIG QUESTION-


Has anybody cut into the plastic body? I am concerned, that even with taping off, and careful cutting and drilling, it may chip the paint/clear.


Any experience/advice in cutting into the body would be greatly appreciated.













We broke down the TG a bit, I went to work on installing a newer prototype of the oil filter relocation, while Devin worked on installing some rear fender LED's.







The OF relo bracket we've been running has held up well to over 1500 miles of riding. But it did not leave clearance for the passenger floorboard to be on the lowest adjustment, AND for the adjustable passenger pegs.


So we cut a new one, with a bit different configuration, so that everything would fit nicely.





While I was doing that, Devin was installing the second prototype of our rear fender LED's.


btw, we are NOT holding up the rear of the TG with the jack stands you see. There is a flat scissor jack under the crossbars below the trunk, and then jackstands on either side providing some stability.




Here's a pic of the, "hidden while off", fender LED's. They are run-brake-turn, and are mounted to a special bracket we fabbed...not just for mounting how/where we wanted the LED's, but also to protect them from water/debris coming off the rear tires. That's the theory...we'll see how it holds up to rain, mud, gravel, etc.








We're still in the beginning stages...lot's more to come, but probably not much til after the first of the year.

Kevin

[55il]

I decided to install the Stealth LED Lights on the engine guard. After everything is installed final beam alignment will on hold for the weatherman's cooperation.

The prototype adding a vent to the fender well is interesting but more interesting how to keeping water, dust, dirt off Mary. Your idea of moving more heat away from the passenger gives my wife hi-five's .

Also, I like the prototype of your rear fender LED's. I installed rear mud flaps and not sure if these would interfere or help. But you have my interest.

And thanks for all your feedback. DJ

[DK Custom Products]

I decided to install the Stealth LED Lights on the engine guard. After everything is installed final beam alignment will on hold for the weatherman's cooperation.

The prototype adding a vent to the fender well is interesting but more interesting how to keeping water, dust, dirt off Mary. Your idea of moving more heat away from the passenger gives my wife hi-five's .

Also, I like the prototype of your rear fender LED's. I installed rear mud flaps and not sure if these would interfere or help. But you have my interest.

And thanks for all your feedback. DJ

Cool!

Yeah, moving the air along is what we've been talking about for years...we should know soon if it works.

Yesterday, while doing the rear fender LED's, I was talking to Devin about how I might want to put rear mud flaps on...and we have some ideas of how to incorporate them into them. We'll see how it works.

Kevin

[desertclassic]

I sure like all this light stuff, I know what I will be doing to the trike. I got in on Ride Time Technology lights as there were developing stuff for the tour pack. It sure lit up the rear of the ultra classic when the signal lights were on. I am in Dallas at the present, but when I return I will get to changing some stuff on the trike. Jim

[DK Custom Products]

I sure like all this light stuff, I know what I will be doing to the trike. I got in on Ride Time Technology lights as there were developing stuff for the tour pack. It sure lit up the rear of the ultra classic when the signal lights were on. I am in Dallas at the present, but when I return I will get to changing some stuff on the trike. Jim

Cool!

I've never been into lights much, most I ever did was install some halogen driving lights.

But after riding with my first LED headlight a few years ago...it is so much better! That, plus the growing number of inattentive drivers on the road, I am really enjoying lighting things up with LED's.

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Today we spent another 5 hours on the Tri-Glide and don't have a single picture to show for it.

We sat looking at it a good deal of the time. ( I suppose I could have asked Mary to take a pic of us sitting on our stools staring at it and scratching out ideas on yellow pads..but did not think of that til just now. )



We did do some measuring for a new idea we came up with.

Many folks run fork fangs and/or lower tree baffles. These are fine to run during cold weather, but they block so much wind to the engine, that at 70* or more they really have a negative impact on the engine temps.

Sooo...one of the things we sat down to do today was to figure out if there was a way to reduce wind to the rider WITHOUT reducing air across the engine, and preferably, increase the amount of air across the engine.

We think we came up with an idea. We measured, made some cardboard templates, & measured some more. Now it is just a matter of cutting them out of metal, bending them, and testing them out!

In the meantime, I am hoping to get some feedback from those who are running fork fangs and/or tree baffles.

Do you run them:

1. To reduce cold air from hitting you

2. To reduce hot air from hitting you

3. To reduce buffeting

4.

Other

I would really appreciate any and all input.


