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exhaust bolts coming loose

  • Thread starter Thread starter dr_fosg8
  • Start date Start date
D

dr_fosg8

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Allrighty folks, just like the title says, my exhaust bolts won't stay torqued down.

I did a search and found post after post of stuck or broken off exhaust bolts but nothing about this. I could literally retighten them before every ride. If left alone after about 150 miles of riding I can hear the exhaust leaking at the heads.

Has anyone ever encountered this before? I was thinking of some loc-tite or something but am scared of that and also not sure it would work with the high heat in that area. Maybe some lock washers on there?

Got any ideas throw em out there. I am looking for any suggestions to keep them tight.
 
Never heard of that but threads somewhere must be inadequate. I guess you can't really check the internal female threads but how do the threads on the bolts look.?
 
I expect New Gaskets would help a lot - they sort of "push back" in the way a lock washer does when they're new... When they're fully compressed from lots of use they don't do this...
 
As Salty stated, it could not hurt.
I have re-used the same gaskets for many, many years though.
And yes, I have to remove my exhaust for each oil change. ( One piece system)

Eric
 
I would use studs and nuts, not bolts. Your threads in the head must be worn, studs will wear them less.
 
If you use studs you could put them in with red loctite. Check the temp rating, they do one that will take high heat.

Dan :)
 
I feel for ya man. In general, listen to Salty on this post.
My 2 cents: red locktite is pretty permanent, so yeah you can (prob should as Salt says) use on in the head end of exhaust studs. BUT, and as several posts also state, use anti-sieze goop on the stud end that you attach ex/header too.

Or you'll have a hell of an impossible time getting the header off when you have to ch the oil (I have same situation w my header too as far as has to come off to ch oil).

Ok, 67fire et al - exhaust gaskets? what? i can't see what bike drfosgate has, but mine has no such thing...it's more like a "compression fitting" thing. Is it just his year bike which I don't know about, or am I ready for a white coat with straps and a rubber room???:confused::confused:
 
One of mine actually came loose just like yours (right at the headers) coming from work the other day. I just tightened it back down when I got back home, but now that I know this is kinda common and not an isolated thing, I'll order those new gaskets on my eBay watch list and locate some new bolts.
 
I actually lost a couple of bolts once, (exhaust was getting awfully loud......:confused:), but I installed new gaskets when I did the head gasket and that made a big difference. They stil loosen up periodically, but I check them and tighten them as needed, just like my tach cable.
 
andrewpogany said:
Ok, 67fire et al - exhaust gaskets? what? i can't see what bike drfosgate has, but mine has no such thing...it's more like a "compression fitting" thing. Is it just his year bike which I don't know about, or am I ready for a white coat with straps and a rubber room???:confused::confused:
Click to expand...

Yes. You have exhaust gaskets. If you look at a fische for your bike it's #4 on the muffler diagram. If you don't have 'em, I'd get a new set. Sometimes the old ones have been left in there so long, they look like a part of the head and are difficult to see.:)
 
Both of my GSs came with only 7 bolts. My 850 had no gaskets (I've since bought them, haven't installed them). I haven't had the exhaust off my 650 yet to see if there are exhaust gaskets on it, or if the PO didn't think they were important enough.
 
Well I got some new bolts from the local Fastenal store. Lucky to have one of those close by, those 45mm lengths seem to be hard to come by:p.

Got them installed with a bit of anti-sieze and some new hardened lock washers. They actually seems to torque down better, could have just been my imagination being optimistic though. I will have to see how they do after a couple of rides.
 
Whatever you do, don't ever be tempted to over-tighten them to hold them in place. A stripped thread or snapped bolt (in the motor) will be a complete PITA.
 
Zooks, that worries me all the time with torquing in cast aluminum. I torqued them to around 150 inch pounds. Which now that I typed it out and thought about it, is 2.5 foot pounds too tight. Should have been 120 inch pounds.

You would think with as much as I have tightened these I would have remembered that:o
 
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