Traded my 02 [bought new] EGC for a 13 FLHTK. Midnight/silver ice. When you wait so long the improvements are awesome. It is so smooth and that 6th gear, Holy Wah! [yeah, I'm a yooper] is going to earn me a ticket for sure. The motor is just starting to stretch it's legs and you're going 70.
I am going to do the usual mods, intake, cam, muffs. But am on the fence about the head pipe. I have been reading past posts and it has been often stated that the stock head pipe with the cat will flow as much exhaust as the 103 can make. If the heat issue is off the table, can an arguement be made why one would/should change the header. The shop says 95% change the pipe and are recommending a V&H power dual. Is HEAT the only reason? And, is the heat going to be that much more drastic than the 02. So far, 600 miles, I don't notice it much. But then I've been riding in 60 degree weather.
I am just looking for some real world experience. Thanks, Doug

 

Change the head pipe, it will make more power and torque with the V&H Power duals, not to mention getting rid of the HEAT, on a 95 deg day it could blister your leg, happened to a buddy of mine on his '12 Street Glide.

 

I'll be interested in hearing the answers/opinions on your questions too Doug. Got my '13 Ultra Limited about 4 weeks ago and love it. Starting my list of of what mods to make.

 

I went from a 2003 Road King to a 2011 Road Glide Ultra and yes the heat can be unbearable when the outside temp gets over 80. I tried gutting the cat, Crotch Kooler, tuner, but it still was way too hot. I was considering trading it in on a Gold Wing, but decided to try a aftermarket header. That was the answer. I went with the Fuel Moto head pipe mainly to look stock since I still had warranty on the bike, but I am happy with the way it is constructed and the results.
You still need a tuner to get it right and the Power Vision with pro auto tune sooks great. With this setup I do not need to dyno tune the bike.

 

Talking about tickets yeah it sure will get you one lol got me a ticket on the way back from myrtle beach it just don't seem like you are running as fast as you actually are.

 

Sweet! Where are the pics? The heat suks. I have a gutted pipe from fleabay, big sucker and fl-vied's waiting on me when I get done with this rotation in Sept. I cant wait to see the diff its going to make. Wish you many miles of smiles, hurry up and show us that bad boy!

 

oh yeah!

I went through that in 2010 when I bought my 09 FLHTC...I'd just turned over 82K on my 1995 FLHTC and had been "waiting" for the improvements to justify the cost.

Way happy with the modern ride.

in terms of mods..the 09 is a 96", no cat header, ness big sucker and nightrider.com XIEDS.
sitting on a motor is gonna be hot and my riding days are often over 100º.
thick jeans help, and sometimes chaps

mike

 

Not sure how hot it gets up in Yooperville, but in the summer you will feel the heat from that cat. By design the cat has to get very, very hot to burn the hydrocarbons in the exhaust stream. It gets so hot that some of the 2009-2010 model year bikes had a rear brake light switch recall because the OEM switch was getting heat damaged, and in some cases melted, due to it's proximity to the cat.

Does the cat cause much exhaust restriction? My measurements resulted in an astounding yes. I measured exhaust output velocity with the normal stock header with cat, then with the fuel moto header, and man what a difference.

Gut the stock header or throw it out and get an optimized header? Well, that just depends on your preference. Personally, I don't like the large void left when the cat is removed from the stock header. It leaves a poorly designed collector point in the header and does nothing for backpressure considerations or exhaust management. The x-pipe configurations offered by vendors such as fuel moto and fullsac performance do a better job with this issue. Plus they offer in my opinion much better built headers made of superior materials with robust exhaust collars compared to the OEM. And for further heat reduction, they also offer ceramic coatings inside and out.

A gutted stock header will work and for most probably will be good enough if you don't want to spring for the $400-$500 necessary to get rid of the stock mess and go with something aftermarket. You can always sell your stock header for around $100 and recoup at least that much back.

Speaking of being a yooper, I just saw an episode of American Pickers and Mike/Frankie were up in the northern peninsula of Mich picking. Looks like some really nice people live there and it looks beautiful on TV.

 

Joe, Summer we can hit stretches of 80-90, winter 20 below. We get 6-7 months of riding weather. It would take an extreme occurance however for me to move from this area! We put up with a little snow and cold but the ground doesn't shake, flooding is minimal, tornadic and wild fire activity is rare, hurricanes are nonexistant and the winter cold helps keep a lot of the vermin [insect, animal and human] away. And the great lakes... what can I say about living within eyeshot of one of the largest fresh water recources in the world.
Thank you all for your reasoned replys. Such good information on this site!

Thank You Veterens! Living and departed, your sacrifice and devotion through the history of our beloved nation, makes all of this possible. We love you and God Bless you all!

 

I just upgraded last week to V&H power duals and monster rounds, Big Sucker air and SEST. form stock, it is a noticable difference, on my 2013 EG Ultra Limited.