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EDIT:
For the sake of those reading this many years in the future, and not wanting to read the entire thread, I'll update this first post with final conclusions so everything you need to know is in one place. I will update all the attached files with the latest version as I make improvements.
I wrote logging software for this controller. Attached is the program. It is written in Python 3 script.
Rename it to IgntionLog.py to run it. The latest version is 1.8 dated 06-04-2021.
It will take a snapshot of the controller every 64 mS.
I set mine up with a 10 degree ignition retard on input 1, a revert to stock timing on input 2, a shift light on output 1, and a MAP sensor to read engine vacuum.
My tuning file is attached with the name Ignition Timing File MM-DD-YYYY.txt. Rename this to .ign to use. The latest file is dated 06-04-2021.
It has a mild advance at part throttle, a big retard at closed throttle above 2K (makes the exhaust pop), a idle locking adjustment (retard at 1300 and advance at 900), and a rev limiter at 8700.
The shift light starts blinking at 7500 and goes steady at 8500.
This tune uses a MAP sensor, with stock intake, V&H Cruizer exhaust, 2.5 turns on idle screws and (to my knowledge but I've never looked) 38/132 jets.
I am running wider gapped (0.45 vs 0.35 stock) Denso Iridium Spark Plugs.
THIS TUNE HAS NOT BEEN TESTED WITH OTHER CONFIGURATIONS!!! USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
To install a MAP sensor, visit my other thread where I talk about reading the carb vacuum.
When I get a chance, I'll post a tune that mimics the stock controller, so people can use this controller to replace a broken stock controller. It's much cheaper than the $500-$600 they want for an OEM controller.
Conclusion:
So far, it's been worth the effort. The bike behaves a lot better when cold, with a more consistent throttle feel. I use the 10 degree ignition retard (on a switch) whenever I use the choke. This keeps the choked idle around 1400-1500. The idle speed is rock steady across operating temperature, from just warm enough to turn off the choke, to fan kicking on and everything in between. More precisely, it idles at 1050 just off choke and 1150 when warm/hot. Here's a video demo of a cold start with stock timing vs a cold start using this controller, warm idle recovery using stock vs this controller, the rev limiter, the shift light, and the decel pops. I combined it all into one video, where it was 4 videos before.
The RPMs drop faster when closing the throttle, and it settles very quickly into idle RPM. The-off idle throttle response is VERY snappy as well. I could probably get even better off-idle response by adjusting the 72-100 kPa range for 1100-1300 RPM, but that would cause the choke idle to rise higher. I feel I have good compromise set up here.
I have deceleration pops that can be turned off with a switch.
I can sync the carbs by pinching each carb's hose and reading the idle vacuum on a computer.
I'm idling at 7 degrees (vs 5 stock), which should result in less heat at idle. So far no signs of detonation even after a hot day.
MPG results are in. I showed an 8% boost in fuel economy! That's about another 11 miles per tank. At cruise, the throttle seems less sensitive, which I find easier to control. For example, if before it took 10-13% throttle to hold 60 MPH, now it takes 8-12%. Less overall throttle, but it's spread out over a wider range. Wide open throttle power feels unchanged. My MPG record before the mod was 52.48 for 71.0 miles and 51.09 for 148.1 miles. My commute has changed from country roads to city roads so my typical has dropped from ~47 to ~43. Even so, I managed 49.73 on a twisty road ride. The V-Strom 650 riding with me got 51, so I'm pretty proud of that. I adjusted it once more after that ride. I'll be riding with the same person in September, so I'll be able to compare side-by-side again.
It starts up with no throttle when it's cold, warm or hot. NO MORE HOT START ISSUES!!!
I have a shift LED mounted to my windshield bracket, next to the tach. It's really nice as I can keep my eyes on the road and know when I'm getting close to redline. I know....it's a cruiser, not a sport bike. But sometimes you gotta wind it into the 8s! The rev limiter is great too for those accidental 1st to Neutral shifts.
Here is a picture of the timing I am using. The numbers are in reference to stock timing. The Intake Absolute Pressure (IAP) shows the pressure behind the throttle. 101 kPa is atmospheric pressure at sea level. Lower numbers represent a vacuum caused by a restriction (throttle closing). The RPM rises going to the right, and the manifold pressure (throttle opening) rises going downward. For example, stock timing at 8500 RPM at 72 kPa is 25 degrees. 72 kPa is the manifold pressure when holding the engine at 8500 RPM with no load. I am running +4 (or 29 degrees). The map also has color coding to show various operating conditions. The purple (cruise) is the manifold pressure when holding a steady speed on flat ground with no wind. I did not log data for cruising above 80 MPH. I would expect it to be 93-97 kPa.
![53495]()
Three final points that I'll leave for future readers to ponder:
1. I'm sure someone could run 93 octane in this and dyno tune the wide open throttle for a bit more power. I'm not interested in switching from 87 octane or renting dyno time, so I'll leave that up to another user to figure out.
