Planet Minis

redhandmoto

and don't have the answer yet to a small question.

This started when I saw a new but Old-School styled Harley painted in muted dark matte greys, greens, and black whose exhaust headers and pipes were wrapped in some kind of wide over-lapping black bandage-looking stuff all the way to the ends. None of the usual chrome. It looked good.

Now I hate the cheese grater head shield on the 110GY-3 - I hated the Honda version, too, and the Chinese take on it is thinner and junkier-looking.

I remembered the Harley and wondered - would a full wrap provide protection from burns as the stand-off shield does?

I know that the purpose of heat-wrap is not burn protection - it's supposed to concentrate the head of exhaust gases more efficiently, keeping them in the exhaust system and moving them more efficiently out the pipe, rather than losing some of the heat through radiation off the exhaust header, pipes, and muffler. That's supposed to make the engine run cooler. Or something like that.

But would a wrapped pipe stay cool enough not to burn your leg?

Read the sites, read all the claims, saw the different types, some wrapped-on wet, some sprayed with sealant after wrapping, etc., etc., but I still don't know - could I wrap the headers and pipes and ditch that nasty-looking shield? Or what?

To my weird taste, it would be an improvement in looks. Who knows, it might also help engine performance in some tiny way, but the big deal for me is will my leg get burned and just how badly?

So. Anybody wrapped their pipes?

It must be clear to the membership that I don't know nothin' from nothin', so opinions, experiences, raw conjecture, prejudices, and all guesses are welcome.

Regards,
rhm

Timido

We used DEI header wrap on a single turbo drag car mustang. It does help keep the heat down. I had the headers on my race car ceramic coated and that also helps keep the heat in the pipes. I hope that helps

redhandmoto

Thanks, Tim; heat retention within the system, I gather, is what it's all about. The scientific types seem to agree that this somehow keeps the temps down a little bit in the engine and improves efficiency. I don't understand the physics, but I'll take their word for it.

But! If I put my tongue on a wrapped pipe, will it be like laying a piece of cold baloney atop a hot 200-watt lightbulb?

Blackwoodz

heat wraps work. You can not just grab it head pipe and just hold it...but it will stop it from searing into your flesh at that accidental touch from a bare header.

redhandmoto

Thanls, Blackwoodz - 'zactly the kind of info I'm seeking.

dirtbkr188

DEI Header Wrap

I bought a 50' X 1" roll of the natural and have just over half of it left, I wrapped one CHP Ultima Jr. pipe from flange to silencer.

Blackwoodz

I like personally like the black. You can check Autozone they carry it at some stores...The 1 inch is definitely what you want....It is easier to wrap after you soak it in water to get it snug and wrinkle free...then let it dry..you also need to get the sprayon silicon treatment to keep out the moisture and rusting the pipe.

firepower354

I've run it on a couple bikes, my 750 Yamaha twin ice racer and a 1340 GSX-R "750". Kept the radiated heat down, for sure. Power improvement claim has too many variables. Tubing size, displacement, RPM, blah... Icer had miler type high pipes and would roast my leg through the Carhartt's, cured with wrap. Big Papa had a beat to crap ugly as sin V&H pipe that had caught the tailgate too many times during hurried loadings, late at night ($) Covered the bumps and repairs, and did keep the oil temps down since the headers weren't dumping heat on the front of the motor.

It will trap moisture and rot a regular steel pipe if you park it wet. Clean bikes are fun to zip around the block a few times on, anyway

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redhandmoto

Why, Gentlemen, thank you all for your very well-considered, extremely helpful remarks and lucid explanations.

@ drtbkr188 - I'd read through their site and arrived at the same question you raised: what width to use? Had seen the two inch on the Harley and it looked "to-scale" on that wide plumbing; regarding the tight curves in the clone's header, it looked like there might be problems with 2" in getting a wrinkle-free wrap. You settled it for me.

@ Blackwoodz - You are correct, of course; there is no other color but black for this bike. The wet application - like working with the old bandage/plaster orthopedic cast roller. The mfr.'s pitch for the spray made sense.

@ firepower354 - Nothing like direct, personal experience. Keeping the heat off my leg without the shield is Job 1. Supporting the eventual dark matte theme with the textured, scuffed, light-absorbing 'Instant Ratbike' look of black wrap is Job 2.

I'm very glad to hear that it works. If it gets rained-on sometime, I'll park it in the little shed with the barn doors open and let the motor idle a while to try and drive off the water, but otherwise just let what's gonna happen happen.

- Looking at the exhaust & shield supports & attachment points, seeing where they might get shaved;

- A one-inch overlapping black wrap over a three foot length might be a too busy. Mix widths? In the overall shape, there is a step from small header & pipe to wider flat oval; maybe 1" from the flange to the step and 2" thereafter.

And on an entire other hand, if I don't like the OEM main shield, what about laying out and trying to fab a custom one, sprayed with barbeque paint? Wide & thick steel mesh?

The mind boggles...good thing there ain't no rush...

dirtbkr188

The 1" wrap has a centerline built into the material, I used it as a guide to do a 1/2" overlap while applying it. Made life easier...

redhandmoto

A built-in centerline would def take away the guess- and eyeball work.

What has been an annoying light rain or drizzle for days has become a solid downpour this morning. It is just urinating outside - if you live in the Mid-Atlantic you know what I mean, and it conspires to keep me off the patio and out of the AutoZone. Another day of this & I will wheel the clone into the parlour. It's the kind of day where you stare at the tv for hours, resisting the temptaion to call Billy Mays & give him your credit card number...

dirtbkr188

redhandmoto

Lol! and we just finished watching 3 episodes of "Pitchmen" back-to-back.

You can see what my sales resistance is like - I buy little Chinese trail bikes on the Internet, basically because I get infected by everybody else's enthusiasm...

Man, I'm glad Billy's not flogging inexpensive two-strokes...I really been wantin' a two-stroke...'But Wait! That's Not All"

arlindsay1992

What part of NOVA do you live in? Just curious. I live in 20165.

redhandmoto

Why, just down over at 22042...

arlindsay1992

Cool, a local mini rider! That's only about a half hour away.

redhandmoto

Well, I don't know as I really qualify as a gen-u-ine "mini rider" - so far this time 'round, I only got about 30 solid miles on one.

There was once - more than 40 years ago - a black C110, and that got rode a little. That was like riding a turpentined cat, and the C110 was invisible to patrol cars...and all C110 riders were immortal...