Muffler recommendations

[SirRobyn0]

My truck came to me with a falling apart muffler shop exhaust on it.
It was all 2-1/4" pipe with some cheap turbo style mufflers under it.
After one of the muffler fell off whilst driving, we decided to whip up a temp exhaust with things we have laying around.
We started with a set of Flowmaster Delta Flow 40's that turned out to be too quiet for our tastes.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

Currently on my truck we have a set of Jones Flow Pack mufflers.
They are 2-1/2" and a single chamber straight through design.

You must be registered for see images attach

Simple, cheap, and effective.
They were $25 each when I bought them and work quiet well.
The truck is fairly quiet at an idle and you can just barely tell it has a little cam in it. When you jump on the gas it lets you know.
Currently it just dumps in front of the axle with 45 degree bends that send the spent exhaust towards the ground in front of the tire.
This clip is while we still had the stock exhaust manifolds on the engine.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

Now we have headers on the engine and it sounds even better.
Soon we will be switching it up again for the forever exhaust with 3 inch pipe all the way from headers to tailpipes. The mufflers I choose will more than likely be the original Flowmaster 40 series mufflers after the Magnaflow Cats I have to install. We are going to be using fancy V bands so we can take it apart easily...

To me that sounds good. I love the idle sounds, my issue would be and especially because I have a smaller motor than you, hills are pulled at 3K with a loaded trailer. That's when it would get annoying, for me.

I'd love to see the angle back and out. Typically guys doing before rear tire exit just do a 90 degree and straight out the side. I actually think there is something to this as far as old school low cost exhaust looks are concerned, but I think if a guy angles the exit towards the rear, or even the ground that would be better than straight out as far as noise in the cab is concerned.

Side note thanks for the fun conversation guys I've been really enjoying talking exhaust. Kind of makes me want to pull my single setup just to try experiment with other combos.

 

[78C10BigTen]

Thanks all for the great info!

I really wish I knew what the ones I have are. But I haven't been able to find any number of branding on them at all. Any ideas by a bad picture? Don't mind the kobbled together looking H pipe.

I could get a sound clip of the pickup after work if OP would like to hear what it sounds like. I swear I'm not trying to completely de-rail the thread here.

Look to be cheap flowmastersl knock offs

 

[Bextreme04]

To me that sounds good. I love the idle sounds, my issue would be and especially because I have a smaller motor than you, hills are pulled at 3K with a loaded trailer. That's when it would get annoying, for me.

I'd love to see the angle back and out. Typically guys doing before rear tire exit just do a 90 degree and straight out the side. I actually think there is something to this as far as old school low cost exhaust looks are concerned, but I think if a guy angles the exit towards the rear, or even the ground that would be better than straight out as far as noise in the cab is concerned.

Side note thanks for the fun conversation guys I've been really enjoying talking exhaust. Kind of makes me want to pull my single setup just to try experiment with other combos.

That's my favorite thing with the 50 series Big block mufflers. They sound very similar to the 40 series mufflers at idle and low throttle, but when you get on it or are at highway speeds, they are very mellow in the cab. Pulling my travel trailer over the passes I have zero drone in the cab at all, even with the dual 3" dumping right under the bed. I'm sure it will be even better when I finish running the pipes out behind the rear tires.

 

[SirRobyn0]

That's my favorite thing with the 50 series Big block mufflers. They sound very similar to the 40 series mufflers at idle and low throttle, but when you get on it or are at highway speeds, they are very mellow in the cab. Pulling my travel trailer over the passes I have zero drone in the cab at all, even with the dual 3" dumping right under the bed. I'm sure it will be even better when I finish running the pipes out behind the rear tires.

I gotta keep that in mind. I'm guess you probably don't have a recording handy of your exhaust but I sure would enjoy hearing it.

I probably should do mine since it's very close to a factory single system right now anyway.

 

[Hunter79764]

FWIW, I like the sound of turbo mufflers as well, have a set on my '85 Monte Carlo w/ true duals and a 5.3. Good tone, fairly low volume, but I know there's more power available with something else. I'm in the market for a mild upgrade on the Suburban and was debating about a turbo muffler (stock now) or going something a little louder, or at least freer flowing since it's a single muffler/pipe for now. Might have to look into the 50 series...

 

[Catbox]

I gotta keep that in mind. I'm guess you probably don't have a recording handy of your exhaust but I sure would enjoy hearing it.

I probably should do mine since it's very close to a factory single system right now anyway.

For a single exhaust, we put a Flow Pack under our suburban.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

It just did not sound right as we had a Flowmaster 40 series under there for the last 17 years. So I made the executive decision to put a Flowmaster back under there.

