The 116 Big Bore B'day Present

Krome's maiden voyage with 116"

Apparently 111 cubic inches ain't enough.  I remember when the new motors came out in 2013.  Indian had just one upped HD's CVO 110" motors.   Indian fans everywhere were ecstatic and talking shit. I was soon on a new bike after demo'ing them in Aug of '13 after Sturgis.   My takeaway; it was pure smooth torque.  Pull on the throttle and she'd continue to accelerate, even up hills, with no downshifting.  Nothing mind numbing, but solid and put a smile on your face.  Now, you could get bigger aftermarket S&S motors in bikes.  You could get a big bore kit to bump up your HD.  Hell, the Thunderstroke motor was smaller than Yamaha's air cooled V-Twin (113ci).  But in the Indian / HD war, it was now the King of size.

But like everything, it's never enough. Lloydz was leading the pack with a few teasers out there.   You'd see a pic of a 111 with a Supercharger on it.  A Turbo on it.  You'd hear rumors they blew the motor up.  Folks wondered when the aftermarket options would come in.  As I started considering going down this path I wrote about it here: Size Matters .  Problem was, I already had Stage 2 cams in my bike and I didn't want to throw about $650.00 away.  I was content.  I mean, how much power do you need?  But we all have ego's, some larger than others.  I remember seeing folks bragging on how fast they can go, some completely full of BS.  So much so that I wrote about that one here: My Indian goes ______ MPH .    So I snickered, pushed buttons and.. . when I felt the need for speed on a big bike .... I pulled out my HD. A few years back I swapped it's perfectly good cam'd up 103 power plant for a JIMS 120R Twn Cam Race Motor that puts 132HP to the pavement.  And, I've got 3 other bikes that ... top that and will make the sphincter clinch a lil tighter.   So, I was content.   Problem is, something has been bothering me.   The first 10k miles on my Chieftain, I was constantly pushing it.  It'd roll up to 120mph (per the speedo) like it was nothing.  But after my 10k service, it never seemed the same.  Getting to 110 mph seemed difficult.  I have no idea why.  So, with the Stage 2 cams came up, I jumped on it deep inside hoping it'd 'fix' my problem and take the bike to the next level.  It didn't. Put a Dolbeck Tuner on it to fix it .  Didn't.   So, I've told myself "is what it is.".  Problem is, if I 'raced' someone, I'd sometimes get my ass kicked.  I attributed that to total weight (my fat ass on the bike), but still... I knew my bike was lacking in the power department.   So, I'd thought about it all....considered options.  Just didn't want to spend the $.

Back in August my birthday was coming up.  A week or so before, I'd showed the wife a pic of a Kings Mountain Indian Motorcycle for sale that tripped my trigger.  In a cream color and with the distressed leather, it was pure 'class.'.  She loved the look of it.  I loved the look of it.  It was selling for a fair price with lower miles.   She basically said "baby... get it.  It's your B'day present!".   Well, after talking to the seller, negotiating, etc...   I had a moment of common sense (I know..I know.. rare) come over me.. and thought "WTF am I doing??  I don't really NEED another bike!"   So, knowing the aftermarket Big Bore kits were expensive and I'd been apprehensive to drop the cash (but a small fraction of the cost of that KM bike), I asked her if she'd buy me that, for my B'day.  Score!

The Lloydz 121 kit is my first choice in my mind, but the cost is astronomical compared to the other choices.  I've set my sights on the Arsenal 117 and promptly called and started the wheels in motion.  But within 24 hours, I'd rethought the whole process.   With the 121 and 117, you have to crack the cases open, do some rework on them.  Then you send in the cranks for re-balancing, etc, etc.   Now, on one hand you'd think "that's the best way to get the best product".  True.   I guess if I lived near the folks that do these every day and had pumped out a dozen or two, I'd agree.  But to be honest, deep down I felt like it was still 'cutting edge' and I didn't want to be a guinea pig.   So with the new version of the OEM 116 Big bore kit ( they 'd done a stop sale and beefed up the rods, then reintroduced), I felt like it was the 'simplest' option.  However, I've heard nothing but good about the more aggressive Lloydz 585 cams (vs the OEM Stage3 the comes with the 116 kit), so I chose to go with them for some extra 'oomph'.  And since the OEM ECM flash is fairly mild thanks to the EPA, opted for a Dynojet Vision tuner that re-flashes the ECM vs piggy backing it like other tuners.  Problem was when to do it.  I knew where (Little Rock!). I'd heard they were on back order, I had rallies to attend.   So I got on the list and decided to worry about it when it came in.  Fate would jump in back in late September when my back went out in Fayetteville at BBB 2018. The rally was a wash for me and my bike ended up being trailered to Little Rock since I couldn't ride it.  I decided to just leave it there until the kits came in and they could work on it.  