Other than the above, we reviewed what we have done, and what items are in the works (14 mods are either done or in process), and looked at what else we want to do.

I just counted them up, and we have 27 more ideas that all sound pretty good to us right now. It's going to be a busy winter, and early spring to get all those done!



Oh, I do have one picture. Seems sometime in the last month, my front fender developed a crack in the paint. Right down the center.

There is nothing that has hit it, from the top or the underside. It appears to be a flaw in the paint/clear-coat that just took some time to show up. I need to get it to the dealer so they can see it and order a warranty replacement.

Happy New Year!

It will be 2016 before we do anymore work on it. Although, we will be going for a ride on New Years Day!

Kevin

[oldprowler]

AAAAAAAAWWWWW Kevin, the dealer will tell you it will buff right out.

[NHBAGGER]

Kevin, I installed a tree baffle to try to block some f the air that comes from under the fairing. Not convinced how much it helps.

[1dn5up]

It's difficult to figure out air travel when redirected unless a good fan and smoke wand is used. Just like used in arodynamics. The fan is the easy part, never investigated as to purchasing a smoke wand. I was also told they do not affect the air to the motor, only redirecting the upward air down and out. However I like the wind tunnel idea and wish I had the time and place to play with the idea.

[gerald martin]

What kind of air cleaner are you using? I see two stainless braided hoses coming out of the air cleaner. What are they for and where do they end up at and what is attached to the end of them?
Thanks for you response in advance

[gerald martin]

You mentioned a few lines on a oil filter relocation. Could you tell me a bit about it. My Email is martingw@telus.net If you E mail me I am also the one that had the question about the air cleaner. If you prefer not to E mail you can just answer on the forum
Thanks

[GoSlo]

Sooo...one of the things we sat down to do today was to figure out if there was a way to reduce wind to the rider WITHOUT reducing air across the engine, and preferably, increase the amount of air across the engine.

We think we came up with an idea. We measured, made some cardboard templates, & measured some more. Now it is just a matter of cutting them out of metal, bending them, and testing them out!

In the meantime, I am hoping to get some feedback from those who are running fork fangs and/or tree baffles.

Do you run them:

1. To reduce cold air from hitting you

2. To reduce hot air from hitting you

3. To reduce buffeting

4. Other

I would really appreciate any and all input.


Kevin,
I've had them on my 2013 trike for about 2 1/2 years now and have them on year round. They do an incredible job of blocking the wind that comes up and over the lowers. The reduction of buffeting is pretty dramatic and is especially appreciated on long days of riding.

As for making the engine run hot, I can't really say. You helped me out a lot to increase my mileage and try to get the engine to run cooler. Improved gas mileage - definitely worked out, thanks! Reduced engine temps - not so much. Still get up close to 300 degrees even in cold weather. Makes me think there's something else going on.

I'll definitely be interested in seeing what you guys come up with. Always thought one with slits in the fin that angled the air down towards the engine more would be an interesting idea. Keeps the air flow headed on the engine while still stopping the buffeting to the rider. Not sure if these are necessary on the 2014 and newer trikes though with the fairing vent system. From what I've heard that helps a lot.

[tbear]

Just wondering what Mr. DK is using for "Handle Bars" (size & Name) and where he got his Sheep cover from.?

[NHBAGGER]

---

Just wondering what Mr. DK is using for "Handle Bars" (size & Name) and where he got his Sheep cover from.?

Pretty sure he made his own bars.

[FuzzyWuzHe]

---

Pretty sure he made his own bars.

He modified the stocks I believe ... I think he added 9" in the length and adjusted the grip angle.

[DK Custom Products]

AAAAAAAAWWWWW Kevin, the dealer will tell you it will buff right out.

Yeah, they might ...til they touch it and feel the ridge.

Kevin, I installed a tree baffle to try to block some f the air that comes from under the fairing. Not convinced how much it helps.

Hopefully this weekend I will be able to test our idea. We have quite a bit of data already from over 20 test runs, so it should be easy to compare to see if it is better, worse or insignificant.

It's difficult to figure out air travel when redirected unless a good fan and smoke wand is used. Just like used in arodynamics. The fan is the easy part, never investigated as to purchasing a smoke wand. I was also told they do not affect the air to the motor, only redirecting the upward air down and out. However I like the wind tunnel idea and wish I had the time and place to play with the idea.

Yeah, the fan is the easy part. I've had some big fans in the past when we had our hay farm. I think a smoke wand should not be that big of a challenge. But I was thinking we'd need a big tube/tunnel...that is where it could get expensive.

