I bought a new 2014 SGS two days ago and bought some touring stuff (back rest, etc) for my wife to ride. Our last bike was a 2008 Rocker C. We loved the looks and had the V&H Big Radius pipes that sounded pretty good, but it was not good for trips. I stayed with V&H and got the Twin Slash Rounds (4") and put those on yesterday. Put the bike back together and got cleaned up for a night out. When we started the bike, I was not impressed at all. I could hardly tell the difference between the V&H vs the stock muffler. My wife was not impressed either. My rocker had V&H, but it was a different pipe. I was thinking the Twin Slash must be for old people but I can't find evidence of this on the net, so maybe not. We drove to downtown Nashville and I felt like I was riding around on a goldwing. My other bike was not loud enough for my liking, but this one seems so sad.

I looked on the net and talked to the parts counter. Apparently, my rocker had Catalytic Converters in the mufflers I replaced. I guess I need to spend another grand or more on "Cat-less" headers, Harley's Stage one kit, & some sort of tuner. Prior to buying all that stuff (down the road), what can I do to give this bike a little more sound now without spending so much?

Horse Power & Torque are nice, but sound is my primary goal for now. I will buy all that stuff at some point, but till then, what will help the most?

 

You can always drill out the catalytic converter on your own or find someone in town that will do it. Just that alone will give you considerably more sound.

 

2010 brought in Tier 2 emissions regs.

so pre 2010 49 State bikes don't have cats, now they do.

a little light on the pre purchase research.

headers with cats removed are about $150 on ebay- you need the version 2010+ ( 2009 and earlier won't work for your bike)

mike

 

So, besides the exhaust sound, are you happy with the bike itself or is it just a POS?

Perhaps the title of your post should have been 'I'm not happy with the sound of the SG exhaust' Because seriously who spends that much on a ride that sucks?

 

so go back and be a rocker....

 

I've read posts on drilling & cutting the Cat out, but I don't see how drilling all that junk out is remotely possible. Either way, I would rather spend the money on a new pipe vs. the risk of some old Cat material getting sucked back into the engine and causing more than the $400 bucks for a new pipe that I don't have to worry about how it was cleaned out or welded by someone. I won't be going the do-it-yourself route with the Cat removal, but I might look at ebay for some that are already fixed. Thanks for that idea.

The bike rides great and we love almost everything about it, but I am depressed about how it sounds. Two parts "love" and one part "depressed" equals "not that happy."

Relate it to one's wife or Old Lady, no matter how much good you do, if you mess up one thing, she is not that happy with you, but still loves you. My new found love for this bike has reservations with which I am not happy about. And like a less-than-perfect "marriage," it is causing me to think about the other bikes I had in my past...

 

there is a cat removal photo tutorial if you want to search for it- then you'll see what is involved.

alot of guys have gone that route

Mike

 

Here's an option:

 

If you want loud then you need to look at some CFR's or CFR knockoff's on e-bay. Also call Fuel Moto and see what they offer as far as head pipes, this will get rid of the cat and the heat and bring the sound up also. Won't be cheap but follow there steps an you'll also end up with a great running bike as well.

 

Title is definitely misleading...then in a following post OP says "The bike rides great and we love almost everything about it"!