Exhaust Care at Other exhaust

Many people who have seen motorcycle exhaust blueing often attribute the discoloration to poor quality pipe material, inferior quality chrome plating, or just some inevitable force we just have to accept. FALSE! The Facts: At Hacker Custom Exhaust we use 18 guage tubing which gives the best flow(least resistance directly out of the head), and the highest quality product. With quality in mind, we consider our polishing and plating to be far superior to any product lines currently available (Double nickel and Chrome). Triple plating comes at a considerably higher price to the consumer. However, Hacker Custom Exhaust systems can turn blue as well. Most any pipe can and will. And there is only one culprit�EXCESSIVE HEAT!! If your bike is mis-timed�.too much heat. Run lean? More heat. Run out of gas? (more air than gas)�heat again! In these instances, more air than fuel will result. And with the induction of more air, temperatures can flair as much as 200 degrees instantly; thus frying the pipes. This is comparable to a Blacksmith working with molten metals and, needing more heat, applies the bellows to allow maximum air-flow and flash temperatures. This is one of the two main reasons almost all manufacturers offer heat shields. From exotic to psychotic, all factory pipes can discolor. These days, many custom builders and fabricators who specialize in �one-offs� with great expense in time and labor will protect their investments by having the pipes treated with a special ceramic jet coating. This usually is a glass/ceramic base used as an insulation to line the inside diameter of the pipe. This protects the metal from the extreme heat and been proven, depending on the degree of treatment, to be better than 90% effective. Hacker Custom Exhaust has not had much demand for this application, but it is available upon request at an additional cost to the customer. Lastly, there are products on the market that the manufacturers claim will remove blueing such as BLUE JOB, BLUE AWAY, etc. that are available at your local m/c shop. Some of these products indeed work to remove the blueing/stains, however the heat damage has already been done, and the stains may resurface quite rapidly. Here at Hacker Custom Exhaust we strongly recommend that you treat your new pipes by starting your bike and letting it idle for about one minute, shut it off, wait 15 seconds, then repeat the process 4 or 5 more times; thus treating the pipes by evenly distributing the heat, while carbon coating the interior for greater heat insulation.

Ceramic Coatings:

The Ceramics on all of our Exhaust are Cerakote Glacier Black, (same as nearly all exhaust manufacturers use) In fact we give a full 1 year warranty on our ceramics and Chrome...If proper care & mapping is done.....far better than most other brands...However lean Air/Fuel mixture can & will burn off ceramics. Black & Silver ceramic have a flash point of 1800f, other colors are even less, lean fuel mixture will see temps go above 1800f and no matter how thick or whose brand of pipes, once the flash point is reached the ceramic is gone. A ceramic exhaust system should not exceed 600f if the engine is properly mapped or jetted! even on very hot day. Our exhaust add far more power than most other brands, so proper tuning becomes more critical!

After you install your ceramic exhaust and start the bike up you will notice an ammonia smell, this will go away in about 50-100 miles, during this time the pipes are curing, avoid running in wet weather and be careful not to scratch the finish, once its cured the ceramics are tough,

To keep ceramic pipes looking nice, we use Windex and a soft rag to remove road grime and bug splatters, then wipe them down with light spray oil or S100 engine bright for black engines...Spray some in clean rag, wipe your exhaust completely then come back with another clean rag and wipe the pipes dry.

If you live in an area that uses salt on the roads for snow & ice or near the coast where humidity is high then you must spray your pipes down every time you ride to keep them looking good, only takes about 2 minutes. Taking proper care of the exhaust is part of routine maintenance of the bike.

VIBRATION

V-Twins vibrate this is typical for this style of engine�THAT MEANS that the exhaust mounting hdwr needs to be tightened periodically. After the pipes are installed, take the bike out for a 10-20 mile ride, then while the pipes are still warm tighten down the exhaust nuts, and mounting brackets, this will seat the exhaust pipes to exhaust gaskets for a no leak seal. Thereafter put a wrench to the bolts approx. every 500 miles to make sure pipes and bracket are tight�.It is the owners responsibility to take proper care of the pipes!

Keep the rubber side down! -Hacker Custom Exhaust

Exhaust Care

This information is for educational purposes, and is intended to help retain the finish and ensure the longevity of your new Hacker Custom Exhaust product for years to come.