Editor’s Note: I’ve done this a couple of times with various air cleaner systems. Fortunately some of the covers are aluminum or stainless and can be cut, modified, or beat on, and then polished or rattle-canned for a terrific finish. But there are a myriad of aftermarket systems available from K&N, S&S, Performance Machine, you name it, if you don’t have the time or the tools. And perhaps J&P carries them all. So, you might look around, before you burn through a day trying to make your own.—Bandit
Ever wonder if you are getting ripped off or not? I can’t help thinking that $80 to $150 for an air cleaner cap is a little much, so I decided to correct the problem myself.
All I really needed was 5.5″ round cap for the top of my Arlen Ness Big Sucker, try to find that! Pretty much Ness is the main manufacturer of that item, and the price, well let’s just say it almost as expensive as the whole kit. If you purchase the big Sucker, they expect you use the OEM Ham Can, but man, it’s just ugly!
And I’m pretty sure your sucking the same old hot engine air that you were before. I did some quick measurements and found that the diameter of the outer ring on the Ham Can is exactly 5.5″,
now All I need is to cut it out. First I taped the top of the Ham Can with duct tape to avoid scratching it, then marked around the outer ring depression with a felt pen. I drilled a 3/8″ hole as a starter for my hand held jig saw. Using a metal blade I followed the line and cut out the center.
With a hand grinder and 80 grit flap wheel I smoothed out the edges. Presto! Not bad if I say so myself! If you’re wondering, I had a couple of extra Ham Cans lying around, so destroying one was no big deal.
Ride hard, have fun, and look out for each other.
— Tail Gunner out!
