carlgustav

Same experience here with one of these, broke the end off, years ago. Company requested a pic, and stated they would send a replacement, never did. Did not purchase from them again. Your experience will vary . ACE

Thx SF. To be fair, my headers are one of the prototypes so some issues are possibly expected. My header leaks that you refer to are quite small, and maybe can be sealed with the Permatex stuff. Not sure if the stuff will stay in place though. Center of pic up top: And in joints: Once I seal the large leaks, these may have a negligible effect at idle, and maybe no effect at running RPMs? ACE

SF is right, lots of good folks out here. So I decided not to offend Marvelicious any further with talk of roach clips/kleenex . Using his suggestion, and an idea from youtube, I set this up: Blasting air thru the system, and using the soap solution ... well: And ... a little harder to see but center of pic slightly left of shock ... And also ... I have a small leak around one of the O2 sensors as well ... very small. The sensor just needs tightening, or maybe a new washer, we'll see. Looks like a bit of re-assembly is in order. I'm still considering returning exhaust to stock to see if things return to 'normal'. Then move forward with new headers again. ACE

Ok, mine sure did not behave like the bike in the vid, so there's that. I'll replace my maintenance items, then drop the new headers to look over the gaskets. I may have boogered one or more up on install. I never tried that test with the old headers, might be interesting (to me) to see what happens. A bit of work but she's stripped down and on the lift already. It's riding, not wrenching, season damnit . Thx, ACE

@Mohawk; there is a dyno guy in my area but I have no experience using him. He tunes built sports car motors, and HDs. I spoke to him and he said he could look at the RBR SW if I bring my laptop out, and see what he could do. That was just before my bike crapped out, so I have to get her running well enough with the new headers to get to his shop. And I do understand that she's not meant to run right with no airbox, sensor connections, etc. @MM; I ran the motor at idle just long enough to put a piece cardboard over the header outlet, tight, and she did not stall or die. However, holding a small piece of kleenex with a roach clip near each head pipe, it didn't flutter. If there's a leak, it ain't much. I'll go ahead and replace the items I have, since I'm there as you say. I have the stock air filter, but shining a light thru it indicates it's rather clean. I have a new laptop, so I have to find my copy of the RBR SW, and my original map, to put on it. I may have to consider a MTB module, but I suspect they're expensive ... ACE

@MM, sure, sounds easy enough. In ref to your vacuum line discovery, mine all appear to be good so nothing there to do. ACE

I 'removed' the RBR unit (I do not have the MTB) Sat, and rode around long enough to note that the same symptoms are still present. So at this point, based on your feedback, I probably should swap the headers back and see what happens. Crap, this goes along with the idea that 'when a new problem occurs after doing something, go back to the last thing you did' . I have the stock ECM (ECU?) in play, tank loose and flipped around for access, and airbox removed. She fires right up but I haven't run her more than a couple of seconds. Sure looks wet down around the valves, but I'm assuming start up fueling is doing this (now throws a code too of course, IAT disconnected, etc). I have a new FPR and fuel filter on hand. Would it be reasonable to just go ahead and replace these while I'm there? Seems like the answer is yes, but this may add another variable to problem? I've seen suggestions to pull the plugs and examine when you have running issues (makes sense). Maybe it's just old school thinking, but don't you have to do this after shutting down immediately following a run with load? Doing so is not practical for me. ACE

Will do. Although I just ordered mine and it won't be here till next week (2 - 5 days). Gives me time to look at various areas while I wait ...

I appreciate the feedback. @GiD; sorry about not mentioning fuel smell, it's hard to remember all the little anecdotal things I notice after I'm off the bike for a bit, and then post. Another anecdotal bit, my fuel guage displayed level appears to be dropping much more rapidly than 'normal'. Over 10 yrs of riding her, I've gotten a 'feel' for how the guage 'acts' (I think we all get a 'feel' for our bikes behavior, don't we), and it ain't right at the moment. Very non-scientific observation and my mind could be playing tricks as I wasn't expecting any issues in the first place . @MM; I installed my RB years ago, just the harness and the unit with the map developed for the VFR at the time, using the stock O2 sensors (2 on my 6th gen). I downloaded the map and had a look back then, but did nothing to it. She has run like this until now, without a hitch. Very low RPM for me means, idling in the driveway, and pulling away in 1st gear, although pulling away requires running up the throttle to keep from stalling. Once up into 2nd, she ran better, but that seems to be getting worse now also. Without going back to the original map I pulled down, I'm not sure what the correcting threshold is. If you're getting the impression that I'm a 'set it and forget it' kind of person, you would be right . I will have to pull out the map, the SW, etc., and have a look. And yes, even with the RB 'return to stock' module, the symptoms did not go away. I could remove the RB stuff completely, restoring all stock connections, and see what happens. It will be interesting to read the results of your fuel filter replacement. Your statement about having a new FPR, and clean injectors, and experiencing the symptoms you note, makes me think I'll just replace the fuel filter. I guess I'll have to do some work ... nuts. This is my one bike I rarely have to 'fix'. ACE

I'm sure it does thx, haven't looked at the SW in a while. I should probably have spelled out RB, RapidBike, some here are familiar with this unit. Funny thing is I swear I smell more fuel idling in the driveway, as in richer, which makes no sense then.

