I'm trying to figure out if my issue is no baffles or a leak. I installed Bassani 36" true dual power curve Fishtails on my 2001 fatboy. No baffles and used oem gaskets. The exhaust is extremely raspy and pops ALOT. I ordered Big City Thunder baffles to use. But now I'm wondering if it may be a leak at the head pipe or is this just what baffless fishtails sound like? If so, I don't see how yall do it. The tone/note is not flattering.
I'm going to pick up screaming Eagle gaskets and check for leaks tomorrow using the smoke method and install the baffles. Just wanted to check with you guys.

 

Check to see if your air filter is also tight and gaskets are good , any leaks on intake or those pipes can cause that.

 

That's what I'm thinking. It's so obnoxious it's kind of ridiculous.

 

Over the years I've ran many different styles and brands of pipes and performed many exhaust experiments. I'll share what I've learned in bullet points.

-Removing baffles normally increases the sound in volume but, depending on the pipes, can create a Hollow sound.

-Removing baffles decreases back-pressure and can cause a loss in bottom end power and torque. This is more noticeable on short pipes.

-Altering the exhaust without re-tuning the bike can sometimes cause Deceleration Pop. On Carb'ed models Decel Pop can usually be cured by increasing the size of the idle jet. EFI bikes of-course must be re-mapped.

-It's good practice to always replace the exhaust gaskets every time the header pipe is removed.

I'm a fan of Big City Thunder baffles. Give them a try before re-tuning the bike.

 

I ran LongShots (not BigShots) for a while without baffles. Very loud (too loud according to some in my circle) with a great deal of decel pop. In order to reduce the noise level and pop for not a lot of $$$ I went with DKCustoms Thunder Torque Inserts. They made a world of difference in both sound and performance. Seems to me from my experience and that of others in here that Big Twins like some back pressure to run correctly.

 

Thanks guys. After I install the new gaskets and bct baffles Ill look into rejecting if need be.

 

I had a Night Train with straight pipes. My then teenagers loved it. As loud as it was when accelerating, the popping when slowing was even worse. Very similar problems to those you described. I fixed the issue when I got the Heritage.

 

It's an acquired taste. The best thing to compare the decel sound is to a jake brake on a tractor/trailer. I love it...raw raunchy sound...cant beat it. I do take it nice and easy through the neighborhood and have learned the rpm and speed range to keep the noise down while going through sensitive areas.