| Author | Message | ||
     Bcrawf68 |
I thought some of you might be interested in seeing the torque hammer exhaust from the group buy and hear about some first impressions. I ordered the exhaust kit from twinmotorcycles (Dris) and that went well. One little thing you might think about. Twinmotorcycles accepts the payment in Euros. The dollar/euro rate fluctuates daily. I waited until I thought the rate bottomed out. By waiting a week, I saved about $50. (If only I ordered on the day of the euro crash...). Anyway, the pipe was on backorder at the time, so I decided to wait until a new batch was made. There are two parts to this kit. The exhaust and the tuning. Because the exhaust was on backorder, I decided to wait on the tune. After several weeks of waiting, the box finally arrived at my front door. Here are some photos of the exhaust as it looks out of the box. http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998321511862098 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998344778835170 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998356697656274 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998396674512498 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998414893527698 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998429358310130 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998445684301298 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998465034683602 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998486701016418 The exhaust was fairly easy to install. I did not have to take off any foot peg brackets or the shift lever or brake lever or anything like that. Also, the installation instructions required that I install several washers between the pipe mount bracket and the bike’s mount, but the fit was too tight to allow for that, so I just added 1 washer on the bolt side and the nut side. No problems. The header pipes were a rather tight fit, so I used a rubber mallet to gently tap them into place. The exhaust metal (stainless steel) seems to be rather thick and of good quality, so the tapping posed no issue. I’d didn’t weigh the torque hammer before I installed it but it seemed to be a good deal lighter than the stock exhaust. The twinmotorcycles tune was installed remotely using my PC and my old ECM spy cable. The updated settings were installed by Dave, the guy who sold a competing product and now contracts with Dris. Dave was very nice. He answered all of my questions patiently without making me feel like a rookie. This part of the experience also turned out to be very positive. Also, as recommended, I installed a K&N filter and added a noid resistor. Some think the K&N makes a difference, some don’t. But, for what the pipe/tune costs, it’s worth the extra money to set the bike up as recommended. Finally, the pipe and the tune are together at last! I was very excited to go for that first ride. I reset the TPS, started the bike and promptly got on the freeway. 2 things. 1, the bike felt slow. Much slower than my 08r, which, admittedly, is a monster for a stock bike. 2, the gas mileage was terrible, instant fuel mileage was reporting 21 to 32 cruising at 65-70 on the freeway. Also, the bike doesn’t seem very responsive to the throttle Oh yeah, it was really loud! So loud in fact that I had to go buy different ear plugs. Maybe I’m just used to the stock (quiet!) exhaust. Seems like it will now be more difficult to evade and escape! I discussed my concerns with Dris. He talked about resetting the TPS and said if I still had a problem with the bike, he would ship me a replacement ECM to try out. Seems very nice. Just for the heck of it, I disconnected the battery to reset the ECM’s internal memory. After letting it sit for several hours, I reconnected it and went for a ride. The difference was immediate. The bike pulled much harder in the upper RPM’s. The bike runs smoother and cooler in the lower RPM ranges, although, the gas mileage still isn’t all that great. Also, it seems more responsive to the throttle. If I were to find something to cry about, I would guess that the bike is still running a bit too rich. However, it seems to run very well, so I’ll probably leave it alone and just ride. On another note, the bike seems to not be as loud as when first installed. There is some boom to the exhaust, but at least, my ears are no longer ringing after the ride. Maybe I’m just “getting used to it”… Here’s some pictures of the exhaust installed on the bike: http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998503118306098 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998524408238018 http://picasaweb.google.com/bcrawf68/TorqueHammer? authkey=Gv1sRgCJy59-jj24zHRw#5474998545912358706 Overall, I'm very satisfied with this decision. While, I'm not sure it is as good as the Erik Buell Racing ECM and someone else's pipe, the matched parts made this appealing to me. Also, I like the fact that I don't have to repack the muffler like on some of the other slip-on's and full exhausts. Hope this helps with your exhaust purchase decision. | ||
| Pattio |
My own experience with my group-buy TH has been similar. I bolted the muffler on when it arrived and rode it around for a week or so before getting the tune session. I found the sound loud and harsh running on the bike's stock tune, but smoothness seemed to improve at low(ish) rpms and the power felt substantial and immediate. The tune instantly took the sharp edge off the sound, it is a very authoritative sound but doesn't make my skull ring like before. Low end driveability is improved, and the overall power is constant and deep, just as promised. Fuel MPG may have improved too, from a normal 33-35MPG to 37 and then 38.9 on my last two tanks. my observation so far is that the biggest downside to this pipe/tune choice is the 'overwriting' of the stock ecm. If a person chooses to buy the ee-bee-arr ecm they can swap and unswap it as desired, say, to sell separate from the bike or remove before making a warranty claim, but with the 'overwriting' system my bike is neither fish nor fowl. It is very fast though. | ||
| Ccryder |
Just in case you were looking for another way to post the pix you can use the "imagelink" command. All you need to do is right click on the picture and under properties copy this: "http://lh6.ggpht.com/_94-AWnaK4AI/S_sZ9zOTD1I/AAAA AAAABns/1m8t2vBVjf0/s800/IMAG0007.jpg" next:  Magic (not really). Anyway my impression with the TH was overall very good. The initial tune was the race map and it was WAAAAY strong all over but MPG suffered. I am now running the Erik Buell Racing race ECM pump gas (off road only) and it's a little softer than the race map and the mpg is around 40. Sound, IMHO, is mellow w/o being loud. Smoothness is much better than stock an overall great combination. Time2Work Neil S. | ||
| 19991200 |
Hi, Have found the my first impressions and this is the link to that thread http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/290 431/554006.html?1270744078 Still impressed, Dave | ||
| Therealassmikeg |
I couldn't be happier with mine! Every time I ride I'm more impressed! When you actually use the throttle (and I don't mean full wot throttle runs) You'll see what this tune is all about, It's perfect from 2000rpm to redline! |
