barend Posted December 30, 2011 #1 Posted December 30, 2011 Any way to fix a small leak in the top forward right side of the collector without having to drop the entire system????
Pegasus1300 Posted December 30, 2011 #2 Posted December 30, 2011 Maybe a muffler shop can braze it for you or I have seen muffler patch kits in places like Auto Zone,that might work.
barend Posted December 30, 2011 Author #4 Posted December 30, 2011 Yeah, but can you do that without taking the exhaust off:think: the hole is on the top of the collector
Squidley Posted December 30, 2011 #5 Posted December 30, 2011 Yeah, but can you do that without taking the exhaust off:think: the hole is on the top of the collector If it's on the top of the collector, your going to have to take it off
barend Posted December 30, 2011 Author #6 Posted December 30, 2011 that's what I was afraid off. *@#%!!!!!:bang head::bang head:
Venturous Randy Posted December 30, 2011 #7 Posted December 30, 2011 If you have enough rust to make a hole, you will probably have rust on the sleeves that the pipes go into, especially the front. And, if they have a lot of rust, it won't take much to break one off. You may have to make the clamps very loose or take them off and maybe gently drive a very thin screwdriver between the pipe and sleeve just a little to break them loose. You may also be able to use the old gaskets if you don't tear them up too much. This is one of those jobs that can go relatively easy or be a big PITA. RandyA
twigg Posted December 30, 2011 #8 Posted December 30, 2011 Any way to fix a small leak in the top forward right side of the collector without having to drop the entire system???? It's got to come off. Generally it's not too hard. Start by spraying every fastener with PB Blaster, or some other penetrating fluid. Leave the job until the next day and give a couple of interim squirts. The bolts and nuts holding the collector are not nearly as difficult to get to as legend has it if you have a decent socket set with extensions. The downpipes can remain fixed to the rear heads but the front ones have to come off and will need new gaskets. Fortunately they are the cheap ones Once you have the collector off you will probably find that the corrosion is worse than you thought. It can be especially bad around the welds where the front stubs are attached to the main box. These are replaceable. You need to fins a local muffler wholesaler who will stretch a couple of short lengths of pipe to fit, then get them welded on. You can cut the slots yourself. When I did mine I was given the new stubs free and the welding was $15. They were a perfect fit but it's not an exact science and some trial and error is involved. The added complication is that the trim pieces on the collector have to be removed then re-welded, and that is what would stop you accessing much with the unit on the bike. In any event, no one wants to be welding down there. The expensive gaskets can usually be re-used. If not then new ones will cost quite a few $$$. There really are no shortcuts on this one. Those collectors can be bought new for about $500 (ouch). You can get second hand ones on eBay from about $50 up, but you may end up with one as bad, or worse, than the one you have. If you get yours off and it really is rotten, buy one second hand and refurbish as above. There is the added complication that the baffle inside the box can come loose and rattle. This too can be repaired. It involves cutting the bottom of the collector on three sides, folding up the flap you just created then fixing or removing the internal baffle ... then the whole lot is welded up again. It's worth doing this correctly. Exhausts are the most inhospitable parts of the bike. They can go from cold to cherry red, even in normal running and temporary fixes are usually more temporary than most folk want.
barend Posted December 31, 2011 Author #9 Posted December 31, 2011 had the whole thing off last year (2010) to fix a leak in the rear down tubes, replaced the expensive gaskets at that time and removed most of the internal baffle which was broken loose (the rest was still attached), collector really didn't look bad at the time, so maybe it will not be too bad, guess I'll find out. Definitely don't want to spend $500 to get a new collector. Thanks for the feedback guys!
Yammer Dan Posted December 31, 2011 #10 Posted December 31, 2011 I haven't had much luck patching them. Ask the guys a Vogel #1:whistling:
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