TOPIC:

unkle fester wrote:

JESUS CHRIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!......sorry for even asking a question if I knew it was going to get so much shit started...it was a simple question with what I thought would be a simple answer.....not a shit slinging pissing contest........pardon the hell out of me for asking for help.....guess I'll just go back to being a lurker and try to find help by looking in previous posts

It's all in good fun... I don't think anyone is "pissed"... but sometimes you do have to read between the lines.

Truth be told, my cut-off stock pipes are actually quiter than my MAC pipe was with-out the baffles and I think they sound better too... not so crackly. I do most of my riding with a friend of mine that has a whisper quiet Ducati Multistrada and he wouldn't ride behind me when I was running the MAC... gave him an instant headache from the pounding noise. It's one of the reasons I'm looking for something that's a little toned down but not super quiet... I actually may experiment with fabricating a simple baffle for my shorty pipes... seems kinda silly when you can just go out and buy a pipe for pretty cheap but I have access to a fab shop and enjoy building my own stuff in the spirit of the old cafe racers.

Stick around, you'll learn alot and then after experiencing your own frustrations and victories, you can help someone else out with your own hard won expertise.

Cheers,
Claude

Nope! I don't see no trouble here officer! Just a difference of opinion. The Colts stayed packed in leather. As for the "Get out of Dodge". You are very near the truth. In the early 70's there were many parties in Dodge Vans. It was actually dangerous to be burning weed and have someone "runnin rich". So before the mixture became explosive the owner would tell the gasbag to "Get out of Dodge". My only part in this was to throw their arse out if they moved too slow....
It all boils down to if you want loud pipes go ahead but if the man says pay this amount and quiet it up don't come runnin crying to me. And if a town decides enough is enough and flat out outlaws them. To me, more power to them. It is hard to make a law without saying anything other than stock is outlawed. So I guess those with straights will eventually hurt the tuned aftermarkets. I have had the unfornatunate experience of living on a main street and had to put up with an army of imbiciles. They hear one bike....theirs....try sitting there all day and getting it 400 times. I guarantee your patience would wear thin quickly.
As for trouble....I now own a Dodge truck and the only weeds I burn are the crabgrass when I take her in the back field to do donuts. Oooooo donuts!

I pulled the baffle completly out of my Mega-phone exhaust and liked it at FIRST........ then realized that maybe....it was a lil too much! When your the last one in a group cause your can is too loud..... that could be a hint, so im just gonna go w/a baffled exhaust and deal w/it, cause really.....I started havin alot of probs w/tryin to keep my carbs dialed in just right!!!!!!! I like my bikes to sound a lil beefy and thats ok....I just dont want to annoy my ridin Bud's and be the last one in the pack anymore. So I have repented!

Good job Justice114, you're a shining example of what motorcycling is all about.

Now if we could just get them all to wear helmets!

Bob

LOUD for LOUD's sake is wrong. A little louder for SAFETY's sake is a good idea. I have slightly modified baffels in my stock exhaust. It is louder than stock but not outrageously so. Basically a little throatier. (Yes, it is properly tuned...)

The enemies here are the idots on their cell phones, the goobers with their booming stereos, and the elderly folks that have been mostly deaf for the past 20 years. A whisper quiet bike can get you killed. I smile within my fullface helmet when I come up behind stooges with a cellphone buried in their ear and notice them look in their rearview mirror when they hear me...

"Louder is safer" is a rediculous arguement.

The guy looked in his rear view mirror because good drivers look in the rear view mirrors every 15 seconds or so.

And, if you're like a lot of bikers, you likely had your headlights on bright.

The average car these days is built to be nearly sound proof because that's how people want them. You can't even hear a locomotive going by in todays cars.

And of course you and me never crank up our car radios because we're so busy listening for motorcycles. C'mon, get real!

So what do we do? Keep making the bikes louder and louder? I don't think so.

The answer is, ride defensively...and wear a helmet.

