Did 180 miles today ...first decent ride since the airbox and download ... actually 179.2 miles 3.97 gallons ...basically 45 mpg ..on roads that ranged from 45-75 mph and hardly any stopping . Right leg seemed cooler than prior to the change, its over 90 today ...but I was always moving ....bike ran fantastic ...pulls MUCH better on hills.

 

Thanks,Tele00... Good info. I have the 4" rineharts already, and when I have my 5k service I'm going to get the se a/c and remap.

 

1 more thing ... I rode 90 miles yesterday at slower speeds 30-45 mph and the cat heat was pretty noticeable ...being that I have 3 friends with 2011s that put true duals on their bikes ..I had several headpipes available to me ..so I grabbed a friends and took it to work today and gutted the cat, welded it back together and brushed on some high temp paint ( I used another forum members " JC Turbo " very smart trap door technique ) ... My bike runs great with the changes so far But I want to try it without the cat to see if it will run just as well...and throw less heat ...I'll let you know what I find ....

 

'09 CA models also have a cat in the head pipe, which makes ordering slip-ons for the '09 annoying; because, while fitment may not be a problem, maintaining EPA compliance on noise would be.

 

Wrong..........I just did my 2011 SG 103 ,stock header, V/H fuel pak ,K&N aircharger(same as HDs but cheaper) Couple of Samson silver bullet slipons(no baffles)big improvement in performance and sound, woke my 103 UP.Takin it thru the gears no higher than 46-4800 rpm ,Im doin 80mph when I make the shift to 6th gear I never go any higher ,because theres no need but I could if need be...........

 

Okay, I'm confused. I have a 2009 FLHRC Road King CLassic. 49 state model. Do I have a catalytic convertor in my stock head pipes or not?
Also, dealer had installed: 4" Rush Big Louie exhaust cans, a stage 1 HD Ventilator air cleaner, & a HD Screamin Eagle Street Tuner. Bike doesn't get good mileage, backfires on deceleration, and seems to run very hot. Idon't think it was tuned properly, maybe running too lean?
Any ideas?

 

You should not have a cat, assuming your bike was not originally destined for CA and rerouted to another state. The best way to know for sure is to remove the right muffler and shine a light into the headpipe chamber.

Sounds like the wrong map may be loaded.

 

My first touring bike was a 2009 RKC. The first thing I did was have a Stage 1 download. The throttle response was immediately quicker and the bike pulled better.

My newest bike in the picture has the 103 powerpak and I had a Stage 2 download for 255 cams downloaded last week (because I have a set of 255s on the shelf). I had immediately had quicker acceleration on the ride home and then added my SE a/c once I got home. It pulls even better. I have 570 miles on it. Still stock cat headpipe and stock mufflers.

Downloads do help. PERIOD. If the AFR is still at 14.7, so be it. It pulls better. Can it be tuned even more? YES, had a SEPST on the RKC with 54H cams. But for now, enjoying the mild manners of stock. Like the tunes from the radio....

 

Wow..........glad this thread came back up as this is right along the lines of what I want to try. I just bought a set of Supertrapp SE slip ons for that are made for cat equipped bikes. No type of blockage at all in the pipes.....can see right through them. Picked up a set of the SE black end caps today at Seacoast HD in Hampton. Nice dealership, good parts guys.

I plan on putting these pipes on this weekend....I was under the impression that if I added a less restrictive A/C I would need a fuel management system and a dyno. It is good to see a lot of folks have had good results with pipes, a/c and download.

I'm thinking of going with the Arlen Ness Big Sucker vs the SE A/C.....this shouldnt be an issue when going to the dealer for d/l should it?

Also just to clarify.......what exactly does the d/l do if it leaves the bike at EPA mandated standards? From what I've seen it raises the rev limiter but other than that what else does it do? I'm only asking because seems like a lot of people in the camp that it is a complete waste of money and the other side loves how their bike runs after getting it done.

My bike is performing an awful lot like tele00 was saying he was especially on deaccel like it is needing some air.....what dealer in MA did your work?

 

I would get it re-tuned. It's not supposed to do that and those are signs of a bad setup; poor volume metrics, poor settings in the tables, etc.

I bring my 09 FLHRC to a local guy who runs a shop called Stay Tuned here in Mount Hope Ontario Canada. He tells me that I don't have cats even thought it's a Canadian bike.

He has a special drill bit that will drill out the baffles in my stock muffler. I've added a K&N air filter, and will be getting the SERT. Don from Stay Tuned has his own Dyno and is a known 'bike whisperer' with more than two walls of racing trophies etc and has been building HD since the 60's or maybe early 70's. It's all he does and he's famous even among chopper shops and dealerships around here.

The interesting part here is he contradicts many accepted schools of thought on the subject of what will work. I wanted VH Monster Ovals but he said there was too much volume and this would skew the sweet spot in tuning the EFI - even using stock cams and so on. He talks about the physics of it all including volume efficiency etc. He basically relegated me to using the basic VH pipes; no fancy fishtails, horns, downturns etc. Just plain ovals or rounds due to consistent volume capability. I don't have to listen or believe him, but I do and so I will go with my drilled out stock exhaust for now, the KN and the SERT and see. From there I have the freedom to put on a slip on, head pipe or cams because I went the extra mile today - and I like options.

I believe if you're modest and mainstream with the canned configurations then you'll gain a modest (or better) result, but if you want the best results then you pay for the DYNO and the SERT - no matter what you choose for the Air and Exhaust.