Header coating (black), long lasting ? fall apart ?

[weeksy]

My XSR900 currently has

2020-07-16_06-22-59 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

 

That exhaust. It's the one from the later MT-09. The reason is, the headers on the standard XSR90 are coated black and it shows rust/corrosion/browning really quickly. Mine only had 250 miles on it when i bought it, but they were fairly brown in places. So the MT-09 is non-painted, so i bought a set for £55 and that was that.

2020-06-25_06-44-01 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

2020-06-20_04-11-11 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

That set is the standard XSR900 which i must admit, i prefer the looks of. 

So i painted the XSR headers, which actually came out really nice. But others on forums have said it won't last more than 10 mins... 

2020-07-24_07-00-32 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

So i've not even bothered fitting it yet.

I've asked a few places about ceramic coating the exhuasts and they're ranging from £300-500 all in...  Which is a LOT... So i don't really know.  I can get a bloody used Akrapovic for that money... (but i'm not as sold on the looks).

Any thoughts and options appreciated.

[peter187]

If you used heatproof paint it should last a fair while really. 

[weeksy]

1 minute ago, peter187 said:

If you used heatproof paint it should last a fair while really. 

It was yeah.... may actually throw it on today and see then.. i gave it a good 4-5 coats with drying time in between each coating. 

[Lobo]

Options.......

1 - Buy the Akra and accept the looks knowing the build quality will last

2 - pay for the ceramic coating knowing you like the looks and the coating will last

3 - paint the current system with heatproof paint but accept that you may have to remove the system from time to time to repaint (every year or so depending on use)

Depends on whether you want to spend the money on one hit and not have to bother about it anymore or are willing to spend less but may have to spend time keeping on top of the condition.

[marvin]

1 minute ago, weeksy said:

It was yeah.... may actually throw it on today and see then.. i gave it a good 4-5 coats with drying time in between each coating. 

If you use the bike in the wet regularly it's more likely that the black painted pipes will show quicker wear and browning again. 

[weeksy]

Well as we know, using in the wet isn't an issue, it's VERY much the exception i'd be caught in the rain. 

Stripping and doing it once a year again, i can easily live with that, doing it every 2 weeks, i can't.

The Akra, sure it's lovely quality and i could resell for the same money in whatever time, but it's a chunk of change to shell out that's for sure.

[marvin]

52 minutes ago, weeksy said:

Well as we know, using in the wet isn't an issue, it's VERY much the exception i'd be caught in the rain. 

Stripping and doing it once a year again, i can easily live with that, doing it every 2 weeks, i can't.

The Akra, sure it's lovely quality and i could resell for the same money in whatever time, but it's a chunk of change to shell out that's for sure.

Think I said buy the Akra or similar when you first bought the bike. Still the best option particularly if you are keeping the bike awhile. 

Two of my SDRs have the full Akra system and set up. Each cost £1800 to do. About to get the third one done too. No regrets as bang for buck it's the best mod done. Makes the bikes look and feel so much better. 

Edited August 4, 2020 by marvin

[weeksy]

19 minutes ago, marvin said:

Think I said buy the Akra or similar when you first bought the bike. Still the best option particularly if you are keeping the bike awhile. 

Two of my SDRs have the full Akra system and set up. Each cost £1800 to do. About to get the third one done too. No regrets as bang for buck it's the best mod done. Makes the bikes look and feel so much better. 

I'm not arguing, my wallet is

Anyway, the black painted one is fitted now. We'll see how we get on with it later today.

 

2020-08-04_08-40-38 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

Edited August 4, 2020 by weeksy

[marvin]

3 minutes ago, weeksy said:

I'm not arguing, my wallet is

Anyway, the black painted one is fitted now. We'll see how we get on with it later today.

Consider it a temporary investment. You will get the money back no problem. 

[weeksy]

Well we got the answer to "how long will the paint last"

about 13s is the answer and it started bubbling like a crazy thing and is proper fucked.

[ricey3]

i had my exhaust/headers ceramic coated from Maldon Shotblasting and Powdercoating. They were very good on price £180 all in. Ask them for a quote. The finish was perfect. 

 

[weeksy]

2020-08-04_09-50-21 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

[HOGG]

26 minutes ago, ricey3 said:

i had my exhaust/headers ceramic coated from Maldon Shotblasting and Powdercoating. They were very good on price £180 all in. Ask them for a quote. The finish was perfect. 

