Piggy Question

[Paladin528]

I saw the answer on here before but now I cant find it.

I want to extend my piggies to be the same length or a bit longer than the Truck stack that was installed when I got the bike.  The droning gets on your nerves after a while.  I dont want to cut the stack down as I like the look.  I just want the piggies to be longer.

Any thoughts on this

[Joe Hummer]

1/2" hard brass pipe and couplings.  Easy to cut to length and attach to the existing piggies...if there is enough room.  I would go ahead and sweat (solder) them on. 

[BF]

Not brass....you want copper and soft solder....like the plumbers use.  You can find those things at any hardware store. 

[Joe Hummer]

Not brass....you want copper and soft solder....like the plumbers use.  You can find those things at any hardware store. 

Thanks BF...that is what I meant...was having trouble with words when I posted that...

[DK]

I just did pretty much the same thing you are doing just before my ride to InZane. My Valk is triked and as originally done, the exhaust was left stock and was 18" short of extending out past the bumper. The reverberation was driving me crazy and I was not going to listen to it all the way to Spearfish.

I did mine with 1" copper tubing using 3/4" adapters at the piggies held in place with fabricated clamps and muffler cement.

Solder will not work. It bonds to copper but not the steel piggies and will not withstand the temperature. It melts at +/- 450 degrees. Trust me on this. I tried it. The solder melted and the first extensions are somewhere west of Little Rock alongside Highway 10. Fortunality, this first effort was just 3/4" tube driven over the piggies and soldered. Not much time was wasted.

Using the 1" tubes with adapters to the piggies "expands" the exhaust flow and gives you a nice mellow sound of a larger engine.

Dan

The following pics are pretty much self-explanatory:

Clamp made from 1" side of a 1" to 3/4" adapter & a 5/16 nut and bolt:



1" X 18" tubes with clamps attached (before cutting off the 3/4 half of the adapter):
Clamp as previously described:



Pic of muffler cement container with brand worn off. ( there is two popular brands of this stuff. This is the one that works for this undertaking. The stuff in the tube is worthless - trust me.



Pic of tubes and clamps in place:





Pic of 4" exhaust tube which holds the stock "Slash" tailpipe in place drilled to lighten:



Pic of finished tailpipe - tubes have 1" slip connector attached to ends. Gives slightly larger diameter and enhances appearance:

[PharmBoy]

I ordered some 4130 tubing from Aircraft Spruce (877-477-7823), part #03-06300.  It has a wall thickness of .058", O.D. of 1", and I.D. of .884" which is .008" larger than the O.D. of the piggies.  I used it on both of my bikes to extend the piggies 1/2" out past the exhaust ends.  There is no brazing or welding needed unless you really want to.  I just cut them to length, placed them over the piggies, and drilled and tapped a small hole through both the extension and the piggies.  After applying a very small amount of exhaust cement all there is to do is install a short screw and tighten it.  Both bikes are extremely quite, which is soothing to my old ears.  At highway speeds the wind noise exceeds the sound of the exhaust.  I had the extensions on the Standard chromed, but the ones on the Interstate are straight and painted with a high heat black spray can.

[DK]

Pharmboy,

Nice job.

I like your method better than mine. When the soldered set fell off, I sort of got carried away.

Setting in a small screw is a great solution, wish I had thought of it but being retired & having five welders you tend to look for problems with any possibility of a welding solution.

I do like stepping it up to a 1" ID, though. It doesn't make it any louder and, like yours, there is no exhaust noise up front at cruising speed. Sounds neat from behind though, sort of 911-like & the larger tubes fill the slash tip better.

Dan

[PharmBoy]

DK, I don't hardly know which end of a torch to hold is why I didn't fire one up.  One of those things that I always wanted to learn to do, but just never thought that I'd use it enough to justify the expense and the time to learn.  I always wanted to learn Tig welding.  I used to have a friend that was an excellent welder who I called on when I really needed help...Jim

[Paladin528]

So the O.D. of the piggies is 3/4 inch?  So some tubing with an I.D. of 3/4 inch should work out.  I like the tube with the small screw idea.  Now to go find some tubing.

[davit]

So the O.D. of the piggies is 3/4 inch?  So some tubing with an I.D. of 3/4 inch should work out.  I like the tube with the small screw idea.  Now to go find some tubing.

7/8".  A 3/4" copper sweat fitting fits perfectly.

[davit]

BTW this forum rocks!  

I went shopping at Menard's this morning, the total was less than 25 bucks:









I just put it back together, the piggie extensions may be a bit long but can be shortened.  The hardest part of the project was removing the labels from the pipes.  

If you want to increase the size to 1", a 1" to 3/4" reducer is available.  I chose to go with the 3/4 slip coupling to keep it simple.

