I met Nels this summer at his shop in Woodinville, WA during a maintenance event that included suspension setups with Fluid Suspension Science (FS2) in addition to Nels performing Dynos on your bikes.  Nels stated that with the upgraded Termignoni exhausts I had, the only way to get the maximum performance out of my bike was to purchase a power commander with O2 optimizers.  He explained that trying to reprogram the present stock ECU would only temporarily change the system as the newer ECU’s will automatically reset to factory settings, basically undoing everything he would have done.  It would require 3-5 days depending on the timeframe the bike would need to be at Ducati to install the power commander and then it would be trucked to him to do the dyno.  The results were phenomenal, I fell in love with my bike all over again, it ran so smoothly, my clutch wasn’t slipping, taking off from a stop was no longer a required skill of keeping it right in that friction zone to keep it from stalling, the acceleration was immediate and for once I felt confident with riding my motorcycle.  I didn’t feel as if there was going to be some new surprise or “feature”I would just have to accept and work around, my bike just worked!

Carol T. Carpenter

The following is an explanation of why a dyno is important for every bike straight from Nels himself:

You only have so much talent

When riding a motorcycle, we have so much to think about sometimes it can be overwhelming. We are so used to hopping in our car, closing the door, turning on the stereo and then we pretty much check out from there. It doesn’t require a lot of talent or concentration to drive our cars, especially when we have so much experience driving them. A motorcycle is much different, if we all didn’t share such a crazy love or obsession for this dangerous sport, getting from point A to point B would be much easier and safer. So the goal is to explain the importance of setting up your motorcycle. I specialize in getting the motorcycle to do what you tell it to do, when you want it to do it.

Every person is only given only so much talent (consider talent a balance in your personal bank account). We can improve on that amount of talent with practice and lessons (adding to the balance) but we also have to be aware of some of the things that require some of the little talent we have (drawing from that balance) to ride a motorcycle. For example, having bad tires, bad suspension, improper chassis setup and engine performance all rob some of your talent (drawing from your balance again) not leaving you much to figure out how to ride the bike. If you have bad tires, your focus will be on not slipping around and paying extra attention to corner speeds and road conditions (get the idea?). If you have bad suspension your bike will not properly stop, turn, or stick to the ground. If your chassis, handle bars and rear sets are not properly adjusted to you, you will be uncomfortable and not able to reach your controls or you will find your hands and feet falling asleep. In conclusion, if your engine is not running right, with the best tires, suspension and chassis setup, it can require all of your talent (your entire balance) to take off from a stop light and just get the bike just down the road (possibly putting you in the negatives in your account). If we can eliminate all the variables that rob little pieces of your talent, you can focus more on the building of your talent (being in the black, instead of in the red) and the enjoyment of riding your bike.

So let’s get to the part I do…the engine is the heart of the motorcycle and it’s critical that the motorcycle does what you tell it to do. I will help you to create a relationship with your bike that connects the rear tire directly to your wrist, there should be no reason that your motorcycle does not do exactly what you ask it to. So, that is where I come in. My primary tool is called a Dynamometer. Everyone calls it a “Dyno” for short. The dyno is a diagnostic tool that allows us to simulate riding the bike on the road in a controlled setting. While riding the bike on the dyno, I hook your bike up to numerous computer systems that allow me to see exactly whats going on with your engine and engine management system. With a few extra tools and parts we can make changes and make the bike run better. By dyno tuning the bike, I am simulating riding the bike and making changes to the engine management system until the bike runs perfectly. My goal is to connect your wrist to the bikes rear tire and get it doing exactly what you tell it to when you ask it to smoothly and without hesitation.

-Fuel economy, ride-ability and power in same program

By dyno tuning we can obtain better fuel economy, ride-ability and extra power all at the same time. Dynos are not just about making the bike faster like most people think, it is about optimizing your bike’s various functions. Horsepower is translated to energy, but it is the only measuring tool I have to see if the changes I made are correct. If I am dyno tuning and the horsepower goes up and gets smoother, I know I’ve made the correct changes. If the horsepower goes down, then it is an indicator I made an incorrect adjustment. The benefits of increasing the horsepower are not just to go faster, it will enhance all throttle inputs and help you in all riding conditions. For example, if you are riding on the freeway and it requires 20% throttle to maintain 60mph, by increasing the horsepower through dyno tuning, it may only require 12% throttle to maintain the same speed. With that said, fuel economy will be substantially improved.

-Confidence building

Dyno tuning your motorcycle can help boost your confidence. On most modern motorcycles, when you take off from a stoplight, the bike will chug, vibrate the handlebars and at times even stall. This requires you to twist on the throttle, rev the bike and burn the clutch just to get it going. It can be very unnerving to deal with a problem like this, especially in a parking lot at slow speeds. An example of a bike needing dyno tuning is when you are on the freeway or in a corner and the bike will surge, causing you to go on and off the throttle back and forth just to get the bike to do what you want. Dyno tuning can fix these issues and give you the confidence that your bike will respond to you, allowing you to smoothly let out the clutch and take off with very little throttle. Imagine cruising on the freeway, with barely any effort, holding one constant speed, relaxing and enjoying the ride instead of trying to just stay at the right speed.  That is how dyno tuning can help you build confidence with your ride.

-Less service and maintenance 

With a properly dyno tuned bike, you will not only make the bike run better but can prolong the time period between servicing and maintenance. Your current tune-up, parts, oil change, tires, brakes, throttle cables, and engine can last substantially longer. With the engine running smoother and now burning the proper amount of fuel, we have seen oil changes for as far as 5000-10000 miles, spark plugs go 25,000-30,000 miles and engines seem to last indefinitely. We can also use the dyno to diagnose problems and even forsee future problems. It can tell us if we need spark plugs, valve adjustments, problems with a slipping clutch, timing belts and engine rebuilds.

Dyno tuning usually requires purchasing programmers, resistors or parts but is worth it in the long run. On all bikes, no matter if they are brand new or in complete stock format, dyno tuning is important. The more mods you put on your bike, the further away you get from the stock exhaust and other components, the more critical dyno tuning becomes.  When you have combined purchasing and installing performance parts, programmers and dyno tuning, you will find it will enhance your riding experience so much you will fall in love with your motorcycle all over again. That is the ultimate goal: To get more people on their bike and loving the ride.

Nels with 2Wheel DynoWorks

425-269-5332

2wheeldynoworks.com