The BSA A7-A10 Forum
Technical (Descriptive Topic Titles - Stay on Topic) => Frame => Topic started by: bakerlonglegs on 29.03. 2020 22:49
-
Please may I ask for some advice?
I bought a new exhaust system for my A10 plunger project from an eBay seller, it’s a Wassel system. Unfortunately the fit is poor. The exits of both header pipes are angled slightly down at the silencer ends, which means the silencer brackets end up way below the frame mounts, see pic. I can’t send it back, as the pipes are marked from my attempts to fit them and it’s been 10 months since I bought them.
If I try and force the silencers up to meet the mounting points they just bend at the clamp, creasing the chrome. I have tried to bend the ends of the header pipes up, using a jack, but that didn’t work with moderate force and I’m very reluctant to use gorilla effort in case I damage the exhaust ports.
Should I just live with the creases at the clamps and be thankful that they fit (of a fashion), or is there another ruse?
Thanks!
-
If the headers look ok I’d just cut a wedge out of the header very close to the end of the silencer, and mig weld it up, for ease of holding it together I’d not cut the pipe all the way through. With the weld right next to the silencer it should not show too much.
An automotive car exhaust place might be able to bend the header, but you’d have to take bike there I guess.
-
The supplier named in your post says it all. They don't make the pipes, but as an observation, appear deaf to the ears of their trade customers and end users. The same problems continue to appear.
No surprise here, the pipes from any of the major factors rarely fit first time.
Are they the correct pipes? Plunger mounting bracket "plunges DOWN", S/A pipes bracket points "UP"
The problem can be two possibles. One will be in the sweep of the header. This will be impossible to bend to correct without damage using backyard technology. Second possible is simply the bracket is in the wrong place.
Easy solution is to forget the lower front mounting bracket, see how the pipe lies, then adapt or amend the bracket for the best compromise. Any amendment here is less noticeable, and in fact may only require minor adjustment, as any error here in misalignment is magnified as it reaches the silencer. The pipes should be a straight run to the silencer. S/A pipes have slight kink on the drive side pipe. Plunger pipe runs very close to the back of the brake pedal, silencer front end is very, very close to the frame, a gnat's knacker dimension.
If they are too bad, then Kiwi's way is the next step. Surgery and/or major force. Avoid any force on the ports. Pipes are cheaper than cylinder heads.
Swarfy.
-
The supplier named in your post says it all. They don't make the pipes, but as an observation, appear deaf to the ears of their trade customers and end users. The same problems continue to appear.
Swarfy.
I had no better luck with headers from Armours so there you go.
-
On mine the brackets below the engine were too far away so need spacers. The silencer bracket is a little low so the silencer needs springing up. The front of the silencer touches the frame. All in all, not too bad and looks OK.
-
I have got out of similar situations by easing the pipe's bend (in or out as necessary). Youl'll need a stoutish tree (not huge, say foot dia trunk) with a fork in it. Place pipe in fork and give it a heave. Best to measure it first so you can monitor progress. You'll need a bit of grunt - maybe two people if you're under 16st. Using a tree rarely leaves any evidence on the pipes. As mentioned above DO NOT bend the piped by levering them whilst in the cyl head.
-
I had no better luck with headers from Armours so there you go.
While I've bought several from them over the years (the last being a complete stainless system for the A7) and all have fitted perfectly, I'm pleased to say.
-
Thank you very much for all your replies, that’s really helpful! I thought I might have a dud set but it seems to be a common problem. I’m glad I stopped to ask for advice before doing something expensively stupid *smile* . I’ll go and have another look, try some ideas and report back.
-
My problem was with the left hand front pipe that located so close to the footrest stud nut that I had to bash a dent in it (the pipe) in order to get it connected to the silencer. The nut is slimmer than normal, but there was so little room the 'dent' was necessary. The bottom half of the nut now sits in the 'recess I created in the pipe. You can't see it because it's hidden by the primary case and l/h footrest. Any ideas why the fitting was so tight, or is it just a manufacturing issue.
One other thing, anyone know where I can get bushes for the centre stand. It's a bit slack so catches the l/h silencer when I push it off the stand.
Cheers all.
-
If your stand is anything like mine the unwanted extra travel was because the frame lugs had worn egg-shaped and no bush was going to cure that. I used a MiG welder to weld the holes circular again. I put a length of aluminium round bar through the lugs in the position the stand ought to sit and welded up to the bar, then dressed with a grinder to clean it up. Worked well.
-
One other thing, anyone know where I can get bushes for the centre stand. It's a bit slack so catches the l/h silencer when I push it off the stand.
Getting tired of the bike behaving like a sideways rocking horse when on the centre stand I have just finished bushing the stand.
In my case it was not only the centre stand, but also the frame lugs that had worn oval.
I drilled out the frame lugs to 15mm and turned stainless steel bushes of 11mm inside diameter and a new shaft to a tight fit in the frame bushes so the shaft wouldn't move in the frame bushes.
For the stand I reamed out the holes to 13mm and turned a couple of bronze bushes with an inside diameter slightly over 11mm to a sliding fit over the shaft.
We'll see how that works out over time...
-
^^like it morris, as my dad sometimes said, but not to me, " your no shop egg *good3*
-
Hi,
An update on how this worked out: both exhausts are now fitted and fixed at all points. After a lot of hmming and ahhhing the best way I could deal with it was to bend the front brackets forward to meet the engine and frame stud. It’s not pretty - the brackets were miles out and it took a lot of trial and error to get them this far but at least it’s on now. Hopefully pic attached. Thanks again all for your help *good3*
-
Hi,
An update on how this worked out: both exhausts are now fitted and fixed at all points. After a lot of hmming and ahhhing the best way I could deal with it was to bend the front brackets forward to meet the engine and frame stud. It’s not pretty - the brackets were miles out and it took a lot of trial and error to get them this far but at least it’s on now. Hopefully pic attached. Thanks again all for your help *good3*
I made a couple of spacers for those brackets. I cannot remember if I had to use a length of studding instead of the original item.
-
hi, I have exactly the same problem with my ebay purchased wassel pipes , problem is I bought them long before my rebuild and have only just discovered this - way to late to send them back ! so going to have to sort them out ( possibly using one of the suggestions on here ) very annoying though *sad2*
-
I know this isnt very helpful but Id give my eye teeth for a set of original pipes, u can spot them a mile off. Y cant pattern pipe benders get that curve smooth and with constant dia....instead of the creased and reduced dia rubbish we have to pay for.
I actually tried to track down a previous owner to see if hed removed the originals from my bike but no luck...
-
They are still selling these pipes they came back up for sale last year I got the system for my s r from the same place that was ok the left side fitted fine the right is pointing down when fitted so there's a bit of a dog leg when the silencer is fitted from the head to the bracket was fine but then the bend is not sharp enough. as I got way before I fitted them I can't send them back. I will sort the problem out but you should not need to it showes you the suppliers are not rectifying these issues so do not order till you need one
-
Ian, a mandrel bent pipe doesn't crease, its a smooth continuous bend, but they cost more so many quick fit exhaust shops don't use them but most more "professional" places would have them. The issue then though is getting the 3D bend right including the spring back, that's difficult when its a one off for them, particularly if you want to use stainless steel....
-
As Jule said.
probably 90% of all pipes are made from welding short sections of a flat bent pipe together which is why they all look so wrong.
It takes a special mandrel to do a sweeping curve in 3 dimensions.
Overlander has one of these which is why I get new pipes from Barry