Moto Tassinari V-Force reed tension

[RM_guy]

Well, I just bought a V-Force reed block for my bike because I want as much
low end as I can get and from whet I've read, this was the way to go. So I
open the box and on a slip of paper it says to leave the reed tension in
the "high" setting or the reed life will be dramatically cut short. Hmmm. I
wanted the low tension setting to maximize the low end power. So
like any good DRNer I did a search on the subject and found lots of
questions on the same thing. Those that did go to the low tension setting
did not feel that the reeds failed prematurely but some found that they had
to go much leaner on the pilot jet. I also saw one comment that the reeds
fluttered when at the low tension setting.

That still didn't answer my question so I gave Moto Tassinari a call and
talked to one of their techs. He explained that the reeds that they use are
thin and are not as strong as some of the thicker reeds that they use for
other applications. The read block is common to several other applications (snowmobiles)
that use thicker reeds so the high and low tension adjustment is
appropriate.

The low tension setting with the thinner reeds can also fluttering, as
someone had already noticed, which can also cause problem. I asked about
possible jetting changes and he said that I might have to increase
the size of the pilot. I know some of you decreased the pilot size
but you may have thought you should because of the fluttering of the
thinner reeds. The tech said that in the high tension setting I should have
plenty of power on the low end as well the top. I plan on just leaving it at the low tension setting.

I can't wait for the weather to break so I can try it out :)

 

[SPD]

I did'nt notice much differance in the high tension setting on my husky but did notice some differance on the low tension. I got one season out of mine before I had to replace them.

 

[bclapham]

i just went with the high tension to ensure reed life. (that and i couldnt be arsed to take the thing of at the the track to do back to back tests). that said, ive got loads of bottom anyway from porting. I wouldnt worry about it affecting your pilot too much as in that its all relative.....what i mean is that its not that hard to dial in the pilot and airscrew circuits.

it does feel crisper on throttle response though, which is what i am looking for, but if you are using the V-force soley to give loads of bottom, then i feel you cash would be better spent elsewhere.

 

[UKcr125rider]

I put a v-force on my '03 Cr125 yesterday and did feel a slight performance increase. The biggest improvement i though was it cleaned up the throttle response which is good. Not that it was bad befor, but it's even beter now. I've it set to low tension, but will try high tension in time. And it was a doddle to put on. No tabs to cut off the stock maifold. Honda must have changed this in the last year or two. My old '98 Cr had tabs which i was preparing myself to cut off before i took the old valve off. I thought i had washers and nuts missing from the box and was about to fone the supplier.

 

[smarttoys]

I could feel a definite difference between high and low tension when I had the V-force on my 2000 CR250. The bike performed better all around with low tension. I do replace the reeds once a year so reed life is not really an issue.

On my '02 YZ250 and '03 CR250 I used the low tension setting right away, so I have no comparison on these bikes.

 

[RM_guy]

Originally posted by bclapham
...but if you are using the V-force soley to give loads of bottom, then i feel you cash would be better spent elsewhere.

I've already had Eric port for Mo Power Everywhere so I do have a lot of low end right now. In my never ending quest to spend my money I wanted to give the V-Force a try.:)

If the low tension works for you then go for it. I'll eventually try the low tension setting myself. I like to experiment. I'm still tweaking my jetting so I'm prepared to tweak more if I need to.

 

[Roost165]

One my 03 RM125 i felt massive increase in power. The high tension gave better throttle response with more over-rev. But when i changed to low tension i got better bottom, even better throttle response, and the the same top end power as high tension. Which is more than i can say for my pipe all it did was made it easier to stay on the pipe but i did need help there too.

 

[Lorin]

I'm not sure how to respond to what the tech told you about the jetting, but the reaction I had was to go leaner all around. As to the pilot, I was able to keep the same pilot and adjust the air screw slightly (1\3 -1\2 turn leaner), while going one step leaner on the main as well. The theory behind this is that the increased surface of the reed area is able to pull more fuel (and air) into the motor, which would create a richer, fuel condition. With that in mind, the need for leaner fuel jets makes sense. Whether or not this will work the same for every bike is beyond me, but I had my bike jetted sharply before installing the reeds and was able to tell the differences due to this. I wouldnt be suprised if a fairly substantial majority of riders have mediocre jetting before installing parts like this (or pipes), and the differences or perfomance that is gained is due to the parts changing the jetting characteristics and making them closer to the optimum jetting. FWIW, I went with the low tension settings on my reeds and am really happy with the results gained. I was a little skeptical as to how much difference they would provide, but was pleasantly suprised. Not necessarily more power, but there was a noticeable difference in throttle response.

 

[bclapham]

Originally posted by Lorin
I wouldnt be suprised if a fairly substantial majority of riders have mediocre jetting before installing parts like this (or pipes), and the differences or perfomance that is gained is due to the parts changing the jetting characteristics and making them closer to the optimum jetting.

yep, i think the same! how many people have put a new piston in and bought a new pipe whilst at the shop....low and behold, the bike runs great, is it the pipe, maybe not, more likely having the new piston

 

[RM_guy]

Originally posted by Lorin
...The theory behind this is that the increased surface of the reed area is able to pull more fuel (and air) into the motor, which would create a richer, fuel condition. With that in mind, the need for leaner fuel jets makes sense. ...

This is actually what my thinking was. In anycase my jetting wasn't spot on so I have more work there anyway. I just wish the snow would go away so I can give it a try.

 

[whyz]

Thanks for the PM back on the Reeds.

I left it on the high tension, it seemed to have moved the Power everywhere.
After adding a PC pipe and a Factory Sound Shorty w/ the 133 kit,
The snap is alot more easier to cope with. Very Big change.

It seems easier to gauge the Power.

Oh yeah, Do they call it a 133, 4 or 5 kit? :think:

 

[CRrider125]

You say that the reeds are thin...would it be possible to put on boysen reeds in place of the v-force reeds?

 

[RM_guy]

Originally posted by CRrider125
You say that the reeds are thin...would it be possible to put on boysen reeds in place of the v-force reeds?

I suppose that anything is possible and if you wanted to monkey around with getting them to fit you could try it. The stiffer the reeds, the more top end performance you will get and you will loose some low end. I'd guess that the thinner reeds in the high tension setting are comparable to thicker reeds at the low tension setting.

I'd just stick with the reeds that came with the V Force cage but.