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[bhtko]

I know this topic has been kicked around quite a bit and that everyone's responses will be subjective but I am looking for feedback.  I have a 2012 SESG and am looking to go to a 2:1 exhaust.  I love the sound of Vance & Hines but since they do not make a dummy pipe that option is out the window.  I am looking for a 2:1 set-up that will give me a nice, deep sound like V&H but will also provide good power and have a dummy pipe option available.  I understand that D&D, Rush & Dragos make 2:1 set-ups with a dummy pipe but I am not familiar with their sounds.  Taking cost out of the picture completely, can anyone give me their thoughts on these three manufacturers - or any others that may be out there?  Thanks in advance for the help!

[Heatwave]

I know this topic has been kicked around quite a bit and that everyone's responses will be subjective but I am looking for feedback.  I have a 2012 SESG and am looking to go to a 2:1 exhaust.  I love the sound of Vance & Hines but since they do not make a dummy pipe that option is out the window.  I am looking for a 2:1 set-up that will give me a nice, deep sound like V&H but will also provide good power and have a dummy pipe option available.  I understand that D&D, Rush & Dragos make 2:1 set-ups with a dummy pipe but I am not familiar with their sounds.  Taking cost out of the picture completely, can anyone give me their thoughts on these three manufacturers - or any others that may be out there?  Thanks in advance for the help!

If sound is you're only criteria than you'll really have to hear each of them to make a decision since everybody hears sounds slightly different. If performance plus sound is your criteria (plus a ghost pipe) than I can highly recommend the D&D Fatcat with Ghost. The performance is unmatched and the sound is ideal (but loud even with the wrapped baffle) from my perspective.

[barefoot3zk5]

for my money and build ... it was/is Frank Dragos , Dragula 2 into 1 and he does offer a falsie to match.. His pricing is very competitive and the sound and performance is off the hook .. 

[SneakyPete]

 D&D Fatcats are the way to go, hands down best 2:1 JMHO.

[SBB]

D&D Fatcats are the way to go, hands down best 2:1 JMHO.

X 2

SBB

[SDCVO]

X3!

[trahog]

X4

[porthole]

The FatCats can get hot - and the rear pipe is right where your leg is when your feet are planted on the ground.
For me, I am tired of the excessive heat and they are coming off during the winter and the V&H duals are going back on.

I did not use the false pipe and preferred the look with the single. Gave me a reason to add two more pieces of chrome, sprocket and belt cover.

[bhtko]

The FatCats can get hot - and the rear pipe is right where your leg is when your feet are planted on the ground.
For me, I am tired of the excessive heat and they are coming off during the winter and the V&H duals are going back on.

I did not use the false pipe and preferred the look with the single. Gave me a reason to add two more pieces of chrome, sprocket and belt cover.

I noticed that other pipes, such as the Dragos pipes, are ceramic coated which is supposed to help with the heat issue among other things.  I do not see any mention of this on the D&D website.  Would this be the reason that they get hot??

[bhtko]

D&D Fatcats are the way to go, hands down best 2:1 JMHO.

Thanks for your response.  The FatCats seem to be pretty popular on this site.  What is it specifically that you like about them?  What makes them better than the rest???

[barefoot3zk5]

their popularity is sure to be attributed to the fact that they have been around longer .... do yourself a favor and listen to a set of Dragos compared to anything .. They are unique in their sound, and FWIW ,, Frank guarantees they will outperform ANY others on the drum..

[SOTLucky]

The D&D Fat cats are a great performance 2:1 pipe.  They also have a damn good sound to them.  Tip - If you have a programmer (Power Com V or Thundermax) or plan to get a programmer with auto tune system that has the 18mm bungs for o2 sensor you will need to order the Fat Cats for the 2009 bike.  All pipes 2010 newer have 12mm o2 sensor holes and in order to fit the auto tune sensor you will need the 18mm which is on the 2009 pipe.  I had to do this to my 2011 Road Glide.  This applies to other brands as well like V&H.  Best thing is to call the manufacturer and tell them what you have engine size and what programmer you have or plan to have.

One last thing, If you go with D&D I believe since the 2010 models they are designed to be put on a bike with out having to put a tuner on it.  That is what I was told and read somewhere, but you should verify with D&D in case you don't want to spend the money on a tuner. Also, I never had an issue with a hot pipe other than the normal like every pipe.

Good Luck

[porthole]

I noticed that other pipes, such as the Dragos pipes, are ceramic coated which is supposed to help with the heat issue among other things.  I do not see any mention of this on the D&D website.  Would this be the reason that they get hot??

My FC's were ceramic coated inside and out when new.

The D&D Fat cats are a great performance 2:1 pipe.  They also have a damn good sound to them.  Tip - If you have a programmer (Power Com V or Thundermax) or plan to get a programmer with auto tune system that has the 18mm bungs for o2 sensor you will need to order the Fat Cats for the 2009 bike.  All pipes 2010 newer have 12mm o2 sensor holes and in order to fit the auto tune sensor you will need the 18mm which is on the 2009 pipe.  I had to do this to my 2011 Road Glide.  This applies to other brands as well like V&H.

My pipes were ordered with bungs with the thought of eventually adding a programmer with O2 sensors.
Finally did that and after a year of riding was not very impressed. Turns out the D&D installed bungs are at least 1/4" too long for proper O2 placement. 

[North Star]

If it were me, I'd go with the Drago's hands down. Tons of info on his stuff on the RG forum.

I'd suggest definitely listening to the sound of a D&D before buying one. The sound is unique, and I personally don't like it.

[North Georgia Hawg]

I chose the Drago's S/C/S-4 for my bike several months ago. I am very pleased with this pipe, and everyone I ride with loves the sound - it has a nice deep rumble with NO tinniness, and it really barks when I get on it. Throttle blipps sound pretty awesome, too. It is loud, but probably not quite as loud as the D&D Fat Cats. It is also considerably less expensive than other 2-1 pipes, and it has a left-side ghost pipe available, which I got. I got the slant-cut tips that fit perfectly in line with the line of the extended saddlebags. You can see where I start discussing the Drago's S/C/S-4 in my mods thread here:  http://www.cvoharley.com/smf/index.php?topic=66236.270

I went with the S/C/S-4 rather than the Dragula because it has straight headers vs. the stepped headers on the Dragula. Frank told me that the S/C/S-4 is a little better for low-end torque than the Dragula, and was engineered for heavy baggers. It also has a different collector than the Dragula, that is designed for low- and mid-range torque rather than high-end HP. The Dragula is suitable for really built, high-HP engines - whereas the S/C/S-4 is more suitable for stock or mildly-modded engines like mine.

One thing I had to do when I went to the S/C/S-4 was to change out my Andrews 54H cams to SE 259e cams. The 238/238 duration of the 54H cams ran great with the Fullsac X-Pipe and Fullsac 2" baffles I had on the bike previously - but they just could not feed the S/C/S-4 pipe sufficiently. The much-longer 246/250 duration of the SE 259e cams make for a much happier match with this big 2-1 pipe. The big dips in the VE tables are much less with the SE 259e cams than they were with the 54H cams, and performance is much better. 2-1 pipes have dips in the VE tables that 2-1-2 pipes simply do not... this makes tuning with a 2-1 pipe more involved than with a 2-1-2 pipe. Working with the EGR tables to get the VE table numbers up in the low RPM ranges will help a lot.

I am very pleased with the fit, finish, and performance of the Drago's S/C/S-4 on my bike. Drago's pipes are manufactured by Rush, and they are ceramic coated inside and out.