My son wants his truck to sound "tough" (I know this is subjective).
I don't want to spend the money on an exhaust system so I'm looking to just take the stock muffler off and weld an aftermarket one on.
Looking for opinions on which flowmaster to go with since I'm keeping everything else stock.

Flowmaster 40 would sound decent without being obnoxious. If getting a chambered muffler, l'd order a Spintech Pro-Street 6000.

Don't dump the exhaust under bed, at least run the pipe to stock location with a tip. For a little bit more flare, could have the exhaust exit in front of the passenger side tire.

Here's what I had done when I was 15...it was a Flowmaster 40 knockoff that later got swapped for a Spintech.



ETA: That mf sounded TUFF ong

Boom tubes

The classic "tough truck" sound would be cheap glass packs. For a more modern sound combine the glass packs with an X pipe or an H pipe.

I like Vibrant mufflers. The regular "resonator" is just a nice glass pack. The super quiet resonator actually sounds great and is quieter.

Mufflers muffle the sound. Resonators tend to be loud by themselves, but when paired with a muffler it helps the system get real quiet.


This guy does a lot of real testing on various things. He tested the Spintechs here and they cost a couple of HP over a glass pack, but if you like the sound they make there is nothing else like it.

interesting video

This brings back memories, this was basically me 25 years ago with my 92 single cab Silverado, along with a 10 disc cd changer.

Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

Jock 07 said:

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This brings back memories, this was basically me 25 years ago with my 92 single cab Silverado, along with a 10 disc cd changer.

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Humble brag.

Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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1.5 HP at WOT

Probably not an issue for a daily driver for his kid.

Exhaust valve kit
Exhaust valve kit might be cheaper. Then it can be loud or quiet at the push of a button. Neighbors will appreciate it too if you tell him not to open it up in the neighborhood.

Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Which Spintech?

Spintech, Magnaflow, Borla, Flowmaster. I could go with any. I'm not dead set on a flowmaster

Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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Yeah, he doesnt care about the HP. Just looking for his truck to sound good.

Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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Yeah, he doesnt care about the HP. Just looking for his truck to sound good.

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Thats fine then.


Spintechs are one of the more expensive options too.


For me, I'd do a dual exhaust with a pair of Vibrant Ultra Quiets on it. (They aren't that quiet).

Tim Weaver said:

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Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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Yeah, he doesnt care about the HP. Just looking for his truck to sound good.

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Thats fine then.


Spintechs are one of the more expensive options too.


For me, I'd do a dual exhaust with a pair of Vibrant Ultra Quiets on it. (They aren't that quiet).

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Ultra Quiets on a 5.3

agnerd said:

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Exhaust valve kit
Exhaust valve kit might be cheaper. Then it can be loud or quiet at the push of a button. Neighbors will appreciate it too if you tell him not to open it up in the neighborhood.

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This and get the Chinese Ebay ****, QTP is the big name. I've had both and QTP was terrible quality.

agnerd said:

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Exhaust valve kit
Exhaust valve kit might be cheaper. Then it can be loud or quiet at the push of a button. Neighbors will appreciate it too if you tell him not to open it up in the neighborhood.

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im curious how these work. I'll have to check em out

Warsteiner said:

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agnerd said:

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Exhaust valve kit
Exhaust valve kit might be cheaper. Then it can be loud or quiet at the push of a button. Neighbors will appreciate it too if you tell him not to open it up in the neighborhood.

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im curious how these work. I'll have to check em out

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They're easy to install and work well, but open exhaust is loud. Assuming your son is in HS, I wouldn't put cutouts on his truck. He's already going to get enough police attention being young with loud mufflers.

I also like Vibrants. I haven't had Flowmasters on a car since the early 2000s. I'm running StreetPower 1118s on one of my cars. Nice deep sound with no rasp

Dual cherry bombs with 6 or 8 inch echo chamber tips. I had this on my 1978 Chevy dually with a 454 and 4 speed. It was loud as all hell. I used to love to drive through town and listen to the sound echo off of the stores along the street.

Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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Yeah, he doesnt care about the HP. Just looking for his truck to sound good.

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Thats fine then.


Spintechs are one of the more expensive options too.


For me, I'd do a dual exhaust with a pair of Vibrant Ultra Quiets on it. (They aren't that quiet).

