Muffler Bands - universal?

[Gus1300]

Working on swapping out a rebuilt shock, I was attempting to get more clearance to drop the swing arm into a side stand mount void and in attempting to remove the left muffler attachment bands going from the exhaust crossover back to the extension the muffler slides into, it broke. They're probably the originals and rusted through pretty good, so no surprise there; should have just left it alone as I ended up loosening the step/pedal mount farther to get the lower shock bolt out (it'll be going back in the opposite orientation as was suggested in other posts).

They're both available online but the left side 18372-MAT-000 for some reason is more expensive than the right side 18371-MAT-000. In looking at them, there are tabs that locate on the clamped pieces but my question is are they reversible, ie, buy two rights and use one on each side? The only thing I can see is that the bolts would be oriented opposite on the one side, which isn't a big deal to me all else being equal. Anyone have experience or know whether a left can be used on the right as well or vice versa for that matter? The parts diagram shows the bolts being accessible from the bottom, but there are several notches the tab could fit into; mine were oriented horizontally (front/back) vs top/bottom where I could see top access being an issue were they mounted that way. