Guest Pete McCrary Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 I'm getting ready to install a complete set of '99 catless headers on my '02 VFR. I've noticed that the '99 headers don't have a bracket in the middle to bolt the front header system to the bottom of the engine as the 6th Gen headers do. Anyone ever have a problem with '99 headers not wanting to stay in place or coming loose when installed on a 6th Gen model? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer FotoMoto Posted January 4, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted January 4, 2008 5th gen headers falling of the 5th gen is a HUGE problem. (umm, can you feel the sarcasm?) No cat=nope. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veefer Madness Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 5th gen headers falling of the 5th gen is a HUGE problem. (umm, can you feel the sarcasm?)No cat=nope. DAMMIT!!!! :angry: Ya HAD to tell him, didn't ya? :beer: I was just ready to 'tell' him his bike was gonna fall apart and I'd 'help' him with a solution.... :goofy: :goofy: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Thanks guys for the astute advice. I just got concerned when I saw that the 6th Gen headers have an additonal mounting point that the 5th Gen doesn't. I assume it's to take the additional weight of the catalytic converter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veefer800Canuck Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 You will have to fab up a centerstand stop though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlecreek Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 here is my simple stop method: jbweld Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mechdziner714 Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 I have used a jack on the header to lift the front end on my 5th gen w/ out that bracket. Many others have done to their 6th Gen so you should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer FotoMoto Posted January 4, 2008 Member Contributer Share Posted January 4, 2008 here is my simple stop method: jbweld Turtle, If you take the clamp off and flip it 180 so the bolts will be on the bottom of the pipe AND add longer bolts, it will act as the stop. If you don't like the clang sound it makes upon contact with the stand, slip a small piece of rubber hose over the threads. This will also help with rust issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlecreek Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Turtle, If you take the clamp off and flip it 180 so the bolts will be on the bottom of the pipe AND add longer bolts, it will act as the stop. If you don't like the clang sound it makes upon contact with the stand, slip a small piece of rubber hose over the threads. This will also help with rust issue. will that let it go up further and provide more clearance? it works great the way it is, but if i got more clearance, i might try it with the rubberr hose idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspanglish Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 will that let it go up further and provide more clearance? it works great the way it is, but if i got more clearance, i might try it with the rubberr hose idea. That would depend on the angle you settle on for the bracket. That is, whether the point of contact is the bolt or the eyelets in the bracket which double as nuts. The bracket is very similar to those used in plumbing, whereeby the thread is incorporated in the braket eyelets, no real nuts involved!! (And therefore no Gold Bond TM required). If you angle the bracket such that the centrestand comes to rest on the brackets' eyelets (the part which acts as the nut) I reckon you'll gain just a tad more clearance than you have now, judging by the thickness of that chunk of rubber you've stuck on there. But if it comes to rest on the bolts then you'll get even more, although you'll also gain that clunking noise in both cases. I'm not 100% sure you can choose between bracket or bolt as the final point of impact due to the angle at which the parts involved will meet, but either way, once you've used some rubber hose you'll probably be back to the same clearance you started with. Of course I'm judging all this on your photo, with no measurements to go by. If, in the end, it is possible for the centre stand to rest only on the bolts, you could get some rubber tubing of the exact inner diameter as the outer diameter of the bolts and cut it to the length between the two eyelets and sleeve the bolt with that. My 0.50 cents' worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 I just made up a jig tonight to locate the tab and hole for the center stand stop on the 6th Gen headers before I removed them. A couple of pieces of 3/4" plywood and a 1" x 1" piece of wood with a 7/16" hole in it. That way I can weld a tab onto the 5th Gen headers in the exact same place as the 6th Gen header has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Some people are into over-engineering! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtlecreek Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 Some people are into over-engineering! no such thing as over-engineering......it's called 'customizing' :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEBSPEED Posted January 5, 2008 Share Posted January 5, 2008 no such thing as over-engineering......it's called 'customizing' :thumbsup: Amen! :pissed: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 Some people are into over-engineering! As a matter of fact I make my living as a Professional Engineer. Runs in my blood to do things this way. Biggest advantage is I have two different types of welders in my shop. Welding the is handiest skill a person can have when it comes to fabbing up stuff for a bike. Makes you approach things from a whole different perspective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEBSPEED Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 Some people are