wrapping headers

[aussie59_imp]

Hi All.
just wondering if anyone has wrapped their exhaust headers ,or have any views on doing this. I am thinking of doing this as I hate trying to keep them clean .
cheers from OZ

 

[Gumby 1100_imp]

Hi All.
just wondering if anyone has wrapped their exhaust headers ,or have any views on doing this. I am thinking of doing this as I hate trying to keep them clean .
cheers from OZ

It does seem to be the 'trendy' thing to do among custom builders, but from a purely functional point of view, wrap is probably only needed on top fuel dragsters in order to draw heat away from the heads.

On a bike with a CAT and mufflers, they likely would only be 'cosmetic'.

On the downside, wrap tends to hold moisture, so your header would look even worse if you did eventually remove the wrap. You probably would need to remove the header to do a good wrapping job, and if that is the case, you might as well bite the bullet and just give them a good cleaning with Optiglanz or Napoleon Stainless Steel BBQ cleaner once a year. JMHO.

 

[DGShannon_imp]

Hi All.
just wondering if anyone has wrapped their exhaust headers ,or have any views on doing this. I am thinking of doing this as I hate trying to keep them clean .
cheers from OZ

It does seem to be the 'trendy' thing to do among custom builders, but from a purely functional point of view, wrap is probably only needed on top fuel dragsters in order to draw heat away from the heads.

On a bike with a CAT and mufflers, they likely would only be 'cosmetic'.

On the downside, wrap tends to hold moisture, so your header would look even worse if you did eventually remove the wrap. You probably would need to remove the header to do a good wrapping job, and if that is the case, you might as well bite the bullet and just give them a good cleaning with Optiglanz or Napoleon Stainless Steel BBQ cleaner once a year. JMHO.

And one I have never understood, as the cosmetic statement it has become.

 

[grover_imp]

I've actually heard that header wrap traps the heat, keeping the pipes from cooling as designed and possibly causing the steel to become compromised over time. I believe race cars do this to prevent heat soak into the air intake; of course, those cars are not exactly designed for longevity...


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[furious_blue_imp]

I paid mucho bucks, just to get a DLX with genuine double wall chromed headers.. no way I'm going to hide them under cloth (and also permanently ruin the finish underneath)..

but, if that does it for you.. post up some pics when you're done !

 

[Cormanus]

Poor old Aussie59 is here down under where the CB1100 had been and gone before old man Honda decided double wall chrome headers were the go. Me too, but I have a simple view: if Honda had wanted the 2010-2013 headers to stay shiny, it would have shipped them with double wall headers or a jar of Optiglanz. Mine came with neither so the race is on to see just how discoloured they can get.

 

[noroomtomove]

A while ago all the talk of cleaning gave me the guilts so ended up polishing up one pipe one cold evening. It hasn't warmed up yet so there is a slight chance that some chrome might see the light of day on the other three. But i'm in the go discoloured category.

As we are on the exhaust topic on which I have taken the pledge not to comment any further, will share that am applying 87504-028-670 to mine only for my personal bemusement and entertainment.

Regards from Gippsland

 

[Cormanus]

Cut it out, noroomtomove. The suspense is killing me. What on earth is part number 8754-28-670?

 

[DGShannon_imp]

Poor old Aussie59 is here down under where the CB1100 had been and gone before old man Honda decided double wall chrome headers were the go. Me too, but I have a simple view: if Honda had wanted the 2010-2013 headers to stay shiny, it would have shipped them with double wall headers or a jar of Optiglanz. Mine came with neither so the race is on to see just how discoloured they can get.

Based upon that logic, as your tires slowly lose air, I suppose no effort at maintenance is necessary, since Honda didn't ship the bike with leak proof tires, or an air compressor?

 

[Cormanus]

Yep. That's pretty close, DG.

 

[specialist8]

Poor old Aussie59 is here down under where the CB1100 had been and gone before old man Honda decided double wall chrome headers were the go. Me too, but I have a simple view: if Honda had wanted the 2010-2013 headers to stay shiny, it would have shipped them with double wall headers or a jar of Optiglanz. Mine came with neither so the race is on to see just how discoloured they can get.

Based upon that logic, as your tires slowly lose air, I suppose no effort at maintenance is necessary, since Honda didn't ship the bike with leak proof tires, or an air compressor?

Based upon that logic, as your tires slowly lose air, I suppose no effort at maintenance is necessary, since Honda didn't ship the bike with leak proof tires, or an air compressor?

