Hi all, new to the board.  I've got an 03 Savage and have been reading alot about the backfire/afterfire issues.  I am not mechanically inclined and am terrified of trying the whole spacer replacement thing.  I have noticed that if I run the bike with the choke out one notch (mine has 3 positions) that it solves the problem.  will this hurt the bike?  With the choke in the mid position there is no afterfire when throttling down and only a pop or poof when shutting the bike off.  I just don't want to damage any components.  The bike runs much smoother this way as well.  With the choke all the way in or off or whatever the bike is very sluggish and hesitates quite a bit.  Very unnerving when on the highway.  A local shop here says jetting the bike would help because of no back pressure in the exhaust.  Not sure if spending the money for that install will actually help things, they say it MIGHT.  Thoughts on the choke "quick fix"  ???

Thanks SD...  I do have a Jardine muff on there but as I recall there was still a afterfire issue with the stock muff... now its just louder.. it is fun making pedestrians jump out of their skin on command!  I found that I can control it most of the time with careful throttle control.  I'll look into the jet upgrade.