tramptaxi- Theres a saying that goes like this "LOUD PIPES SAVE LIVES"
and if it aint loud it aint a harley!!!!!

No mate. A good brain saves lives. No loud pipe is going to save you from an accident. Take it from experience, that abad car drivers no more likely to "see you" with a loud pipe blasting down the road. A loud pipe is for vanity - period. Also your loud pipe will stop you from hearing the other riders on the road.If you want to annoy your neighbours, people in towns, thats your choice. Just don`t come crying on this forum if you geta ticket.

 

The "loud pipes save lives" argument reminds me of deer whistles.

While I cannot dispute the fact that the deer probably do hear the whistle, no one has ever been able to tell me with any certainty which way they are going to run.

 

Nope. They just love going for a ride, much like anyone else! Unfortunately some *** clown ran the rig over on I-75 last October, so the doggies are now jonesing for a ride. The new sidecar for my new X Bones will show up within the next three months or so if all goes well, so maybe I'll get to save the 2nd half of summer for them.

 

Haven't heard anything louder than mine! Santee LAF. (Loud As F*ck) No one wants to ride on my right or behind me.

 

Im running Cobra Dragsters and they are plenty loud, When i want them to be...

http://www.cobrausa-hd.com/sounds/85...5117e3c699.mp3

hope the link works.

 

I also ran some 1 3/4 LAF's yah there pretty loud, and that about it loud...
but they got no soul to them, just a blap blap blap, but you're right none of my friends
would ride on my right side, hell i wouldn't ride on my right side... lol
I would rather have a nice tone, good sounding pipes over just noise makers.

Before... with the noise makers ;(


You gotta love them Rineharts...

 

I bought my bike used.The previous owner put onSamson II, Rip Saws. They are 1 3/4" OD and come without baffles. With the 103" engine they are very loud. I have installed some Khrome Werks HP drag pipe baffles to try and quiet them some, these are fairly minimum baffles but there isn't much choice for baffles that will fit. It is stillvery loud. The bike runs great with this setup, so I have been holding off, spending the money toswitch out the exhaust, to the Fat Cat 2 into 1 with quiet baffle and then have to have it re-tuned.
Tom.

 

Wildly, I completely disagree with your arguement. To say that loud pipes are a "vanity issue" is ludicrous. Hell that would mean that any add on or accessory is all about "vanity". While I personally wouldn't want to ride a bike that's so loud I would eventually go deaf that doesn't mean I would dog someone for liking that style.

Also, to say that loud pipes arent good for the sport doesn't hold water with me either. This "sport" is about being unique, so if a person likes window shaking pipes then go for it. That's like saying skull themed paint is bad for the sport because it draws negative attention to Harley riders. Come on.

Different strokes for different folks.

 

This "sport" is NOT about being unique. The "sport" part of it is about riding. Being "unique" is an artistic expression - not sporty - and you are going to find that artistic expression in a public setting is censored if it is considered offensive to the masses, no matter what the constitution might say or imply.

The issue isn't that simple anyway, and you have not presented an equally weighted analogy. There is quite a difference between someone looking at skull themed paint and deciding they don't like it versus having the entire family awakened at 2 A.M. by a set of obnoxiously loud pipes. In one case the onlooker can simply choose not to look. In the other case every house the rider passes is having the rider's "music" forced upon them.

While I personally have been down that road myself (I had 2" drag pipes on my '98 Wide Glide) I like a quiet bike nowadays. Working in the motorcycle business I am also acutely aware of just how much of a ruckus this issue is creating. The fact is that although those of us who ride motorcycles might like the sound, most of the non-riding public doesn't. And there are perhaps 35 of them for each one of us. In other words it's a battle you can't win, and the evidence of that is the noise ordinances that are being created and targeted at motorcycles, and neighborhoods that outright forbid motorcycles. Now you can say f*ck it, I just won't live there, but "there" is eventually going to become "here" at the rate things are going.

I'm not about to jump on the AMA bandwagon, especially when it comes to noise. Personally I think the AMA has become nothing more than a money laundering/wasting pile of sh*t. "Loud pipes risk rights" is a stupid saying. Actually it should be "loud pipes sacrifice privileges", because they do. Riding a motorcycle is not a right, it is a privilege just like the operation of any motor vehicle on public roads. I sincerely believe the noisemaker exhausts are going to cause us to lose certain privileges, and I'm not just talking about Harleys. The metric cruiser world is doing exactly the same thing, probably because they mostly tend to copy the trends of the Harley riders. The sport bike riders have been changing pipes forever, mostly for the performance gains. But the end result of all of it is going to be the same - noise ordinances and restrictions will pop up everywhere and will be enforced. The government will get rich off of the fines, as if you don't pay them enough through taxes already. Bikes will get impounded, people will wind up in court. You won't win, because it is impossible to get laws passed that allow you to disrupt the crap out of your neighbors over artistic expression. And if you think it won't go there eventually All I can say is good luck to you. Whether you are willing to admit it or not IT IS NOT A GOD-GIVEN RIGHT to have a loud exhaust.

Personally I enjoy just being able to ride a motorcycle. Loud pipes don't have to be part of the experience, especially if the continued use of them means that someday I might not be legally able to ride a motorcycle anymore. The ride is way more important to me than the sound.

Caveat Emptor. Choose wisely. Your choices affect everyone else who enjoys our "sport".

 

Bueller,

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