My new SG will be here mid-January. I have read numerous posts about SERT vs. PCIII and different types of exhaust. I had told my dealer to put on a set of SE slip on mufflers, is this a waste of $$$ ?? Would I be better off going with a few more bucks and putting on true duals? What do you recommend? I know some of you have a few miles on your SG's help me out would ya?

 

I've had my Street Glide for about a month now and am just getting ready to turn 1000 miles. I've been experimenting (at considerable expense) with different mufflers on my bike. I ruled out true duals right off the bat because of the loss in low end power. After all, this is a Harley, not a Hayubasa, and I didn't buy the Harley to race. I want TORQUE! I also want a deep, powerful sound from my bike. I've personally tried Wild Pigs, Hooker tuned-flow slip-ons, and Rush slip-ons with the 2.25" baffles. I've also carefully listened to many other baggers at various hangouts. I've listened to baggers with Vance & Hines, Samsons, Rineharts, Screaming Eagles, Revolution Air, Bubs etc... just to name a few.

After much experimenting and observing, I have 2 favorites. The Hookers are number one and the Rush are number 2. I'm keeping both sets. The Hookers have a very deep and powerful sound, but they are loud. Man do they ever turn heads. The Rush also sounds deep, but not like the Hookers. The Rush mufflers sound much more civilized than the Hookers, which is not necessarily what I want. I like the looks of the Rush a little better than the Hookers, but that's just personal preference. Let me put it this way. When I ride up with my Hookers on, a lot of people turn their heads. When I ride up with the Rush mufflers, not too many people pay attention. I'm talking about just idling the bike, not reving the engine in an attempt to get noticed. With the Hookers people look whether you are seeking their attention or not.

Rush also makes a larger 2.5" baffle, but the sound won't change that much from 2.25. I should also point out that I'm running my Hookers at the number 2 setting. The Hookers have adjustable baffles from 1 to 4. One is the torque setting. This is the quietest. Four is the horsepower setting - this is the loudest. I love riding the bike with the Hookers on #4, but I just can't get away with it because I leave for work early in the morning and I'm not willing to disturb my neighbors. My Hookers on the #2 setting sound considerably more powerful than the Rush with the 2.25" baffles.

I would recommend either the Rush or Hookers to you. It took a lot of time and money to decide on what I wanted. However, the best way to decide what YOU want is to listen to baggers with different pipe configurations yourself. The Vance & Hines and Rineharts also have a nice sound, but they don't have the thunderous roar of the Hookers. It all depends on what your personal taste is. Good luck!

 

I would ONLY recommend True Duals if you are planning on upgrading the size of the motor. The SE Slip-ons are a great looking/sounding pipe. I could cruise 80mph and still listen to my radio/passenger. If your looking for a loud obnoxious exhaust the SE's are not it.

I had the SE's but changed out to the V&H Ovals only because I love the look alot better, now gotta install them and hope they sound somewhat close to the SE's.

There are pro's & con's with any exhaust. It's up to you and what your willing to deal with.

Do a search for True Duals and Rineharts and you will get a crap load of infor about them.

 

I don't think you can go wrong with the S.E. slip on's. I have the touring performance and love the look and sound. I also think in comparison to others I have heard and seen they are fairly priced. I have noticed alot of other pipes including the Hookers seem to rust rather quickly. The S.E.'s use pretty good quality chrome. I like the idea of the S.E.'s also because you can change the end tips to change the look of your bike.

 

I would wait just a little bit and see how the new Rineharts are for tq. & power, he has changed them for more bottom tq, I personally have a set of Rush slipons with the baffles pulled and a set of Thunder Monster baffles installed in the stock exhaust, Awesome sound and performance with what I have now.

 

Quick note, I picked up my Street Glide last Saturday. 95 Stage II (203 cams). I had Rineharts True Duals and at my dealers suggestion (he would stand by it) I had a Power Commander USB installed andset.

Only 400+ miles so I have not jumped on it hard, but normal driving and quick runs to 3500 (OK maybe 3800) it runs great and sounds as good. I can feel the pipe or cam"come on" about 2500-2800 rpms. Probably pipe as cams are pretty mild. I don't think I "lose" anything below that rpm, it runs fine and pulls when I wic the throttle lower. But it sure is fun when it starts to pull. I cannot wait until next 100 miles so I can run it up the rpms to see whats it like.

