Food for thought

Very interesting article by Mike Nixon. I have steadily moved away from K&N filters and I know we all have them for several reasons. What do you guys think?

https://www.motorcycleproject.com/text/kn_filters.html

 

This topic, and this specific article, comes up every now and then. Nixon is very knowledgeable and I agree with his views on this subject.

I use K&N not because of any illusion of increased power or filtration prowess. Mainly I use them because of the amount of bikes I own. If I had to buy an OEM air filter every time it would dramatically increase my maintenance costs.

There are factors that make me comfortable with my decision. The Pacific Northwest where I live (Seattle), and mostly ride (Western Washington), has generally very mild weather that fairly consistently clears the air. There is not a lot of particulates or industry air pollution. I don't ride in heavy metropolitan traffic either. Occasionally we have forest fires, but if the smoke is that bad, it is just as unpleasant for my intake system as it would be for my bikes, so I won't generally be riding in those conditions.

When I do service my filters, my plenum is not dirty underneath. When I need to go into carbs, they are also not dirty. My oil doesn't need changing more often and the inside of my crankcases are pristine when I have to pop a cover.

Additionally, I don't live in the bottom of a strip mine, or even have to ride down a dirt driveway to my house, or anyone else's house.

I'm fine with my choice. My conditions and justifications won't apply to everyone. Do whatever you want with your bike, I will with mine. I don't think anyone would have a second thought about buying one of my bikes with a K&N.

 

Agree, I had K&N filters on all my bikes. Now that I have been thinning the heard the cost of dozens of air filters is no longer an issue. That being said I do think OEM , especially Honda is the best.

Good points Mike.


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My air filters mainly collect insects and grass, I also don't ride anywhere dusty, and prefer not to follow anyone else for long periods. I am also comfortable with K&N in my bikes which came with them installed.

I did have a positive K&N experience on my RF900, that really woke up when I installed the K&N.

 

Excellent points , I don’t see anything wrong with either choice. As Mike said , it’s up to you what you run.


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Food for thought?

How about I made some incredible biscuits tonight!

Great Value brand from Walmart - 20 Buttermilk biscuits for only $1.84!

They come frozen in a bag.

Bake at 375 for 22 minutes on a flat baking sheet pan. I used parchment paper so they wouldn't stick.

Yum!!!

 

Fuck. Now I want a biscuit. And some gravy. Maybe some hashbrowns. And 2 perfect over-easy eggs over the whole thing while we're at it. Can I please have some more coffee? And a greyhound?

 

What no bacon?

Recently I have been going with my eggs sunny side up!

Gotta change it up once in a while.

 

Sausage gravy is plenty of super processed food for one meal. Honestly I never order biscuits and gravy. It's usually the exact breakfast you just showed.

Thanks. It didn't help.

 

Sorry - I actually don't typically take photos of my food - but sometimes a decently prepared breakfast is almost like a piece of art..lol....

How about eggs in a nest for something different?

 

Abso-fucking-lutely. Haven't done that in a little while. Trying to remember the name my Mother-in-law has for it.

 

You can probably find it by just doing a Google search. It goes by several names, IIRC.

But yeah.....I learned so much from my Mom growing up. I'm lucky to have had a Mom who was so good in so many ways. Not everyone does, sadly.

Much of my cooking I feel is a tribute to her.

I've been single most of my life so these are survival skills!

One of my specialties is chicken veggie soup. Soups are fun!

 

She calls them

One Eyed Jacks

 

What Captain's longer post said. I have reusable filters in just about every vehicle, car and bike, GT-B aside...as it is finicky. No issues for years and many hundreds of thousands of miles. I think that the article is a distinction without a difference (that matters).

 

My absolute favorite. Only thing that could make it better is home made pan fries loaded with plenty of green onion.

 

I used a K&N air element on mine for years. I don't know if it improved the performance. I liked the idea of cleanable and reusable. BUT! I found that sure as hell, soon as I cleaned it, I wanted to ride. I am not a patient man in many ways. And the manufactures specific instructions said to allow to air dry before adding the oi to the filter. Blowing it dry, or forcing quicker drying of the element is a definite no no. SO. I went back to OEM. I blow the dust out of those carefully from time to time so get a lot of use out of mine. I am in the PNW as well. I guess it is really the PSW where I live. But our weather in Chilliwack is much the same as Seattle. Maybe more rain. And more snow. I try not to ride in the snow though. Or try not to. I have been caught in it a couple times though. Not fun at all.

 

As your bike would disappear in the snow, keeping out of it seems like a sound plan Randy.

 

I never really thought about it that way but you are absolutely correct.

When I was commuting, I checked weather net for about 5 or 6 locations between my place and work. One day, there was fairly heavy rain all the way. That's fine. I ride in rain and with the right gear, I stayed dry. But between one exit to the next, it went from rain to snowflakes that I swear were 1 inch in diameter. The distance between these exits was less than 2 miles. By time I got to the second exit, the snow had accumulated to about 3 inches. I had to put my feet out like outriggers. I managed to get off the freeway and ride a mile or two more and pulled into a gas bar. That's when the bike went down. That was the end of my commute that day. With help, I righted the bike (now try that while standing on a very slippery surface) and left it at the gas bar and called into one of my guys to come get me and bring me the rest of the way into work. I was a supervisor so I could do that. But we would do that for any of our guys.

My years of commuting on my bike was an adventure often.