2. The wide open throttle run shows some loss of air pressure (increase in vacuum) starting at 4800 RPM and increasing out to redline, to the tune of about 3-4%. This is the region that an Ear Shave ought to help with. Below 4800 RPM, the Ear Shave would have no benefit as the restriction is almost nil at those RPMs. The 3-4% lines up with the estimate given here. "+3% Intake pods only". I'm happy with how Veronica is running, so I'm not going to do the ear shave. But it does suggest some power is left on the table with the stock intake.
3. The vacuum reading when holding a given RPM at no load has a strange shape (~60 kPa from idle to 4k and ~80 kPa from 6k+). I wonder if that's due to the intake box resonance. The torque dip happens at 4-4.5k from the one dyno chart I've seen. I'd be curious if that shape changes with an ear shave. The cruise vacuum readings are what I'd expect, rising with speed.
Original post:
Santa's bringing me one of these this year!
I'm going to play around with it. The unit has two tables that can be selected via a switch.
I'm going to set one table to match the factory spark advance (as a fallback if anything goes wrong while riding).
The second table will be a custom table.
It also has a global retard option that I can switch on/off. I'm going to use it to advance the ignition for premium fuel, and retard back for regular.
It will add a RPM limiter, and an optional shift light (just a little LED I'll tack on somewhere).
I'm adding a MAP sensor to measure carb vacuum and I'm going to advance based off engine vacuum.
I'm planning on linking the two carb vacuum ports to provide a more steady signal to the MAP sensor.
I'm adding T fittings to run to the petcock, the air bypass system, and the MAP sensor off the linked vacuum line.
This carb linking is going to be interesting. At idle, the carb will be able to draw through it's own throttle plate as well as the opposite carb's throttle plate. At least it will be a proper mixture either way. But I expect it to appear like a larger throttle opening than I actually have. Hopefully that only means I readjust the idle. On the other hand, the air in the linking tube might just oscillate back and forth and have minimal effect. At WOT, I don't see it having much effect. The vast majority of air will be drawn through the local carb body, with only a small amount drawn through the opposite carb. This I can test without changing ignition just by rerouting the hoses.
Once I have a working tune, I'll post my settings file online for others to use.
At the very least, this unit would make for a replacement ignition module if someone's original unit failed.
It's under $200 with custom wiring for this bike.
For the sake of those reading this many years in the future, and not wanting to read the entire thread, I'll update this first post with final conclusions so everything you need to know is in one place. I will update all the attached files with the latest version as I make improvements.
I wrote logging software for this controller. Attached is the program. It is written in Python 3 script.
Rename it to IgntionLog.py to run it. The latest version is 1.8 dated 06-04-2021.
It will take a snapshot of the controller every 64 mS.
I set mine up with a 10 degree ignition retard on input 1, a revert to stock timing on input 2, a shift light on output 1, and a MAP sensor to read engine vacuum.
My tuning file is attached with the name Ignition Timing File MM-DD-YYYY.txt. Rename this to .ign to use. The latest file is dated 06-04-2021.
It has a mild advance at part throttle, a big retard at closed throttle above 2K (makes the exhaust pop), a idle locking adjustment (retard at 1300 and advance at 900), and a rev limiter at 8700.
The shift light starts blinking at 7500 and goes steady at 8500.
This tune uses a MAP sensor, with stock intake, V&H Cruizer exhaust, 2.5 turns on idle screws and (to my knowledge but I've never looked) 38/132 jets.
I am running wider gapped (0.45 vs 0.35 stock) Denso Iridium Spark Plugs.
THIS TUNE HAS NOT BEEN TESTED WITH OTHER CONFIGURATIONS!!! USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
To install a MAP sensor, visit my other thread where I talk about reading the carb vacuum.
When I get a chance, I'll post a tune that mimics the stock controller, so people can use this controller to replace a broken stock controller. It's much cheaper than the $500-$600 they want for an OEM controller.
Conclusion:
So far, it's been worth the effort. The bike behaves a lot better when cold, with a more consistent throttle feel. I use the 10 degree ignition retard (on a switch) whenever I use the choke. This keeps the choked idle around 1400-1500. The idle speed is rock steady across operating temperature, from just warm enough to turn off the choke, to fan kicking on and everything in between. More precisely, it idles at 1050 just off choke and 1150 when warm/hot. Here's a video demo of a cold start with stock timing vs a cold start using this controller, warm idle recovery using stock vs this controller, the rev limiter, the shift light, and the decel pops. I combined it all into one video, where it was 4 videos before.
The RPMs drop faster when closing the throttle, and it settles very quickly into idle RPM. The-off idle throttle response is VERY snappy as well. I could probably get even better off-idle response by adjusting the 72-100 kPa range for 1100-1300 RPM, but that would cause the choke idle to rise higher. I feel I have good compromise set up here.
