Stock exhaust install tips

[2WheelFun]

First, thanks DeanR for the cherry on top of the cake!

I first used a touch of contact adhesive to hold the new gaskets in place.

Hang #1 pipe loosely from the rear hanger and a couple of threads twisted on a single flange nut.

Loosen the right side hanger bracket but don't unbolt it completely. This will give enough room to connect crossover while feeding the end into the head. You should be able to swing the bolt in thru the muffler hanger at this point.

Tighten the hanger bracket and install 1 flange nut and the muffler but just barely engaged.

Feed #2 & #3 on, the head connection won't line up right away, I used a bit of leverage at the bottom and they popped into the sockets.

Make sure the 3 band clamp connections are fully seated, tighten the head bolts, tighten the band clamps then the muffler hangers.

No cursing involved! They went on easy as pie. It's almost like they were meant to be together.

Hope this helps someone along the way. I am looking at a sheet of ice from overnight freezing rain and 6-10" of snow coming over the next 2 days so it will be a bit before I get to hear the pipes sing their tune.

[cajun31]

Buy some beer and invite a friend over. Much easier to install with two people. Oh ... by the way ... don't drink too much of the beer before you get them installed on the bike.

[2WheelFun]

On a scale of beers (6pack being most difficult), it was only a 1 beer job. I think the key was loosening the bracket on the right side to gain the clearance for sliding in the crossover pipe.

Detailing however, that is a 6pack job in itself.

[cajun31]

On a scale of beers (6pack being most difficult), it was only a 1 beer job. I think the key was loosening the bracket on the right side to gain the clearance for sliding in the crossover pipe.

Detailing however, that is a 6pack job in itself.

I can find any reason to drink some cold beer. My neighbor and I make up reasons on hot days. To install the exhaust by yourself.. and I strongly suggest that you get the beer and the friend to help... is to employ some good strong card board boxes to hold them up while mounting. I try to elevate them and stabilize them in the rear so that I can get the fronts mounted to the engine. I get a couple of the nuts started to hold them on the I get the rears in place and loosely mount those. Of course you have to get the two pipes pushed together while doing that. I leave everything loose and once everything is together I tighten the front bolts first ... then the rear then all the muffler joints. Back around 1982 I stripped my oil pan drain by overtightening the drain plug ... testosterone in play versus common sense and had to drop my exhaust to put the new oil pan on. Had a buddy helping me and somehow when putting the exhaust back on we must have bolted it up in the wrong sequence and put stress on the right main exhaust pipe right under the heat shield. the exhaust broke where the pipe joins the muffler. I had it tac welded while still on the bike but it never did work properly from then on. The sequence I described has worked for me since and is why I suggest tightening the joints last. The end up in a fairly stress free state after you have synched up the front and rear.