into over-engineering! As a matter of fact I make my living as a Professional Engineer. Runs in my blood to do things this way. Biggest advantage is I have two different types of welders in my shop. Welding the is handiest skill a person can have when it comes to fabbing up stuff for a bike. Makes you approach things from a whole different perspective. I'd like to add another AMEN! (I'm aerospace certified for aluminum and stainless TIG, and own a MIG :salesman: ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 6, 2008 Share Posted January 6, 2008 Some people are into over-engineering! As a matter of fact I make my living as a Professional Engineer. Runs in my blood to do things this way. Biggest advantage is I have two different types of welders in my shop. Welding the is handiest skill a person can have when it comes to fabbing up stuff for a bike. Makes you approach things from a whole different perspective. I'd like to add another AMEN! (I'm aerospace certified for aluminum and stainless TIG, and own a MIG :salesman: ) Picking up a 115 volt MIG machine is not that expensive nor is an oxy/actylene (sp?) set up. Get somebody that knows how to weld to teach you, read up on it, or take a course at a local vocational school. You can put a welding setup in your home shop cheaper than you can buy a set of slip ons for your bike. Riding a KTM Duke you must know how to weld. It shakes and vibrates so many parts apart you have to know how to weld them back together. I just got a bottle of argon and some aluminum wire. Been reading up on learning how to MIG aluminum. Bought me some aluminum pieces at MSC to practice on before I start trying to make something. Best thing I ever read about welding: treat the pieces as if you were getting ready to paint them. Have them that clean and it will make all the difference in the world regardless of the type of welding you're going to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEBSPEED Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 The aluminum I weld at work goes through a chemical deoxidizing and cleaning process before I can weld it, and even then I still brush with a clean wire brush every time. I've never tried to MIG aluminum, but I have heard multiple times to not bother trying with a 110v welder. You might be able to pull of some real thin stuff, but don't expect much from it. If you've got some small stuff you want tigged, let me know, I'll help you out. I'd hate to see you ruin a good part trying to fuse it with the little MIG. I just did some frame work on my '83 project yesterday: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 Thanks for the info. So you're basically saying it's going to take a lot more amps/volts to MIG aluminum than steel? All I'm trying to do is build a new tag bracket for my KTM. I'll be using quarter inch by 1 inch aluminum bar, eighth inch by one inch aluminum bar, and one eighth by 4" by 6" plate for the actual tag mounting surface. Could a 110 volt machine handle stuff of that size? What's you're thoughts on brazing aluminum with that super duper stuff I've seen on the internet. They claim you can braze aluminum with a propane torch. Ever heard of it or tried it? This is a link to the material I'm referring to. What's you're thoughts? http://aluminumrepair.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEBSPEED Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 Thanks for the info. So you're basically saying it's going to take a lot more amps/volts to MIG aluminum than steel? All I'm trying to do is build a new tag bracket for my KTM. I'll be using quarter inch by 1 inch aluminum bar, eighth inch by one inch aluminum bar, and one eighth by 4" by 6" plate for the actual tag mounting surface. Could a 110 volt machine handle stuff of that size?What's you're thoughts on brazing aluminum with that super duper stuff I've seen on the internet. They claim you can braze aluminum with a propane torch. Ever heard of it or tried it? This is a link to the material I'm referring to. What's you're thoughts? http://aluminumrepair.com/ Yes, and aluminum needs to be welded on high frequency too. I weld .040" AL between 40-50amps, with the tig. I wouldn't trust the mig with more than a 1/16" material(.060"), but if it's not structural, and the vibrations will be low to minimal, try it. If it doesn't work, I'll fix it for ya. :beer: Seriously though, if you want to send me some dimensions and your pieces, I'll hook you up. :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 Thanks for the info. So you're basically saying it's going to take a lot more amps/volts to MIG aluminum than steel? All I'm trying to do is build a new tag bracket for my KTM. I'll be using quarter inch by 1 inch aluminum bar, eighth inch by one inch aluminum bar, and one eighth by 4" by 6" plate for the actual tag mounting surface. Could a 110 volt machine handle stuff of that size?What's you're thoughts on brazing aluminum with that super duper stuff I've seen on the internet. They claim you can braze aluminum with a propane torch. Ever heard of it or tried it? This is a link to the material I'm referring to. What's you're thoughts? http://aluminumrepair.com/ Yes, and aluminum needs to be welded on high frequency too. I weld .040" AL between 40-50amps, with the tig. I wouldn't trust the mig with more than a 1/16" material(.060"), but if it's not structural, and the vibrations will be low to minimal, try it. If it doesn't work, I'll fix it for ya. :unsure: Seriously though, if you want to send me some dimensions and your pieces, I'll hook you up. :thumbsup: Thanks Sebastain. Here in a month or so when I get the pieces cut and jigged up, I will be in touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SEBSPEED Posted January 7, 2008 Share Posted January 7, 2008 Thanks Sebastain. Here in a month or so when I get the pieces cut and jigged up, I will be in touch. Sure, just let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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