What the hell is wrong with me!!, I have had four different sets of slip on's and I am still looking for the perfect sound. I have Vance and Hines power dual header and the lastest muffler was VH High out put, which sounded great at idle, but sounds "hollow" under power. Next up is a set of Kuryakyn Crushers .Any one else these on their 103ci ??

 

I've come from the opposite direction. My bike came with the Crushers stock, with the stock headpipe. I switched out the stock headpipe for the VH Power Dual. Now the bike is loud, almost too loud for me. I'd actually like to find something a bit more civilized.

 

Nothing wrong with you IMHO.
I've tried at least six different types on just this machine... it seems to be a tough situation to find what is just the right combination for a very subjective situation.
Right now I'm back on my Crusher Mellows for the third time and tried 3 different baffle combinations with these... I think I'm sticking here as far as I can tell (unless someone GIVES me something to try!).

I like trying different set ups just to see what they sound and run like on my machine... but I'm done for a while... stickin with the crushers... YMMV.

And, after 50+ years of riding these things, my hearing is getting too sensitive for the loud pipes anymore...
Good Luck.

 

I run the Vance&Hines power dual with Rinehart mufflers on my '11 FLHX. I wanted a different sound so I just made my own baffles. It was REALLY easy to do. If you remove the baffle from the muffler you can see how easy it is to make or modify. You can make them louder, by eliminating some of the perforated part or quieter by inserting fiberglass wool. In the end you have a sound that you like and you can brag that you did it yourself. I did mine in an afternoon with nothing more than some raw exhaust tubing, a hacksaw, and a lot of patience drilling a lot of small holes.

 

What is pleasing to one ear may not be to the next. Best thing to do is find a bike that you like the sound of and find out what they're running.

That said, I found a good deep sound with my decatted stock headers and some Rush slash cut slip-ons. Removed the baffles and replace them with Thunder Torque Inserts. Got the sound I want and great torque all the way thru the RPM band.

 

I have a set of SE slip-on's ordered - found out they will have CATS in the intake end of each muffler. Thinking of drilling the CATS before installing them. Since you've done something similar, what can I expect? Will I lose any torque? Will resulting loss of backpressure cause any difficulties? I have K&N air filter and a fuel management system installed.

Any information will be appreciated.

 

The cat in the header is amazingly porous, creating very little backpressure. I did not notice any difference in torque, and have talked with dozens of others that have done the same and not noticed any difference. Not sure if the cats in the muffs are the same.

As far as sound, I still had the stock muffs on and did not notice much of a sound difference at all after removing the cat...maybe a tad bid louder, but nothing significant.

The primary reason I removed the cat was because it generates so much heat.

Secondary reason is that I knew I would be richening up the AFR quite a bit and cats can get clogged up if subjected to very much unburnt gas.

 

I'm planning on installing a V&H Power Dual and leaving the stock slip-ons in place for now on my 12 Ultra Classic. At the same time I'm installing an Arlen Ness Big Sucker. I know I've got to get it tuned (add a tuner etc. after the mods are done). My questions are this, if I opt to replace the slip-ons later will I need to get it tuned again and if performance is acceptable to me now with this new initial change what am I likely to experience? Thanks this stuff is all new to me.

 

IMO the V&H is a GREAT header. Tuning for header, stock mufflers, and intake will richen things up to be better running and cooler. Adding slip ons later will lean it out a little but shouldn't require a re-tune. Re-tune will just give you the last little bits of power tho.

I run the power dual with Rinehart slip ons and a V&H intake on my 11 FLHX. I saw better power by about 7-8hp....maybe a little more. Sound was way more to my liking and the best was the reduced heat from the engine.

I have a co-worker that runs the power dual header only. He's happy with it and did it just to get away from the heat of the cat.

 

Try the BUB Stealth mufflers. I've had both the BUB 7 Stealths and the Straight Eight Stealths on my two previous bikes. Nice low rumble but not too loud. EPA noise compliant and the performance is good also. Best aftermarket mufflers I've had on a Harley and I've had just about all of them.