Replacements for exhaust sealing sleeves?

[bwringer]

I've run into this on several bikes...

There are four sealing sleeves in the exhaust. Over vast spans of time, miles, and of course the loving ministrations of various thumbfingered POs, these sleeves deteriorate and get damaged. And so your otherwise pristine original exhaust leaks, and you get backfiring, impolite noises, and various weird and unpleasant effects.

They're basically small cylinders of some sort of fibrous carbonish stuff.

These sleeves are stupidly, arse-crampingly expensive - $20.24 each plus tax and shipping, and there are four of the damn things:

https://www.onlinecycleparts.com/oemparts/a/suz/50d401f0f8700230d8b4e60c/muffler

CONNECTOR, MUFFLER
14771-44011 14771-44030
$20.24

Anyway, does anyone know of any sort of workable substitute that might cost less than $90? This is a common problem, and I'd love to find a better solution.

I've trawled through McMaster-Carr for various heat-resistant gaskets, tubing, hose, and materials, and haven't really found anything. There's some heat-resistant braided sleeving that would fit easily enough, but I think something solid is needed here.

[Nessism]

$9/each at partsnmore.com

[bwringer]

$9/each at partsnmore.com

Neato!

But they're out of stock...


Some turning up on fleaBay, though. $34 for a set of four from some guy in Norway. Hmmm...

[Redman]

Were available and not that expensive when I got a set in 2005 or so.

Here is what they look like.
I was really surprized to see they were a wire braid-mesh when I got them, since the originals seemed like porcelain or asbestos or something.

[bwringer]

The ones I put in my bike maybe 2010-ish or so were a different design yet, a sort of shiny, solid, slippery, and somewhat fragile and crumbly stuff.

The material was a graphite and/or mica. I believe they were a sort of mesh core like the ones Redman shows with the mica/graphite type material. The ones in my V-Strom are the same type of material.

I've seen automotive exhaust gaskets made from the same material (nothing with a tubular shape, though).

The originals were sort of a cloth-like stuff; and when it falls apart the windings unspool. They're discontinued and superceded, so I wonder if they contained asbestos.

Hmmm.

[Nessism]

Neato!

But they're out of stock...

Bummer. Didn't notice that.
Just went back and searched on "muffler joint gasket" and they have scads of different part numbers with similar dimensions to those for the 850.

For example...
GS850 = 38 x 43 x 25
KZ1000 = 38.5 x 43.5 x 26
XZ550R = 38.5 x 42.5 x 30
etc...

The last number is the length, and the longer jobbies could be cut shorter (gotta be careful).

At any rate, it's worth checking through what they have since the cost is so reasonable.