HA. A bit off topic but this reminds of a conversation I had with a side-car enthusiast: He was an older gentleman complaining of all these guys bobbing out or cafe-ing their bikes. He couldn't understand why they just don't leave them alone. My first thoughts were, "unless you have a Ural (which to my knowledge is the only stock sidecar motorcycle out there), aren't you doing the same thing of 'changing' up your bike?". Ok, end rant.

 

[roadrash7_imp]

I have wrapped pipes before on a Yamaha V Star 1300. I had no damage whatsoever when I removed the tape 2 1/2 years later. I put the wrap on 2 individual straight pipes ,they were approximately 3 feet in length each. Surprisingly it took 50 feet of tape to wrap them. If you decide to do this, let the tape soak for about an hour in a bucket of water. Then wrap your pipes. You can get a really tight fit on the pipes with the wet tape. After you have wrapped the pipes, go for a ride and you will evaporate all the moisture out of the tape. It seemed all the younger riders like the it looked, most of the older riders didn't care for it.

 

[DGShannon_imp]

I have wrapped pipes before on a Yamaha V Star 1300. I had no damage whatsoever when I removed the tape 2 1/2 years later. I put the wrap on 2 individual straight pipes ,they were approximately 3 feet in length each. Surprisingly it took 50 feet of tape to wrap them. If you decide to do this, let the tape soak for about an hour in a bucket of water. Then wrap your pipes. You can get a really tight fit on the pipes with the wet tape. After you have wrapped the pipes, go for a ride and you will evaporate all the moisture out of the tape. It seemed all the younger riders like the it looked, most of the older riders didn't care for it.

Don't know why, but it makes me think of all the young guys thinking it looks cool to drop their suspension, slamming the car to the ground. Passed a kid in a Mercedes the other day, running just inches off the ground. The ride was so poor, every bump had his head bouncing around like a cheap bobble head give away. I swear there was no way he could keep a clear eye on the road, but he sure thought he looked cool! Meanwhile, he looked like a total idiot for ruining a nice car...

 

[gossman_imp]

Poor old Aussie59 is here down under where the CB1100 had been and gone before old man Honda decided double wall chrome headers were the go. Me too, but I have a simple view: if Honda had wanted the 2010-2013 headers to stay shiny, it would have shipped them with double wall headers or a jar of Optiglanz. Mine came with neither so the race is on to see just how discoloured they can get.

My sentiments exactly. Plus my knees, hips, and back kill me if I tried to keep them shiny. ........that's the excuse I give.

 

[Cormanus]

I have wrapped pipes before on a Yamaha V Star 1300. I had no damage whatsoever when I removed the tape 2 1/2 years later. I put the wrap on 2 individual straight pipes ,they were approximately 3 feet in length each. Surprisingly it took 50 feet of tape to wrap them. If you decide to do this, let the tape soak for about an hour in a bucket of water. Then wrap your pipes. You can get a really tight fit on the pipes with the wet tape. After you have wrapped the pipes, go for a ride and you will evaporate all the moisture out of the tape. It seemed all the younger riders like the it looked, most of the older riders didn't care for it.

Don't know why, but it makes me think of all the young guys thinking it looks cool to drop their suspension, slamming the car to the ground. Passed a kid in a Mercedes the other day, running just inches off the ground. The ride was so poor, every bump had his head bouncing around like a cheap bobble head give away. I swear there was no way he could keep a clear eye on the road, but he sure thought he looked cool! Meanwhile, he looked like a total idiot for ruining a nice car...

Don't know why, but it makes me think of all the young guys thinking it looks cool to drop their suspension, slamming the car to the ground. Passed a kid in a Mercedes the other day, running just inches off the ground. The ride was so poor, every bump had his head bouncing around like a cheap bobble head give away. I swear there was no way he could keep a clear eye on the road, but he sure thought he looked cool! Meanwhile, he looked like a total idiot for ruining a nice car...
That's a great image you created DGS. It reminded me of taxis in a south-east Asian country where the drivers cover the windscreen with as many convex mirrors as they can stick on, presumably to increase visibility. Then they whack two mighty strips of black tape across the windscreen so there's a gap of about 4 or 5 inches they expect to be able to peer through to keep an eye on what's happening out there. Add a plethora of red, yellow, and blue flashing LEDs and you've a bling mobile extraordinaire. The next challenge is to work your way through the gears and get it into 5th even before the speedo has registered movement.

It soon becomes clear why this is the only place I've ever been where the hearses go much faster than the taxis.