Cal Riders - How real are these sound regulations?

[Ridin'_MD]

My WR will be in on Wed. - it will have the Canadian silencer (which has no spark arrestor).

I definitely need an aftermarket silencer, so I bought an FMF Q which is on back-order for 3-4 weeks. My buddy is under the impression that I may be sacrificing some power for the quieter sound. He's got me also thinking the thing is going to sound like a scooter.

I wouldn't mind getting a non-quiet pipe (I guess I don't care about the sound) as long as the pipie has a sparky in it. The whole point would be to be legal on trails.

BUT, how real is the new sound law??? Are they checking, have people been told to pack up and go home?

What silencers are people running and do you guys think it even matters.

Lemme know. Thanks, Bud

[SPUTTER]

It seems they are not putting real effort into unilateral enforcment here at the Hollister Hills state park. I have heard many, many very loud 4 strokes being ridden here including beginner type hondas ridden by kids on the main park roads with 100+ dbs, and on the vintage MX track which is located right behind the park office complex! Since I was tested and approved prior to Jan 1, I am at a loss as to what they are doing now. For sure, they are not enforcing during the week. weird.

They won't let you ride without a spark arrestor.

[ekemner]

I just purchased a FMF Q silencer from Rocky Mountain. They are in the Dirt Rider magazines and they have them in stock for 296 to your door. Also in this months issue of Dirt Rider they had a YZF450 exhaust shoot out and they tested the FMF Q. IT tested at 100 Db and produced more overall power than the Stock YZF450 exhaust. I think we will be happy with them.

Eric ?

[xr600r]

so if the fmf test at 100, what good is it ???????

the cali. law says 96. here in michigan its been 94 for years. aftermarket pipes are a joke. ?

[ekemner]

Yea, I live in Michigan also and this 94 db is a pain!! FMF told me that it would pass the 96 db law. They said that it can be packed tighter and that would quiet it more and that if you add the power bomb exhaust pipe it would come down about 10% as far as dbs are concerned. One thing I was looking at when I recieved mine yesterday is that if they added a pipe that pointed more towards the ground this would also help. I have access to a DB meter from work and as soon as my bike comes in I will test it myself and if I need to I may try adding a extra bend at the end.

Eric ?

[PickleRacer]

Hey I live in Cal. I am 15 yrs.old and I go riding about every other week or two. They dont seem to be enforcing the law that hard but people are getting checked every now and then. My friend was checked and he had the white brothers e-series pipe and he passed. Also I was just curious if you guys knew the stock db level for an o3yz250f. I just got mine on fri. and all I did to the exhaust was put on a pro moto billit sparky end on it and I dont think it will be to loud. So maybe all you have to do is buy the pro moto billit end cap. Just thought I would let you know. ( $136 and looks cool) ?

03yz250f, tag tripple clamps, answer pro tapers, pro moto sparky.

[Chaindrive]

Does anybody have any experience with the Big Gun with the Quiet insert?

[dmp437]

I'm leaning towards the CRD. Check them out >CRD HERE< The 96 dB pipe is supposed to test at 94 for us MI riders and the guy at Shock Therapy in Shiatown MI is being sponsered by CRD in Hare Scrambles this year, so there's a local source. Another review ofthe CRD pipe >CRD REVIEW<

The CRD company is out of France, their website (in mostly English) is >CRD Website< with lots of power curve graphs. They have a full Ti system that looks pretty good.

Just throwing this out to illustrate another choice in the quest to be legal.

[Guest Guest]

We were at Ballinger a couple of weeks ago and ran into some rangers. They checked for spark arrestors and regis tration. They also gave each of us a map and a seperate card explaining the new sound laws.

However, they did not test any of our bikes nor did they have the equipment to do so.

I believe there is a grace period on sound until April 1st

[Ridin'_MD]

All you guys with the Q - does it sound like a scooter???

Did the pamphlet with info that the rangers gave say they would be checking at the gate or just spot checking?

I want to comform to the law, but the way I see it, noone I ride with would get below 96 dB, so we'd have to go hame anyway.

Bud

[GPS Dual Sport]

For those who ride in the San Bernadio National Forest the guys with the green suits now have sound level meters. The story I've been hearing is you will be tested and if found out of spec you will be informed but not ticketed. How long this will continue is anyone's guess.

They were doing sound checks at the Pinnicles Staging area this weekend according to some informed sources. I have not confirmed this as fact.

Just passing along what I've been hearing.

[RMWR426]

I live in Northern California and have an FMF Q, by the way it doesn't sound like a scooter. I did not notice any performance difference from stock if any it was in the mid to top end. I was in Hollister last week and saw a ranger flag a rider test him and he was given a ticket, he was also told to leave. They don't seem to worried about the 2 strokes I did not see any of them tested while I was there. My bike tested at 96.5 with the Q and stock pipe.

[Waxer]

In reply to Chaindrive, I have converted my old Big Gun & installed the billet endcap & 5dBm sound diffuser, they say it will pass the 96dBm test, but I also bought the quiet core insert & packing, Big Gun claims 90-92dBm but you loose 1-2 hp. Currently I'm sticking with the 5dBm diffuser & will wait for a sound check. Worst case I'll have to use the quiet core for Gorman since the 1 Ranger Ive ran into 2X was a prick.

[Ridin'_MD]

since the 1 Ranger Ive ran into 2X was a prick

No kidding! We were up at Gorman and it was December and raining/snowing - the guy is chapping my hide about not having a spark arrestor. My buddy is a fireman and says there is literally no chance of starting a fire.

His reply? "I've seen it go up on days just like this".... WHATEVER.

[Dan_from_HB]

There have been several threads on this already. One of them mine. You can search and find them quickly. But in a nutshell, this is what I have found:

1. It does NOT sound like a scooter, your buddy is full of it.

2. It did not affect my power measurably compared to my Power Core4 SA, which was significantly louder.

3. Someone experimented with packing methods and materials and posted results elsewhere on this forum. I believe he found that the setup with loose MSR packing and a PowerBomb was around 94.

4. Alone and stock, the Q does not get it below 96 if the ranger is testing it the right way at the right rpm. If they are fudging the test, you might pass with just a Q.

5. Any other pipe (with POSSIBLE exception of CRD) will affect power if it is below 96DB. Best setup seems to be PowerBomb, Q muffler with loose MSR packing material. You will need to repack often, like maybe every other weekend.

6. We don't really know when and where they will be enforcing first. I do know that you run a high risk at BLM-permitted organized races. And wherever rangers frequent such as designated OHV areas.

Cheers!

Dan

[Ridin'_MD]

Thanks Dan! I really appreciate the post.

I guess I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't ?