Topic: Silent exhausts

[eigenvector]

Something I've noticed on the Hondas that I own - they all have virtually silent stock exhausts.

I take that back - I can't claim that about the Nighthawk since I've never had a stock exhaust.  But for the CB550, 750, Sabre - the stock exhaust on them is quieter than anything I've heard on a motorcycle.  Quieter than any of the modern bikes I've ridden, certainly quieter than the R1200GS which is a total rattletrap.

I'm not complaining, not by any means - I love silent exhausts, but I really am curious if that's typical of the Honda exhaust systems or just the 4 cylinder bikes in general.

The stock muffler on my CB750 Limited is so quiet I can listen to the engine sounds at idle very clearly.

[ekpent]

Stock HM300's and no number pipes on early 750's makes some pretty nice music.

[754]

The first thing I do on the 4 pipers, is pull the end baffle...

[Stev-o]

I had a K8 with stock exhaust, with a helmet on I could not hear the motor.
Hated that.....sold it.

[Desert-SOHC]

I hated the absence of sound on my 78, but love the look of the 4 into 4's.  I opened up the rear baffle a little as you can see in the pic, to give her a little song, I also had to go with 118 mains and 1/4 turn more on the idle needles.  I'm very happy with the look and sound although I would like pipes that are in better condition.

[eigenvector]

That's not a bad route.  A ton of people did that with their Nighthawks as well.  I do like the balanced look of a 4 in 4, although I would like to see a decent 4 in 2 (edited) to shed some of the weight - the only one's I see are junky.

[Gene]

I like my stock pipes.  In fact, in my little town they have flashing signs - "Overly loud or modified exhausts on Motorcycles will be issued a citation" etc.  I don't know how many tickets they're writing but it has caused a lot of Hogs passing by on PCH (where I don't believe they have authority - I think it's the CHiPpies) to rev extra loud on the weekends.

[RAFster122s]

Sound ordinances are common in Ohio as well and in other parts of the country.  One of the first things most Harley owners do is replace the exhaust and a lot of dealers do it for bikes on the showroom floor or before the bike leavesthe dealer. The CX500 and GL500/650 owners will often replace their stock silencers for a pair of "take-off" Harley silencers to get a little less back pressure as well as a bit deeper and meaner sound on their bikes. The one thing to say about the Harley exhaust is the metal is good quality and the chrome is very nice. That translates to longer life as well as good life out of the chrome when kept clean.
Doesn't help our bikes when you want a 4 pipe setup, but if you found a Kerker or a 4-2 header you could use them after fabbing and chroming a pipe to adapt or orient the silencer how you want it to hang. 

I would imagine some of the upswept pipes on cafe racers serve as a funnel for the water if washed or in the rain... But, that being said a lot of those eye candy bikes are merely a piece of jewelry that the owner wears and wouldn't be caught out in the rain.