Mikuni HSR42 Carburetor - The Lonely King Part Two

In last month's first installment of the Lonely King, we bought and had shipped to us a 1997 Road King that we scored off the Internet and showed you how to avoid the many pitfalls that may arise in doing such a transaction. This month, we are cleaning up the King and getting it ready to ride.

(1.)As per our Harley-Davidson service manual, we torqued every nut and bolt to within factory specifications.

(1.)As per our Harley-Davidson service manual, we torqued every nut and bolt to within fac

Since we knew for a fact that the bike was not ridden for at least five years, we wanted to go over it with a fine-toothed comb. The first order of business was hitting all the nuts and bolts with a torque wrench to make sure all were to spec as per our Harley-Davidson service manual. Then we dropped in a new battery and cleaned all the connections. Once that was done, we checked the brakes and clutch to see if they were worn or if anything was dry-rotted or had any other abnormal and unsafe wear. We then popped the fuel cap on the tank and gave the gas a whiff. It smelled a bit funky, so we decided to drain the tank and add some new, 93-octane gasoline along with some Sea Foam fuel stabilizer to aid in cleaning the fuel system's parts that we couldn't easily access. From there it was time to change all the fluids. We used AmsOil's Synthetic MCV 20W-50 oil in the transmission, engine as well as the primary. We then pulled the spark plugs and took a look at them. After a close inspection, we installed a new set of Autolite MP4265 plugs, and from there we decided it was safe to start the bike.

(2.)After dumping the old gas and adding some new 93 octane, we added Sea Foam engine treatment to aid in cleaning out the system.

(2.)After dumping the old gas and adding some new 93 octane, we added Sea Foam engine trea

The bike fired right up and idled OK, but it stumbled, wheezed and just plain didn't run well when the throttle was twisted. After playing around with the stock CV carburetor for more than a little while, we were convinced that it was massively gummed up from the years that the bike had sat. The decision was made that while we had the original carb off of the bike, we were going to upgrade to a Mikuni unit. After giving Mikuni USA a call, we ended up going with their HSR42 Easy Kit. This kit is made to work with a stock H-D manifold, choke cable, air cleaner and throttle cables. What's good about going with the HSR42 kit is that it is for stock and mildly modified motors, meaning you can add an intake, exhaust, some hotter cams and even aftermarket heads. We then called our pal John Jump at K&N, and he sent us one of their RC-0850 air filter kits so we can get the most air into our new Mikuni as possible. This filter is the ultimate in minimalist design and is securely held on by only a single stainless steel hose clamp. From there we simply turned the petcock to "ON," half-opened the choke, pushed the start button, and the Lonely King rides again!

(3.)We then changed the engine oil, transmission and primary oils with AmsOil 20W-50. Yep, all three holes.

(3.)We then changed the engine oil, transmission and primary oils with AmsOil 20W-50. Yep,

Check out next month's issue for the continued saga of the Lonely King's evolution when we work on how to make it just a bit more comfortable to ride and update its 1990s style to a bit more of a current look. B