so i want to change up my mufflers on my 78' prob being every muffler i have tried is either not big enough ( 1.5" ) or is to loose ( 1.75" ) or gets in the way of the brake pedal. I cut off the stock mufflers but nothing seems to fit snug, the ends seem to be smaller than 1.75 and larger then 1.5". I'd love to put a set of 12" shorty's on the end but they just don't fit tight and reduscer don't work either. suggestions??
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Those reducers you get with the mufflers are useless. I went to my local metal supplier and bought a 12" piece of this tubing. You have to open up the inside a little to fit the pipe. I made mine so it was a drive on fit and then used a 1 3/4" muffler. If you have access to a lathe it's an easy job. The stock header pipes are double wall and need to be joined together after you cut off the mufflers. I brazed mine together but there are other ways. Pamco Pete had a method with some kind of auto muffler adapter I think, maybe try a search.
http://www.speedymetals.com/pc-4578-8371-1-34-od-x-125-wall-tube-6061-t6-aluminum.aspx
http://www.speedymetals.com/pc-4578-8371-1-34-od-x-125-wall-tube-6061-t6-aluminum.aspx
JR Hammer
XS650 enthusiast
Mufflers?? we dont need no stinking mufflers!
seriously though, just weld em on there !!!
seriously though, just weld em on there !!!
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As Grinder said the stock headpipe is a double wall pipe. you need to get the muffler to seal to the inner pipe.
The method mentioned by grinder uses some car exhaust adapters and a chrome plumbing pipe to cover the joint. Looks good and works well.
Leo
The method mentioned by grinder uses some car exhaust adapters and a chrome plumbing pipe to cover the joint. Looks good and works well.
Leo
I had the same issue fitting the Mike'sXS Brit style mufflers to my 83 Heritage Special. I did what PamcoPete did, and used a muffler reducer to fit up the new pipes to the old headpipes. I used an 1 5/8" ID to 1 1/2" OD adapter to fit them up (you MUST NOT get the OD and ID mixed up. I ended up going back to the store a couple of times..). Here's the issue...the old head pipes did not quite slide into the wide end of the adapter, while the narrow end fit perfectly inside the new mufflers. What I did was swage open the 1 5/8" end with a large 1/2" drive socket. I put the adapter and the socket in line in a vise and clamped them together, forcing the socket into the adapter, thereby swaging it out to the proper dimension. A little oil is recommended to help it all along, although it went very smoothly. The gradual bend between the two diameters was transformed into more of a sharp step, but this was not a problem. The finished product was not quite square, bit it went together without drama. The adapter slipped on over the headpipe end like it was made for it. Once bolted in place, the whole affair was straight and looked factory. Unfortunately, the join was ugly, as the adapter is built for function and not form, since it is hidden up under a car and expected to rust out and fail in normal operation. I then did Pete's trick of dressing it up with a chrome sink drain pipe. Luckily, I know a plumber who was happy to sacrifice a length of drain pipe. He used a pipe cutter to make two equal lengths of 1 1/2" drain pipe just long enough to cover the exposed length of adapter which slipped over the end of the headpipes. I placed these short pipe lengths in a vise and carefully cut them along their length on one side, so I could spread the edges apart and slip them over the adapter. It was actually quite a tight fit. I was worried that the amount of gap I had to open up would permanently deform the covers, but once I got them over the major diameter of the adapter, they snapped tightly into place and looked absolutely factory made! Repeated runs have not adversely affected the fit. They have not come loose, nor discoloured. I was extremely happy with the results. The only issue with these Brit-style pipes is the contact between the center stand stem and the pipe. I cut mine off, but it is pretty hard to use the center stand now, so anyone using these particular pipes may want to put in a bit more effort into solving that issue.
By the way, the old pipes I took off were clamped to the outside pipes only. There were no ill effects from this arrangement. I had suspected that these old mufflers were not the originals since they had removable baffles, and now I see from another post that they are in fact Emgo Widemouth mufflers. They actually have a nice deep bark with the baffles removed.
By the way, the old pipes I took off were clamped to the outside pipes only. There were no ill effects from this arrangement. I had suspected that these old mufflers were not the originals since they had removable baffles, and now I see from another post that they are in fact Emgo Widemouth mufflers. They actually have a nice deep bark with the baffles removed.
I think you used the wrong adapter. The front is supposed to fit into the headpipe, between it's outer and inner walls, not over it. You want something like a 1 1/2"O.D. x 1 3/8"O.D. (or maybe 1 7/16"O.D.) adapter.
I still have a collection of adapters that I tried, and I did attempt to connect to the inner pipes to no avail. The 1 3/8" adapter was too big to fit in the gap between outer and inner pipes. Believe me, I tried... The current arrangement is tight, strong and good looking. Not to denigrate Pete's method at all, this is just what worked for me.
