The Vstar is the first bike built to be totally mistaken for a Harley by the uneducated eye. I can't count the number of times people have come up to me and said..."Nice Hog man!" Before I did this modification I would wait until these admirer's left before turning her over. Now I
push the starter, and watch heads turn.
The following exhaust modifications will bring your Vstar exhaust as close to a Harley as I’ve heard. It's alot of work, but worth it. It is time consuming, frustrating, might make your knuckles bleed, and MIGHT VOID YOUR WARRANTY, but cruise downtown in 3rd, crack it...and watch heads turn.
It will cost you about $350 to replace your stock exhaust, so proceed with caution.
REMOVING THE CONES……30 MINUTES
Inside your factory exhaust is a black cone, which is welded onto the
final exhaust pipe. This cone needs to be removed. If you have torches, lucky you! If not, a 1” drill saw bit, drilled center will break the weld. Using the saw bit will be a little messy, but we will
clean up later.
1” drill saw bit is used to cut the bolt hole in a door. Use a quality bit, not the bit set you buy at Kmart for $1.99
REMOVING THE PLATE…..30 MINUTES
Once the cone is removed, you will see a rear plate holding the final exhaust pipe in place. Remove this plate. Torches again! No torches you say? That’s okay. Drill holes around the outer edge of the plate until all that's left of the plate is a small piece between the holes. Once you have all these holes drilled, a small hacksaw blade will finish the job of removing the rest of the plate. Once the plate is gone, the final exhaust pipe will be hanging freely in the center of the exhaust
hole.
REMOVING THE PIPE……1 HOUR…30 MINUTES
Now you must remove the final exhaust pipe. Place something firm into the pipe, a rod, a thin broom stick, and rotate it in a circular motion until the welds at the other end of the pipe break. You will notice the pipe getting looser as the welds weaken. The welds break on the inside
of the exhaust, and it will appear that your final pipe is stuck on the other end, behind the plate, because, holy S#@T you can't pull it out. It is stuck, but this is not a problem. The welds you just broke are on a soft metal plate. A long screwdriver and a hammer, or a long drill bit, or a chisel, will enlarge the holes to allow the weld to pass through, so you can remove the pipe. This
will be a little messy, but unless someone looks up your pipes with a flashlight, no one will see the cut plate.
CLEAN UP….. 30 MINUTES
Using a file, or a screwdriver & hammer, file, cut, or fold back any jagged edges of metal inside the exhaust.
Mask around the outside exhaust, covering the chrome at the opening.
Using a heat resistant flat black, give the inside a good coat of paint.
Let dry.
This exhaust will now let you run with the big boys. Fairly loud, much deeper, but not as thunderous as the real bad asses.
The only thing left to do is check your mixture after 100 miles or so. It may need richening. I would have your mechanic do that, and watch his face as he looks inside your pipes.
After 150 miles, I experienced some bluing in the front cylinder, at the top of the pipe. My service manager said this mod would do no harm, and my plugs were a healthy color. he also said that that bluing at this spot is expected, because there is no heat shield.
Enjoy your new sound, and send me a .wav file when your done.
Richard Oulahen
Lindsay ON
ISRA #642
Riding "Hector" 1998 Black Classic Vstar
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