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

What kind of air cleaner are you using? I see two stainless braided hoses coming out of the air cleaner. What are they for and where do they end up at and what is attached to the end of them?
Thanks for you response in advance

You mentioned a few lines on a oil filter relocation. Could you tell me a bit about it. My Email is martingw@telus.net If you E mail me I am also the one that had the question about the air cleaner. If you prefer not to E mail you can just answer on the forum
Thanks

The air cleaner is the Outlaw HiFlow 587 with a Chrome Bobber Cover and the Premium Discrete Breather. It also has the Stainless Braided Hose and Chrome Hose clamp covers.

The purpose of an External Breather System (EBS) is for performance, engine longevity, and tune stability. You can see the full details on the benefits of an EBS at this LINK

On my EBS it ends up between the frame and the left rider floorboard, and has a filter on the end of it. However, it can be routed where ever you like.

You can see the air cleaner HERE

You can see the braided hose and hose clamp covers down toward the bottom of this LINK


On the oil filter relocation, we now have over 2000 miles of testing on it and are very happy with it's functionality. It makes changing the oil super easy and no mess. It also lowers the oil temps by about 10*. This is because the filter and the hose are out in the wind, and also because the filter is no longer blocking wind to the front of the engine.

We are still working on the aesthetics, and tweaking a few things so that the passenger floorboard retains as much flexibility for add-ons as possible.

We are shooting for a Feb. release date. Price is still not determined...brass fittings are expensive and we are still negotiating on them and some other parts.

If you have any other questions about it, feel free to post here, or to email me at Kevin@DKCustomProducts.com

Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Sooo...one of the things we sat down to do today was to figure out if there was a way to reduce wind to the rider WITHOUT reducing air across the engine, and preferably, increase the amount of air across the engine.

We think we came up with an idea. We measured, made some cardboard templates, & measured some more. Now it is just a matter of cutting them out of metal, bending them, and testing them out!

In the meantime, I am hoping to get some feedback from those who are running fork fangs and/or tree baffles.

Do you run them:

1. To reduce cold air from hitting you

2. To reduce hot air from hitting you

3. To reduce buffeting

4. Other

I would really appreciate any and all input.


Kevin,
I've had them on my 2013 trike for about 2 1/2 years now and have them on year round. They do an incredible job of blocking the wind that comes up and over the lowers. The reduction of buffeting is pretty dramatic and is especially appreciated on long days of riding.

As for making the engine run hot, I can't really say. You helped me out a lot to increase my mileage and try to get the engine to run cooler. Improved gas mileage - definitely worked out, thanks! Reduced engine temps - not so much. Still get up close to 300 degrees even in cold weather. Makes me think there's something else going on.

I'll definitely be interested in seeing what you guys come up with. Always thought one with slits in the fin that angled the air down towards the engine more would be an interesting idea. Keeps the air flow headed on the engine while still stopping the buffeting to the rider. Not sure if these are necessary on the 2014 and newer trikes though with the fairing vent system. From what I've heard that helps a lot.

Thank you for the input on why you run deflectors. Is it head buffeting that you are mostly concerned about? OR ???

Yes, the fairing vent definitely helps on head buffeting for me on the 14.

Yeah, I agree, 300 is too hot for ET reading off a Power Vision, even on a hot day. It was 39* when I left for the shop today. I took the long way, so it was fully warmed up by the time I got there. Ambient air temp was 42* and ET off the PV was 196* when I arrived.




Kevin

[DK Custom Products]

Just wondering what Mr. DK is using for "Handle Bars" (size & Name) and where he got his Sheep cover from.?

---

Pretty sure he made his own bars.

He modified the stocks I believe ... I think he added 9" in the length and adjusted the grip angle.

Yes, I made my own, using the stock bars, extended 9" longer by welding a 9" straight section of pipe on each side in the already straight section of the stock bars.

Here's a pic of the bars after welding the 9" section into them...but before I got them powder coated.




Much more comfortable, and I have the following mounted on them with room to spare.


Drink holder
Power Vision
Cig Lighter
Video Camera mount




The sheepskin was purchased for the 2011 from these folks-

http://www.sickafus.com/shearling/sh...ides-rugs.html

The one on the 14 was on the 11 before. We've put over 70,000 miles on it.

Kevin

[gerald martin]

do you think the new filter relocation will have any effect on the Harley warranty or the extended warranty