donsmith said:
Fellow Warriors, I don't post much, but have certainly used the site for much technical information. I thank you for your insight and creativity! I have a problem with my Rinehart Racing Flush Cut exhaust. They are four years old. The rear cylinder / top pipe has cracked almost completely across the entire pipe near the header. See pictures...
Has anyone else had a similar problem? Was it caused by incorrect installation? Were the bottom bracket boltstoo tight or out of alignment which caused excessive pressure at the header?
Can this be fixed by welding? If so, I would think that would affect exhaust flow. Am I screwed? Do I need to replace it? Thanks for any help/advice.
http://rswarrior.com/photos/donsmith/images/981132/original.aspx
Wow ..... that's really disappointing to see for such an expensive pipe Don.
First thing i would do is contact the Mfg and see if they will replace the top pipe at N.C. Send an e-mail with the photos or save your post as a Web mht extension and send it as an attachment as well so that they know you've posted it on the rsw forum.
IMO the pipe can be repaired and reinforcedusing TIGand if you're that concerned about the gas flowthe ID can be ground with a Dremel or equiv if needed.
I have hands on experience with oneset of 2-yr oldRineharts staggered with another members bike last year or sothat we brought back to stock. These pipes were in pristine condition and not abused in the twisties. Bottom line, IMO based on observation,the slotted weldedmounting bracket that was attached to the exhaust pipe was verly poorly designed as there was metal fatigue at the connection points.
The root cause for this type of failure leaves room for lots of speculation as we will see as others chime in!
The steel tubing for exhaust pipes is commonly mandrel bent. Theeffects of this process are thatthe outside radius thins the inside radius gets thicker and the vertical centerline is considered the neutral axis and the mat'l thickness remains unchanged. Normal failure is generally on the outside radius where the mat'l is thinned from bending and runs down the tube, not around it, as shown here!
After reviewing your gallery based on model year and mods
and ruling out a loose motor & lean engineI would
speculatethat the toppipe was either being stressed very badlyby the mounting bracket or loose at the bracket causing the radial failure or is quite possiblya common failure because of the inability of the pipe to expand when hot because of it's short design...Just my thoughts and .02
Red dusty residue is a clue of wearing/fatigue just like on the frt steel pulley....so inspect all the attachment points. The exhaust port elbow is aluminum so only the steel parts will have this residue.
Good luck and let the speculation begin
