I knew from day 1 that I didn;t want a stock exhaust on my 750 F2 project. It's one thing that I have hardly ever had on bikes that I was riding back in the day, or was that fussed about. Original pipes rotted out, and when that happened the price of new replacements was always far beyond my pocket. So on would go the dodgy 4-1 if I felt flush....or something dodgy and cheap from a breakers if I wasn't.
Now....my bike came with a reasonable front half exhaust, bit rusty, but nothing too serious. There was some rot at the join which I have fixed, but the damn things refuse to come apart so I can finish the job. But even then, its gonna be a hell of a clean up job, and probably a rechrome to make them look presentable. If I can find somewhere willing to do the job on well used pipes.
I have looked to the second hand market. Dear god....do people really pay £400 and up for rusty and battered old exhausts? Everyone wants that for them, but I followed a couple on E-Bay and they don;t sell. Not surprised. The sellers don't seem willing to take low offers either, which is all I would pay for what looks like scrap to me.
I looked for new...and options are limited to 4-1 pipes I don;t really like, or some very overpriced stuff, mostly from the US. Earlier bikes have a flourishing ( and eye watering ) replica market.
But....there seem to be some options available for the DOHC early 4 pots. 79-82. A 4-2 with a pair of shorty mufflers would suit my build just right. But I don't know if they fit, have no way of checking, and really want to avoid having to buy something to find out its wrong. They head/exhaust ports look similar, and the only major issue I can see would be the sump would be different. The pipes may hang a bit low, as they would need clearance for the DOHC deeper sump. But I don;t know if that would cause problems in the corners...or not. I'm hoping someone out there has done it...and can tell me if it is worth the effort.
Meanwhile...I can carry on trying to find a full set of split collars for my exhaust. I have...1 ....where I need 8!
