Show off your studs? Exhaust mounting Q's

[justin caise]

Planning on replacing my 79 GS1000 exhaust bolts (which my factory manual tells me are 8mm fyi) with studs so they wont break off in the head again.
Trying to decide how much of the stud to allow to come out past the exhaust flanges.
So, for those of you who have done this, how do you dress them up so they look less clunky; less like studs with nuts and washers. Did you leave some stud threads hanging out an not worry about it? Did you leave them so the thread ends don't stick out past the nut? Covered them with something? (Nut caps?) Painted them bright orange to over state them?

Also, this noname aftermarket exhaust has more meat before the flanges so the flanges don't butt up against the head. 22 mm as opposed to the stock ones with 18mm. Is this acceptable? I mean functionally?

http://s37.photobucket.com/albums/e86/justincaise/7-Ten/?action=view&current=exhausts.jpg

Yeah I did a search... found all sorts of good info but not what I was looking for.
Thanks in advance, JC

[salty_monk]

Even the stock ones don't butt up against the head completely, always a small gap, all the aftermarket ones I've seen are like yours, that's fine.

To tidy up the end of the studs I would go with a stainless nut & washer with a stainless acorn nut on the top, will look good & serve as a lock nut too.

Other than that you could cut them off...

Why not use stainless bolts & a dollop of anti-seize? That's what I plan to do.

Dan

[psyguy]

Why not use stainless bolts & a dollop of anti-seize? That's what I plan to do.

Dan

that's what i did
no problems

[Ironriot]

that's what i did
no problems

Really clean engine you got there!.... That's what I was planning on doing also. I was just worried about the bolts becoming loose because of the antisieze. How long have you had it that way?

[dennis roy]

I have to throw my 2 cents in here. I replaced all the bolts with stainless and a really good helping of anti seize. Slapped it back together and realized I forgot 1 of those stupid exhaust gaskets. When I took it back apart maybe 5 minutes after 2 of the stainless bolts broke off...even with a gallon of anti seize on them. Ever try to drill stainless? It sucks. 3 drill bits later. I replaced those shiny new stainless bolts with regular studs and stainless nuts and stainless acorn nuts to cover the ends of the studs. I had to do some playing around with the length of the studs though. On my 850 the outside pipes are really close to the frame and if the studs are to long the flanges won't clear. I suggest using 2 exhaust gaskets per cylinder...just in case, and the studs. Just my opinion and i'm sticking with it LOL

[justin caise]

I read around a bit after first breaking off two bolts, seemingly by just looking at them. Good advice I saw was to replace them with studs primarily because when removing the exhaust later either the nut comes off or the stud turns and backs out... or of course it snaps and your back at square one, but I like the stud idea. Also, although I'd thought of the acorn nut before and felt it would look like "I tried to hard", rethinking it now I can see that the stud end covered in such a way may prevent the threads from rusting at least at the end, anyway. Those allen heads look the nuts if I may say, and they most likely continue the theme from all of the other allens on the engine, but "snap" happens.

Snapped bolts removal tricks I've heard of include copious amounts of PB Blaster, applied over a few days if poss, lock pliers or other while applying heat if enough of the bolt is sticking out; my personal favorite - welding a nut onto any protruding threads and thus making it a bolt again. (That's my favorite now that there is a welder in my garage\\/.) And of course the good old easy out. I'm convinced that the easy out is called just that not because it makes it easy, but because one must go easy when using it... I had to remove the broken ring gear bolts on my chevy trucks front rear end before, so I know that method works. But it AINT easy.

Thaks, JC

[psyguy]

Really clean engine you got there!.... That's what I was planning on doing also. I was just worried about the bolts becoming loose because of the antisieze. How long have you had it that way?

yea, the pic was taken just after i fully rebuilt the engine and had it vapour blasted and clearcoated \\/
if the bolts are properly torqued they won't get loose - there's 2 of them so they keep each other under tension
you do have to re-check all the torques on the bike as part of the maintenance anyway, so no prob

[salty_monk]

I replaced all the bolts with stainless and a really good helping of anti seize. Slapped it back together and realized I forgot 1 of those stupid exhaust gaskets. When I took it back apart maybe 5 minutes after 2 of the stainless bolts broke off...even with a gallon of anti seize on them.

I don't get that.... Did you overtighten them or something so they were stressed before hand or cross thread or feed into a knackered thread, doesn't make any sense 8-[