cutting the piggies

[woody]

Hi Guys;
I am about to embark on a piggie kiling spree.
Do I cut the piggies at the first weld or back to the canister plate.
The reason I ask this is because In the instructions in Tech Talk, the diagram dont look exactly like my piggies, there is a skinny pipe that goes into a bigger pipe anout 1" from the end of the canister.
Do I cut the bigger pipe at the face of the cannister or just the little pipes before the big pipe??
Any assistance would be appreciated.

[fudgie]

Do you have different chrome tips? Or a pic maybe? The piggies should be all 1 pc. I would cut them off flush with the muffler.

[FLATSIX]

I have also a '97 Valk - I have cut the piggies a couple of years ago - sound is not be compared to stock.

I left +/- 1" of the piggies in case later-on you want or have to put things as they were - with that 2 cm of tube still existing you have something to work on - just what I did and thought .........

You will certainly not regret it - because now your big machine will also sound like one.

Success !

[Disco]

If you cut them flush, it would be much more difficult for you or someone else to restore them in the future.  If you leave an inch or so, there would be enough to use a coupling and either the removed pieces, or new tubing to restore the piggies.

[John U.]

Hey Woody,
We may be discovering another difference between USA and AUS Valks. Here the piggies are the same dimension staight out of the rear can. What you descibe is either different from the factory or the piggies have been cut previously and restored.

[hubcapsc]

I know someone here in Seneca whose tourer mufflers look good (I've inpsected them).

He got the bike only recently, and the piggies are already cut (I haven't checked
to see if the baffles are drilled). His mufflers have custom tips.

He wishes his bike was quieter, but so far has shied away from $500.00 (or whatever)
for a good unmolested set.

I haven't spoken to him, but maybe there's a trade that could be done here... if, for example,
he paid shipping both ways, everyone would get what they want and he'd only be into it
for $175 or $200...

Just thinking out loud 

-Mike

[fudgie]

If you cut them flush, it would be much more difficult for you or someone else to restore them in the future.  If you leave an inch or so, there would be enough to use a coupling and either the removed pieces, or new tubing to restore the piggies.

Why would someone need to 'resore' them?  ??? To me worring if someone else might want to restore them is a waste of my worries. Thats like saying well I don't want to run Metz tires on my bike because someone else might want to run Dunflops.  I only noticed a little difference when I cut mine years ago. I was in my early 20's and have good hearing! LOL

[Disco]

It's just my personal opinion, and perhaps it is skewed by having been raised in a family that restores antique / classic cars to original - not resto-mod or hot rod. 

I'm not the purist my father and his buddies are, but I do consider the Valkyrie to be a classic, and to me, if you are planning to modify (some would say "hack") an original part AND it takes no more effort to preserve an easy reversal of the modification, why not do it?  Even if you never plan to reverse it for yourself, your (or your pillion's) taste might change, not to mention the preference of a potential buyer if, heaven forbid, you ever decided to sell your Valkyrie.  I've never heard a comparison between no-piggies and 1-inch piggies, but I can't imagine they would sound noticeably different.  Plus, in the event the stock pipes were ever to be pulled and sold, my experience tells me unmolested pipes command a higher price. 

It's good to have options. 

[fudgie]

It's just my personal opinion, and perhaps it is skewed by having been raised in a family that restores antique / classic cars to original - not resto-mod or hot rod. 

I'm not the purist my father and his buddies are, but I do consider the Valkyrie to be a classic, and to me, if you are planning to modify (some would say "hack") an original part AND it takes no more effort to preserve an easy reversal of the modification, why not do it?  Even if you never plan to reverse it for yourself, your (or your pillion's) taste might change, not to mention the preference of a potential buyer if, heaven forbid, you ever decided to sell your Valkyrie.  I've never heard a comparison between no-piggies and 1-inch piggies, but I can't imagine they would sound noticeably different.  Plus, in the event the stock pipes were ever to be pulled and sold, my experience tells me unmolested pipes command a higher price. 

It's good to have options. 

Ok, I got ya! I have noticed the 'demand' for unmolested pipes seem to be high. Shoulda sold them years ago! I did leave a 1'' or so when I did mine so the tip could screw back on. Mines kinda irreversable since I cut 5" off muff off! lol

[Kingbee]

So they can be restored if necessary

[woody]

Hi All;
Thanks again for all the advice. JohnU may have hit the nail on the head, Aussies may be different in that we have a different exaust??
The exaust I have has about 1" pipe for about 1,1/2 inches out of the canister and then smaller pipes out the back.
I tried to insert a picture but I cant for some reason.

[woody]

Nup, still cant insert image.
I think my confuser is playing up

[woody]

I cut the piggies to the first welded joint and Im very happy with the result. 
The bike sounds much better while still being quite quiet on the freeway.
Thanks for the help guys.
 

