| Author | Message | ||
     Endoagain |
Was hungry for a new motorcycle but despite test riding several over the last year, none have stood up to my 07 STT. Still, the brakes pulsed, there was a bit too much heat for this San Antonio summer and I never did like the power transition between 4-5 K. So I decided to fix the things about the bike that nagged me. (added a givi top plate and box to my Ventura sport rack as well but will not picture here). To cool the beast I already had the RSS and it worked well but I wanted more. Ceramic coating seemed a good next step. I decided to go with Swain Tech as they have a true thick ceramic coat minus the paint. Decided to paint the headers with barbecue black since I figured the headers would be cool enough with the ceramic that a little black paint wouldn't negate my gains. For the power band I looked to Drummer. Never heard a bad thing about the pipe and I wanted something that would smooth out the very low RPM running and eliminate my prominent flat spot/surge in the 4-5K zone. To eliminate the sound issue I ordered a Jardine insert and because they are no longer made, I ordered a baffle from Petebueller just in case the Jardine was not sufficient. Swain Tech turned my pipes around in under a week. $80 dollars and that included shipping from them. The coating is very granular and it is thick. I had them coat the flared ends and the coat was thick enough I had to sand off the roughness to get the flanges over the ends. They painted very easily and turned out a flat black after cooking on the bike. Had to use the SE gasket as the standard tapered header gasket did not work so well. The ceramic was just thick enough that the headers would not seat very deep and the gaskets kept getting dinged up. The SE gaskets worked great and getting the headers on was MUCH easier. Used some copper RTV just to ensure a good seal, also at the exhaust junction. Drilled the Drummer on the underside so the holes would not show...much. The Jardine uses an O ring to seal against the wall of the pipe but it is too small to seal in the Drummer. I used some thermotech to wrap around the Jardine insert to fatten it up and a small washer inside the keep it centered in the tip. Next I used the same hole I used for the Jardine and mounted up the baffle from Petebueller. Used it as a guide to drill another hole as it takes two bolts. You want to be sure you have enough room on the exhaust tip as the holes have to be 2 1/8" apart. This was my first time doing anything mechanical on this bike and the most I have ever done on any bike for that matter. Bought some pitbull work stands from Al and they were slick. Made removal of the front wheel for the lyndel pads and new rotor a snap. Took me a few days to get everything done but it was well worth it. Took the bike out and sitting at idle my bike was in a cloud of smoke from the header paint curing! Only lasted a few minutes though. The sound was not near as loud as I though it was going to be and I come from years of BMW exhausts. That Drummer was perfection. Smooth, sounds great, and loads of power. Not only that but my stock pipe rattled my brain when transitioning from 2K to 1.5K RPMs, the Drummer cured it. I brought the baffles with me on the road thinking I would need them for the dreaded drone at higher RPMs...never needed them (I do wear 33db rated earplugs). Great sound and smooth power even at 1.5K RPMs. Did much of the ride between 4-5K as it just felt great there. Some decel popping but only when provoked. It was not really an issue. Ran the bike at higher RPMs to get the engine hot but never felt anything but mild engine heat. The fan never came on while riding though I tried to provoke it. It did, as usual, when I stopped and after two minutes I thought, "lets see how hot those headers are" so I touched them! They were hot but I could place my hands on the headers for a second at time with no problems. They were hottest down by the single exhaust end. That part is not coated inside so perhaps that is the reason. Never tried touching the standard header so perhaps someone who has one can try and let me know how that goes. I think the ceramic is doing its job. Never tried the baffles. Will write about those when I can get a decibel meeter. | ||
| Thatman |
congrats on the drummer, i installed mine around two weeks ago. i love the way it sounds but i get more popping than what i think should be normal. i think i need to recheck my fittings and make sure i have no exhaust leaks. i also bought the direct link tuning key from american sport bike. i'll play with that and let you know how it comes out. | ||
| Biggie |
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| Endoagain |
Here are before and after shots of the headers.   Then a close up.  The Jardine insert took a tumble out the pipe so I no longer have it. Too bad because it looks great and reduced noise acceptably too. the Jardine is silver. The one from Petebueller uses two different baffles. The one with the holes in it is the "wild" plate while the mild plate is solid. Tried the mild plate and it was as loud as stock or less. For the picture the wild plate is attached to one of the attachment bolts just so I wouldn't lose it. Have not tried it with the wild plate or with out a plate. No longer made but Peter may have a few left.   Finally the bike with the 50 L givi top box on the Ventura sport rack. Great combo for commuting. The headers are also shown. Mine already have grime and sweat marks on them from installation and it appears it will not be easy to get them clean.  Will get some IR temperatures and decibel readings this weekend but will not be able to compare them to stock or the Jardine because I no longer have either. | ||
| Endoagain |
Ran some sound readings at idle and revving engine but not quite to redline. Drummer was 103Db at idle, 120 Db peak (120db may have been the max capacity of the unit I was using so actual may have been higher). With the black baffle it was 97 and 115. With added "wild" plate it was 96 and 113. With the "mild" plate it was 95 and 109. All were recorded at approx 3' and 45 deg from the exhaust tip. Al's numbers in his exhaust shoot out were 123 peak for the XB12 Drummer and 116 for the stock exhaust. |
