blueing pipes

[jonathan180iq]

on Youtube lastnight I found a video of a white GZ with black exhaust. The paint scheme looked fine but the quality of the job was shoddy.

Make sure that you prep it correctly.

The video is easy to find. Just search in Youtube for "Marauder GZ 250" There are several videos including one of Jaime's bike with the Dunstall muffler.

For those intersted, there are several other videos of people who have drilled out their backing plate for a "better exhaust note".

[Sarris]

Hey;

Be sure to post some photos when done and a "how to". Are you sure about not doing the muffler? Sure would look cool to have a whole black system.

Look at ths HD with a black exhaust.



Keep us posted. Oh yeah, I didn't talk you into this, you really wanted to do it, you just needed some encouragement!

I sure hope like hell it works!

:rawk:

[BigIron]

I'll post a pic but dont hold your breath. Right now I have a big remodeling project going on and its taking most of my time.

[deadman13]

Originally Posted by BigIron

I've been thinking of painting mine with engine paint. Maybe flat black from the head down to the front pegs. Some online MC stores sell paint made for your exhaust. I dont know what affect this would have on heat though.

when i got mine it was nice and rusty up near the head, so i got flat black engine paint and sprayed to the heat shield. i didnt scrub, scratch or anything to the pipes except clean them with some degreaser. paint stuck just fine to the chrome parts, covered and smoothed the rusty spots and almost "hides" the headers. not to mention i seem to be able to touch the pipe a little sooner, but i never really wanted to touch hot head pipes anyway. just a thought!

[theikeman]

Generally speaking, blue pipes indicate a too lean condition (running hot) and can be affected by many things like the factory tune, altitude, air leaks, exhaust leaks and or carb adjustments. Without getting into all that here, let me share with you some good information on removing the blues.
First of all forget about all those blue-jobs and similar advertised products, not needed and only work with a ton of elbow grease or a power buffer. Here is what I have done for years. Get the finest steel wool you can find which is 0000. Go buy a can of mothers, or other brand of metal polish, dip your steel wool pad in there and start rubbing, as the paste begins to dry use a clean soft cloth and polish, then do it again, after each coat your pipes will look cleaner and cleaner and eventually (depending on how bad they are) they will look like new. Please note, this method will not work on rust or pitted chrome. If you use any heavier grade of steel wool, or those new synthetic pads, you will scratch your pipes badly.
To keep your pipes looking good a long time, remove them and coat the inside of the header pipes with several coats of heat proof paint, it will reduce the amount of heat getting to the chrome finish and prevent blueing. Or if you have a better budget coat them with a ceramic coating, same effect, lasts longer.
The best results will come from making sure the bike is tuned correctly and has the right jets and proper idle mixture adjustment.
Just my 2 cents, happy labor day to all
Ike

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by theikeman

The best results will come from making sure the bike is tuned correctly and has the right jets and proper idle mixture adjustment.

True, however.......single wall pipes tend to blue or gold no matter what you do. It's just the nature of the beast over time.
The time you spend trying to solve that non-problem would be much better spent riding.......or doing almost anything else, for that matter.

[theikeman]

I disagree strongly
My 1996 Savage LS650 has a single wall header pipe, after 10000 miles NO blue whatsoever and it is jetted and has a K&N cone filter with a performance muffler. I do agree that time riding is important but, (been doin that for 30 plus years) who wants to ride a nasty lookin' bike? :roll:
Ike

[Easy Rider]

Originally Posted by theikeman

I disagree strongly
who wants to ride a nasty lookin' bike?

To each his own.

Is this a subject that merits a "strong" disagreement ?? :??:

I don't happen to think that the discoloration looks "bad".

Most riders (GZ riders especially) don't spend the time or money to "fix" the lean factory tune so many get blue/gold pipes near the header. I don't think it is a big deal. Obviously some DO.

If yours WAS turning blue, would you spend a lot of time trying to correct it?
I certainly won't but I won't think less of you if you DO.