Fouled plugs? '04 1600

[BeardedGrappler504]

Originally Posted by DragonLady58

OK, just relaxing, eating some nacho's and drinking a cup of coffee....and reading about BeardedGrapplers problem....
OK bike was running well, then developed a miss. Then you threw some coils at it, and plugwires. Ran good for 300 miles, then it started again.

Well, 300 miles won't wear out your coils. Are you sure that its gas fouling? I believe theres another underlying problem that hasn't been addressed.
What you need to do is start with a good base line tune. Put everything back the was it was, even disconnecting your tuner. I mean take it completely outta the loop.
Put in some fresh gas, fresh iridium plugs from napa, oreillys or autozone....where ever you get your parts.
Clean your air cleaner, fresh oil, filter....leaving nothing to chance....
Crank your bike up, air cleaner open, get a spray bottle of water get her up about 3000 rpm and spray----MIST----into your throttlebody as the engine is running.
This will decarbon your engine....as your engine starts to choke down, stop spraying. As it clears up, spray some more. Keep doing this till you've used about half your bottle.
Now, after all this, we're ready to find your problem....
You just don't start throwing parts at a bike trying to fix it. We now need to look for whats wrong. Do a compression test, then a leakdown test. Yes, your compression might look a little funky....cause your engine has a built in compression release....
After you do this, tell use what you found....
All this can get a bit complicated, but we're here to help you.... I've was a wrench-jocky at a dealership for 30+ years, so, you gotta lot to stuff to look at on these bikes. 90% of the time its usually something simple....your bike is telling you something is wrong, you gotta be a detective to find it....
We're here for ya bro....

Sorry its been a while since Ive logged in here. New job. Just recently got some time to fiddle with the bike. Disconnected cobra FI. Swapped out plugs. Checked air filter, the foam seal was all gooey, and filter itself was stiff and crusty. I purchased a new air kit & coaster plate from chuckster. Put a few miles on it this week. Will pull plugs this weekend to inspect. I had planed on getting a compression tester to check for issues, just havent had a chance to do so. What I have noticed since installing the air kit is that Im not having an extremely pungent fuel smell anymore. It definitely feels like its running smoother at the moment.

[andyvh1959]

Hotter plugs is not the answer. You said the air filter seal was all gooey, like too much gas gooey or oil gooey? Have you checked the crankcase vent system to make sure its functioning properly? A big V-twin pumps a LOT of air through the crankcase and if the system is not able to breathe/vent back into the intake or atmosphere it WILL pump oil past the rings when the pistons are low in the cylinders, and that will foul the plugs no matter how the fuel system is set.

I agree with Dragon Lady, take the fuel tuner out of the system, start from scratch with a near stock setup and see what results you get. Now, since your bike has straight through pipes, that alone (without the fuel tuner) will lean out the fueling significantly. IF you still get foulded plugs then I'd suspect the crankcase venting is messed up. With straight through pipes the plugs should be coming out near white or very litte color on them. Watching your video, those pipes would normally have it running lean if the fuel system wasn't also adjusted to add more fuel. Again, taking the fuel tuner out of the system is the best way to determine if fuel, too much or too little, is the issue. Also, I noticed black smoke from the exhaust on closed throttle, assuming the fuel system itself doesn't cause it, smoke on closed throttle can indicate excessive crankcase pressure, can indicate leaking valve stem seals, can indicate worn rings, number of things.

Again, assuming the fuel system is not the cause, I'd recommend a Leak Down test much more than a compression test. A compression test will only tell you if a cylinder is good or low for compression. But it does not indicate WHY a cylinder is good or low. A leak down test, done right, can indicate an issue in the valves, an issue with the piston rings, an issue with the cylinder itself. So again, take the fuel tuner out of the system and see what results you get. If it improves, good, you may have a solution. If it does not improve, then I'd go for a Leak Down test before spending any more money on the bike and certainly before just tearing into the engine and throwing parts at it in hopes to find a solution.

