Custom or louder pipes for my scooter...

MelancholyMutt

MelancholyMutt

Doggy Style
Joined
Apr 13, 2002
Messages
3,906
I've got just over a thousand miles on my new drifter and I'm thinking about louder and less restrictive pipes...

vulcandooley.jpg


Now, I'm looking for just enough noise to let the cars know I'm there, and something to give me a few extra horsepower...

anyone got any suggestions and/or cruiser performance enhancement stories?
 
Hi MM-

Contrary to the bumpersticker, loud pipes DON'T save lives...but they will aggravate motorists behind you to the point they'll contemplate roadrage. Pipes are pointed away from the things that could do you harm while riding.

You'll have to peer inwardly to determine your motives. If you're looking for a horsepower increase, than aftermarket pipes may provide you a small handful of ponies. If you seek increased safety, consider the following proven techniques:
  • complete MSF training course
  • Aerostich Roadcrafter suit in Hi-Viz Yellow
  • white full-face helmet with yellow halo and reflective tape
  • automatic modulator for headlight + bulb upgrade
  • switch horn to Fiamme dual-tone
Let us know how things come along with your bike, it looks great!

~ Blue Jays ~
 
MelancholyMutt said:
I'm looking for just enough noise to...
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... piss off even more people?

I'm unfortunate enough to live near a route much frequented by motorcycles. As spring turns to summer and the weather improves, my weekends and evenings will be made hideous by the racket of male-menopausal sociopaths trying to impress other male-menopausal sociopaths. ( ;) )

Please don't do it!

maximus otter
 
I agree with both above comments. Nothing more annoying than shotgun-loud blasts from the "unrestricted" pipes of the yahoos in my nieghborhood.
 
From someone who has lost a loved one by a druck driver. You post isnt funny.

Just to keep my temper and add to this post. Loud pipes do save lives. They are however obnoxious in just straight pipes. A nice aftermarket set that gives a nice sound without eardrum bursting is Vance and Hines. They sound great with the baffles (removable) in, and give a good increase in hp. If you do desire to run the bike without the baffles, consider getting the bike rejetted if it runs carbs. Not sure if yours is fuel injected or carbed.
 
I've been ridin' for 36 years, and loud pipe do get ya noticed, driver reducation along with motorcyclist education, along with awareness on both parts goes along way to prolonging your life expectancy on a bike, since I can't influence the driving habits of the american motorist than I have to make changes that affect my noticability(not really a word)/visibility(really a word), "Stay proud, stay loud, and in their face", always stay visible presume the other drivers can't see you.

Don't wear black on black with a blacked out bike on an unlit road at night with no headlights, your just askin' to get runover.
 
Hi All-

As an avid motorcyclist with hundreds of thousands of miles under my belt/leathers/helmet I've come to crave the sights, sounds, and smells that one experiences "anew" once they're out of the confines of a car. Many of my riding friends have gone through the expense TWICE of going from stock, to loud aftermarket, and ultimately to quiet aftermarket in a matter of years.

As a courtesy to others, my exhaust system is quiet and I make it even less noticeable by not "winding out the gears" between shifts. Additionally, I also wear earplugs to reduce low-frequency wind "flutter" but they allow normal sounds to pass through...with a few decibels trimmed off.

MelancholyMutt...some of the folks are pulling your leg and we're all teasing, but you would come to regret loud pipes if you're an adult motorcycle enthusiast. That same overhyped "traffic warning" will be thumping mercilessly in your ears as you're riding to see old friends three-hundred miles away on a peaceful, sun-drenched highway. You would come to curse them each time you pulled the bike out of the garage.

Have a shop upgrade your forward-facing horn and you'll see what I mean about a true safety-enhancing method for making noise. The shop will need to do some minor electrical modifications to handle the increased draw of the louder horn, but you'll transform from sounding like a two-wheeled Kawasaki into a Ferrari sportscar in the matter of a few hours! Talk about getting attention when needed!

~ Blue Jays ~
 
Hi T. Erdelyi-

Loud pipes get you noticed...but for all the WRONG reasons. I've been in my car on the highway with family, behind a biker with straight pipes, and I've had difficulty hearing conversations inside my own car because of the outside noise.

Even as a fellow motorcyclist, I feel the frustration building inside me and I will do virtually anything to get past the biker to regain some peace. I'm an extremely laid-back personality and I absolutely love looking at all sorts of bikes...so could you imagine the unrestrained anger that is generated inside someone who doesn't particularly like motorcycles in the first place? That person might do something dangerous like pass on the right to escape the racket...actually causing an unsafe condition on the highway due to the loud pipes.

Threats to motorcylists typically come from in front of us, not the rear. Left-turning cars who don't "see" us, vehicles entering from sidestreets, etc. Find innovative ways to protect yourself from those threats and you're doing yourself a favor...not to mention being an ambassador for motorcycling by operating a quiet machine.

Regards,

~ Blue Jays ~
 
Ah, thanks for all the input... the big thing is, the muffler is so effective that at 30 miles an hour, the wind rushing by is louder than the pipes... it's so quiet that my buddy driving his car next to me says he can't hear my motor at all... I want just enough noise to be a presence, and a few ponies, and, a wicked fin at the end of the pipe...
 