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Ultra Quiets on a 5.3

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sounds good

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Description of vid says shorty headers and no cats so pretty far off from what you'd be doing. It's also clapping like a mf so the exact opposite of sounding good, it's just loud.

Instruct him on the "All show, no go" philosophy, and keep everything stock.

I see you only have received a small handful of replies...........Aeroturbine on my 87 chevy 2500 with a 350 sounded like a roaring lion to my 18 year old self. Today it would be irritating as a daily driver. But you're only young once.

will.mcg said:

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I see you only have received a small handful of replies...........Aeroturbine on my 87 chevy 2500 with a 350 sounded like a roaring lion to my 18 year old self. Today it would be irritating as a daily driver. But you're only young once.

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lol
I'm with you.

Also add a Texas Speed Chopacabra cam to really complete the sound

Do the whole system. Long tubes, high flow cat, Borla XR-1's...3 1/2 front to back. Give it the beans!

Delete cats, Flowmaster and turn down the exhaust pipe 37" behind the cab. Sounds good and period correct.

Silvy said:

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Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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Yeah, he doesnt care about the HP. Just looking for his truck to sound good.

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Thats fine then.


Spintechs are one of the more expensive options too.


For me, I'd do a dual exhaust with a pair of Vibrant Ultra Quiets on it. (They aren't that quiet).

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Ultra Quiets on a 5.3

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sounds good

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Description of vid says shorty headers and no cats so pretty far off from what you'd be doing. It's also clapping like a mf so the exact opposite of sounding good, it's just loud.

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"sounds good" is subjective. What you like isn't what everybody likes.

Cats won't change the sound that much, but the headers do. It should clap less with Cats tho...

Flomaster 42451 part number



https://www.amazon.com/Flowmaster-42541-40-Muffler-Aggressive/dp/B01LRJ0Q2E/ref=asc_df_B01LRJ0Q2E?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80608155912743&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=m&hvlocint=86524&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584207632706609&psc=1&hvocijid=5255791716319695466-B01LRJ0Q2E-&hvexpln=0





best sounding flowmaster ever made


if that truck has 2 converters on it then dual it out with 2 of them

i always ran turn downs at axle


you can always add tailpipes later and spend more money if he thinks it's too loud

Tim Weaver said:

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Silvy said:

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Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Warsteiner said:

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Tim Weaver said:

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Blonde Coffee Beans said:

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Flowmaster? Why not Spintech?

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Did you watch the video? They cost you HP. If all you want is the sound then they are fine. If you are chasing HP they are not....

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Yeah, he doesnt care about the HP. Just looking for his truck to sound good.

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Thats fine then.


Spintechs are one of the more expensive options too.


For me, I'd do a dual exhaust with a pair of Vibrant Ultra Quiets on it. (They aren't that quiet).

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Ultra Quiets on a 5.3

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sounds good

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Description of vid says shorty headers and no cats so pretty far off from what you'd be doing. It's also clapping like a mf so the exact opposite of sounding good, it's just loud.

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"sounds good" is subjective. What you like isn't what everybody likes.

Cats won't change the sound that much, but the headers do. It should clap less with Cats tho...

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I'm tickled pink that this is your response because your take is not also subjectively wrong, but also objectively wrong. I'm seeing a single Ultra-Quiet is $140 where a Spintech 6000 is $113 for a single outlet or $123 for a dual outlet. Cats vs no cats also makes a massive difference in sound, they will have more of an impact than shorty headers.

I'm a bit curious, what's your experience with building LS engines and GMT800s?

Take it to Waco and have these guys do the exhaust.

https://instagr.am/p/DVUAvHUEbyr

No clue why my Instagram post won't show.

txyaloo said:

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JamesPShelley said:

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Instruct him on the "All show, no go" philosophy, and keep everything stock.

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Weird take...

Your 986 isn't fast but you still like it. We all are on this board because we like cars. I've had plenty of slow V8's with loud exhaust. The exhaust sound enhances the driving experience and is just fun. Let a kid enjoy being a kid who will hopefully become a gear head and keep the hobby alive.

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That's fair. I'm recalling some crazy **** I did to cars as a kid. Thank you for the bump.

OP... maybe a straight pipe with a glassspack on the end. That would open things up.