How can I get the most power and efficiency out of my motorcycle?

I have a 1982 yamaha virago XJ750. I'm repairing the transmission and shifter forks. Which means completely stripping out everything, taking off the engine, and opening up the crank case. I figure, while it's in 200 pieces anyway, I may as well give it an overhaul, tune up, etc.

Question - What can I do to it while the bike is all apart to give me better gas mileage, power, etc.? I've heard of boring out the cylindar heads, tweaking with the carbs, putting in hotter spark plugs. Is any of this a good idea? Have any other ideas?

JB

Its a V twin, so it already has two separate exhaust pipes. Not sure if headers would really do much. New pipes sound like a good idea. Could I just cut the existing ones shorter or do I need to buy larger pipes? Where would I find larger after market pipes?

And I am not buying another bike. :P

buy a different bike

You can polish and port the intake manifold, put headers on it. Along with a less restrictive exhaust, that's as far as I'd go. Just have it rebuilt as a stock engine. It will last a lot longer, and cost less. If you want MORE, just buy a 1000cc Suzuki, Honda, Kawasaki. If that won't do it for you, buy a larger engine.

(Any time you remove a restriction in the air intake, or a restriction in the exhaust, it will flow more air/fuel and develop more horsepower. Nothing is more successful than a turbcharger, but if you do that, expect engine life to be very short.)

Don't forget to improve your brakes!