Oh, and reading spark plug color really means you have to test it for the engine speeds you are running. So get the engine near back to stock. Install fresh plugs, go out and ride. To check the plugs for highway speed (say 60 mph in 5th gear), ride steady at about 60 mph, steady throttle, then pull in the clutch and switch off the engine immediately, coast to a stop, pull the plugs and they'll indicate what the color is for that speed and throttle setting. If you do the same for just riding around town, you get a plug color indication for those conditions. If you do the same for the bike idling on the driveway you get a plug color for those conditions. If you do the same for highway speed in THIRD gear, like 4500 rpm, you get a plug color for a much more open throttle position. Its a tedious process but if you want to read plug color for different engine speeds and throttle conditions that's a way to do it.

[BeardedGrappler504]

Originally Posted by andyvh1959

Hotter plugs is not the answer. You said the air filter seal was all gooey, like too much gas gooey or oil gooey? Have you checked the crankcase vent system to make sure its functioning properly? A big V-twin pumps a LOT of air through the crankcase and if the system is not able to breathe/vent back into the intake or atmosphere it WILL pump oil past the rings when the pistons are low in the cylinders, and that will foul the plugs no matter how the fuel system is set.

I agree with Dragon Lady, take the fuel tuner out of the system, start from scratch with a near stock setup and see what results you get. Now, since your bike has straight through pipes, that alone (without the fuel tuner) will lean out the fueling significantly. IF you still get foulded plugs then I'd suspect the crankcase venting is messed up. With straight through pipes the plugs should be coming out near white or very litte color on them. Watching your video, those pipes would normally have it running lean if the fuel system wasn't also adjusted to add more fuel. Again, taking the fuel tuner out of the system is the best way to determine if fuel, too much or too little, is the issue. Also, I noticed black smoke from the exhaust on closed throttle, assuming the fuel system itself doesn't cause it, smoke on closed throttle can indicate excessive crankcase pressure, can indicate leaking valve stem seals, can indicate worn rings, number of things.

Again, assuming the fuel system is not the cause, I'd recommend a Leak Down test much more than a compression test. A compression test will only tell you if a cylinder is good or low for compression. But it does not indicate WHY a cylinder is good or low. A leak down test, done right, can indicate an issue in the valves, an issue with the piston rings, an issue with the cylinder itself. So again, take the fuel tuner out of the system and see what results you get. If it improves, good, you may have a solution. If it does not improve, then I'd go for a Leak Down test before spending any more money on the bike and certainly before just tearing into the engine and throwing parts at it in hopes to find a solution.

Oh, and reading spark plug color really means you have to test it for the engine speeds you are running. So get the engine near back to stock. Install fresh plugs, go out and ride. To check the plugs for highway speed (say 60 mph in 5th gear), ride steady at about 60 mph, steady throttle, then pull in the clutch and switch off the engine immediately, coast to a stop, pull the plugs and they'll indicate what the color is for that speed and throttle setting. If you do the same for just riding around town, you get a plug color indication for those conditions. If you do the same for the bike idling on the driveway you get a plug color for those conditions. If you do the same for highway speed in THIRD gear, like 4500 rpm, you get a plug color for a much more open throttle position. Its a tedious process but if you want to read plug color for different engine speeds and throttle conditions that's a way to do it.

The foam seal on the front/backside of oem air filter was very sticky, like it had been deteriorating for quite some time. It's been running alright with the new plugs, big air kit, and closing off the reed valves. I also have the cobra FI unplugged still. I havent noticed any black smoke since the changes. I've been using the bike as primary transportation this last week. I put an average of 50 miles a day on it. I dont ride hard or fast. Maintain steady throttle on the highway so I can feel the engine. If it's starts to sputter/miss fire, I usually feel it a handful of times the day before they start getting really foul.

[Chuck A.]

Do yourself a favor and dont ever touch the porcelain part of the sparkplug spark. Spark will run to the nearest ground and the dirt and oils from your hand can and will cause the spark to run the outer side of the plug causing a weak spark at the electrode. Second thing I bought a bike pennies on the dollar cause no one could find the intermittent miss as the engine warmed up. Cracked plastic plug cap was the culprit. Spark was jumping to the cylinder cooling fin.

[andyvh1959]

That reminded me of a tip my dad (old school mechanic) told me. Get the engine fully warmed up and have a water spray bottle handy to spritz a mist. Do this in the dark, no lights, spritz a water mist around the plugs wires and watch for any blue arching to the engine from the wires. An arch indicates a weak point in the circuit, like degraded insulation on plug wires, or a plug arching to the block instead of getting full spark energy into the combustion chamber.