# VFJ Stage 3 installed review, and WOW



## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

First off best money I have ever spent on the brute hands down!!!!

Well he got it from me last Thursday and I got it back today, Fastest turn around ever seen and he is a GREAT guy to deal with and will entertain any idiotic question you may have. Makes it alot easier to give him my money by the way.

Well the review. Got home and seen it on the porch, Put her in, in under 5 minutes lol. started her up and noticed I needed fuel, so figured I would ease 3 miles to the store, Fastest Lower RPM run I have ever made, I was Just going to ease up there but the bike runs so much smoother at higher speeds now at lower RPMS. I couldn't help myself. 

But the first thing I noticed was it has a massive stall, Gonna have to get use to that, At first I thought maybe something was wrong then all of a sudden I realized quickly how SLACK my drive train and axles have gotten. But I will get used to it, I like it.

Well after the easy run and filling her up and feeling like the belt was ready for my thumb, I figured I would try the bottom end, After feeling all the top end I figured it just wouldn't be there. Well lets just say I pulled the longest wheelie ever on asphalt and actually got her to throw up oil out from under the pod through the filter on top of my crank case vent I moved up there forever ago. I never thought the bike would have the bottom end it does because of how good the top end felt. 

Rode the bike for about an hour and realized I needed to slow down and stop acting like I was on a racing quad, lol. Just gotta race my buddy again now and I will report back on that, I beat him about 6 bike with his 29.5's on before this stage 3. 

Any questions please ask, I know this has been cover prob a 100 times but I had a few people curious to how this turned out for me because I was having such a problem with the belt slipping, Also it wont slip for anything now, He said it had grooved the sheaves some and he machined it out for me, Also checked the belt I sent in and the deflection on another bike. I also like the fact the bike will coast forever now. 

WORTH EVERY DIME


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## hfdbuck09 (Oct 22, 2010)

jealousy on my end... congrats :rockn:


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## 88rxn/a (Mar 2, 2009)

1. congrats! glad we talked you into it!
2. does it make the bike "feel" like it has more power? i know it didnt add any but putting the belt in a better spot should make it "feel" faster
3.what spring(s) did you get?
4.did he do anything else besides his clutch work and machine the sheaves?
5. how much extra was it after his clutch work? if you dont want to post it i understand but id like to get an idea what i will pay. i know mine needs some work
6.did you get the spider mod also?


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

The clutch work done and sent back was 430, that's with spider mod, re machining the sheaves, #1 primary spring, #3 secondary spring, and him taking out my added weights to the weights themselves which took him about an hour since I used red lock tite, he didn't charge me for that though lol, As far as power. I can't say it feels like it has more power just that I can feel it by the seat of my pants alot better. Kind of like putting a set of slicks on an already fast car. I do know I will be trail riding a whole lot more in low because its just to easy to get so fast now, The throttle response at mid throttle is where I would say I see it the most, It doesn't take half the thumb it did to slide it around corners or just get it up to speed. I hope this helped with some of your questions. He also took the bearing the fork rode on out and shaved that part. so I had to take the fork off. That may be part of the spider mod, I don't know. 

I guess I will say yes It FEELS more powerful, but I know its only transferring the already made HP better. He has a Dyno sheet somewhere I have seen and it shows the HP gains, pretty good numbers just for a clutch mod. 

This will accompany my future 840 kit nicely when and if I ever spin a bearing lol, Also need to go ahead and get me a dynatek


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

Everyone who has had the stage3 mod done has said about the same thing. Congrats man. Enjoy....and be careful.


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## 08GreenBrute (Jul 13, 2009)

makes me want to get mine done now lol


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## filthyredneck (Feb 10, 2010)

Been wanting this as well, but my wallet is about empty for the time being lol. Congrats on the new mod.


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## bigblackbrute (Jun 3, 2009)

i agree and feel the same way about mine. all i could say was wow especially wit the fundy motor to go along wit it.


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## DLB (Oct 8, 2009)

Even with a #1 spring you still have high stall? My favorite thing about the stock setup is the instant clutch engagement...not sure I'd want to lose that.


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

Yes I still have a huge a stall. I am going to give him a call later to see if that's correct


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## vogie (Jun 16, 2010)

When you say HUGE stall you mean more then when you had the Red or Yellow secondary with the Almond primary???


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

Yes its more. I just got off the phone with john and my primary has a shim behind it, he said taking it out will drop the stall about 200 RPM and that it stalls to about 2000. He recomended leaving his spring in but giving it a little break in time and taking the shim out and seeing how she feels. He said I will get use to it. Lol


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## arky man (Apr 6, 2011)

Is VFJ a sponser on our forum? Been thinkin the stage 2 for my prairie.


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## brutemike (Mar 23, 2010)

I want that done too but the funds are alittle low lol.


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## J.Tal (Dec 9, 2010)

the high stall was a concern for me too. I called him and he said its about 200-250 rpm over stock and thats as good as he could get it. U know how hard these brutes pull, its like extra whiplash! The mod basically frees up horsepower and puts it to the ground along with other things. Me personally, I'll never need another clutch kit from the 2 big name clutch companys. Definately worth it. Mine will do 52mph in low range with 28in tires... just food for thought. Im sure everyone else is happy as well.


