Air filter (K&N? Any other brands?)

[Old Can Ride]

I use the K&N air filter also. The reason is that while on the road should something happen to clog the air filter, I just clean it an keep rolling. This actually happen to me in July of 2013 on the NC7. Go caught in a dust storm in the middle of the Arizona desert on a late Saturday afternoon. Could not have found a Honda dealership most likely to Tuesday. With the K&N air filter, I was able to clean the filter and keep rolling. Only has happened to me once in my lifetime, but it can happen to anyone. I try to keep everything on my bike changeable with something I can get while on the road.

 

[MZ5]

Yep, clean-and-roll is the way to go.
I've run K&Ns on lots of stuff, from bikes to farm pickups operating in SEVERE dirt and sand. K&Ns are the only automotive filters that will absolutely stop an engine due to air starvation. Stock filters won't; they'll channel and pass dirt, as will foam bike filters. That said, if you don't service a K&N properly, it won't filter worth a darn.
Run what you're comfy with. Don't be scared.

 

[dmerc]

Take a K and N filter and hold it up to the sun. You can see daylight through it. Not as good a filter as a factory filter and little or no advantage in terms of performance.