Red Thunder Exhaust and Arlen Ness Big Sucker Installed
We have been hearing for a few years about an Italian-made exhaust known as Red Thunder. After many failed attempts we finally got our grubby hands on one to test on our 2015 H-D Dyna Low Rider. After hearing good things from the few folks in the US who had this pipe on their bikes, we knew we had to get an intake to match the upgraded performance exhaust. After a bit of thought we went with the tried-and-true Arlen Ness Bike Sucker due to the good luck we have had with them in the past as well as the unit’s classic good looks. Next month we will be putting the bike on the dyno and getting some real numbers, so stay tuned, but for now check out how we went about installing these simple yet effective bolt-on upgrades. HB
The Red Thunder pipe comes with everything needed to install it on the bike.
Jeff G. Holt
Both the front and rear head pipes were installed first.
Jeff G. Holt
We installed the beefy Red Thunder muffler bracket to the bike’s transmission.
Jeff G. Holt
The muffler easily slid onto the Red Thunder head pipes and was tightened down.
Jeff G. Holt
The front header mount was tightened as per Red Thunder’s specs.
Jeff G. Holt
Once the pipe was property aligned, all of the fasteners were tightened to factory specifications. We then moved onto the air cleaner.
Jeff G. Holt
The Arlen Ness Big Sucker as it looks out of the package with all of its components.
Jeff G. Holt
The gasket and backing plate were installed onto the throttle body and engine.
Jeff G. Holt
Three supplied setscrews were doused with Loctite before being threaded into the throttle body.
Jeff G. Holt
The Ness Air Cleaner element mounts were then attached to the setscrews.
Jeff G. Holt
After adding blue Loctite we installed the air cleaner element to the backing plate.
Jeff G. Holt
The clean-looking black steel air cleaner cover was installed with a single screw. And there you have it: some simple but great-looking and great-performing parts.
Jeff G. Holt
