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[Thom]

Did you think it was worth removing the Cats?  If so did it run cooler?  Did you feel a difference in performance? Gas mileage change?  Any other comments would be appreciated.

[Phreakyz]

On my 2016 CVO Street Glide - Removed the Cat and flashed with Vance and Hines FP3 Tuner and it made a world of difference.    Bike ran Amazing,  Sounded Great,    Ran Soo much cooler that I thought the cooling fans were broken because they hardly ever kicked on after the Cat and Flash and prior to that they ran all the time on hot days.

I recommend it, but don't do it unless you flash with a tuner.   It will run too lean.  My friend had a 2014 CVO Road Glide and he gutted the cat but refused to buy a tuner and his ran hotter and lean popped like crazy right up until he sold the bike.

My 2 Cents.

[mjb765]

Yes..pull the cat...but it also needs a good tune. It is lean from the factory and pulling the cat will make it breathe better which will make it run even leaner. Do it right and you will love the results.

[OBB]

A whole lot of members have done it with great results. Now to play Devil's Advocate. Keep in mind, it's illegal pretty much everywhere, especially in your state.

[Para Bellum]

It will be a lot louder without the cats.

[grc]

If you're convinced you want to go "cat-less", I suggest you not gut the stock pipe but replace the it with a non-catalyst version.  If you need to go back to a catalyst for any reason in the future, you pull that stock pipe out of storage and reinstall it.  That is much easier than having to buy a new stock pipe from H-D.  A new stock pipe from Harley runs about $830 MSRP not including heat shields and clamps at this time, who knows how much it might cost a few years down the road or if it will even be available.  The reason I mention this is the fact that you can never be certain you won't be forced by people in government to have your bike checked for compliance with emission standards and laws.  CARB has been making noises for a few years about that exact thing.

JMHO - Jerry 

[ultrafxr]

If the cat is still in the head pipe which I think it is then crosstalk between the O2 sensors is possible.  This was a subject discussed several years ago. Not sure if it still applies to newer models as I’ve not kept up with changes if any.


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[ultrarider123]

All good advice from the membership.  Jerry has a very good point in keeping the stock pipe if you ever have to have the bike "sniffed".  I see you are in the land of cereal (whatever isn't fruits and nuts are flakes) so that is a very good possibility.

To answer your question, best thing I ever did on the '12 and the '15.  The '12 had the now illegal SERT installed and the '15, I de-catted the header and used the FP3 to tune.  I liked both results but, and this is just my observation, the '15 seemed to run better with the FP3.

I didn't seem to have much crosstalk issues with the O2 sensors on either bike.  No popping on decel, very decent gas mileage and much better performance on both bikes.

DO NOT remove the cat without some sort of tune, however.  The dang things are so lean from the factory, removing the cat will cause more airflow and more leaning of the fuel mixture.  If you are just changing mufflers and no cat removal, it should be fine with no tune. 

Both ran MUCH cooler, much better and had a much better sound.  I removed the plugs on the stock SE mufflers so the entire exhaust was stock looking.  While it wouldn't pass and EPA exhaust exam, at least visually it looked legal and they would have to test it to prove me in violation...probably not gonna happen in TN.

You can find stock headers everywhere for a back-up w/cat OR you could remove the stock set-up and go Fulsac...quite a few have and that's the route I would have taken if the cat removal didn't pan out...

Good luck whichever way you go

[JKM]

I would agree with others that you should buy a new pipe and keep the stock pipe with cat in case you need it later.

have a look at Fullsac.  They have well priced products and pipes that use stock heatshields.  They also sell tuners and provide a pre-loaded map.  They also have muffler cores for stock mufflers if you want some more rumble.

https://fullsac.com/

[OBB]

I would agree with others that you should buy a new pipe and keep the stock pipe with cat in case you need it later.

have a look at Fullsac.  They have well priced products and pipes that use stock heatshields.  They also sell tuners and provide a pre-loaded map.  They also have muffler cores for stock mufflers if you want some more rumble.

https://fullsac.com/

He'll have to have them shipped outside of Cali or go pick them up Himself. Fullsac doesn't ship to Cali.

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