[greggh]

I was going to cut mine but I was unable to get my Cobra Slash extensions off.
I ended up snapping one of the lower bolts that hold extensions on.
Even after getting te bolts out the Extensions would not move a fraction of an inch.

Any Ideas?

[asfltdncr]

Kingbee,
Have you restored your piggies with the copper fittings shown in the photo?Can you get away with "soft" solder on the joints?
I don't remember what mine used to sound like but was hoping that restoring them would do away with that "ear buzz".

[Kingbee]

I used stainless self-tapping screws on each connection, 90 degrees apart, for a solid install and to eliminate any wiggle. This repair would be almost impossible to do with OEM tips, as alignment would be a son-of-a-gun. 

[Kingbee]

I had the same problem with the turn-downs in my previous PIC.  What I do, when the muffler is cold, is heat the base of the extension with a propane torch (for expansion) and then use a rubber hammer near the tail end to get the extension to wiggle a bit.  Then with gloves keep wiggling & pulling to get them off.  Once you get the rust broken up they will come off.

[woody]

I tried on another computer to send a picture.
Can anyone help me to find out what Im doing wrong?
I click on the "insert Image" icon and try to paste a picture but "Paste" will not highlight?

[Hoser]

Are you posting from a photo hosting site or your hard drive?  Will not accept hard drive photos.  Hope this helps.  hoser

[woody]

I realise that this may be a dum question, but what is a photo hosting site.

I is a techniphobe

[ridgeman06]

If I remember right, I left an inch or so when I cut mine. Otherwise you will cut off one of the exhaust tip mounting nuts. This would only leave you with two mounts instead of three for your tips.
I use the triple tips from Honda, and with the piglets cut back, they have a bit more beefier sound, but not overly done.
Hope this helps, Eric

[Grandude]

I left mine about an inch long in case I want to re-attach them but I doubt I ever will.

I'm glad I cut them because the drone is no worse than before but the pipes actually have a little more sound and deeper tone.

I think they sound good, sort of like what I would expect a bike like that to sound like stock. In fact they sound so good that I am hesitating to make them any louder for fear that they will be annoying for every day riding.

[Grandude]

I realise that this may be a dum question, but what is a photo hosting site.

I is a techniphobe

Here is one for vrcc members. http://vrcc.photostash.com/

You create an account and upload your pic. Then when you're ready to post it, you insert the image into the post and paste the url of the pic inside the brackets of the tag.

The url is the actual address of the picture where you uploaded it.

It will look something like this when you paste it between the tags:
(img)http://vrcc.photostash.com/vrcc_xxxxx/so-n-so.gif(/img)

[woody]

Thanks Grandude,  Ill have to do it from home my work Nanny will not let me enter that site.
My piggies were 1/2" diameter, welded into pipes about 3/4" diameter which were then welded into the cannister. The photos will make this more clear when I post them, but I think Australia Guv :uglystupid2:mental have again required smaller pipes to go with the smaller jets.

[John U.]

Sounds like some beaurocrat decided that the Valks were just too powerful to let loose on the unsuspecting citizens of Australia. Constricting air in-flow, reducing jet size and constricting the exhaust would be the quick and low budget way to de-tune the engine. I wonder if they changed the trigger wheel?
Looks like you'll have the quickest Valk around when you're done 

[AussieValk]

Delete my earlier post. Yep, in Aus they're stepped down as per your pic. You're lucky though Woody as mine look like they were butchered at the factory. In some cases on mine the large piggy pipe only consisted of about 1/2 inch being left at the back of the canister with two smaller diameter pipes placed into it. I cut mine off leaving only that 1/2 inch piece of large pipe, but wonder now, should I drill out the smaller pipes that are left inside the remainder of the larger ones. I don't know how far into the canister the smaller pipes might protrude, and I don't want anything rattling around in there if I attemp to drill them out. Hmmm, a quandry.

[woody]

Im still having all sorts of drama getting pictures on the site.
The system now tells me that the password is incorrect.
Once I get access, I will be able to show you the pipes before removal, I have cut them now and the bike sounds much better (at slow to moderate speed) no change was noticable above moderate speed.
Suits me because I think I would not enjoy the "Harley" experience of throbbing ears after a ride down the expressway.
Dear John U;
Yes we have beaurocats down here who have to find ways to justify their existence and feel that anything over 40 klm is way too fast, unfortunatly for them, Aussies are a pretty innovative bunch and we usually find ways to beef up our gear. It would be interesting to see if the trigger wheel was the same and a later fix may be to exchange the existing trigger wheel for one of the "Specials" you have over there. Id love to have a supercharger, but I would probably end up in goal for murder by giving the beaurocrats heart failure.......................Mmmm, sounds like a plan.

[woody]

Hi Guys;
Again with the pictures.
This is what the piggies look like down under.

[woody]

Last chance, if I dont get it right this time im giving up.