Rusty silencer

[Guest Jamie82]

HI All,

 

My NC750X is not 3 months old yet and I have just seen over 2000 km on it, however I can't help but notice that the Silencer, from the engine manifold to the first can appears to be getting really rusty........has anyone else noticed this and is it normal? 

 

The bike is kept in a good mold free garage and has never been used in bad weather, also in Malta we never have any gritting on the roads with any salts what so ever.

 

Any feedback is appreciated.

 

Thanks

 

[stordz 901]

Sounds very strange, I cannot say that I've experienced anything similar to my exhaust system over here in the UK, my NC spends its life all year round  outside under a cover and seems none the worse for it.............. Perhaps a trip to your local Honda dealer is required...

[bazza 3,629]

we had a thread about the header pipe going brown remember?

[trisaki 2,029]

Its just the poor quality stainless steel going off / not rust

[Guest Jamie82]

Its just the poor quality stainless steel going off / not rust

Hi Trisaki,

 

Yes this could easily be the case, it looks like it's starting to rust but I would assume it's just the steel going off. Still though has anyone else experienced this or am I just a 1 off?

[kharli 100]

mine is spotty brown and a wee bit dented but it seems to work ok  three and a half years old and 41000 miles . I think the dent is from an off road rock I threw up but wasn't aware at the time.

Time to take all the panels off soon to see what's going on under there !  I have read of some corroded electrical connections causing a problem or two when water has somehow squirreled its way in. 

[Tigertail 64]

It should be a dull brown or bronze colour and is normal on single skinned stainless exhausts. 

[Trev 18,622]

Took mine off to replace with decat front pipe and it's very rusty, surface only but to the extent I wonder whether it is stainless steel - 2012 700X

[Guest Southerner]

It shouldn't be corroding - it does go a rather naff brown colour which does look like it's rusting though.

 

I remove the belly cowl every two weeks or so and give it a proper clean, finishing with some Solvol Autosol. 

[embee 7,288]

As said, the brown colouring is perfectly normal for stainless steels once they get to a certain temp. I believe it's actually the crystal structure at the surface changing which produces the colour, chrome exhausts do it in a pronounced way going straw colour then blue when really hot. Note that "stainless" is really a misnomer, it should be "corrosion resistant" steel but the stainless word has stuck over the years.

 

You can polish it off with Solvol Autosol and it'll look nice for a while, but it'll gradually go brown again. The only way to make it look better long term is with a separate cover. Quite a lot of Jap bikes used to use double skinned header pipes to avoid the effect, but it was heavy and expensive.

 

Note that there is a "dent" in the exit pipe bend from the cylinder head where it enters the catalyst can. This sort of detail is usually done in order to get the gas to use the full face of the catalyst brick which gives more efficient conversion and minimises the catalyst requirement (expensive).

[Trev 18,622]

It shouldn't be corroding - it does go a rather naff brown colour which does look like it's rusting though.

 

I remove the belly cowl every two weeks or so and give it a proper clean, finishing with some Solvol Autosol. 

 

That's proper commitment to bike cleaning, I feel a bit guilty now for never having cleaned the exhaust front section in the two years I've owned the bike 

[Guest Southerner]

That's proper commitment to bike cleaning, I feel a bit guilty now for never having cleaned the exhaust front section in the two years I've owned the bike 

 

Trev - I'm a bit OCD with vehicle cleaning and detailing. My cars get the same attention too! 

[Guest Rev Light]

I would be tempted to paint it black, but it probably would not stay black for long.....

 

Rev Light

[Mike5100 2,061]

It might actually Steve.  I had a 2 stroke engine on a microliight and found that the Sperex VHT paints (silver or black) were very long lasting, but it was easy to remove for a quick respray, which presumably isn;t the case for the Honda.

Mike

[Trev 18,622]

Trev - I'm a bit OCD with vehicle cleaning and detailing. My cars get the same attention too! 

 

Hat's off to you, I sometimes wish I cared a bit more about what my cars and bikes look like, especially at resell time. Got a lovely bright red Volvo V60 hybrid that cost a small fortune and it only sees polish once every 5 or 6 weeks 

[kharli 100]

I wonder if black stove paint would work

[Guest Southerner]

Hat's off to you, I sometimes wish I cared a bit more about what my cars and bikes look like, especially at resell time. Got a lovely bright red Volvo V60 hybrid that cost a small fortune and it only sees polish once every 5 or 6 weeks 

Polish every five or six weeks? That's pretty frequent Trev. 

 

Any more than that and I'll be suggesting you become a DetailingWorld.com member!

[Trev 18,622]

Polish every five or six weeks? That's pretty frequent Trev. 

 

Any more than that and I'll be suggesting you become a DetailingWorld.com member!

 OK my guilty secret is that Showroom Shine spray on, wipe off stuff, closest I get to polish. At least it's only a company car 

[Guest Southerner]

It might actually Steve.  I had a 2 stroke engine on a microliight and found that the Sperex VHT paints (silver or black) were very long lasting, but it was easy to remove for a quick respray, which presumably isn;t the case for the Honda.

Mike

Ooooh, BMAA approved? Lol

[Mike5100 2,061]

 of course .  Nothing I ever did was in breach of BMAA rules.  I am SSDR now so can do what I like.

Reflecting on the Rotax engine exhaust for a bit longer I realised that it probably wasn't the paint that protected it, although I did regularly use the Sperex VHT.  But I paid for the exhasut to be aluminium arc sprayed by that company that advertises at the back of the BMAA journal.  RFI was it?  In fact I think this was them.  If they did the NC downpipe, it would probably be a more attractive colour than it currently goes. http://www.rfiscreening.co.uk/metal_spraying.html

Mike

Edited May 31, 2015 by Mike5100