Exhaust bushings

[markj]

I'm ready to take all my stuff to the powder coater with the exception that I haven't been able to get the muffler hanger bushings out of the frame. Any suggestions? I could chance it and leave them in there but I'm sure they'll get ruined by the 400 degree oven. On the other hand I'm not so sure I wouldn't ruin them trying to get them out in the first place.

Followup - The powder coater said we might just as well leave them in there. He didn't think they'd suffer too much and they are just REALLY in there.

[tz375]

Mark,

I had the same issue earlier this year and I cut them out with a hacksaw IIRC. Fortunately, getting new ones in is easy. A length of allthread and a couple of sockets and they pull right in. It may be possible to use that same technique top get the old ones out, but mine were stuck.

[markj]

Mark,

I had the same issue earlier this year and I cut them out with a hacksaw IIRC. Fortunately, getting new ones in is easy. A length of allthread and a couple of sockets and they pull right in. It may be possible to use that same technique top get the old ones out, but mine were stuck.

Hey thanks tz. I sort of thought that getting them out might involve distorying them. We'll see how they survive the powder coat oven. If I have to I'll "carefully" cut them out and try not to damage the finish. But hopefully they'll be ok.

[oldjapanesebikes]

I left mine in when I had my frame powder coated last year - while probably not recommended, they do not seem to have suffered at all.

[Coyote]

Leave them in. The old ones are tight and new ones are even tighter. I spent days wirh a hone on my 550 trying to get an acceptable press fit on the new ones. Finally got them in but not flush. Actually sheard off several grade 8 'pressing' bolts in the process and turned a stack of washers into funnels. Oh the language!

On the flip side, I left them in my buffalo frame. 4 large washers and 2 bolts and nuts to mask them. No harm after the trip through the oven. One problem that did occur was the coating 'bridged' the washers. I had to carefully score around each one with an exacto knife so as not to chip the coating off the frame when I knocked them off.

Looking back (hind sight is always 20/20) if I had it to over again on the 550, I would have slit them nearly through to give them room to collapse.

[markj]

You're right Chris. I just left them in and the powder coating process didn't seem to hurt them in the least. If I ever have to get them out I would probably cut them from within and then pull them like Richard did. But I aint gonna unless I have to.

[Coyote]

Getting them out was not a walk in the park either. Normal 'extraction' methods were shelved after much sweat and aggrivation. Here's what they looked like when I finally got them out............



Here's a little tool I designed to help pull the new ones into place. It worked for a while till the .200 thin lip colapsed. They were just tooooooo tight