Tips on Exhaust Repacking

Mechanical woes? Ask other members for tips and advice.

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Falcopops
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Tips on Exhaust Repacking

#1 Post by Falcopops » Mon May 26, 2008 11:25 pm

I found a hollow spot in my Carbon Can Co - carbon fibre oval cans on my Falco and decided to repack them myself. Drilling out the rivets and dismantling them was a piece of cake. Rebuilding (did one last night) is a different story.

The way these cans are built is by slipping the caps into the inside of the sleeve and pop riveting a band round the outside of the sleeve at the cap, so you have the CF sandwiched between the cap and the band. Now these caps are a tight fit in the sleeves as you'd expect, but bugger me they're bloody tight. The exit end cap is merely that, but the input cap is joined to the perforated core tube and is a couple of feet long.

Getting the packing was a weeks wait for the shop to get some in. You'll need 2 packs said the bloke, OK says I, but when I picked them up I had to order another 4 and wait another week for them.

Meanwhile I thought I'd nip down to the hardware shop and get some stainless steel wire wool to wrap the core. :smt009 Couldn't get it anywhere, eventually had to get some sent from a company in Sydney, took 2 weeks. Managed to find stainless steel pop rivets though :smt001

So the tips:-

1 Don't do it - it's bloody hard work, especially in Oz where getting stuff that's easily available in the UK, is like trying to find a bloody spider that isn't poisonous

2 Don't use your wife’s best scissors to try and cut the stainless steel wire wool - they won't do the job and apparently now they won't do any other job either. :smt009

3 Wear gloves when buggering about with the wire wool - there was no blood loss (that comes later), but the bits stuck in your skin are really annoying 'coz you can't even see them to pull them out.

4 Oval cans only have oval end caps - the carbon fibre sleeve reverts to round the instant it's not on the caps.

5 Oval caps don't fit into round sleeves - try this with an infant’s shape sorter, it's great fun NOT!

6 Put silicone sealant on the inside of the sleeve not on the outside of the cap so you don't get it all over you, the sleeve, the cap, the floor, the cat - ever tried putting a fag down when your glued to it? - mineral wipes or baby wipes com in useful about now.

7 The sheared ends of pop rivets are really sharp, take care - this was the blood loss part.

8 When dismantling keep the parts of each exhaust separate - they won't necessarily be interchangeable, but you won't notice this 'till it’s time to start swearing.

9 Now this is a good one. Put the sleeve somewhere warm and put the caps in the freezer for half an hour. The sleeve expands and the caps contract. Makes getting the aforementioned oval into round job easier, by no means a breeze just easier - do, however, wrap up the long core part in plastic bag, 'coz no matter how clean you consider it to be your partner will disagree :smt014

I’m going to do the other one tonight if I can summon up the courage. Pretty satisfying to do something new and the results look good (well at least the same as before I took them apart).

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#2 Post by Gio » Tue May 27, 2008 5:38 am

Oh dear, I'm so glad my sons Rene cans are a piece of cake to repack :smt003

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#3 Post by Syltiz » Tue May 27, 2008 11:10 am

Did my Blueflames in February.... and I can relate to everything you have mentioned :smt003 mainly I concur with point 1 - dont do it. I wont bother again.

I found my end caps were glued on and really struggled to remove them.

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Re: Tips on Exhaust Repacking

#4 Post by D-Rider » Tue May 27, 2008 2:57 pm

Falcopops wrote: So the tips:-

3 Wear gloves when buggering about with the wire wool - there was no blood loss (that comes later), but the bits stuck in your skin are really annoying 'coz you can't even see them to pull them out.
You were lucky there Dale .... reminds me of when I couldn't afford new pipes for my CB175 so decided to pack them with wire wool and then fit some plates over the places they'd rusted through.
That plan was fine ... the execution wasn't.

Lesson learned. Holding a clump (technical term :smt002 ) of wire wool in two hands and pulling apart to separate is not the smartest move in the world.
If only I'd thought "Cheese Wire".
Cut my index fingers down to the bone. Just went into shock too - the moment I realised what I'd done.
I've always been very wary of that stuff since that little game.

Anyway - well done for persevering and sorting your cans. :smt023

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#5 Post by Kwackerz » Tue May 27, 2008 7:48 pm

**irrelevant safety announcement**

Dont, when youve finished with your wire wool, shove it in your toolbox amongst randomly placed 9v square batteries (fire alarm type ones)

The fire they cause when combined, although impressive, (like a mini welding set) isnt big or clever and does fekkin hurt if that toolbox happens to be your pocket...


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#6 Post by back_marker » Tue May 27, 2008 10:05 pm

Kwackerz wrote:**irrelevant safety announcement**

Dont, when youve finished with your wire wool, shove it in your toolbox amongst randomly placed 9v square batteries (fire alarm type ones)

The fire they cause when combined, although impressive, (like a mini welding set) isnt big or clever and does fekkin hurt if that toolbox happens to be your pocket...


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Handy if your ciggy lighter runs out of gas though...
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#7 Post by HisNibbs » Wed Jun 04, 2008 9:02 pm

Thanks for the info Dale..

35k miles on SL Carbons and it doesn't sound like there is much packing left. I think I'll think about it some more though.....
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#8 Post by Gio » Wed Jun 04, 2008 9:55 pm

Dunno about other makes but the 2 sorts I've had (Renegades and Befexhausts) the packing lasts about 5k miles

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#9 Post by Falcopops » Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:01 pm

HisNibbs wrote:Thanks for the info Dale..

35k miles on SL Carbons and it doesn't sound like there is much packing left. I think I'll think about it some more though.....
Hi Keith, how's tricks?

Want to watch out for discolouration of the carbon, that's what tipped me off. Just a tiny sort of yellowing where the packing was deficient. I don't know if the SL's are a carbon sleve over something more substantial. My Carbon Can Co's have no liner and I'm glad I caught it before any major failure.

:smt006 to the girls.

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