| Author | Message | ||
     Lemonchili_x1 |
One of my missions going to Homecoming was to check out slip-ons and hear loud they were, and yes people, you're right, they're *all* loud!  The FMF is probably my fav for looks and tone, but still a little too loud for me, so I thought I'd have a go and modify my standard muffler as per Dean Adams "muffled thunder". I'm changing jobs in a week so I had to act quickly while I still had access to welding equipment and Noel, the storeman/workshop manager who can weld just about anything. It didn't take too much to persuade Noel to do the welding for me if I did the prep work  So, with another email to Dean to check a few details, I got stuck into it last week. Be warned, some of the the following pics are not pretty... Wednesday - Preparing for surgery:  Instead of putting the tips in the stock position and then turning out, I wanted a more XB kind of angle, so after much pondering, head scratching and discussions with Noel, I went at it with the cutting disc and hacksaw...    Thursday - I cut out the two S-bends inside. I wish I had done a neater job inside here, but the plasma cutter was out of action and we have no compressor or dremel type tool at work.  Friday - Noel started by welding in a plate to seal the last chamber from the 2nd last chamber:  While I was off doing something else Noel had welded the tips in. The tips are 50mm. I had planned to have them angling a little further upwards and backwards, but I'm actually happy with the result so left it as he'd done it, but was pretty sure I'd have to trim back the tips for ground clearance.  He finished welding it on friday afternoon.  I took it home and did a trial fit:   I cut the tips back and then on sunday morning gave it a coat of paint. Mission successful     I'm really happy with the results. It doesn't look as neat as putting them in the stock position, but it looks more aggressive this way. It's definitely louder, maybe half way between stock and a slip on, and very bassy, and has a real character to the sound. I think it's resonating a little at very low revs and would maybe be better with slightly smaller (or longer) tips, but at cruising speeds it's not overly loud. Big thanks to Noel for welding  , and to Dean (Keda Designs) for his tips and advice  | ||
| Vampress |
It makes a huge difference! We have graduated from Singer sewing machine to industrial lawn mower sound!! Lol It actually sounds like there may be a Buell in the street when Chili comes home from work now. Tonight was the first night he rode it to work, and I heard him arriving, so the gate was open for him by the time he got here (see guys..it does make a difference  ) | ||
| D_adams |
Good job Graham! Definitely a different take on doing it and it turned out pretty good. | ||
| Lemonchili_x1 |
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| Pdccd |
Nice work Graham! How did you cut those tips? From here it looks perfect. thanks Pete | ||
| Craiga |
looks good, I like the XB style. Now just take the cut off wheel to that rear fender! | ||
| Albert666 |
good job i'm like the fairng though, wheres that from? | ||
| Lemonchili_x1 |
Thank you for the comments "How did you cut those tips? From here it looks perfect." Don't look too close! After spending about half an hour figuring out where I was going to cut it, I went as far through with a thin 4.5" cutting disc, then finished it off with a hacksaw, then cleaned it up with a hand file. The back edge is not quite flat but you can only really see it looking down. I'm happy with the result Yes, the rear fender needs to be "trimmed", but we can get a ticket for not having one (I already got one for the X1  ) so I'm still working out what I'm going to do. The fairing is a limited edition Australian special. If H-D hadn't pulled the pin on Buell  you'd probably be able to get them now. Next steps are the rear fender, some better grips, an Erik Buell Racing ECM, figure out a way to install a belly pan, and maybe some red wheel stripes... and ride it as often as possible!  | ||
| Americanmadexb |
Nice work. Sounds great too! I have been thinking about cutting mine up also, i just need to get the tools to do it! | ||
| Zac4mac |
Looks good Graham. Being able to hear the Helicon growl makes a difference.. Next time, I'll bring Loretta. Z | ||
| Ponti1 |
Great work! Makes me want to head out to the garage and get to chopping. | ||
| Dman |
Wow, nice job, sounds & looks great. |