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

I don't know if he is a sponser. Don't think so


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

John's not a sponsor...but he should be..


2000 RPM stall....gota think about that one a second. The Maroon is supposed to be about 300 over stock which is what I have...And I am pretty sure I don't need to rev-up to anything close to 2K to engage...well...here's a vid I just did on how noisey my clutch is getting with loose bushings on the flyweights...but it shows what it takes to engage it. Does it seem like its tacking-up anywhere close to 2K to you guys? Maybe I'm just AFUed on my RPM sences. A tach would come in handy.


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

On my phone now and cannot veiw the video but I will when I get home from work. One thing to remember is a atv or motorcycle for that matter runs much higher RPM than most people think! This being said the bikes almost hit close to 1200 rpms or even 1500 before the stock clutches and springs even begin to move the bike. I will watch your video this afternoon and make you a video of how high my stall is now if you would like


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## bigblackbrute (Jun 3, 2009)

i dnt have very much of a stall goin forward on mine bt a pretty noticeable one in reverse


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

This is not a very good video at all because you can barely hear the bike, but i didn't have the cover off so here she is and how long it takes the primary to engage in high. It does seem higher in reverse, And Yes you have some seriously loud clutches, but it does seem to be engaging correctly.

http://s227.photobucket.com/albums/dd293/steveo3318/4%20wheelers/?action=view&current=clutch.mp4


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

decided to do a wheelie a minute ago and put it on the back rack and ate up my dayum exhaust snorkel, oh well, I will make a better video if you need one, but the sounds so low in that one it barely sounds like its revving to engage but i promise it is. And a tach is always a nice thing to have, do they make one for the brutes


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

Seems a little higher then mine but not by much. And you are the second to mention higher stall in reverse. I wonder if its because low and reverse and the same gear ratios. I wonder if it would feel the same in low as reverse. 

Yeah I have all new flyweight bushings, shoes and rollers coming for my clutch. I just took that video so I could compare the....before...and after effects.


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

steveo3318 said:


> And a tach is always a nice thing to have, do they make one for the brutes


A guy I ride with has one on his Brute. I'll get some info and post it.


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

ok great and thanks, looking forward to the tach info


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

steveo3318 said:


> ok great and thanks, looking forward to the tach info


This is what he used. Digital and small enough to mount just above the pod guages.

http://www.shindypro.com/catalog/each_q_ptype.key24.html


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## DLB (Oct 8, 2009)

Thanks for link NMKR. Might look into that. 
Stevo, I'm interested to know how the stall changes after "break in".


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## fstang24 (Jan 9, 2010)

is it easy too hook up the tach to the brute? Im assuming it has wires that tie into the ignition module or spark plug wire? Interested in this


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## Polaris425 (Dec 16, 2004)

That really doesnt seem that bad.... The stall that is...


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## NMKawierider (Apr 11, 2009)

fstang24 said:


> is it easy too hook up the tach to the brute? Im assuming it has wires that tie into the ignition module or spark plug wire? Interested in this


I think it either wraps around one spark plug wire or slips into the boot somehow. I'll ask but as I recall, it's induction P/U which you just wrap the wire around the plug wire. The others are power and ground. Cake in any case.


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## fstang24 (Jan 9, 2010)

Sweet thanks for the info nmkawierider


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## 2010Bruterider (Jun 20, 2010)

I've got the VFJ clutch mod on my brute, and yes, i have a ton of stall. it is more than the EPI almond primary gave me. I've gotten used to it though. I had John set my clutch up to pull my 31's and he put his springs in it. I don't know what the numbers are, but the primary is black w/ a purple dot on it, and the secondary is orange. I haven't noticed more stall in reverse, but i rarely use high range. It's fast enough for me in low. I still love this mod, even with the big stall.


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

Might be getting a tach soon lol


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## 03maxpower (Jun 6, 2010)

steveo dont waste your money on the dynatek call john back and have him send you a pre programmed msd you will be just as happy as you are with the clutch mod


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## wyo58 (May 13, 2011)

steveo3318 said:


> decided to do a wheelie a minute ago and put it on the back rack and ate up my dayum exhaust snorkel, oh well, I will make a better video if you need one, but the sounds so low in that one it barely sounds like its revving to engage but i promise it is. And a tach is always a nice thing to have, do they make one for the brutes


Steve with the VDI copperhead ECU, it has a tach lead for any automotive style tach.


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## 88rxn/a (Mar 2, 2009)

please dont buy a VDI. the line for the tach is the only good thing about it...how do i know?
do a search for threads i made and look in my sig. if you like to fiddle with stuff get it, or have access to a dyno..other than that, get a MSD.
im going to sell my VDI for the MSD.


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

The only reason I wanted the dynatek was because I know for a fact it will piggyback with my HMF fuel optimizer and work fine. and cost a little less than these others. But I am prob gonna give john a call and check the price on the msd. Or can anyone tell me his price on them??


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## MinnKawi (Jun 8, 2010)

I just put an MSD controller on from VFJ last Friday and was impressed with the difference. He set up 3 different modes for me. Service was spot on. I cant ride a wheelie worth a **** though. As soon as it stands straight up I panic and let her fall!!


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## steveo3318 (Jan 3, 2009)

What was your price for the msd from john if you don't mind my asking


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