Exhausts, back to the drawing board !

Only a few months since i bought my new 805 Intruder. At the time I thought that the pipes were too quiet (I've had an Intruder before and the pipes were embarrassingly quiet). To its credit, I changed my Honda Shadow 750 for this new Intruder. The pipes on the Shadow, stock, were MUCH louder than the new Intruder, but obviously street legal. However, in general, the Inruder is a much better 'bike. I bought new shortie HH pipes for said new Intuder, and had the fitted prior to delivery. NOW a few months down the line, I think they're TOO loud. Just too many people turn and stare, to see this sad 65 yr old making one helluva noise. My option is to return to the sock pipes, which are resting in my loft, or to ask around:- Can anyone suggest pipes that are LOUDER than stock, but not as loud as HH shorties? Fussy or what? Replies watied with baited breath. ps Not concerned about 'street legal' just not quite so noisy.

Have you thought about altering yours to make them more sociable ? There's very little cost involved with a lot of the mods.Try these links or check out Bluesman's exhaust mods in the first link,he also had HH shortcuts

https://www.suzuki800.com/t1418-yet-another-exhaust-mod
https://www.suzuki800.com/t1124-lollipops-baffles-and-backpressure

I would say, go to a trade heating supplier and buy some chimney tape. It comes in all shapes and sizes. Bind some round the baffles and fix with wire, twisting with pliers. You can quieten right down or just a bit. You still get to keep the HH Short Cuts but have a more user friendly sound. The mod I did without baffles and packing around a wire frame is a lot louder but very deep. These sort of mods as Simbo (my agent!) points out are as cheap as chips. I can see where you are coming from with the noise worries. I don't think you would be happy with stock again mind! Have a go at modifying the HH's - I'm sure you can find a point where sound meets reason!

Sometimes I miss my Intruder with wide open HH Short Cuts (no baffles at all). Probably no good for the engine without compensation and massively loud but the most wonderful motorcycle experience I've ever had above all others - put quite simply, made most Harleys sound like mopeds! Problem was, I only had the balls to run with them like that occasionally; like you Oiler, I worried about the noise quite often. I will say this about loud pipes though, some folk don't like them but there are a helluva lot who do!

I had the same issue as you, I wanted loud pipes & was quickly trying to quieten them down. I have V&H Cruzers with extra baffles in (Hard Krome quiet baffles) and I have now even baffled the baffles in my baffles.

Mr Intruder wrote:

I have V&H Cruzers with extra baffles in (Hard Krome quiet baffles) and I have now even baffled the baffles in my baffles.

You've baffled me !

Have a look at the exhaust video data base we have on here, that might help

Thanks one and all for brilliant suggestions. I've pressed the 'thanks' button but have no idea what happens to the thanks, so here it is properly.

Clive,

...sad 65 year old making one helluva noise...

I'd say one darn happy and free 65yold living the dream and making sure everyone knows it.live it my friend...loud and proud.

Took my baby out yesterday along with a pal on his sportster (someone has to ride 'em). Have decided that my HH pipes are definitely too loud. Am taking bike tomo to local chap to see if he can do anything along the lines of suggestions in this thread. Will let y'all know how things go. Meanwhile, summer can't be far away now!

oiler wrote:

Took my baby out yesterday along with a pal on his sportster (someone has to ride 'em). Have decided that my HH pipes are definitely too loud. Am taking bike tomo to local chap to see if he can do anything along the lines of suggestions in this thread. Will let y'all know how things go. Meanwhile, summer can't be far away now!

If he had stock Sportster pipes, they are very quiet! I still have a pair, nearly brand new from when I had mine - it had Screamin' Eagles on it which made the HH's sound like a pussy-cat purring . Best of luck with your mod.

I am 72 and I have this special smile when they stare. If they don't see me I want them to hear me. I just love attention I guess. Tex

Thanks Tex. I have a good friend on a Honda VTX1300 (had one myself once, gorgeous bike). He's got V&H pipes much louder than mine. Sometimes it's embarrassing just being out with him. But then he's a youngster, mid fifties

Dodger: I am 72 going on 21. I ride with a group of guy's from my Church that ride every Thursday when weather permits out somewhere and eat lunch and ride back. One of the guy's has a Honda Shadow Trike. that makes mine sound like a whisper. No one will ride behind him(but me). Mine is a low toned more mellow sound, His is that loud cracking sound.All I have is 8 1/2 in holes in baffle plate and first baffle drilled. I don't want it any louder. in reality I want mine where I can hear it. Really don't care if anyone else can hear it. Tex The ProudTexson

I have had my stock pipes re-fitted. They are of course too quiet! My next idea is to drill (say) two holes in the end of the pipes to make a bit more noise, perhaps going on to four holes per pipe later. However I realise that this'll be irreversible, so would like opinions as to whether this could lead to the sort of probs that rise from lack of back pressure? Also, whether anyone has experience whether this would result in a louder sound, but NOT as loud as the HH shorties (which after 1300 miles are now up for sale) Need to be really sure what I'm about, as replacement pipes are very expensive, and holes may affect my eventual part exchange price (several years away, barring a lottery win) Any views on this would be gratefully received Please bear in mind that drilling holes would be the max of my technical competence. Thanks.

