heat defeat

[treebanger]

Mates,
I've read where some people modify and/or remove the inner cowls to reduce heat. Just bought an 06 and would like to know steps involved in removing the cowls. Any suggestions from someone who has done this mod? Also, I saw where pipe insulation was used to reduce heat. What has to come off to gain access to the pipes and is this mod worth it?

 

[norton]

Cruise the forums, like Known Concerns, for tons and tons of information about this, various headings, like "heat" etc
I have an 06 and removed the cowls and vented them with a bunch of one inch holes using a holesaw and my drill, you want nice vents up against the storage pockets in addition to letting some air go through to the back.

 

[gregj]

As said, plenty of info in the Known Concerns forum. I remove my inner cowls completely, then reinstall when the temps start getting cold. I havent nor will I drill holes in the cowls. Removing and reinstalling when needed works for me. It's also been reported a starter valve sync has helped with the heat output, though the validity of these reports have been questioned many times. I intend to try it sometime this winter.

 

[Talonboy]

Just remove the inner cowls, then zip-tie the temp sensor to the outer fairing. Done. With the cowls removed some air goes around the radiator, instead of thru it. The mixed air is cooler to your body than if all the air went thru the radiator. The bike seems to still get enough air thru the radiator to keep the engine cool. The outer fairings seem strong enough with the inners removed to not flop around or anything.

 

[gegundez]

Thanks, the Inner cowls will be my next project. I have seen all kinds of gimmicks to resolve this and this by far is the cheapest.

 

[Blrfl]

I havent nor will I drill holes in the cowls. Removing and reinstalling when needed works for me.

For the princely sum of $36, you could have a drilled summer set and an undrilled winter set. I may actually do mine, because I want to mount my TK-350 in the left fairing compartment.

I seem to remember that someone early on ran into problems with the middle cowls ballooning a bit as a result of not having the inner ones to hold them in place. Laziness prevents me from searching for it..

--Mark

 

[stickman]

I completly removed the inner cowl, I zip tied the temp sensor, and also zip tied the other plastic together up front so they would be stable without that inner cowl. Works great.

 

[gegundez]

For the princely sum of $36, you could have a drilled summer set and an undrilled winter set. I may actually do mine, because I want to mount my TK-350 in the left fairing compartment.

--Mark

Can you post some pics of your drilled set? It is always summer down here in Miami

 

[intercepter800]

Before I even bought the ST, I had read many (controversial!) posts on the heat issue. I thought I'd wait until I rode the bike for a year in different conditions to decide if and what to do. I do notice the heat on my feet and lower legs, so I thought I'd give the ceramic coating a try. There's a few posts about this with mixed opinions, but I thought I'd give it a shot anyway. Besides, it does look kinda cool!

Something else I'd noticed when I first bought the bike was the fact that the fairing storage pockets became little ovens. Since I like to keep my cell phone and Honda spray in here, I decided to insulate them. I wrapped them with the metallic-backed foam insulating tape used to wrap ducts. This resulted in a HUGE reduction in how hot these compartments get.

FYI, for Canadians in Southern Ontario, I took the headers to High Tech Coatings (http://www.hightechcoatings.com). Rick is really good to deal with and turned them around within 2 weeks for $170.

Ken

 

[jwayden]

:bow1: Really nice looking headers Ken!! A much more sublime solution than header-wrapping (which I hear causes corrosion)! Do you think the higher exhaust temps will have any effect on performance? Let us know if it does. The metal tape on the fairing pockets is another great idea! It gets much hotter down here in El Paso than it does up there in The Great White North, so such heat-reducing innovations are always appreciated!! :woo

 

[SoCal Rider]

27 degrees on the way to work this a.m. I was hoping somw of that heat would come my way....:bow1: just joking (well maybe not entirely) we'll see what happens this summer....

 

[Grantizzle]

where do you live and work?

 

[SoCal Rider]

I work in Auburn and commute from just South of Seattle,,,, below 32 is getting me thinking about heated gear.....

 

[Grantizzle]

yeah. monday was crazy cold. i live in mill creek. where do you work?