Open pipes will result in absolutely no packpressure, and will move your powerband way too high in the rpm range. Tuning your exhaust is an art in itself. You need to figure out where your engine likes to run, where you'll be using that RPM, and the kind of riding you do first, then work from there. If you want to take it to the track(1/4 mile), to compare the differences from stock to open, I'd highly recommend it, but don't destroy the stock system. Buy another used one first and give it a try. Keep watching ebay, and wait for the right price. I got a good used Vance & Hines off ebay a few weeks back for less than $85.00.
I am also going to comment on the stock exhaust cross-over pipe. Maybe it also allows for ease of oil and filter changes, and centerstand clearance too? Why didn't the factory make 4-1's from the start? I think it's budgets in building the bikes.
I wish I would have stayed in college, and finished my degree in Mechanical Engineering. This would be a great to actually be able to show test results in exhaust systems like this:
www.tfxengine.com/software7.html
Louder isn't always better, but you gotta have a little sound so they hear you coming, right?
Post edited by: CoreyClough, at: 2005/11/07 09:22