Well, got home from work this morning, tore into the bike and found that the cable had slid up and out of the housing it rests in on the carburetor linkage, and that was what was binding it up and causing the fast idle. I knew it was something simple, I just didn't have time to get into it yesterday.
I decided to dig out the Sportster muffler I had originally bought when I first got the Savage but didn't leave it on as I couldn't get it to stop leaking. Using two 1 3/4" auto clamps, and some trusty Diet Pepsi cans cut into strips
, I reinstalled the muffler and torqued the two clamps down and wouldn't ya know it -- no leaks whatsoever!
Went for a long ride with the new configuration today, and I have to say that the sound is exactly what I was looking for. Mellow, a bit of a rumble, but not enough to shake one's teeth loose. More importantly, I can hear myself think and I can actually hear my engine running over the exhaust. That was one big negative with the MAC. I like to hear that engine and know if something is amiss or not when I am on the road.
The new configuration is...
Sportster muffler
Back to 52.5 pilot jet, 1 1/8 turns out
stock main jet
1/2 white spacer
K&N drop in filter w/desnorkel
With this setup, there is absolutely no backfire whatsoever -- NONE!!! 8) My test run down my favorite stretch of straight highway put the speedo at 92 before I backed off it. Just a slight headwind and I still had a bit more throttle to go. Whether or not I can still peg 100 or not remains to be seen, but it really isn't a big deal either. It's not like I ride like a maniac to begin with.
This is absolutely the most dialed in, and the best setup I've had on this bike. The only thing I'll probably do at some point will be to pull the entire exhaust back off the bike and head to the muffler shop and get the offset made for it. I may hunt up another Sporty muffler with the track type mount rather than the tab as well. But those are wish list stuff.
The Savage runs so well right now, I hate to tinker with it anymore!