As a biker with thousands of miles under me, I have to say that the only thing that ranks close to the rice-jockeys riding like complete morons on public streets in terms of "fellow biker annoyance" to me is the the cruiser crowd with their ridiculous loud exhaust systems.

Look at Blue Jays' first post for advice if you want to be noticed.

OR you could sell your Drifter and get a BMW R1200GS. You'll be nice and quiet, but sit up MUCH higher, which is more likely to get you noticed anyway. :D
 
Ah, I've ridden almost every brand of bikes out there... I've had a 1971 BMW r50/5 and a 1996 R1100, both of which burst into flames while I was riding them... LOL I currently also have a Honda Nighthawk 750 and a Suzuki GSXR 750 that's severely tricked out.

Overall, my Drifter is the most comfortable and most quiet ride.

Now, although I do get your point about being a less obnoxious rider, but I also venture to guess that none of you haev ever seen or ridden in NYC traffic. Everyone around you is driving an SUV with the windows shut tight and 1000 amp stereo systems cranking out about 120 decibels of the latest Fity-Cent or Barbara Streisand...
Believe me, I'd be justified to have straight pipes...
Now, if I were to ever drive in Calgary, St. Louis, or the UK, I'll gladly risk life and limb just to please your tastes, but for right here, loud and obnoxious is the way to go.

Now, anyone have a good pipe to recommend?
 
since I ride too, I'll toss in my opinion.

The official AMA statement is "Loud Pipes Lose Rights."
My official statement is "Loud Pipes Suck."

Of the list of things proven to help motorcycle safety, being obnoxious and making more noise isn't on the list.
- wear bright colors (color of bike doesn't matter)
- ride a larger, more visible, bike
- obey traffic laws
- take MSF class
- wear protective gear, including full-face helmet
- don't drink and drive
- add extra lights, ride with brights in the day

Everyone around you is driving an SUV with the windows shut tight and 1000 amp stereo systems cranking out about 120 decibels of the latest Fity-Cent or Barbara Streisand...
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That's one main reason why loud pipes don't help.

Additionally a motorcycle's exhaust is pointed towards the rear, or best case out to the sides; I rarely notice a loud bike until after it passes me. The noise echos so the bike's position is still unknown. The majority of people who have to suffer your noise are not a threat in the first place.

And it's also against federal law to modify sound-control devices on vehicles. It's spelled out in your MOM. Of course the feds don't enforce it, but many local governments do.

Do you know what really pisses me off? Loud pipe riders who wear earplugs. Even they don't want to hear that crap, but they think everyone else should have to.

-Bob
 
Why not tape some baseball cards to your wheels?

Or why not tape the horn button down? At least the horn faces foreward so it might offer some safety advantage...

-Bob
 
The worst thing you can do to any motorcycle is put louder pipes. Why the hell would you want to do that? Does it make you feel macho? Believe me, nobody is impressed by that. If you want to impress somebody, get new clothes, take a shower twice a day, clip off those nose/ear hairs, use antiperisperant, get a nice haircut, brush your teeth between meals, floss every day, whiten your teeth, get an education, .....the list goes on. I've been riding for a long time and I find loud bike exhausts the most annoying curse ever to hit the road. Grow up, people will respect you more.
 
now, the discussion was for a few more decibels, but some immediately come out with horror stories about excessively loud pipes...
it's like if I were to ask about switching my 15 watt refridgerator bulb for something a little brighter, maybe a 20 or 25 watt, and then being told that a 500 watt halogen bulb in the fridge would make me nasty and that it would make my fridge too bright and too hot...

No one is talking about obnoxiously loud pipes...
I'm talking about a few decibels and some more power...

geez...
I can't believe you guys can equate louder pipes with appearance and education... I've been riding for over 20 years, I ride with lawyers, engineers, cops and criminals alike... and, a few more decibels negates my college degree?

I have half a mind to ding most of you guys for being closeminded and totally ignorant.
 
Bob W said:
Why not tape some baseball cards to your wheels?

Or why not tape the horn button down? At least the horn faces foreward so it might offer some safety advantage...

-Bob
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bob, now you're being a troll
 
Well, I guess I have to say something too.

Loud pipes, like them or hate them; they do save lives.

I think they sound great on a Harley; like music.

If you don't understand; I can't explain it.

If they bother you; roll up your windows. :)
 
Yes, I was being unnecessarily silly and deserve a 'red' point.

I just don't understand how sitting in my home reading I'm such a threat to motorcycles that I need to be made aware every time one drives by...

I love to ride, but I really cringe when summer arrives. Loud bikes and punky little kids with booming car radios come out of the woodwork the same time of the year that I'd like to have my house windows open. I'd give up my bike in exchange for peace and quiet. Let it be Winter all year...

Loud pipes, like them or hate them; they do save lives.
Click to expand...
There's not a shred of evidence that loud pipes have any effect on safety. But there are preliminary studies that show that they don't.

If they bother you; roll up your windows.
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That's the most arrogant thing I've heard in a long time. Why should I have to roll up my windows to keep out your unnecessary noise? Screw that. Why not just be curteous and respectful in the first place?

If you like the noise so much, why not play it on your headphones? You get the false sense of security, the "music" in your ears, and the rest of us can enjoy the outdoors.

-Bob
 
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