I've been running my new-to-me 09 Ultra bone stock all summer without the lowers, as my Dyna is my hot rod. This fall cooled off earlier than expected, and after putting the lowers back on, the heat around my right foot and lower leg was just annoying. So I finally decided to get a Stage I. My goals were:

(1) Reduce heat around the right foot by eliminating the overly lean factory tune,

(2) Adjust the inflow/outflow accordingly with the quitest possible hi performance pipes.

(3) Not spend an excessive amount of cash.

First I sent my stock slip-ons to Fullsac for their 1.75" re-core. When I got them back I mounted them up to make sure they weren't too loud. They actually came back louder than I expected, but under my acceptable threshold. Then I rode to my dealer last Saturday for a Stage I download. I planned to buy a Screamin Eagle A/C kit while I was there and install it myself later, but as it turns out I had to pay for 1 hour of labor for the download anyway so it did not cost extra for them to go ahead and install the air cleaner.

I am satisfied that I achieved my goals much better than I expected. I have had many different touring bikes and set ups, ranging from stock to a solid Stage II.5 with cams and head work, and I don't know that I've ever been more pleased as far as the bang for the buck and overall flow. It's all in the sound level and the ridability. Just progressing through the gears from a stop to highway speeds with smoothness, a nice quiet deep rumble, and more than ample torque across the spectrum. I am convinced most of the performance upgrade that I had not expected is coming from the Fullsac 1.75" re-cored slip-ons and how perfectly they are working with the dealer installed map.

The total cost was only $525 ($200 for the Fullsac 1.75" re-cored stock slip-ons and $325 to the dealer for the Stage I download, the SE A/C, and the A/C installation). Best money I ever spent!

 

Sounds very cost effective.
Good write up and review.

 

Good for you!!

Hyper

 

Regarding the slip-on recoring, did you go with the quiet or the standard option?

 

I went with the quiet which is the 1.75" baffles. The standard is 2" baffles.

 

My 2010 Ultra had the stage I download, A/C cleaner, and Rush slip-ons added by the original owner. I just love the way it sounds and runs. The only heat I notice is from the cat while sitting in traffic.

 

I have Stage I, Power Commander, slip ons etc. and am happy with the power gains and overall flow, but that damn CAT still fries my thigh. I even took my lowers off for the summer. Next step is either remove the CAT or replace the head pipe. I have read all the threads on this and have decided that is the only way to get rid of the heat.

 

It is, and once you replace that stock head pipe you will ask yourself why the hell you waited so long to do it

 

The 2009 touring bikes do not have the cat in the head pipe, which is one of the reasons I kept looking for a very low mileage 2009 instead of one of the newer models. One less PITA to deal with.

 

You're 100% correct, I forgot about that, you would still see more performance over an aftermarket 2-1-2 than stock, but yes not as bid a deal on the 09 and older bikes.