Installation and Review: Mountain Performance Inc, Stage 1 & 2 Supercharger

[christopher]

So.
Finally had time to attack this pulley upgrade project today,.

Took off the plastic side panels.

Disconnected and drained the oil tank (and trashed an O-Ring)

That let me have my first real look at the belt and pullies in 2 summers.
They looked REMARKABLY GOOD!
NO SIGNS OF WEAR at all!

 

[christopher]

Here I discovered that I HAD replaced the short tension bolt with a LONG tension bolt at some point after I did my initial installation. Obviously needed a little more tension after I did the first required "Tune-Up" and failed to report it in this thread.

Notice how far that bolt is sticking out to the Left.
That is FULLY Tightened. So when I went to loosen it, it only moved about 1/4 inch.

The two main bolts holding the tension arm in place were VERY TIGHT.
Thought I was going to spin the inner one.

A good rap with a rubber hammer and it dropped off.

 

[christopher]

Time to take the pullies off the sled.

Removed both of the set screws from the bottom pulley with NO problem.
They were TIGHT, Very TIght, but they squeaked out.

But the top one was a whole different matter.
BENT the Allen key and BENT my Allen Socket!
That screw is NOT coming out with the tools I have on hand.

 

[christopher]

Loosen up the pulley bolt...

It was already fully extended.
I was able to back it off about 1/4 inch, and even then the pulley itself did NOT budge in the bracket. It was not sliding.
Had to remove the bolts under tension and then knock if of with a rubber mallet.

 

[christopher]

Hex Head Insert Bit for 1/4" Hex Drive, 1/8 x 1" Long

.

I remembered that during the install I had to get a special High-Torque bit to install the set screw.

Dug that one up out of the tool check.

Sadly, that didn't work out so well.
It twisted as well, AND the set screw stripped in the process.
Life is NOT good right now.

 

[MotoPsycho]

Generally, anything loc-tited will come out fairly easy with a bit of heat. Plumbing torch, etc. But go easy around the aluminum bits.

On the other, I was referring to the tensioner pulley itself. If you loosen its bolt, it gives you a bit of play.


Sent from Moto's iPharce 5
PsychoSled.com - Got snow?

 

[philsummers21]

Use a little heat on the stuck bolts and invest in an impact driver. Will save you lots of headaches

 

[christopher]

Clearly HEAT was the missing ingredient.
Called Ryan and Slash to ask them and the first thing they reminded me was that it went on HOT and had to come off HOT.

Once again my ignorance shows through.
Completely forgot that we installed the pulley HOT to begin with.

Let me upload a pile of photos and share my learning experience with everyone...

 

[christopher]

So, there I was, pretty much sure I had screwed the pooch by stripping out the set screw. Got on the phone and fired off 2 text messages to the two mechanics I know and trust the most. Andra "Slash" and Ryan. Andra got back to first reminding me that we had used RED Locktite and that you had to use HEAT to get them screw loose.

By then I was pretty unhappy with myself for making a STUPID mistake and has decided to do what I do best, BBQ some ribs. An offer for free dinner and Slash was kind enough to come to my rescue and teach me the fine are of removing a stripped Set Screw.

First thing he does is to take one of my TORX head bits and POUND it into the set screw with a hammer. Using the torx ridges to BITE into the now stripped screw to see if by chance he could loosen it up and back it out.

No Joy.
This screw is NOT budging for love nor money!

Second off he grabs my little micro torch and starts warming up the set screw

After warming it up a bit he tries to back out the set screw again.
No Joy.
This little sucker is happy right where he is.

Not to be dissuaded he POURS ON THE HEAT and gets it hot enough that I fear for the well being of the belt!

 

[christopher]

With it good and HOT he pounds the torx head back into the set screw one more time and sure enough, it backs out.
Using the Torx head was one of those little tricks that just NEVER even dawned on me.
I was ready to break out the DRILL and spend the whole night drilling it out!

 

[christopher]

A few comments about the whole MPI Pulley / Set Screw Issue.

I remember when I installed this that these screws were a REAL BONE OF CONTENTION. They were a PAIN to get in and it took a lot of time and work to get the alignment just right, and there was more than a little concern that they would NOT last over the years.

I am now hear to attest just how well this solution works.

These two pulleys were in PERFECT ALIGNMENT 2 years later.
There was absolutely NO WEAR at all on the belt!
NONE!!

The pulleys were completely clean and the belt was in fantastic condition showing NO wear at all, not on the sides or on the face.

So while I am not great fan of the process of installing or removing this, I must admit that it WORKS REALLY WELL over time!
And at the end of the day that IS the single most important thing.

 

[Monster Max]

Chris, what are your new pullies going to be?

 

[christopher]

Right now I am running about 6 lbs of boost. That is the lowest they offer.
The step will be 10-11psi.
Don't have a clue what the pulley sizes will be.
Waiting on MPI to ship the upgrade package to me.
Hopefully it ships on Monday.

Next summer I might do the upgrade to stage two and replace the fuel system and injectors.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk 2 pro.

 

[slash]

finished product

 

[801]

awesome!! a father and son grooming team!!!! sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!!

 

[slash]

 

[christopher]

Gonna need a LOT bigger blade to take advantage of all that POWER.

 

[christopher]

So.
Right now I am running a 31/25 tooth combination on my pulleys.
31 on the bottom.
25 on the top.

Will be installing a 23 on the top as the upgrade.
This will take me to the limit of the current Stage One supercharger I have installed for a max compression at 8,800-9,000 Engine RPM.

Will probably have to do a little more tuning on my clutch to make SURE I am hitting that RPM range under load to squeeze out the full potential of this supercharger.

Hope to be riding by next Friday!!

 

[christopher]

UPS Says MPI shipped my new pulleys today!

 

[christopher]

Ya Baby!
UPS Just arrived with my box.
MPI Comes through once again.!!!

Time for fire up the hot plate and start warming up my new pulleys.