Anti Harley noise ordinance, for or against (SMCD - dont bother - we know) Options

[drumdad]

crap - socks too

I didn't know what the hell that meant until just now, when I read that other thread

[Harvey Mushman]

Mel Torme is the Mel Torme of bad movies. He has a great part in the movie "Girls Town", with Mamie Van Doren. No motorcycles but a great rebel youth movie.

Oh man!
Have you seen the MST3K episode of this movie?!?!
One of their finest moments.
Mel Torme' & Paul Anka in a fight scene & one of (I think) Crow says, "The age old struggle between pop and jazz"

[The Balls]

And can I just say I cannot believe how many bitter little old ladies are on this board?

"Ewwww...those motorcycles are so loud. Why I was eating my watercress and butter sandwiches in a cute little street cafe on Newberry St. and explaining to Gladys how Georgette's son is in jail again, and Hazel got another tuckjob, and Sally's unfortunate experience with her husband's colostomy bag, and this ruffian on a motorcycle drove by and I had to stop my yammering for 10 seconds!!!"

Says the guy defending motorcycles clearly designed to make enough noise to make up for other deficiencies.

[J_GuestNoMore]

Says the guy defending motorcycles clearly designed to make enough noise to make up for other deficiencies.

What do you mean? The lack of 4 wheels?

[RI chick]

question:
Is there any particular (technical) reason to have loud pipes other than to be obnoxious?

[Harvey Mushman]

Says the guy defending motorcycles clearly designed to make enough noise to make up for other deficiencies.

Says the guitar player?

[Harvey Mushman]

question:
Is there any particular (technical) reason to have loud pipes other than to be obnoxious?

There is.
I don't know how much of it you want me to get in to....I can see where it would be boring to people who aren't interested.
Think of the exhaust as the motor exhaling.
It's easier to exhale through an open mouth that by blowing through a straw.

[Christóbal]

Don't hurt 'em Hammer!

[Woody Goodbeat]

Don't hurt 'em Hammer!

MC Hammer rides a Harley???

[J_GuestNoMore]

There is.
I don't know how much of it you want me to get in to....I can see where it would be boring to people who aren't interested.
Think of the exhaust as the motor exhaling.
It's easier to exhale through an open mouth that by blowing through a straw.

Translation: More power.

[Harvey Mushman]

Translation: More power.

Thank you.

[FrankD]

Harley's can run very quietly if properly outfitted.

(I haven't read the rest of this thread, just wanted to defend a great motorcycle)

[tom from out of town]

question:
Is there any particular (technical) reason to have loud pipes other than to be obnoxious?

the EPA has a procedure for measuring the loudness and emissions of a bike. some thing like bike in 2nd gear, driving at 25 mph 20 feet away from the sound meter or something like that for sound, and rev at 3500 rpm in 2nd gear on a dyno drum for emission measurement. the stock exhaust and intake are usually tuned to minimize noise & emissions in the specific rev range and gear for those tests. so stock systems usually have a big hole in the rev range and a tall second gear so they run really lean and rev a low as possible for the sound test. And stock exhausts are heavy, especially for V twin cruisers like harleys because to really muffle the sound of a big cylinder you need a LOT of volume in the exhaust and thick walls and baffles.

so the first thing many owners (in particular Harley and Ducati) do is replace the stock exhaust with a freer flowing one, and fiddle with the carburetion or fuel injection to get around the emission test required leanness. unfortunately pretty much all replacement systems are way louder. the worst ones are tuned like drag bikes - they perform better at full throttle but are no better or even worse elsewhere in the rev range since there is no backpressure because there is little or no baffling in the exhaust.

so there is some justification from a replacement system for performance reasons. and it will likely be somewhat louder. a lot are louder than really necessary. but even a real loud one is under the control of the loud handle at the operator's right hand. redlining the bike while waiting at a stoplight is just obnoxious

[Thunder Horse]

And can I just say I cannot believe how many bitter little old ladies are on this board?

"Ewwww...those motorcycles are so loud. Why I was eating my watercress and butter sandwiches in a cute little street cafe on Newberry St. and explaining to Gladys how Georgette's son is in jail again, and Hazel got another tuckjob, and Sally's unfortunate experience with her husband's colostomy bag, and this ruffian on a motorcycle drove by and I had to stop my yammering for 10 seconds!!!"

those darn whippersnappers and their rock and roll !

[In the Woods]

Says the guy defending motorcycles clearly designed to make enough noise to make up for other deficiencies.

Your arguments are so weak and irrational I have to believe you're just stirring turds here.

Loud pipes on motorcycles are not about you. People have them for a lot of reasons: some aesthetic, some utilitarian. It's really not about pissing you off.

This post has been edited by In the Woods: Jul 9 2009, 12:28 PM

[Lollipop]

Cars are responsible for over 80% of motorcycle accidents. You bet you shoulder more responsibility. Just like you hold more responsibility than a pedestrian.

Prove it.

If you're on a motorcycle, you assume added risk.

case closed.

[tom from out of town]

Prove it.