Bob

I ride two bikes. The 82 GS550 is quiet like a sewing machine. The 80 KZ1000 is a bit louder. On the KZ I know for a fact that other drivers notice me more. I see the difference every time I ride.

If you really want quiet, ride a bicyle...

I ride two bikes. The 82 GS550 is quiet like a sewing machine. The 80 KZ1000 is a bit louder. On the KZ I know for a fact that other drivers notice me more. I see the difference every time I ride.

If you really want quiet, ride a bicyle...

Andoman: I don't notice 550's either. The KZ1000 is a bigger bike. I assure you, they don't hear you till you're riding next to them. And even then, you gotta be on the throttle makin a lot of racket.

Next time you're in your car pay attention to how many motorcycles you HEAR before you SEE them. You'll hear the Harley's with thier straight pipes maybe, but not much else. IMO

Bob

I agree with andoman 100% Last yr when I was running my bike with a wide open MAC I could drive it and be obnoxious if I wanted(only did it on the open road through the country), or if I wanted I could make it reasonably quiet by keeping it geared high and low rpms. I didnt get any complaints, and when I needed to be heard, all it took was a rev of the engine to grab someones attention when they should have been more aware of whos around them. BTW it wasnt as loud as most of the HDs around here.
If you want to have a louder exhaust, go for it, if you dont like it, remember that its just steel, you can put it back with the proper tools;)

My 78 KZ650 has a completely stock exhaust and is very quiet for a motorcycle. I have bunches of friends who ride and I think they all have fairly loud exhaust. Mine is like a stealth bike compared to them. Personaly, I think I like the quieter exhaust. Less motorcycle noise, more nature's noise like the wind. I also like to be able to hear things like emergency vehicle sirems and such. But, to each his own. I don't buy into the loud pipes save lives mentality. But, I could be wrong. I think alert safe defensive driving saves many more lives than loud pipes.
I do understand the annoyance loud bikes / stereos / hot rod vehicles can be. I live on a corner and more than once I have had my kids mid day nap cut short or night time sleep interupted by some stupid yahoo driving by shaking my house. I think people who have never worked nights or have never had kids are completely oblivious to how their actions (noise they are creating) impact's others. I would hate to believe that people are purposely that annoying and understand how disruptive to other people's lives they are being. Karma, what goes around comes around.

Good luck in finding a solution you are happy with. But, please consider the impact loud pipes can have on other people. Don't go barreling through a residential street with your exhaust screaming. Most loud bikes riding humbly through a residential section do not annoy others.

Peace Out All!!!!

unkle fester wrote:

on a 78 KZ650B2....can you punch out the baffles like is done on HD bikes??? I have seen people get a long piece of rebar and stick it in the muffler and hammer through the baffle in order to get more exhaust noise..Don't know the muffler design on the inside...is this possible????....thanks

Mr. Uncle Fester, lets get back to the original question that you asked sir. You can modify your exhuaust if you'd like. You can remove the baffle, drill a hole or two threw the plate, buy a slightly louder one OR what ever you want. Its your bike sir and you can run straight headers if you want (not advisable ) Anyways, the question you have asked is an old rival of a question that taps into ones personal liking rather then just giving a tech answer. For example:


Is louder Better?
What type of oil to use?
Stock vs. Modified
Whats the best helmet?
AND Full Helmet vs. Half Helmet
Best type of brake lines
and so on, and so on, and so on!!!!!!!

So my New found friend....If you need a good laugh at one time or another... get one of these subjects goin and lean back!!!!!! BUT rest assured... You will get HONEST advice And Tech Help you would not beleive from these guys!!! We have our times of rantin and ravin! But these guys here are no joke when it comes to knowing Kz's and just plain ol mechanics. So take yer shoes off and enjoy the ride... just keep your hands in till it comes to a complete stop!!!! There hasnt been an injury yet!!!

Post edited by: JUSTICE114, at: 2006/10/12 12:26