Which Fire series for an everyday runner?

[bigjohndeere]

Tracked down a Liquifire and Sportfire locally. Which would be the best for a daily runner? I know the liquifire dual carb setup would be the hp winner, but the concern is reliability and ease of upkeep. How much more complex is the liquifire engine over the trail/sportfire setup?

Looking for advice from the experts out there...

[ChickenRat]

Sportfires have become one of my favorites. The Liquifires, while fun, take much more time to get dialed in and keep it that way. They run great but are more temperamental. The Sportfires are more of a "Set it and forget it" kind of sled. Set it up to you liking and ride. This becomes more important as our free time becomes less and less over time. Want to ride: Sportfire. Want to tinker: Liquifire.

Robb

[a572mike]

I've gotta agree, for an every day rider, the Sportfire will cause less aggravation.

[Matt]

Agreed. Sportfire. Simple and reliable.

[atomc40]

I've been riding my 80' Sportfire,trouble-free for several years. It's been as reliable as a new sled. Tom

[WinnipegStPaul9]

A toss up to me. Like them both but running right, the Liquifire will be running as good at the end of the day as it did at the beginning. Air cooled tend to loose a little power as the day goes on. Living in Manitoba though you don't need to worry about warm temps too often. At least in my experience as the last time I was in Winnipeg it was about -50 with wind chill. January 21, 1975. Global warming may have changed that

[harleysportster]

Don't forget about the 78 Cyclones. They are almost as comfortable to ride as the Sportfire.

[atomc40]

Since the 78' Cyclone subject has been broached...I couldn't agree more. In my personal opinion(I'm sure some others might disagree) the 78' 440 Cyclone was the high water mark of all that was John Deere. Simplicity,reliability,and beautiful styling. If they reproduced that sled today,I'd be the first one in line to buy one. Just my opinion... Tom

[JDT]

I'm in Tom's camp here again.

1978 Cyclone 440 is one all around great sled.

[WinnipegStPaul9]

The 78 Cyclone is probably one of Deere's best.................the color? ................not so much in my humble opinion.

DA

[JD600]

The 78 Cyclone is probably one of Deere's best.................the color? ................not so much in my humble opinion.

DA

Mean Green is as pretty as they come DA....

DE

[WinnipegStPaul9]

Ummmm, maybe with some chrome to take your eyes off the color..........................I thought "mean green" was the 340/S-76/77 Cyclone color? What was that called then?

DA

[S_Kyle]

Don, I belive they called it emerald green on the 78 cyclones.

[lwb140]

i think a 78 cyclone in 77 paint and decals would be a terrific all around sled , even a cc race sled , i think as a youngster i was turned off by the 78 paint simply because it was similar to the entry level spitfire , i was always a HUGE fan of the 76-78 liquifires and cyclones too, then when they came out to look like the little freeair ...am i making any sence ? wade

[harleysportster]

Wade, the '78 Cyclone paint scheme grows on you, trust me.