I have deceleration pops that can be turned off with a switch.
I can sync the carbs by pinching each carb's hose and reading the idle vacuum on a computer.
I'm idling at 7 degrees (vs 5 stock), which should result in less heat at idle. So far no signs of detonation even after a hot day.
MPG results are in. I showed an 8% boost in fuel economy! That's about another 11 miles per tank. At cruise, the throttle seems less sensitive, which I find easier to control. For example, if before it took 10-13% throttle to hold 60 MPH, now it takes 8-12%. Less overall throttle, but it's spread out over a wider range. Wide open throttle power feels unchanged. My MPG record before the mod was 52.48 for 71.0 miles and 51.09 for 148.1 miles. My commute has changed from country roads to city roads so my typical has dropped from ~47 to ~43. Even so, I managed 49.73 on a twisty road ride. The V-Strom 650 riding with me got 51, so I'm pretty proud of that. I adjusted it once more after that ride. I'll be riding with the same person in September, so I'll be able to compare side-by-side again.
It starts up with no throttle when it's cold, warm or hot. NO MORE HOT START ISSUES!!!
I have a shift LED mounted to my windshield bracket, next to the tach. It's really nice as I can keep my eyes on the road and know when I'm getting close to redline. I know....it's a cruiser, not a sport bike. But sometimes you gotta wind it into the 8s! The rev limiter is great too for those accidental 1st to Neutral shifts.
Here is a picture of the timing I am using. The numbers are in reference to stock timing. The Intake Absolute Pressure (IAP) shows the pressure behind the throttle. 101 kPa is atmospheric pressure at sea level. Lower numbers represent a vacuum caused by a restriction (throttle closing). The RPM rises going to the right, and the manifold pressure (throttle opening) rises going downward. For example, stock timing at 8500 RPM at 72 kPa is 25 degrees. 72 kPa is the manifold pressure when holding the engine at 8500 RPM with no load. I am running +4 (or 29 degrees). The map also has color coding to show various operating conditions. The purple (cruise) is the manifold pressure when holding a steady speed on flat ground with no wind. I did not log data for cruising above 80 MPH. I would expect it to be 93-97 kPa.
Three final points that I'll leave for future readers to ponder:
1. I'm sure someone could run 93 octane in this and dyno tune the wide open throttle for a bit more power. I'm not interested in switching from 87 octane or renting dyno time, so I'll leave that up to another user to figure out.
2. The wide open throttle run shows some loss of air pressure (increase in vacuum) starting at 4800 RPM and increasing out to redline, to the tune of about 3-4%. This is the region that an Ear Shave ought to help with. Below 4800 RPM, the Ear Shave would have no benefit as the restriction is almost nil at those RPMs. The 3-4% lines up with the estimate given here. "+3% Intake pods only". I'm happy with how Veronica is running, so I'm not going to do the ear shave. But it does suggest some power is left on the table with the stock intake.
3. The vacuum reading when holding a given RPM at no load has a strange shape (~60 kPa from idle to 4k and ~80 kPa from 6k+). I wonder if that's due to the intake box resonance. The torque dip happens at 4-4.5k from the one dyno chart I've seen. I'd be curious if that shape changes with an ear shave. The cruise vacuum readings are what I'd expect, rising with speed.
Original post:
Santa's bringing me one of these this year!
I'm going to play around with it. The unit has two tables that can be selected via a switch.
I'm going to set one table to match the factory spark advance (as a fallback if anything goes wrong while riding).
The second table will be a custom table.
It also has a global retard option that I can switch on/off. I'm going to use it to advance the ignition for premium fuel, and retard back for regular.
It will add a RPM limiter, and an optional shift light (just a little LED I'll tack on somewhere).
I'm adding a MAP sensor to measure carb vacuum and I'm going to advance based off engine vacuum.
I'm planning on linking the two carb vacuum ports to provide a more steady signal to the MAP sensor.
I'm adding T fittings to run to the petcock, the air bypass system, and the MAP sensor off the linked vacuum line.
This carb linking is going to be interesting. At idle, the carb will be able to draw through it's own throttle plate as well as the opposite carb's throttle plate. At least it will be a proper mixture either way. But I expect it to appear like a larger throttle opening than I actually have. Hopefully that only means I readjust the idle. On the other hand, the air in the linking tube might just oscillate back and forth and have minimal effect. At WOT, I don't see it having much effect. The vast majority of air will be drawn through the local carb body, with only a small amount drawn through the opposite carb. This I can test without changing ignition just by rerouting the hoses.
Once I have a working tune, I'll post my settings file online for others to use.
At the very least, this unit would make for a replacement ignition module if someone's original unit failed.
It's under $200 with custom wiring for this bike.
I'll check it out while I'm at it.
