Having the Exhaust Pipe Ceramic Coated

[goddess-athena]

I have been pondering the idea of having my exhaust pipes ceramic coated. The biggest reason, as most of us ST riders know, is the excessive heat, especially riding in weather over 80°. Last year I rode in 110° and it was hell in more ways than one. Regardless, I looked over the forums and read about wrapping my pipes and have determined that is most likely not a good option, since I live in Oregon where we have 8-9 months of wet, rainy weather. I contacted a local company that does the ceramic coating & the charge is about $130, which I figure is fair. Afterall, if I were to wrap my pipes, it would take a number of hours and time is money, regardless of whether you are retired or not.

My question to those more learned than myself, regarding taking off the exhaust pipes is; are there some pitfalls to avoid in taking off the pipes and what would be a good strategy? Has anyone else done this to their bike and did it yield good results on helping to mitigate the heat issues? I do have a service manuel and while working on engines isn't exactly my comfort zone, I'm not afraid to try anything on my own. I did restore an Honda PC about 10 years back and didn't end up with any unknown and overlooked parts. I have an '07 ST and I've had the body work off here and there. However, I know I am going to have to take off 80% of if to tackle this job. Some members have noted that they know of other folks that have purchased used pipes off of places like ebay and had simply swapped them out to avoid down time. Is this a good idea and what are the pitfalls to that strategy?

I appreciate any input and if any of you have pictures, that would be a great help!

 

[Larry Fine]

I have nothing to add about coating specifically, but do have a set of new exhaust-port gaskets, pipe-to-muffler gaskets, and, if your bike has one, a gasket for the crossover pipe between the left and right sides.

 

[goddess-athena]

I have been reviewing the service manuel and noted that many items, especially gaskets by the manifold, between the pipes and when putting on the muffler are necessary for this job. Just need to get all the part numbers and get them ordered before starting the job. I don't take the supply chain for granted anymore!

 

[Larry Fine]

See part #s 3, 10, and 11 here:

https://www.partzilla.com/catalog/honda/motorcycle/2007/st1300-a/muffler

 

[Weaselinsuit]

Found this thread on another site with a discussion about having pipes ceramic coated. May be of some interest.

 

[goddess-athena]

I'm thinking that my O2 sensors is probably fine. However, I have no doubt that a lot of the bolts, nuts and mounting items are perished beyond re-use and/or they are so rusted that they are going to be a pain to remove. It's probably going to be a whole lot more than just gaskets. Thanks for the site reference and it's nice they have a schematic. I am making a special folder for this project on my computer so I can easily reference back to everything

 

[klaproth]

If you are getting them ceramic coated to cut down on the heat, you're probably wasting time. I did mine, just to eliminate corrosion, since I wanted to wrap them. Neither process seemed to really attenuate the heat at all.

YMMV.

 

[goddess-athena]

That's a bummer to hear, but really good information. It is a cost v benefit situation. My husband did it on his Mustang and it made a world of difference and that is part of the reason I was looking at this course of action.

 

[Mr.E]

Google "Ceramic Blanket" and see what you find, might save taking off all the pipes etc.

 

[core-aggie]

ceramic coated exhaust ?

a trendy option that won't make a difference, heat wise

"it looks cool", many say ... yea, maybe, if there's no plastic hiding it.

extend the life of exhaust if constantly exposed to harsh elements? yea, okay ... I've had bikes for years and years, with many miles, exposed to the elements constantly, with no adverse pipe issues.


I'd say the only folks who benefit from ceramic are the trendy folks showing off the exhaust and the shops who make money selling it

 

[goddess-athena]

Google "Ceramic Blanket" and see what you find, might save taking off all the pipes etc.

Thanks for the suggestion. I looked at them and I believe I would run into the same problem as I would with wrapping them, since I live in the Pacific North-wet. Perhaps if I lived in a dryer climate, they would be an alternative.

 

[Andrew Shadow]

A few links for your to have a look at. It been a long time since I read them but I believe at least one of them gives a rundown of going through the process.
Ceramic

 

[Mr.E]

Ceramic material properties - fast forward to 4 minutes...

 

[Oldbikefixr]

I had the headers on an older bike ceramic coated. It was durable and looked good with a periodic cleaning and polish....1978 Gl1000.
My ST1100 pipes began rusting, can't think of a better word for it, at the bends. I weighed replacement vs ceramic coating but chose replacement with Delkevic units after considering the rust at the collector box. Examine your collector area where the two headers join and where the muffler exits are. The condition of that feature should indicate which way to go with yours.