Loads of us have done that very same mod before going for aftermarket pipes, so to go the other way is unusual but I really do understand where you are coming from. Retail resell will not be an issue as all you would need to do is cut a round piece of thin metal with the right sized centre hole in it and simply fit it back over the end plate and no one would ever know it had been drilled. I did 10 x 13mm holes in each pipe on mine, which made it much better but it still could never be described as noisy. You could also punch a hole straight up through the two center plates, by running a sharpened steel pole up through the middle of the exhaust but obviously that would not be reversible & replacement stock pipes are very very expensive. However you start, even if it is with just two holes, I would us a small punch and mark it out properly for up to either eight or ten holes. That way if you do think that two holes per pipe is not enough & I would happily lay a bet that you will eventually get up to the full ten, you will have all drilled nice and tidy with even spacing between the holes. Most people do drill it with a 10mm drill as did I but eventually drilled out to 13mm.
Good luck with it and as already stated if you only drill the end plate you can reverse the process at a later date very easily.

Many thanks, Mr I

I did the back plate holes mod to my stock pipes. IMO you will get a farty sound, more like a 125 than a bigger cruiser. The hole down the middle piercing baffle plate(s) will deepen the sound but as Mr.I says this is not reversible. I was not happy with the holes in the backplate because I felt it looked as if it had been modified. Technically such modification is an offence:

The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 Sec 54
Every exhaust system and silencer shall be maintained in good and efficient working order and shall not be altered so as to increase the noise made by the escape of exhaust gases.

You may get pulled or even fined for this - who knows. From my point of view I thought it looked a bit naff and eventually replaced the backplates to hide the holes. My advice would be stick with the aftermarkets (they are not 'illegal' if you keep the baffles as modified stock pipes are.) I was able to make my HH short cuts nearly as quiet as the stock pipes drilled by wrapping the baffles. If you prefer the look of the stock pipes then fair enough. But like me you may become uneasy with the drilled ones. It does not bother some people but it did me. If I wanted to modify the stock pipes I would only punch/drill a hole down the middle. I doubt anyone would be able to see that far in, even with a torch. Very few bikers stay with modified stock pipes - they usually move on to aftermarkets. As for loss of backpressure - yes you will get a bit but nothing to worry about. Best of luck with what ever you decide to do!

These days I'm happy with stock exhaust on both my bikes but I have been down the louder,louder,quieter route several times before. The Intruder is still a lovely bike with stock pipes. Knowing what I know now, if I bought another I would probably leave it as stock - but that's just me! The last time I rode my Intruder before taking it for sale, it had new back plates and no middles - it sounded and looked very nice indeed, albeit the stock pipes maybe look a bit long.

Bluesman wrote:

I was able to make my HH short cuts nearly as quiet as the stock pipes drilled by wrapping the baffles.

This would not be recommended and I shall explain why.
The sock exhaust has 2 reasonably large silencers, the larger the silencer the quieter the potential for noise reduction by the various methods used. With HH Shorties the total diameter of the bore is not very big, therefore to reduce volume you have to plug up the hole & reduce gas flow.
In the first instance this may not see such a bad thing because the HH Shorties have a far greater flow than the stockers. However to reduce the volume of a small diameter pipe to near the same volume as a large diameter silencer will reduced the potential power of the bike to less than the potential power output of the bike with stock exhausts on.

Thanks Bluesman. I have seen with interest your youTube offerings. As regards after-market 'legality' My HH shorties had a sticker saying Not for road use. this led me to suspect that they were illegal ps, you refer to replacing the back-plates. Does this mean that they can be bought from somewhere?

oiler wrote:

Thanks Bluesman. I have seen with interest your youTube offerings. As regards after-market 'legality' My HH shorties had a sticker saying Not for road use. this led me to suspect that they were illegal ps, you refer to replacing the back-plates. Does this mean that they can be bought from somewhere?

Yes, sometimes the stickers have been put on with fairly stubborn glue! Pipes are a problem if they are 'stamped' with prohibitive writing. My friendly MOT tester told me loud pipes with permanent writing on cannot theoretically pass but without it, the certificate will just get an advisory. The back plates were made for me by a local metal worker for £10 the pair. I had debaffled my pipes so he had to weld on the 'pea shooter' pipe but if all you were doing was drilling - this would not be necessary. He cut the discs from metal sheet. I fixed them in with HT silicone (the idea was to be able to remove them if necessary but in fact I could not budge them without bending them so I think they were pretty secure). They could be spot welded I suppose. If there were gaps around the edges (mine were ok) exhaust paste could be smoothed in as filler before painting. I sprayed them with HT black engine paint. The only difference was that it sounded better than stock but looked identical.

Mr Intruder wrote:

Bluesman wrote:

I was able to make my HH short cuts nearly as quiet as the stock pipes drilled by wrapping the baffles.

