Milwaukee Mayhem
Johnson
Engineering
100 Blake Road
Denver, IA 50622
(319)984-9298
(319)984-9299 fax
info@twistgear.net
photos courtesy Pat Adamek, Milwaukee, WI
dyno facilities by All Pro Power Sports
TwistGear Invades Milwaukee
Can you say smoke 'em if you got 'em? Pat Adamek makes Harley horsepower. Serious horsepower. So when he says TwistGear can tug at big-inch high output strokers and not back off, you know class is in session. Kinetic Engines is especially noted for head work, but their expertise reaches across the decades and encompasses knuckles, pans, shovels, KRs, XLs...if it's birthmark's a bar and shield, Kinetic can decipher the DNA.
Mark Hanrahahn at All Pro Powersports tries to make our '02 FL tester behave for just one good run. Just one.
Assembled trapdoor with one piece helical countershaft installed, much stronger than OE or aftermarket replacements.
Once assembled trapdoor reinstalls normally, mating to TwistGear helical main gear for true close ratio gearbox.
Replacing main shaft bearing race is highly recommended.
Tapped to oversee IronWorks July 2003 TwistGear installation feature, Pat had his doubts at first. He's been there for a lot of the fads that have come and gone over the years, and as the saying goes, fool me once. But this time he knew there was a bit more to the story than what was being talked about. What he didn't know was to what degree having a true close ratio, instead of just a down low first gear, would mean when it came time to light the fires and kick the tires. Instant horsepower, anyone?
Kinetic Engines Turns Bagger Into Beast
Adamek's heart of Milwaukee Kinetic Engines sits in the shadow of The Motor Company. And that gives Pat, who's been in the same location since 1981, a unique perspective on all things v-twin. Especially in the area of gearing. As it turns out, Adamek knows contact ratio. And he understands helical's unique advantages over spur.
The test bike picked for the feature install is a box stock '02 FLH that gets ridden, good weather and bad, good road and bad. Not a beater, but not just for parade duty either.
Just hang on 'til the buzzer rings!
"So's what I do is, I push off with both feet real hard!" Not likely - this is the "after", as in TwistGear, and without any top end sacrifice. And the bike's a stock high miler!
Nobody at Kinetic knew what to expect, but then no one at IronWorks had any idea of the TwistGear generated mayhem that lay in wait just up the road, as this once comfortable, if unexciting, land yacht did a quick turnaround in the phone booth and came out with a cape and faster than a speeding locomotive. As it turns out, the wheelie popping cammer above could pull the locomotive, and still have plenty left over - one of the reasons a switch to Barnett's carbon fiber plates was deemed prudent prior to hitting the streets.
All Pro Dyno Begs For Mercy
“Too much torque!” Trying to validate improved torque on the dyno (at All Pro Powersports) elicited the somewhat astonished comment — minus expletives — that the only other bikes to exhibit the same over the top raw power characteristic (breaking the rear tire loose in 1st-4th) were turbo bikes making 200-300 horses. This is what having a true close ratio transmission means in terms of performance potential. Because the torque to roller transfer occurs much quicker, particular attention to proper tire inflation and tie down is crucial or the rear end'll hop sideways and walk. Later, in the interests of putting a few miles on the bike before trying to pull some fresh numbers, the right throttle hand just couldn't resist chirping that rear rubber, and the next thing that happened on the way to the dyno was a belt laying in the middle of WALK! DONT WALK! So until we free up more dyno time, Kinetic's raring to go to work on an army of street fighters, TwistGear style.
Contact info:
Pat Adamek
Kinetic Engines
241 S. 75th St.
Milwaukee, WI 53214
(414)774-3394
engkinetic@aol.comAll Pro Motorsports
Mark Hanrahahn
(262)542-4848
SportGear™ and TwistGear® are trademarks of Johnson Engineering, Inc. Buell™, Dyna™, and Sportster™ are trademarks of the Harley-Davidson Motor Company. No affiliation with the Harley-Davidson Motor Company is implied or inferred.
