I recently installed V&H Big Radius 2 into 2 pipes on my 2011 Wide Glide and had a terrible time getting the rear pipe on. After inserting the head pipe into the cylinder and starting the nuts on the studs the muffler would not align with holes in the bracket. After 3 hours of fussing and cussing I finally managed to get the two muffler bolts in and then began to tighten the nuts on the cylinder studs and the muffler bracket. The front pipe went on a little easier (but not easy).

I am concerned about the quality of the seal between the head pipes and the cylinders (especially the rear cylinder). I am concerned because the head pipes just didn't seem to mate up with the cylinders at the correct angle after the muffler bolts were finally installed correctly. I tightened everything and the installation looks OK but I still wonder if I have any exhaust leaks. Also, I did install new gaskets.

Finally, my question is....if I don't hear, see, or smell anything, is there a way to tell if I have any exhaust leaks at the cylinder/head pipe connection?

I am currently trying to tune the ECM using a Power Vision tuner and I have alot of deceleration popping. I read a thread somewhere that said exhaust leaks can contribute to decel popping. I don't know if that is true or not.

Sorry for the long post but any help will be greatly appreciated.

 

Yeah, exhaust leak can contribute to decel popping but that's not the only thing. You'll want to eliminate any/all exhaust leaks before attempting to get a proper tune. One of the old fashion, low-tech ways to tell if you have an exhaust leak is to use a cigarette, fireworks punk, inscence, or anything else that produces a line of smoke. Let the smoke raise from under the joint/area in question while the bike is running. If the smoke blows away from the joint/area then there's a leak.

The secrets of installing exhausts is a lot of patience, careful alignment, very loose fitting of individual components, and some WD40 in the joints. After everything is loosely installed and fit is verified, alternate tightening the exhaust flange nuts until properly seated. Clamp everything else after the headers are on. If it isn't right, start over.

 

Did you double-check to ensure V&H sent the correct pipes for your bike..?? Reason I ask is because this happened to a friend once (pipes didn't line-up) & they were wrong set. Granted exhaust systems can be tight, but shouldn't need to force them into place.

Also, another method to check for leaks is get a set of thick leather gloves (like welder's type) & fire bike up...plug pipe ends w/hands (gloves on, of course) & you'll hear the leak(s). If there are no leaks - bike will pretty much stall...good luck!

 

Iceman, I did check to see if the pipes were the correct ones for my bike and they were the correct model number. I've read on other threads that I'm not the only one that has had trouble with V&H pipes fitting properly. I really like the way they look on my Wide Glide so I'm working hard to make them work. Thanks for your response.