 

I could do a relay to Maldon for you also Steve, it's very cl9se to me

[ricey3]

17 minutes ago, weeksy said:

2020-08-04_09-50-21 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

Come on. its clear to see what the issue is....you've been spraying them with Mr Sheen

[HOGG]

Try this paint

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/224076565147

[weeksy]

11 minutes ago, HOGG said:

Try this paint

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/224076565147

that's only 40deg, this stuff was supposed to be 800+.

 

Either way, i've moved on from the paint. 

It's either full on ceramic coating, or a replacement exhaust.

[Lobo]

What did you use to clean the pipes with prior to painting ? Did you get it all cleaned off before painting ?

Could it be a reaction to that if it wasn't all cleaned off rather than the paint ?

If you're happy with the looks of the exhaust then get a few quotes for ceramic coating, it'll last (longer than your paint did) and you won't have itchy teeth worrying about the looks.

[Enzo200500]

I had the local powdercoaters do the swarbricks on the Pepsi 500 in High Temp powdercoat. It seemed to last ok.

 

The ZZR 1400 headers were done by Zircotech, in their cheapest matt Black coating. That has lasted very well, Trackdays and Touring. Worth the cost for something that gets very hot! It was about £280, 3 years ago, and is still exactly the same as the day it was fitted!

[Thunderbolt]

Take the pipes off.

Drive to Twenty Twenty Customs, leave the exhaust.

Pick it up a few days later.

sorted and two good rides to the shire

Edited August 4, 2020 by Thunderbolt
Link added

[tootall]

2 hours ago, weeksy said:

2020-08-04_09-50-21 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

Jesus, what paint did you use and what prep did you do? 

[weeksy]

On 8/4/2020 at 12:31 PM, tootall said:

Jesus, what paint did you use and what prep did you do? 

Well it appears, not enough prep and shit paint... or something similar

But i tried and failed... hey, it's OK, it cost me buttons to try and i didn't think it was going to work anyway.

I'm still not sure how i'm going to play this now though.

[tootall]

Reckon it's 99% the prep tbh

[weeksy]

2 minutes ago, tootall said:

Reckon it's 99% the prep tbh

That's entirely possible yes... 

[Evilchicken0]

It helps if you cure the paint slowly. If you run the engine up to temp straight away the will probably bubble. You need to be more gradual building up the heat over 4 or 5 cycles. 

[weeksy]

30 minutes ago, Evilchicken0 said:

It helps if you cure the paint slowly. If you run the engine up to temp straight away the will probably bubble. You need to be more gradual building up the heat over 4 or 5 cycles. 

i totally get you, but i ran the bike for less than 10s... that's clearly not up to temp, it was honestly no more than say 15s... 

[weeksy]

My decision currently sits between.

1. blast them and re-paint at home

2. CTC Coatings in Maldon @ £250

3. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/YAMAHA-XSR-900-2016-TO-2018-FULL-SYSTEM-EXHAUST-LEOVINCE-GP-DUALS-TRACK-ONLY/362586006561?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

The only thing about that Leo Vince system is that the mounting bracket system is a bit weird for the cans.

[Jenny Pryde]

If you decide to blast them, be very careful with your choice of abrasive. Some pipes have a protective plating which you will want to retain.

 

[weeksy]

3 minutes ago, Jenny Pryde said:

If you decide to blast them, be very careful with your choice of abrasive. Some pipes have a protective plating which you will want to retain.

 

when i meant 'at home' that was someone else doing the blasting of course, not me.... 

[HOGG]

Option 2 I'd say is the best ALL around solution 

[weeksy]

Just now, HOGG said:

Option 2 I'd say is the best ALL around solution 

I'm currently in discussion too Tootall regarding blasting and painting. My concern though is kinda along the lines of what Jenny Pryde said above.

This is how the standard headers looked with <300 miles on them... which implies they're either untreated or not treated correctly.

2020-06-25_06-44-01 by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

So if i get them blasted and painted then i end up in exactly the same position because the paint isn't anti-corrosive as such ?

The Ceramic coating from CTC takes care of that itself. https://ctc-powder-coating.co.uk/high-performance-ceramic-coatings/

I'm not against the option of the full system, but i do worry about the noise.. I'm not the sort of rider who likes or wants epic noise and i've heard a few MT09s that are just bonkers noisy. But arguably i would like something a bit 'more' than the standard when it comes to noise. But that adds on about £100 if going for the Leo Vince and takes it to £700.

All in all, i'm in a bit of a quandry.

Luckily, i quite like the MT-09 system that's on and it brings no issues at all with corrosion or paint on the headers.... So i've got a solution currenty.... But.... i'm not madly in love with it.