If you're on a motorcycle, you assume added risk.

case closed.

being in a car or walking on a sidewalk, one assumes more risk than staying in bed with the covers pulled up over your head. it's all where you draw the line

[Supple Wrist]

the EPA has a procedure for measuring the loudness and emissions of a bike. some thing like bike in 2nd gear, driving at 25 mph 20 feet away from the sound meter or something like that for sound, and rev at 3500 rpm in 2nd gear on a dyno drum for emission measurement. the stock exhaust and intake are usually tuned to minimize noise & emissions in the specific rev range and gear for those tests. so stock systems usually have a big hole in the rev range and a tall second gear so they run really lean and rev a low as possible for the sound test. And stock exhausts are heavy, especially for V twin cruisers like harleys because to really muffle the sound of a big cylinder you need a LOT of volume in the exhaust and thick walls and baffles.

so the first thing many owners (in particular Harley and Ducati) do is replace the stock exhaust with a freer flowing one, and fiddle with the carburetion or fuel injection to get around the emission test required leanness. unfortunately pretty much all replacement systems are way louder. the worst ones are tuned like drag bikes - they perform better at full throttle but are no better or even worse elsewhere in the rev range since there is no backpressure because there is little or no baffling in the exhaust.

so there is some justification from a replacement system for performance reasons. and it will likely be somewhat louder. a lot are louder than really necessary. but even a real loud one is under the control of the loud handle at the operator's right hand. redlining the bike while waiting at a stoplight is just obnoxious

i know nothing about bikes/motors etc, but would an exhaust system that is switchable between a loud free flowing performance for highway use and a quieter more restricted flow for urban riding be possible? i doubt it because i assume a bike is tuned for the entire engine system per components, but i'm curious if it could be done.

[Headtap]

If you cut down on Harley noise, how else would Harley owners measure their penis size?

[Harvey Mushman]

i know nothing about bikes/motors etc, but would an exhaust system that is switchable between a loud free flowing performance for highway use and a quieter more restricted flow for urban riding be possible? i doubt it because i assume a bike is tuned for the entire engine system per components, but i'm curious if it could be done.

Eh....not really.
Not with motorcycles anyway.
Hot rods, on the other hand, have been doing this forever, in the form of exhaust cut outs, lakes caps, header plugs, that sort of thing.
It's a bit easier to do with cars 'cause (in the most basic of terms) you've got more cylinders to kind of "carry" each other for the short time you'd be running open,

And, actually, the highway is where you want a bit of restriction in the exhaust.
From what I've noticed, less back pressure effects top end power.

[tom from out of town]

i know nothing about bikes/motors etc, but would an exhaust system that is switchable between a loud free flowing performance for highway use and a quieter more restricted flow for urban riding be possible? i doubt it because i assume a bike is tuned for the entire engine system per components, but i'm curious if it could be done.

there are some systems that do that now. there is a flapper valve that restricts the exhaust just upstream from the exhaust canister but opens up at a certain point in the rev range. I think they only have it in place for 4 cylinder sportbikes though. big cylinders on a twin just need a big area for the exhaust to flow into, and they don't rev nearly as high as a 4 cylinder for a variety of reasons, so that system isn't as applicable

look at the stock exhaust for a Yamaha 1700 Warrior. that is a "performance cruiser". it performs pretty well for what it is but a lot of people just don't like the aesthetics of an exhaust the size of a hot water tank on the side of their bike

[Supple Wrist]

Eh....not really.
Not with motorcycles anyway.
Hot rods, on the other hand, have been doing this forever, in the form of exhaust cut outs, lakes caps, header plugs, that sort of thing.
It's a bit easier to do with cars 'cause (in the most basic of terms) you've got more cylinders to kind of "carry" each other for the short time you'd be running open,

And, actually, the highway is where you want a bit of restriction in the exhaust.
From what I've noticed, less back pressure effects top end power.

there are some systems that do that now. there is a flapper valve that restricts the exhaust just upstream from the exhaust canister but opens up at a certain point in the rev range. I think they only have it in place for 4 cylinder sportbikes though. big cylinders on a twin just need a big area for the exhaust to flow into, and they don't rev nearly as high as a 4 cylinder for a variety of reasons, so that system isn't as applicable

look at the stock exhaust for a Yamaha 1700 Warrior. that is a "performance cruiser". it performs pretty well for what it is but a lot of people just don't like the aesthetics of an exhaust the size of a hot water tank on the side of their bike

interesting. thanks

[The Balls]

There is.
I don't know how much of it you want me to get in to....I can see where it would be boring to people who aren't interested.
Think of the exhaust as the motor exhaling.
It's easier to exhale through an open mouth that by blowing through a straw.

similar to a car - the difference in horsepower is negligible.

Like putting a straight pipe in Danny's mustang....maybe 20 HP. At the very, very maximum. And to add a straight pipe, you have to adjust the intake, the carb/EFI and timing to ensure that you actually have enough backpressure or you'll actually lose power.

Like I said - negligible.

The correct answer that no one will say is "BECAUSE IT SOUNDS RAD!!"

[smcd]

Prove it.

If you're on a motorcycle, you assume added risk.

case closed.

Do those 3 swirly-eye things mean "I'm a lunatic"?



Much to my own personal disappointment, and apparently to yours, it's not Deathrace 2009 out there. I compensate for the added risk I'm taking by using loud pipes. And hopefully the stupid bitch on the cell phone 2 cars in front of me will wake up and not run me over when I'm passing her.




CASE CLOSED!!1!!

[The Balls]

Your arguments are so weak and irrational I have to believe you're just stirring turds here.

Loud pipes on motorcycles are not about you. People have them for a lot of reasons: some aesthetic, some utilitarian. It's really not about pissing you off.

my arguments are irrational?

Which was irrational?

Please tell me?

Also - if you read this thread, you would know I am not even remotely arguing against motorcycles.

Thank you.