ducnut

I had my Staintune expanded to fit. I had the header with me, so I could have the midpipe expanded just enough. The exhaust guy was super-careful (he repositioned it 5-6 times), so as to not split it at the notch. Worked out perfect. 

1 hour ago, jim v said:

Hi all, rather than read thru all 34 pages (!!) - can anyone remind me how the O2 bung should be plugged if we're not running a sensor. I seem to recall there was a plug of a specific size.......

M18. 
 

What I used:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/STAINLESS-STEEL-O2-Oxygen-Sensor-PLUG-CAP-M18x1-5MM-HEX-Bung/352107259753

1 hour ago, flya750 said:

Did you use any gasket goop in those J pipe connections?

A very light ring around the female side of the joint, using a cotton swab. 

Turning a beautiful golden hue. 

13 hours ago, Rush2112 said:

I checked with my engineer and passivation and polishing/wire brushing are not the same net effect with 304 stainless steel.  304 stainless steel is more than 50% iron, around 20% chromium and about 10% nickel.  Passivation dissolves the iron on the surface leaving the chromium, nickel, and other trace elements on the surface.  These metals left on the surface oxidize when air dried after the acid treatment and form the protective oxide layer that prevents the iron underneath from oxidizing (rust).  Polishing/wire brushing exposes fresh top surface of metal; in 304 stainless steel this is more than 50% iron so when the oxides form it doesn't make a protective barrier because of all the iron on the surface.  It was explained to me that is why we passivate the equipment in the food processing plants after polishing them.

 

@Ducnut, your headers look awesome and I congratulate you on getting them to a show bike finish.  304 stainless has corrosion resistance but this resistance decreases as temperatures rise, which unfortunately exhaust pipes get hot.  Also, 304 stainless will corrode when exposed to chlorides at higher temps.  Most of us ride in nice weather so it may not be an issue at all.  If I can offer some friendly feedback, keep them clean, dry, and away from road salt (sodium chloride) to keep them looking great and avoid potential corrosion at the welds... or passivate them before installing.  Your bike, your call.

 

Have fun and be safe!

I’m not going to sweat it, as this bike is a fair-weather-only bike. To me, polished stainless is a regular maintenance item, just like polished aluminum, and I regularly wipe down all my polished stuff with a bit of metal polish. When they get beyond that, I just happen to have the equipment necessary to keep them up, so no big deal. 

In central IL, one doesn’t dare drive anything nice, if they want to keep it nice, until well into the spring (my Tiger 800 is covered in corrosion, from riding through winter). The idiots at the highway dept just can’t resist getting their chloride truck out on the local highways. My buddy in the auto repair business stays busy with changing complete brake and fuel line systems, calipers, coil springs, etc, because of the chloride. It’s stupid, around here. Road salt never did the amount of damage we see, now. 

2 hours ago, interceptor69 said:

Thanks. I think I have the smaller one. Bummer...
 

I wouldn’t worry about it. I’m pretty certain there’s plenty of airflow capability in the older K&N to easily support the ~105rwhp these bikes make. 

29 minutes ago, interceptor69 said:

Can someone tell me the size of the filter area of the larger one? I bought one way back in 1998. I don't know if I have the larger or the smaller.

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk
 

1 hour ago, Duc2V4 said:

Oh yeah, in regards to the K&N air filter recommendation, it was selected as the one used for the Dyno tuned bike, so we have a known working sample. No other airbox or intake mods were done on any of the bikes as far as I recall. Note however that K&N has two models of the air filter BUT both have the same part number (Go figure?!). One of them however has a much larger square inch coverage with the filter material. Not sure how to order and get the latter one other than possibly call K&N directly.

IIRC, if you order direct from K&N, you’ll get the larger filter element. I speculate the smaller element is an older-style filter that some distributors may have had leftover. 

I think, I’m done with it. Hopefully, I’ll get it installed this week.

First pic is before and I tried to take the 2nd pic in similar light.
 

Edit: Looks like the forum platform resized the pics, so the clarity is gone. 
 

7 hours ago, boOZZIE said:

And will they change color with a heat cycle now?

They should turn golden. 

13 minutes ago, Cogswell said:

Wondering how you're doing that - do you have a dedicated bench mounted polishing setup? 

 

 

Pedestal-mounted. But, yes, a dedicated buffer. 

This is what I have going on with my header. Polish up!

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3 hours ago, slowbird said:

Wow. It's crazy how difficult it is to get a straight answer on this K&N filter issue. They claim the larger one is the current production but anyone that orders a K&N Filter gets the smaller version.

I remember posting a picture of my large mouth K&N filter almost 2 years ago now on the old 5th/6th gen header thread. K&N doesn't seem to have their shit together

I ordered a K&N, last spring, and received the larger element. I believe, the issue stems from what each distributor has on their shelves. For instance, a smaller distributor may not stock it and orders direct from K&N at the time the customer (us) orders and they receive a large element. Whereas a large distributor may have stock sitting on the shelf from 5yrs ago and the customer ends up with a small element. I think, your best bet is to order direct. I feel like the K&N rep probably walked out to the warehouse and physically pulled a filter to double-check the element for their conclusive answer. 

All the high-end stuff has sensors in the individual runners. What I can’t say is how far they protrude into exhaust flow.

Richard and Jozef know their stuff, given they’ve went so far as to try and campaign a prototype bike in MotoGP (no matter what platform it was based off of), have built some the fastest bikes on the planet and in any paddock, and have bikes that currently remain at the pointy end of any grid. I’d be most inclined to follow their advice, since they’re on the frontline and have firsthand knowledge of what does what. 

44 minutes ago, sfdownhill said:

 

Thanks ducnut - that's a relief to hear. It sounds like you have connected the pink speed wire for speed/gear sensing, correct? Have you also connected the temperature sensor input to the PCV? 

I bought it used with the map in it. The only connections I made were to the EFI interface and battery. It came with no instructions, download cables, etc; just the module itself. 

I have a PC5 on my ‘98 and it runs perfect. 

In response to “Voided76” being curious about gearing affecting horsepower readings, it does not. It only aids in the engine’s mechanical advantage over the wheel, but, does not change engine output or horsepower numbers read by a dyno. 

Amazing effort!

5 minutes ago, Mozza said:

Hi. Recently purchased a 2017 VFR800 from an auction with the front end smashed in.....and off for many parts. Rebuilding it. Can anyone tell me what this turn handle at the end of the steering stem is for? Thanks

That’s a RAM mount, which is used to mount accessories to, using their attachments. 

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