Finally pulled the trigger and am now a happy owner of a new Softail Deluxe. After giving it a lot of thought whether I should get the "full deal" with every modification I had thought of or start stock and enjoy the process of a step by step transformation, I decided for the latter. I have followed the threads on this forum for quite a while and am very thankful for a ton of inspiration I came across - you guys have some phenomenal rides there! Within just a few days of breaking "Heidi" in, the odo already reads 590mls and the 1k service is coming closer. My first modification will be pipes, AC and the "right tuner" and I have read a lot about the options available. I am a huuuuge fan of the Samson Cholos and heavily lean toward the 39inch longtails. Having read that these will likely not provide the best power gain compared to 2in1 options, I am still biased due to the fantastic looks on a deluxe and me being a lightweight (155lbs) that will ride solo 99% of the time, not that concerned. All of that being said, I would love to pick your brains on the "best" combo for the first mod above, considering the Cholos a given. I would also like to understand if a different cam would be a meaningful addition to consider at this stage and how that would change the picture now vs. later. Many Thanks in advance for your thoughts and ideas and safe driving to everyone!

 

Not sure what advice to give you in regards to your decision for pipes, tuner and all that jazz.. but congrats on the new ride! You gotta post up some pictures of the new gal' !!

 

Cholos are sweet, I have 33" long tails and am in the process of getting longer 39"s. air cleaner seams to be a toss up I went with the harley stage 1. As for tuners I don't think you can beat the power vision. If your bike is a 2012 or newer you should have 18mm o2 bungs welded in to run wide band o2 sensors and auto tune on powervision to get the most out of it.

 

Good luck and enjoy. I have a 2 into 1 on now but I'm in the process putting some 39's on as we speak. The way my bike is built, the way I ride, loosing a little of this or that is not going to effect me at all. As far as mods go I favor doing as much as possible at a time. I love that shock and awe factor when you role your bike out of the garage rather that a piece here and there and it's barely noticed. There is SO much you can do with that Deluxe. You can take that bike in many different directions and pull off just about anything or any look with that bike. Have fun, pictures are always nice too. What color did you go with?

 

I chose Vivid black since I was not sure if I will go chrome galore or more black and believe it works well with both.
Samson has Longtails with removable tips and baffles in that length (not sure if this could be an advantage over the fixed Fishtail version). However I have heard and read a lot about a "non-optimal" fit, i.e. the left pipe sticking out more than with V&H true duals, which is a bit of a concern. V&H on the other side appears to have a great fit but does not offer 39inch length . While the HD dealership is certainly interested in getting everything sorted for me, I do believe that I can get most of the parts for less by going direct and am also not sure how much effort they really put into an optimal tuning (apart from billing multiple hours on the dyno). I have found out that "Doc" has trained a shop an hour away from where I live and highly recommends their tuning skills. I guess I will have to take my chances and will go for Samson TD 39's, SEPT or Power Commander and AC.
Further mods will include:
- Mini Apes or Beach Bars (like the look of both but need to test first)
- Braided cables etc.
- 21/18 wheels (soooo many nice looking options...)
- Solo seat
- Misc chrome, chrome, chrome

Is there a recommended source for the pipes and tuner to get a decent deal?
I will definitely post pictures as things come together - Sure thing. As for now, Heidi looks like fresh from the Alps and has not dressed up yet!

Many thanks for your input. Your expertise and advise is invaluable to me!

 

@redmosquito1: It is a 2013 but I have never heard of "18mm o2 bungs" being welded. Is your statement universally applicable to all tuners or only the auto tune functionality of the pc? Thanks for enlightening me.

 

Cembo,

Call Jessica at Samson direct. She is very helpful and they are a forum sponsor here. I ordered the fishtailes with removable baffles to make it easier to tune my wife's Deluxe. You might want to look at the chrome brackets, A153 and A154 while you're there. Samsons dramatically improve the looks IMO
Samson Exhaust

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I Corps - will do, and thanks for the tip on the brackets! Are those the same pipes but with Fishtail tips instead of longtails?

Any ideas for the SEPT??

 

Im with tony.
I try to do the most i can at once.
i.e. since i already have the tank off ill change the rocker box covers... since i have the upper rocker box covers off i might as well do the lowers... kinda just leads to one thing to another.

As far as tuner goes i went with the the power vision as well.

 

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your new ride.

I went with the Samson Long Tails with removable baffles. (28.5")

Could not be more happy with them. Performance is much better than I expected from a True Dual.

I don't think you can do better than a PowerVision from fuelmoto for a tuner, but with a little work you can do well with the HD tuner.

I would wait on the cams...you might find that you have plenty of power with the stock cams.

Posted below is a dyno of my 2012 with a Stage 1.