2002 Savage, 22k miles, Mikuni VM38 carb with a cone filter and a jardine exhaust....
My savage is my around-town vehicle, so I don't often get a chance to really open her up, but I've been doing a short commute on the highway and noticed that WOT only gets me about 80mph on a level road, even if I'm at WOT for quite some time.
There is no power boost going from 3/4 to WOT, and no surge closing the throttle from WOT to 3/4, so I don't think the jetting is off (no hesitation or noticeable "bogging", I just don't get any more power). though admittedly I decide about every other day the jetting needs changed... plug looks alright, maybe a bit on the lean side, but not too bad.
Any ideas what would cause this? Low compression? Last year I had some issues with my fuel mileage being shot so I went to a mikuni vm carb (more tunable than stock) and tore down the top end to replace gaskets and what not; my head gasket was burnt through but I *thought* that was fixed....
also, I ain't light, but I'm not 700lbs either, nor do I wear a parachute when I ride, so I feel like at least 90 should be where I top out, not 80.
I've also heard of people popping wheelies on their savage's, which blows my mind. Maybe there is a technique to it, but the only time I've popped a wheelie was when I was trying to race a bus (he had a head start) and nailed a nasty pothole,