A wonderful gift from New Zealand today!

[sleeves]

Your header was a better fit then what I took off (stock). Saw no need for silicon. Did take my time with the torque wrench. Slowly tighten all three pipes evenly and did top bolts first then the bottom bolts. then went back and did a final torque check on top bolts. No silicon and no leaks.

What Sonny says

Ive had my pipes on and off numerous times, still have the original gaskets and have no leaks, just anneal them each time. Also make sure the headers are held parallel as you tighten up as they can fall in towards the motor, then you crush the gasket at an angle.

 

[mully95]

great...thanks everyone...yes, I used new copper gaskets...I've been reading those take time to seal and will leak slightly until then???

I DID NOT used the silicone...but now that everything is buttoned back up, what can I do? Is there an easy way to use the silicone without taking everything off again? OR Should I ride the bike and see if they seal?

ALSO, I need to get my tune updated, can I ride the bike gently for 15-20 minutes to drop it off by the tuner?

Double the gaskets!

I tried silicone to get mine to seal and it didn't work. Once I doubled the gaskets it sealed up instantly.

Place the old gaskets on first, added new gaskets, and then bolted up the header.... sealed!

Go ahead and order a new set of gaskets and get them on the way. Once they arrive take the header back off and then double them. You will pull your hair out until you double them.

 

[mully95]

On a side note.... if you have leak problems like I did look at the bottom of the header flange coming out the head. Where it turns down look to see if you have a clearance issue between the flange and the head.

Mine hit and would not let the header go towards the head enough to seal... UNTIL the gaskets was doubled. I took my header off and on a bunch of times trying to figure out what was going on...tried tightening the header up at different angles until I noticed the clearance issue... I could write a book about it.

 

[TURBO200R4]

there is silicone that is o2 safe. i would not use it on exhaust. jmo

 

[ChicagoRocket]

Double the gaskets!

I tried silicone to get mine to seal and it didn't work. Once I doubled the gaskets it sealed up instantly.

Place the old gaskets on first, added new gaskets, and then bolted up the header.... sealed!

Go ahead and order a new set of gaskets and get them on the way. Once they arrive take the header back off and then double them. You will pull your hair out until you double them.

Thanks! I dropped the old gaskets at the tuning shop I'm using. They did exactly what you said and NO MORE LEAKS!!

I'll be getting my custom tune tomorrow morning. Very excited.

 

[ChicagoRocket]

Ok gang. Tuner just called.

Bike is good to go, no more leaking header and custom tune.

Few concerns/questions...

1. I only gained about 11rwhp with the header and mid pipe. I've used the same tuner and dyno for all my mods. This seems awfully low. Any thoughts?

2. The heat from the new header system is very high. I've read this system produces less heat. My tuner noticed and even tuned it slightly rich to help. Thoughts?

Thanks.

 

[scot in exile]

Any complete after market exhaust system is going to be a lot hotter than stock, stock usually(like the rocket) have great heat shields while most after market do not.
What is the ID of the system? could be part of the small gain, also what air intake are you running remember the exhaust can only put out what the engine can bring in.

 

[ChicagoRocket]

I'm running ramair. What do you mean ID of the system?

 

[scot in exile]

inside diameter of the pipe

 

[ChicagoRocket]

inside diameter of the pipe

It's the Viking header and mid pipe. But sure. I'll find out.