'Max Midnight' is correct. Use the stock gaskets. Impregnated w/graphite they are reinforced w/steel matrix to ensure durability. Take care in placing the pipes into the exhaust megaphone ass'y. as you can destroy them if you force things and do not have good alignment. A hammer is NOT a required tool for ass'y!
Here is a basic instruction to help you I posted awhile ago. If you try this I think you will get it done needing NO help.
Sorry but I have not pictures here, but this is posted because like most males, I try to do it "my way."
Removing the stock exhaust is no big deal. You can follow the steps in the factory manual. However, "replacement is NOT necessarily the reverse of removal," at-least it wasn't for me.
I am just going to simply relate what I did, you can choose to try it if you wish. I am not saying, "my way is best," or "quickest," but it worked for me.
1) remove the rear wheel. You will get more room to work. You may not need to but I found it helpful.
2) hang the stock collector/mufflers in-place, use the bolts in the aluminum carriers to snug them into place, by that, I mean hand-tighten. You can also install the 14 mm bolt which holds the front of the collector and installs vertically in the front-center of the collector. Hand-tighten.
3) now install the rear cylinder exhaust carriers if you don't have them attached to the cyl. head. You can torque them to factory specs. they have an "L" cast into them on the outside, be sure and place them so the "L" is on the Left! I don't believe there is a right or left for these as far as the left-side cylinder head vs. the right-side cyl. head. I did look at the vanity covers to see if the mounting points were going to work, they would, but I did not install them yet.
4) install the rear exhaust pipes into the exhaust/collector, I did the right first and then the left. Tighten the pinch-bolt to spec after you make sure the opposite end of each rear pipe is close to aligning to the casting attached to the rear cyl. head "carriers" described above.
5) I installed the rear pipe to exhaust clamp for ea. of the rear cylinders next. This is the v-shaped clamp that holds the top of ea. rear pipe to the rear cyl. head attachment, the one that has the vanity cover for ea. side. I did not attach the vanity cover yet.
6) okay, you're halfway there! Now, place the rear of the front exhaust pipe for the right side into the mouth of the exhaust/collector, and the other end into the area of the front cyl. head exhaust hole. I found it helpful to lie on my side as I worked the rt. pipe into the collector. When you have the two heat shields, one on the exhaust/collector, and the other attached to the rear of the front exhaust pipe almost-touching, you know you have the pipe in far-enough. Do the other one-the left side. The crossover pipe should be attached side-to-side, but loose, when you place the two front headers into position. I found it useful to use some 4x4" cribbing to hold the pipes by the front curve upwards, two ea. side.
7) compare the depth of insertion rt to left, they should be very close to the same for the front pipes where they go into the collector. As mentioned above, if the heat shield for the front pipe and the muffler assembly are almost touching, you have enough penetration. Snug their pinch bolts.
8) place the captive front cyl. exhaust pipe collars onto the cyl. head exhaust studs and install the allen head screws. Do one side of the pipe snug, then the other, then go back and tighten the other side again to torque spec. It doesn't make any difference which pipe you do first. I did the rt, then the left.
9) check all the connectors one more time, but you should have it. If you want, this is the time to replace the rear vanity pipe covers.
10) you still have to torque the exhaust bolts on the rear footpeg carriers. You can check the beer supply now, too.
11) grabbing the exhaust and giving it a shake should demonstrate it is solidly attached to the bike.
12) I didn't start by mentioning it, but new exhaust gaskets and bushings for the pipe connections into the muffler ass'y. may be required, otherwise you may have leaks, these are pretty-cheap. Don't forget the fiber bushing for the cross-pipe.
13) fire it up and check for leaks. Hopefully you have none.
I hadn't removed the exhaust or dropped the engine until I had to work on my bike for repair after my "dyno dilemma" thread. Now I can do the removal and replacement much quicker the next time.
Right now my goal is to get my bike working reliably after it trashed the #3 big end connecting rod which didn't come to light until I was a mile away from the dyno.
I had some preventative work done, and am still getting the bike reassembled. I have some additional stuff I acquired during the past year, and once the bike is working OK I will look to add the 'goodies,' but I want a reliable stock bike first. And, I don't think the dyno is in the picture for me.
Ultimately, once this rebuild has resulted in a good-running bike, I want to strip it to the frame, get it powder-coated, and do the other bits & pieces to clean it up and have a fairly stock-appearing bike. I don't need to have 140 hp or more, I just want a reliable bike to ride like it was when I bought it barely a year old w/<1800 mi. on it.
Maybe the next time I remove the exhaust I'll take some pics. I have a couple of other systems I bought to try down the road. One will be a bit Frankenstein, the other is from a popular manufacturer, and no it's NOT a Cobra! I have more self-respect for my bike than to hobble it like that! Both are 4/1's.
If you have any tips or suggestions please add them. I searched for some info on this and didn't find much, so this is what worked for me, and hopefully, will make your job easier should you do it the first time. Guys like Sean & Kyle can probably replace an exhaust system in 30-40 minutes, but my skills are not that developed. Still, I found this method to get the job done, but it wasn't quite this order, I stumbled along a few frustrating dead-ends before this procedure I wrote-up. Also, I did this alone, with no help, and found the order of assembly required no additional "hold this right-here for me honey, until I tell you to let go!" The cribbing blocks helped, too. Good luck.:eusa_dance:
From
http://www.vmaxforum.net/showthread.php?t=23592&highlight=Exhaust
An aside: are you from the Nile-Egypt or from the nILe? "Cairo" If we know where you are many members go out of their way to help-out.
. so could anyone advise me what alternative could be used to seal these connections.