Note: I brag on Indian of Little Rock for several reasons, some of them personal.  However, I fail to mention  Heritage Indian Motorcycle of NW Arkansas.  The Owner (Justin) is a great guy.  Bob Rear in the Service department is a great guy.  If I didn't have the relationship I do with Gregory Polaris, I'd be headed to Rogers AR.  And of course, there is Indian Motorcycle of Charlotte, but I don't consider them 'in my region'.  If I lived further east, hell yes I'd be there.

Well, two days ago I brought it home.  I got up that morning, hooked up my bike trailer and headed to Little Rock, AR.  Along the way, I picked up my buddy Donnie who was having his Chief upgraded exactly as I was.  Soon, we're both in the truck and giddy like a couple of school boys.  We're taking the bikes to the next level.  They are both 5 years old, and it's sort of a refresh; almost like getting a new bike!   After lunch we pull up at the dealer and we're there!   Soon we're with Rob Gregory, back slapping and hugging.   One note; Rob is the real deal.   He started this dealership from the ground up.  He's been around the block.  He used to sell a shitload of Vic's before PI pulled the plug on that line after 18 years.   He sells a shitload of side by sides and 4 wheelers with the PI nameplate.   We're talking HUNDREDS a month.He is one of the top 10 PI dealers in the WORLD.  And when it comes to Indian Motorcycles, he opened his doors back in Sept of '13 selling them, when the new models came out. He's made a name for himself in the region due to several things as I see it.  First, he pushes out some killer paint jobs. His angle for folks like us is he has 'extra tin's.  Point being, your bike isn't out of commission when the painting is in process.   You're out of commission for a couple of days, not months. Brilliant.  Secondly, he has a no BS sales process.   No gimmicks.  Just an 'out the door' price and you pay your taxes and title fees as appropriate.  No hidden documentation fees.  No "how much can you afford each month sales tactics".   If he tells you the bike is $20k, that is what your check is written out for.  Third, and the most important.  He's good people.  He's the guy you are proud to call a friend.  Proud to refer to as 'family'.   Simple as that.  So needless to say, we're smiling upon arrival!     We catch up, do a lil' BSing... and...I take Krome out for a spin.   Donnie takes his out for a spin.   I only went a few blocks and notice it's 'cold blooded'.   But, damned it sounds good.  No.. .. sounds awesome.  More throaty, with the same exhaust.  Well, I get the bill.   I load it up.   We're headed home.  But I could've stayed and hung with Rob all day.   Like I said; 'good people!'

Man, that was a long drive for me.  For some reason I'm dragging ass. It's 290 miles each way, and after a bite to eat at Hooters (and two beers) with Donnie, I'm yawning.   Needing some petro' I pull in and also grab a cup of java that is advertised as having extra caffeine.  At the check out are some of the lil '5 hour energy' bottles.   Thirty minutes down the road, I'm wide awake and smiling!  Sometime after 9pm I'm home with mama, and wired. I'm thinking it's going to be a long night, but several hours later I'm zzzz'ing dreaming about ..... Krome.   Next morning after a few hours of work, it's time!   First though, I've got to swap out my mirrors.  Ever since I'd put my Dirty Bird 4" mid rise bars on , I've thought the Pinnacle upgraded mirrors looked... well.. stupid,  up in the air like they were.  So, off they go. I've got some aftermarket low profile ones that will look perfect on it.  Figure a few minutes of screwing one set off, and the next set on, I'll be done.  Not.   I realize quickly that my aftermarket LSR windshield is obstructing my rotating the mirrors off.   So, I have to remove the windshield; really?  Once they are off, putting on the new ones, since they are lower, the fairing is now obstructing turning them; WTF?  So, I have to lower the bars towards the tank.  Now, had I thought of that first, I wouldn't have had to remove the windshield.  HOUR later ... finally . I'm headed down the road.  She's started up, idling up and down like they do with the cams...and ... begging to be ridden.