[PharmBoy]

Looks good, Davit!  How do they sound?  I'll bet that you like the sound of them out on the road.  Trim them up if you like or leave them as is.  I like a heat resistant flat black myself, but as long as they are at least 1/2" out past the exhaust tips, the sound won't change.  It is all about what look you like from here on...Jim

[davit]

OMG what a difference!  It doesn't seem much quieter at idle, however once rolling the first thing I noticed was that I did not need to shift to 4th in town to keep the noise down.  On the highway I could for the first time hear the engine and transmission, and it was much easier to tune in on how the bike was interacting with the road.   Oh, and I can hear the radio!

I'm not really sure how much or even if the piggy extensions quieted the exhaust, or if they simply got the noise out behind the bike where it belongs, but it works and I am very pleased.    

They'll likely be trimmed some, and flat black works for me.

One more photo:

[DK]

"Trimming" is a lot easier & looks better if you attach coupler fittings to the ends after making your cuts.

It lets you fine tune the lengths and insures a squarely cut tip.

Looks good.

Dan

[Valkrider62]

Nice Job!  Thanks to Mark T I went to truck stacks.  Now if I didn't have a broken back I could enjoy.  Maybe by February 2016.

[fantsybikr]

I used steel tubing, 3/4 OD with a .049 wall thickness..it slid inside the piggies and then I spot welded it some, you could do the exhaust cement and screw thing as mentioned in a previous post and would work fine, the tubing fits pretty snug into the piggies. The previous owner had cut piggies down to about an inch long. I was able to slide tubing in and lengthened to about one inch short of my 36 inch stacks I put on..no drone, quiet..perfect for road trips. I can get you the info needed if you like on where to get the tubing. 

[Paladin528]

Well I gave it a shot.  I have the extensions made up.  problem is I can only actually install 2 of the 6 because the ends of the piggies are deformed (ie not round)  Access is tough as I cannot get the truck stack off to trim the ends of the piggies.

[davit]

Well I gave it a shot.  I have the extensions made up.  problem is I can only actually install 2 of the 6 because the ends of the piggies are deformed (ie not round)  Access is tough as I cannot get the truck stack off to trim the ends of the piggies.

Hmmm, bummer.  With the stacks off, sanding the piggies with emery cloth is pretty simple.

[davit]

This guy makes it look difficult, lol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4LvzHt4m3M

[Paladin528]

I guess that is my next question.  How is the Truck stack held on there?  I did not do this mod, the PO did so I do not know what the procedure is.  If I can remove them to gain access to the piggies then I can make this work.

[PharmBoy]

Sorry Paladin, but the only truck stack that I tried to remove I ruined and begrudgingly bought another.  The truck stacks are installed friction tight and usually need liquid soap to aid in their installation.  I have no idea how one would extend the piggies with truck stacks installed...Jim

[fantsybikr]

Sorry Paladin, but the only truck stack that I tried to remove I ruined and begrudgingly bought another.  The truck stacks are installed friction tight and usually need liquid soap to aid in their installation.  I have no idea how one would extend the piggies with truck stacks installed...Jim

I agree, I really doubt one can get the stacks off without damage. I was lucky the PO cut the piggies and only added tips. I did my repair when I added my truck stacks. I have bout 200$ in the stacks and 50$ in the piggie repair. Had to pay to for the quiet, and the "looks"

[davit]

Menard's carries these as well:


                    +



Add as many extensions as you need to reach the piggies.

[DK]

Menard's carries these as well:


                    +



Add as many extensions as you need to reach the piggies.

Is this a reamer or is it an abrasive disc?

We don't have Menard's.

A strap wrench might be useful for removing the stacks.

Dan

Dan

[Paladin528]

There isnt enough room for that tool in there.  Besides that tool is for cleaning the surface before soldering.  My piggies are NOT Round anymore  at least most of them.  Theyare actually deformed.  I am not sure if a Muffler shop has a pipe expander that small but that may work to gat them round again.

[DK]

The strap wrench is useful to twist the stacks in an effort to remove them. They are made of plastic with a rubber strap. - AA poor man's non-marring pipe wrench of sorts.

Have someone put a heat gun on the stacks while twisting.

You may be able to reform the piggies from within the stacks using sockets and extensions. Start with 1/2" "step down" or tapered sockets  to restore the end to roundness. Thereafter, find a socket that fits tight enough to round it out further in the piggie. Be sure to use a lock end extension to enable removing the socket.

     If sockets don't work for you, look around the shop for things & ideas. I once welded a ball bearing to a steel rod. This will definitely work.

What is the 3/8 hex tool pictured from Menard's?

Dan