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Now, when I roll on the throttle the carbs are louder than the pipes. Is this normal or am I going to blow the carbs off my bike?



Carbs don't blow, they suck. It's just like the term bl*& j.. that's always been a misnomer...well, on second thought, we won't go there.

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wife says the bike doesn't sound like a motorcycle, she is used to my VTX 1800c which I traded for the Speedmaster.



I don't see how that can be. That double pin crank on the VTX 1800 puts out a most atypical motorcycle sound. A friend of mine has done pipe mods on 20 different VTX 1800s, and I've yet to hear one that sounded good. OTOH, our bikes have a nice growl with some more open pipes.

I would also think that wearing a half helmet there'd be more wind noise than bike noise if you had the stock pipes on, unless you have a big 'ol honkin' windshield putting you into a cone of silence. I'd wear ear plugs with a half helmet regardless, and often do.