Hey folks, So I think I have a fueling problem with my 6th gen. Naturally the symptoms started just after I installed the new performance headers and was starting to enjoy riding with them. I believe this is coincidental though, based on the symptoms. Which are: - rough idling - very poor low rpm performance (sputtering, missing, no backfire though), IOW, hard to get rolling w/o feeding in a lot of throttle to bring up the rpms - relativly smooth running once moving, but seat of the pants performance feels sluggish. And when the throttle is let off, I can feel the engine get rough I realize the description of symptoms is not very clear, but maybe someone has run into something similar and has suggestions. The issue did not come up on the first few runs after I installed the headers, but started a bit later. No codes are being thrown ... yet. I have a RB unit with the std map supplied when purchased. I also have the RB module that can be put in place to restore the OEM mapping. I put the RB OEM module in place this morning, and that did not help. I have given a little thought to fuel quality, however, I normally run non-ethanol premium (RB map recommends premium) from a known source, so I don't think that's it. The bike does not sit outside either. I am looking at using the 'shotgun' approach to get back to normal 'quickly'. I'm thinking of replacing the following items: - fuel pressure regulator - fuel filter - wax unit (not to address the problem, but b/c I'll be in there anyway) All of these items are presently original, and have ~40000 miles on them. My gut is telling me that the injectors are not the problem, I could be wrong though. I guess maybe coils could be the culprit? My voltage monitor does not indicate a problem in that area, but ... The fuel pump is not on the list yet as it seems to be working. If I were to pick up a fuel pump, I'm looking at these folks: www.highflowfuel.com They list an OEM compatible pump for the VFR800 for $69.98. Does anyone have any experience with this distributor? Anyway, if someone out there has suggestions on where to look, things to try, etc., I would appreciate same. Thx for reading, ACE

Thx. I got the stuff to make a front brake res. mount for my R6, and to experiment with. The mount doesn't look great but it works, and track bikes occasionally fall down reducing good looks anyway. A caveat, for tight bends like 90, you get about one bend, as flexing this stuff will soon tear it. Random thoughts. Whatever material I end up using on this side needs to be strong enough to handle repeated bashing by the center stand, I don't think 1/16" sheet alum, or even mild steel, will work. Stronger material, looking at 1/8", is thicker, so the bolt sits out farther than designed. I wonder if strength is reduced too much with respect to the strain this bolt normally 'sees'? The stand curves outward, so a slight dual bend in the piece to compensate is indicated, but is not easy to create. Without fab shop tools and skills, this is a tedious process for something so minor. ACE

After spending the afternoon looking at ideas for a center stand stop (here and my own), and realizing they weren't suitable for me, I took inspiration from pics that Duc2V4 posted earlier. Made a mockup out of some perforated aluminum that's easy to bend/cut. This is working and holding the center stand where I want it. Now I need to use this template to cut/bend some thicker aluminum I have that's a somewhat bendable alloy. Or I may just get some sheet steel from the local hardware store, might be easier to work with. In no way will this look as good as the stuff many folks on this forum are capable of producing, but once finished and painted matte black, the piece should fade into the background and not be very noticeable. I may also put a piece of rubber on the end where the stand makes contact, we'll see. I need to make sure I put the hole for the bolt in the right spot to eliminate, or at least minimize, pivot movement. Even with the slot, it's pretty solid now, but over time a slot wouldn't work. One could get carried away and add an additional bend, drill a hole for the spring post, giving the piece another spot to jam up against. For me, that's more work than I want to do, and my fabrication skills are minimal. Maybe this helps, maybe it amuses, either way I felt the urge to post 😄. ACE

@MooseMoose, thx for the effort to detail your experience. I had already installed mine the week before but I still went thru this with interest. A couple of points if they were not made in your post; take before pix of sensor plugs and any other items you think you'll forget how they go together (obvious to some folks here, maybe not so much for others with less experience screwing things up, which I have plenty of ); and since the stud nut torque is so low, I used a 1/4in drive ratchet with extensions and a u-joint, for easier fitting to make getting the rear nuts run down easier. ACE

First, I'll add my thanx for the monumental effort put out to get these headers produced. I installed mine, prototype #2, 6th gen, Fri evening/Sat morning. Along the lines of the Delkovic pipe issue quoted, I had fun fitting a temporary muffler directly on the exit (measures 51mm I think). Required stretching with a 'custom' breaker bar/large socket 'tool' (I don't have access to a muffler guy, guess I could have gone to a shop ). Got it on there enough to fire up, have a listen, blip the throttle, etc. Also, I took a quick look at the stock pipe fit and I had some concern there. The stock down pipe has some material (gasket?) around the inside just back from the opening. This appears to measure about 47 - 48mm, not sure if that will work. I don't use the stock high mufflers so not a concern for me at this time. The little heat shield that sits between the O2 sensors is no longer usable. SF pointed out that the heat shield above the rear pipes may need trimming, and it did, I may not have taken off enough as it is. I did not feel any leaking around the pipes at the head, although my flanges were preformed (proto you know ) and the nuts traveled a good bit to get snug. I'm looking forward to the center stand stop becoming available, may have to rig something in the mean time. I have not re-installed the side heat shield (behind foot peg), peg, or bodywork yet, but I don't expect issues. Pleased so far ... ACE