Afe muffler replacement 5.3 10 speed trail boss lt

hertge · December 18, 2020

Muffler was on backorder supposed to be here Wednesday, what did you use to cut the back of the muffler so close? How close did you cut it? Worried about cutting out the flapper the directions say to keep it.

Firehawk99 · December 18, 2020

1 hour ago, hertge said:

Muffler was on backorder supposed to be here Wednesday, what did you use to cut the back of the muffler so close? How close did you cut it? Worried about cutting out the flapper the directions say to keep it.

I used a sawzall with a 6" blade. You will have plenty of room to cut it out.

Trza · December 19, 2020

18 hours ago, Firehawk T/A said:

I used a sawzall with a 6" blade. You will have plenty of room to cut it out.

I'm supposed to receive mine on Monday. Just to confirm, the instructions say to cut the rear 2.75 inches from the rear of the muffler, but you are saying cut it as flush to the rear of the muffler as you can in order to make room for cutting out the flapper? And in the front chop it just before the flapper and it should leave enough room?

Are the supplied clamps good enough or should I buy some of the 3 inch long band clamps that Amazon sells?

Thanks!

Firehawk99 · December 19, 2020

34 minutes ago, Trza said:

I'm supposed to receive mine on Monday. Just to confirm, the instructions say to cut the rear 2.75 inches from the rear of the muffler, but you are saying cut it as flush to the rear of the muffler as you can in order to make room for cutting out the flapper? And in the front chop it just before the flapper and it should leave enough room?

Are the supplied clamps good enough or should I buy some of the 3 inch long band clamps that Amazon sells?

Thanks!

Exactly. The supplied clamps work great.

hertge · December 22, 2020

On 12/19/2020 at 11:20 AM, Trza said:

I'm supposed to receive mine on Monday. Just to confirm, the instructions say to cut the rear 2.75 inches from the rear of the muffler, but you are saying cut it as flush to the rear of the muffler as you can in order to make room for cutting out the flapper? And in the front chop it just before the flapper and it should leave enough room?

Are the supplied clamps good enough or should I buy some of the 3 inch long band clamps that Amazon sells?

Thanks!

Get it installed yet? Any tips or pictures would be appreciated. I have got a chain cutter and a sawzall ready to go for Wednesday.

Firehawk99 · December 22, 2020

12 minutes ago, hertge said:

Get it installed yet? Any tips or pictures would be appreciated. I have got a chain cutter and a sawzall ready to go for Wednesday.

Just remember after you cut the stock muffler out, the rear dual pipes will pull to the back of the truck due to the tension on the hangers. When you assemble the new muffler it will seem short, so just pull the rear pipe towards the front of the truck to fit it into the new pipe.

Trza · December 22, 2020

43 minutes ago, hertge said:

Get it installed yet? Any tips or pictures would be appreciated. I have got a chain cutter and a sawzall ready to go for Wednesday.

Yeah. It was an easy install! I used a reciprocating saw with a Diablo metal cutting blade and it cut right through the piping with barely any pressure.

Like Firehawk said, if you plan on cutting out the flapper, cut in front of the flapper. The pipe bulges a bit in front of the flapper where its factory welded, so make sure to cut before it bulges (toward front of truck), it then flares a bit before straightening out. At first I cut after the bulge and the muffler didn't fit. I had to make a second cut not realizing the small flare. There is quite a bit of room to play with, don't worry about it being short.

On the backside of the muffler, cut it as flush as you can to the muffler. I used a saw so I had at least 1, if not 2 inches off the muffler since I couldn't physically get the saw any closer to make a straight cut...again, lots of room to play with.

Make sure to have a jack to hold the muffler up once you make the first cut. Make sure to check the clamps. The biggest clamp goes at the rear of the muffler. The other 2 are the same size and go on opposite ends.

It's a great muffler. Really happy with it. I can't believe how quiet it is on the highway and cruising, zero drone...but when you step on it, coupled with my S&B intake, you can really hear it. The throttle response is much better too, I had a little bit of stalling where you can feel the engine almost stutter before power delivery, now its gone. And I can't even tell if there's a change in sound with the flapper gone. It was noticeable in my 2015.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

hertge · December 22, 2020

Thanks guys I'll let you know how it turns out.

hertge · December 22, 2020

Muffler install is done! Went super smooth thanks to you guys, not to loud with a little extra rumble. Thanks again.

Trza · December 23, 2020

10 hours ago, hertge said:

Muffler install is done! Went super smooth thanks to you guys, not to loud with a little extra rumble. Thanks again.

Awesome! Welcome to the club

Firehawk99 · December 23, 2020

21 hours ago, hertge said:

Muffler install is done! Went super smooth thanks to you guys, not to loud with a little extra rumble. Thanks again.

Good to hear! For an all stainless steel muffler and a great exhaust tone its a no Brainer. I couldn't justify spending close to a grand on a full cat back kit for the same result.

ero2 · December 30, 2020

Would I gain a different tone and a bit more rumble going with the muffler, the flaps cut out, but leaving the resonators alone? Or not really worth it without covering those?

Firehawk99 · December 30, 2020

1 hour ago, ero2 said:

Would I gain a different tone and a bit more rumble going with the muffler, the flaps cut out, but leaving the resonators alone? Or not really worth it without covering those?

It will still sound great with the resonators uncovered. Not as loud though. Play around with it, cover them up 1 on each pipe at a time and see how it sounds to you. The more you cover up the louder it gets.

TeamSaris · December 30, 2020

Great post. Love your truck, and the bird! Where in NY are you?

Ill be copying your exhaust setup for sure. A little rumble with no cabin noise. Whats not to like?

Was it the Apollo GT? And have you noticed any real change in MPG?

Edited December 30, 2020 by TeamSaris

Firehawk99 · December 30, 2020

6 hours ago, TeamSaris said:

Great post. Love your truck, and the bird! Where in NY are you?

Ill be copying your exhaust setup for sure. A little rumble with no cabin noise. Whats not to like?

Was it the Apollo GT? And have you noticed any real change in MPG?

Thanks! I live near Buffalo. It is the Apollo GT and I haven't noticed any change in the mpg.