Air Filters- One or four?

[Swampy]

Can someone compare the advantages of using a single K&N filter and airbox versus 4 separate ones attached to carbs?

Bike is an 89 1127cc, stage 1 jet kit, Yosh 4:1 if it matters

Thanks!

[gaillarry]

I had pods on my GPz750, looks good but takes a lot of work. With pod filters the engine will breath better but it takes a lot of fine tuning the carbs to get it just right. IMHO its not worth it.

[StevieB]

Really? I was thinking of pods on my CB650 Bobber project, but I hadn't thought about a 4-carb K&N-type air box. I assume the 4-carb set is not much bigger than the pods?

[GSX1100FL]

When I bought the Kat back from my brother he had put K&N Pods on it, they kept popping off the carbs, finally got tired of that & put the original air box back on with a K&N filter.

I like that set-up a lot better, no more finding a pod off when I was out & about, the Kat is a lot more quieter also, guess the air box helps trap a lot of the engine noise coming out through the carbs.

[NiteMare]

single pods make it notoriously awkward to set up the carbs correctly on the oil cooled motors, a mate put single pods on his B12 and binned them almost immediately as they strangled his engine, serious loss of power ....

stick with your airbox and fit a single k+n replacement ...

if you have an aftermarket exhaust you may also need a jet kit and some dyno time to get it up and running correctly

[Paolo]

I just bought single pods and now I hear only complains...
Does anyone actually have a stage 3, single pods and aftermarket exhaust
who is happy with the combination?
that was my project and now I dunno anymore....

[Paolo]

....what would Mojoe say?

[Impulse2k1]

I just bought single pods and now I hear only complains...
Does anyone actually have a stage 3, single pods and aftermarket exhaust
who is happy with the combination?
that was my project and now I dunno anymore....

I have that setup, I bought the bike with them on and I think the bike seems a bit lacking in the power department, but thats just me.

[Mojoe]

....what would Mojoe say?

I would say stick with the stock air box with a good k&n filter.
pods are nice, and CAN be much more effective and give better performance, but as some said already, they are really fussy.

I don't know if this is true or not, but I have heard the biggest problem with pods are at an idle.
something about drawing heated air from the engine. especially on a full fairing bike. where as the airbox draws the air from farther back.

I personally have no experience with pods other than what others have shared through experience. The guy who rebuilt my V&H racing engine for me said pods are a pain in the butt, but he is quite familiar with tuning them. I might have no choice but to go with pods on that project bike because my air box is for a 34-36mm set of carbs, and the set I will be using will be at least 38 and possible as high as 41.

[Paolo]

I put pods on my supertenere' 750 a few years ago along with some home made mufflers and did not touch the carbs
the bike has been going fine and the maintenance easier
and some were saying that I would have had problems...none in that sense

[Slowcars4life]

I have pods and all the goodies too. Everything seems to run good, but I have a slightly high idle.

[scottynoface]

yeah the deal with pods seems to be that its really difficult to dial in the A/F mixture, making it hard to get good power throughout the entire RPM range, if you do end up with the pods let us know how it goes and what settings you use, i know a lot of people on here would like to know

[Mojoe]

all you really need to do is look at a pod in order to see what the problem with them is. an airbox is smooth. no sharp edges. and the air is flowing in a tube that is directly in front of the carb venturi. the flow of air is smooth.

then you have a pod. the venturi is block on the end by a cap on the pod. the air is sucked in from the sides through and pleated filter. it doesn't really smooth out in flow when it is entering the carb. and because of the way they are exposed, air currents differ at different speeds, which can mean that it will dial in on a dyno ok, but once you get it up to speed, things change. especially on the two outward pods.

but this is not a fact. or it could be, I guess. or at least close. it is just my theory on why pods can be difficult. I actually think aerodynamics of the bike can play a role in the performance of pods.

[danp2630]

So, with a 4-1 system, is the K&N a good chioce for the air cleaner?
Also, is a stage 1 dynojet kit ok or should I get a different stage?
Have a stage 1 on order and need to know if a K&N filter is a good choice for this mod?? ANY help is appreciated.

It has a UNI filter now and I have been told they are junk!

[NiteMare]

i believe that all is required with a decent 4 into 1 system and a k+n filter in the standard airbox is, a stage 1 dynojet kit ...

stage 3 kits are required when you junk the airbox and go to pods (single or dual) ...

it's still recommended that you get a little dyno time to check the air/fuel mixture is correct across the rev range

that's my understanding of it anyway