 

[Finkaire]

3 chamber flowmasters with resonators. Louder than stock, the resonators take the edge off for nice sound. IMHO

 

[Randy and Easton]

Easton loves his Flowmasters

 

[SirRobyn0]

3 chamber flowmasters with resonators. Louder than stock, the resonators take the edge off for nice sound. IMHO

I don't disagree, resonators combined with any muffler will take the edge off, and can be very helpful, if cost isn't a factor in building an exhaust system or you just wanna tone down an existing system a bit but not redue it. The thing is for me at least is how much do you wanna spend on just the exhaust system?

When I think about my truck for example. $200 for the pipes for a dual kit, $60 each for factory style mufflers, probably similar or a little less for tubros, so sitting right around $320, but those flowmasters..... Going to run about $120 or so a pop, and what $50 for each resonator. So $340 just in mufflers and resonator, so that's $540 assuming your ok with putting that expensive flow master on aluminized pipe. Get a kit from flow master and your looking about $750, add resonators $850. My figures are not exact, but rough estimates. So that's my turn off to flowmaster.

 

[bucket]

I didn't see it mentioned, but if you are leaving the stock pellet-type converter in place, a different muffler won't change the sound nearly as much as if there was a modern type cat or no cat at all.

 

[Catbox]

I don't disagree, resonators combined with any muffler will take the edge off, and can be very helpful, if cost isn't a factor in building an exhaust system or you just wanna tone down an existing system a bit but not redue it. The thing is for me at least is how much do you wanna spend on just the exhaust system?

When I think about my truck for example. $200 for the pipes for a dual kit, $60 each for factory style mufflers, probably similar or a little less for tubros, so sitting right around $320, but those flowmasters..... Going to run about $120 or so a pop, and what $50 for each resonator. So $340 just in mufflers and resonator, so that's $540 assuming your ok with putting that expensive flow master on aluminized pipe. Get a kit from flow master and your looking about $750, add resonators $850. My figures are not exact, but rough estimates. So that's my turn off to flowmaster.

Valid points.
But you can also be quite frugal and still end up with the expensive Flowmasters you want.
I watched Craigslist for a week or so before these take off mufflers and pipes revealed themselves to me.
For a bit of a drive and $75 I have a fairly new set of mufflers that cost somebody else all that money. This guy was going to use the set off his current car and the parts car came with these installed on it.

You must be registered for see images attach

We also find them in the junkyard a lot.
They are $12 from the local Pick N Pull.
That is where I have purchased nearly new 3" tailpipes for Suburban's and Trucks for next to nothing. Those have been chopped up and rewelded into several exhaust systems for small money and the time it takes to fiddle them together.

Here is Max welding the new muffler($25) to the junkyard tailpipe ($12) that is heard above. Now it has a Flowmaster Super 44 under it as that just sounds right.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

For example, this is what you get for your Flowmaster money.
This was under our Sub for roughly 110,000 miles over 17 years or so.
It has rusted through at some points, but still sounded good and now lives under another vehicle with some patching.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[Catbox]

For a single exhaust, we put a Flow Pack under our suburban.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

It just did not sound right as we had a Flowmaster 40 series under there for the last 17 years. So I made the executive decision to put a Flowmaster back under there.

Also to note, there was no cat in the cat case left with this video.
I have since replaced the cat and it takes out some of the 'raspberries' in the tone.

 

[SirRobyn0]

I didn't see it mentioned, but if you are leaving the stock pellet-type converter in place, a different muffler won't change the sound nearly as much as if there was a modern type cat or no cat at all.

I thought about bring up cats last night.

If your still running a pellet cat you really should switch to a modern honey comb style. The old pellets cats had issues with creating high back pressure and even coming apart internally forcing the pellets into the exhaust system. The modern cat is light years ahead of a pellet cat and you can pick a high flow unit if your concerned about having a cat affecting your engines performance.

For reference if your not sure what kind of cat your running on the left is a modern cat, smaller and oval, to the right is a pellet cat flatter and much wider.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[SirRobyn0]

Also to note, there was no cat in the cat case left with this video.
I have since replaced the cat and it takes out some of the 'raspberries' in the tone.

That's a good point to a modern style honeycomb cat will have the effect on the sound of an exhaust system similar to a resonator.

Of course used parts will always be less expensive than new. I have to admit I'm a little jealous of guys like you that have wrecking yards nearby. The one that is roughly left in my area charges darn near new prices.....

 

[Finkaire]

The flowmaster resonator combo is on my ‘68 Elko. Went from turbos to the flowmasters and wasn’t happy until they added the resonators, your right, not inexpensive. Still running the original muffs on the c10, cat replaced.