It sounds like you are contemplating doing what most are doing ... however I find it strange that a HD dealer would remove the catalytic converter for you. Federal EPA guidelines ( ain't the government always looking out for our well being? ) make it illegal for an emmision device to be "removed or rendered inoperative" ... http://www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/roadbike/420f03045.pdf ... keep us informed.

 

I must have worded my post incorrectly... The dealer did not do anything of the sort.

I really hope you were attempting to be a wise guy!?

 

No harm intended .... just trying to keep you out of a world of $hit should something bad come of it if you were dealing with HD ... just a heads up Brother. I was in the automotive business for many years and had to deal with the EPA on a couple of occasions and they can be real *****$.

 

Right on! Thanks for the concern.

Since you are schooled on the subject maybe you can clarify something for me... Why would de-catting a stock head pipe be any different then buying an after market 2-1-2 with out the cat or even say true duals? It seems every other post on here is about changing the exhaust and getting rid of the catalytic converter or adding true duals or installing some variation of a cat less pipe.

It would seem that installing an after market 2-1-2 pipe would be pretty easy to spot and having a de catted stock pipe would be less obvious.

Thanks for the help!

 

Actually the only difference between removing the insides of the cat or replacing the header pipe with a catless one is that you'd save some money while retaining the "stock" appearance should you be required to have an emmissions test. The converter is basically a failsafe should the vehicle have a performance problem and emit excessive pollutants. In many cases a vehicle that is in "perfect" tune can/will emit fewer pollutants than one with the catalyst in tact. Some states require a physical inspection along with the emmissions test and if you were to run into this situation you could be in for a hard time with the aftermarket header ( should you run into someone who actually knows what he's doing ) Removing can/will give better flow and reduce operating temperatures. My reply to your original post was just to make you aware that if someone at HD did remove the cat that they were in violation of the EPA standards and you may sufer the consequences further down the line should there be some problem with your scooter and the geniuses in the service department were looking for "an out" . Hope this clears thing up and sorry if I caused any confusion.

 

Cool.

No confusion now. I am grateful for the info. I learn something almost every day, and today is no exception.

I am happy to report that there are no vehicle checks here in SD as of yet. They would have a frickin hay day with all the bikers that come in for the Sturgis Rally. That would be entertaining to see the roadside checks and all the bikers going by giving the one finger wave! ;0)

I live 15 miles from Sturgis by the way. If ever here for the rally look me up! I have some spectacular loops to ride. In fact better to come before or after the rally. I park my bike for most of the rally week. That is an offer to all! I know there are a few friends I have not met yet on here!

 

I hope you get to ride it soon, looking forward to hearing how the mods impact the experience. What is the approximate cost of the work you had done?

 

Thanks Jason .... I've been to Sturgis several times and you can be sure I'll let you buy me a beer next time I'm in your neck of the woods Brother,

 

I was going to reply and recommend going another route, same cams but a third-party tuner with no dyno tune, but it appears the results speak for themselves. Your numbers are excellent and I would be very happy with them. This allays my fears that the tech you chose might not be up to providing an optimal tune, as is often the case. However, make sure he also tuned below WOT where you will spend most of your time while riding, as some tuners will take the easy route by not tuning the entire operating range. If the tune isn't complete it will likely take its toll on gas mileage and part-throttle performance.

Give us a report when you do a seat-of-the-pants evaluation.