Sorry, you had to read all that BS above to get to this part, didn't you?  Well, I'm off.   This is only going to be a 50 mile ride with a barbershop stop, but the motor isn't broken in anyways.  I just want to get it on the road and get a feel for it. And the difference is immediately obvious.   Every gear throughout the band has power to spare.   Interestingly, and I mean this in a good way ....   it always feels like I'm in the wrong gear.  If I'm in 6th which is basically an overdrive .. my gut is telling me I'm in 4th or 5th because of the power on hand in the throttle and the 'sound' of exhaust note.  I find myself looking down continuously to double check what gear I'm in. No matter what gear I'm in, just a lil' blip of the throttle and I'm accelerating.  I actually have to get used to this since I'm a lil jerky with this new found power on demand. I'm used to a lil bit of lag historically; not now.   The next thing I notice is I'm rolling at a higher rate of speed than normal because it happens so easily.  Except for the wind (and it was a windy one yesterday),  I had no real indications of how fast I was going.  Rolling at 80mph, the bike felt like it was idling.  It was nothing  to do this!   A lil bit of throttle and I'm at 100mph.  Now here's the kicker. When I got out of the throttle at 100mph, I wasn't even in it.  I mean, I didn't have it pulled back but maybe an inch?  Maybe 10% of the rotation?   I'm thinking to myself "how fast is this damned thing going to go if I really grab some throttle? "  I've never had the bike over 120 (via speedo, not GPS), and It feels like 130+ would be nothing.  I've written before that the bikes are capped at 117, but the tuner modifies the top speed limiter (don't laugh, but I never asked about this on mine ....yet) .. so physics limit the bike now.  I doubt I could get this big bastard to 140+ .. but .. it feels like it's capable of more than that.   And that brings me to the second piece of this.  Everyone want's to know "what's the dyno say!!!"

Before I picked up the bike I asked the power question.   My initial 'disappointing' answer was 101hp and 120torque.   In my mind I was expecting to hear closer to 110  / 130.   But , I was assured it was a 'beast' and the dyno numbers lie.  In fact, I'm told that this particular dyno measures 'low' compared to others.  Still, I'm a lil' discouraged.  Well, until I rode it.   This power-band is nothing short of amazing.   When folks tell you seat of the pants is more important than dyno numbers, it's 100% true.   I can back this up with a comparison.   I like to throw out the numbers of my HD bike.   With the 120R it can lay down some serious rubber.  I can pull the front tire of the ground in the first 3 gears.  It's dyno'd at 132/136 numbers.  BUT, Krome with the 116" feels .....  stronger .. throughout the RPM range.   On my HD, it comes alive from 3k-6k RPMs .  Krome with the 116" feels strong ...   torquey strong .. from 2k RPMs up.  I've also got a Triumph Rocket III that has a 140" motor that is about 150hp.   That bike has a smooth power band through all five gears.  Krome with the 116" feels like that.   So am I happy?  Hell yes.   Would I do it again? Hell yes.   Would I like the 121 or 117 kit from other manufacturers.....  yes....  but...   I just feel like they aren't 100% mainstream yet.  

That all being said, there is still one thing that bugs the crap out of me.  For the HD haters out there about to chime it , I say "give it a rest."  I don't care about the HD digs, the HD hating.   Here's the gist.   The new M8 motor in the HD has 2+ companies out there ( ex: FuelMoto and Star) that are doing some crazy mods for them (124" etc, ) with some crazy HP and Torque numbers (120 .. 130 .. 140+ in HP with good torque).. for LESS $$ .. than the Indian kits.  WTF?   So my bitch is .... cost.  And .. well, power numbers.  For the HDs you can get more bang for the buck.   Period.   And that pisses me off.   I know the day is coming that with more Indian bikes on the road, the prices will drop.  But we aren't there yet.    And, this brings up one other point.    A lot of Indian owners like to brag on the power of the 111 .. of the 116.   But, apparently they forget an HD CVO now delivers with a 117ci motor.    If that HD owner throws a couple of dollars at it, they are past 100HP.  If they throw real money at it, it'll most likely smoke any naturally aspirated Indian on the road (I'm talking big bikes, not Scouts).   So, be careful with the smack talk and know your opponent.    There is always a faster bike out there. Always.