Overall, I am really happy with the selection. I have no "popping" or surging.

Just my story, hope it helps.

 

UGGA:

Finally - someone who has been into Rush mufflers.

I've got an 05 Ultra with Rush 2.00". Too tame for me.

Bought the 2.5" baffles - to install in the spring.

How did you get those baffles out - any tricks/tips/suggestions???

Would the 2.5 inchers wake up those nice neighbors of yours - too loud???

I am looking for loud but not obnoxious - wife would rather see me with a HONDA exhaust system

Let me know UGGA of all your experiences with the Rush stuff - appreciated - its hard to find others who have used these inexpensive units.

THANKS!!!

 

DCHORAN-

I did not change the baffles on my Rush slip-ons. I ordered them new with the 2.25" baffles already installed, so I can't speak as to how easy it is to change out the baffles. I should probably explain why it is I even tried the Rush mufflers in the first place.

I already had the Hookers on my bike, and I had Hookers on my previous 2 baggers as well. I settled on the Hookers after a whole lot of listening and experimenting over the last 7 years. Anyway, I was perfectly content with the Hookers except for 2 things. First, I leave for work early in the morning and I was concerned that the Hookers were too loud for my neighbors, even on the relatively quiet #2 setting. They are not loud like straight pipe loud, not at all. Instead they are deep bass loud. They have a tendency to set off car alarms at idle because of their resonance. It is such a nice sound though. I live in a townhome, and when I ride out through the complex (at idle), the deep sound is just magnified between the buildings. This situation is further exacerbated by the fact that it's early AM. We have 2 or 3 softail riders in the complex whose bikes are much louder than mine from a standpoint of pure decibles, but they don't have that DEEP sound that I personally favor.

My second reason for wanting to try the Rush was because of their beautiful styling. The reverse cut Rush mufflers perfectly match the lines of baggers. The Hookers, with their megaphone design, look nice, but not as nice on a bagger as the Rush in my opinion. The Rush look like they are original HD equipment, and I like that. I have always wanted a muffler that looked like this, but that sounded like the Hookers. After reading several posts on this forum singing the praises of the Rush, I had to give them a try.

I just got my Rush mufflers in 2 days ago. They sound very nice with the 2.25" baffles, and I rode the bike to work yesterday morning and I noticed how much quieter the bike was. Definitely no issues with disturbing the neighbors. Also, at highway speeds the Rush is considerably quieter than the Hookers. The Rush actually seems to get quieter as the bike speeds up. This is much better for listening to tunes or speaking to your SO while riding. As I said earlier, the Rush looks so good on a bagger. They are an excellent value for the money.

You asked if the 2.5" Rush baffles would wake up the neighbors in the morning. I can only speak for the 2.25", and they don't even come close to doing that. I'm confident that the 2.5" would not wake them either. You also said that you're looking for loud but not obnoxious. The Hookers would qualify, the Rush might. I say "might" for the Rush because I don't know if they would be loud enough for you. What's loud to one person may be quiet to another. The Hookers aren't obnoxious either, in my opinion, but they are certainly louder than the Rush. What I consider obnoxious is something like straight pipes. Straight pipes are very loud, and yet they don't have the deep, powerful sound of the Hookers.

In summary, I think that the Hookers and probably the Rush (2.5" baffles) would fit your bill. My wife likes the Rush and loves the Hookers, so I'm putting the Hookers back on today. I'll probably sell my Rush mufflers on eBay. Just another expensive lesson. We have an '05 Gold Wing for when we want quiet. I can't speak for your wife, but I can almost guarantee you that she would be quite happy with the Rush 2.5" baffles.

Doug

 

Cheyenne so how do you like the V&H ovals compared to the SE pipes? I have SE's now but I'm considering switching to V&H ovals and V&H true duals.

eddie

 

rineharts didnt effect the bottom end torque of my ride, all i know is they look good, sound good, and ive had no problems withtthem at all. thats just my two cents