Agreed. I didn't get heat shields with my chrome Thunderheader either...mainly because they weren't worth the extra $250 to me...and I like the discoloured chrome on the headpipes. Bronzed and blued chrome looks better to me than a black pipe turning brown. It gets hot, but, not hot enough to keep me off the bike.

 

Good deal thanks for gettin some info to me guys. Yea I agree I do like chrome with some blueing to them. Black is what ill be going with and when it gets too ugly brown for me to deal with ill take care of that when it comes haha. The dealers up here really try to get the customer to shy away from Thunderheader and go with Vance&Hines but im just guessing thats because they have alot of them in stock. Thanks again for the help everyone!

 

I'm probably switching to a Thunderheader toward the end of the year. I have more to do in the meantime and this isn't crucial at this point, but I'm just not as happy with the Bassani as I had hoped. Hell, one of the only reasons I went Bassani was that I was able to get the pipe + shields for like $70 less than a Theader without shields and I was concerned about running it without shields.

Anyway, I'm glad to hear that a lot of you run them without shields and don't have problems. I figure worse case I could wrap them, but I'm just not a huge fan of wrapping.

Indecision + motorcyles = "FML that cost a lot"

 

What is it that you're not happy with?
I'm in the process of buying Bassani pipes...And because of a screw up with part numbers I can still back out if I choose.
Whats the story?

 

Nothing in particular, and it's mostly aesthetic. I was originally dead set on Theader because of the performance they are known for and I personally feel that they look badass. When I was shopping for one I was finding that the average price for the black Theader was around $700 without shields and I'm not made of money so I expanded my search and Bassani came up as a good alternative. I found my current pipe for around $630 WITH shields and went with it.

I had also read some complaints about Theader finish and bracket problems, but after doing more research I found that the minority seem to have these problems.

The Bassani was always a compromise, and while part of me does like it, part of me doesn't. I mean, it makes good power and has a good sound, but from an aesthetic perspective I'm just not as happy with it as I was hoping. The short nature of it also outputs the sound really close to my ear line and that tends to get annoying after awhile. Yes, new baffles or baffle wrap will help this, and I may still do that, but it doesn't change my feelings on the aesthetics.

Also, since it is primarily aesthetic, I'm in no rush to do this because it is a very, very expensive "mistake" to correct. I've always had issues with indecision on modifications that have any effect on aesthetics, they are just typically things that cost a lot less to eat the loss on. Selling the current pipe would be a possibility, but I scratched the **** out of it putting the shields on so that may put people off on buying them used.

 

Irish, by the way, luv the bike; ..... I luv my t-header, just two 'bewares". One, I scratched/gouged pipe on a tight right hander within 48 hrs of running it, in the spot just under where it wraps timing cover. I have heard this has happened to others. Two, when Hillside cycle removed the pipe to do engine work recently,(98, thanks guys) they advised that the supplied bolt for bracket for mounting was slightly too long and was rubbing; barely, but eventually would have worn hole in pipe. They replaced with shorter bolt. For what its worth, I ride with a guy who runs a road rage, I enjoy the hell out of the blat from his ride. Good luck whichever way you go.

 

A lot of dealers in my area claim that a thunder header will void the warranty, so that may be something to look into if you still have a warranty on your bike. Also, yes the fact that they don't do a better job with putting a quality coating on them is pretty irritating considering they cost a small fortune... But... The sound and power you get from a thunder header is pretty hard to beat. I've seem some turn brown quicker then others, I think it has a lot to do with having a quality tune and keeping the exhaust temps down.. I've got almost 17k miles on my pipe and it hasn't turned brown too bad. I've got no regrets from spending the extra money on mine, I love it

 

here is mine... still a work on progress

 

looks killer.

 

I'm a big fan of D&D exhaust. I have a fat cat with big boar baffle. Their finish is much nicer than the thunderheaders. Two of my riding buddies run the thunderheader and both of theirs look like **** after just a couple seasons. Doo doo brown.