This would not be recommended and I shall explain why.
The sock exhaust has 2 reasonably large silencers, the larger the silencer the quieter the potential for noise reduction by the various methods used. With HH Shorties the total diameter of the bore is not very big, therefore to reduce volume you have to plug up the hole & reduce gas flow.
In the first instance this may not see such a bad thing because the HH Shorties have a far greater flow than the stockers. However to reduce the volume of a small diameter pipe to near the same volume as a large diameter silencer will reduced the potential power of the bike to less than the potential power output of the bike with stock exhausts on.

When I bought my pipes I found them a bit loud at first. After I wrapped the baffles the noise was significantly less. There may well have been a very small power loss but I can't say I noticed any. This may be because the chimney tape I used was very thin and did not really reduce the volume much, more plugged up the perforations in the baffles. However as time went on I got used to the noise and removed all the tape. I would not recommend the use of thick exhaust packing as this will result in more noticeable power loss. However, I found it more useful to reduce the volume temporarily with rotatable lollipops and for early morning gettaways - a lump of wool stuffed up each pipe for a mile! However it seems simple to me - if you want permanently quiet pipes - Mr. Suzuki provides those for you perfectly!

" if you want permanently quiet pipes - Mr. Suzuki provides those for you perfectly!" Re this comment, my previous bike was a Honda Shadow 750. The Intruder beats it in every way (I could list them) BUT ONE!!! The Shadow's stock pipes, which being stock, must be street legal, are MUCH louder than the Intruder. Can't understand why Suzuki have to spoil a truly excellent bike like this. Is it perhaps an obsession to please our European masters? For members with irreligious views, let me assure you that Satan DOES exist. He's alive and well, and living in Brussels. We are all increasingly prisoners of this evil empire

Amen to that brother (sorry Mr I. I stole your quote)

oiler wrote:

For members with irreligious views, let me assure you that Satan DOES exist. He's alive and well, and living in Brussels. We are all increasingly prisoners of this evil empire

Amen to that brother

punch a metal rod down through both plates you cant put it back but you dont need to no one can see that youv dun it it just makes the bike sound much better and to anyone lookin at bike it just sounds how you'd expect a bike of the type to sound sounds great when you open it up but you wont get people throwing things out there window at you when you leave your house start with 8mm then go bigger if you want

Thanks for all views/advice/experiences. Before knocking holes in my exhaust, I will first try a few days/weeks around town ear-plug-less, and on journeys, will buy a new set of 'Alpine' plugs, using the yellow louder pins to see how it goes. If, as is possible, I'm still not happy, then knocking holes it'll be. Really appreciative of all comments.

I've fitted my original 'stock' pipes, and will put the HH shorties onto e-bay. The stock pipes look nicer in my opinion, and I've invested in a pair of Alpine ear plugs, using the 'louder' bits that fit inside. This means that I can hear the pipes up to about 60mph. Will go with this for a month or so and see. At least I don't get dogs trying to bite my trouser legs off any more, and the bike STILL gets admiring glances.

Loud pipes can get on your nerves at time, so I completely understand why you have done that. The problem with aftermarket pipes as a rule is that no manufacturer wants to take the middle ground, they all go from quite to LOUD.

Spot on, Mr I. It seems there's a gap in the market there. A nice little earner for someone handy with spanners, blow-torches and the like. Having never even changed a spark plug myself (tho I DID of course once oil the clutch cable of my CG125) rather excludes me from this one, though I admit as an OAP, the money would come in handy. Have you ever considered that you're wasted driving trucks Mr I? Perhaps your true calling is the manufacture of moderately loud after-market pipes? (just thinking out loud, so to speak)

Funny you say that, I often think about drawing on everything we have got and going into business for myself. Problem there is that I am a good (ish) bodger, no more. So that ones out of the question but we can all dream.

Crikey yes, the louder but not ear bleeding exhaust systems are a piece of the market that is just simply ignored for the 800.

Anyone seen these ?

Suzuki Intruder C800 Exhaust Magnum VL800 Exhaust System Double Groove 2 into 2 UK Legal Exhaust
Ex. Vat £561.75 Inc. Vat £674.10

(No Catalytic Converter Supplied)

FALCON Double Groove complete exhaust system
Throaty, muffled chopper sound and maximum performance.
Made from mirror-polished V4 stainless steel.

Anyone know what a 'double groove' is?
60 mm. Diameter Manifold with double-wall technology
End silencers in "groove" style, EC type approved, and featuring a removable dB absorber.
Legal for use in the UK




These are 'road legal' so I take them to be noisy, but not as embarrassingly noisy as my HH pipes ( My HH pipes are for sale on E bay £125.00 0 ono)


LINK

Double groove means nothing to me but they do look rather nice.

Ta Mr I for putting the photo up. That was way beyond my competence. It's a lot of money to save up, but the longest journey begins with a single step (apparently) I'll await comments from others.

Double wall means they have an outer cover at the header pipes to stop yellowing, I've not got a clue what double groove is though? The advert refers to the styling as double groove, so maybe it's just the style.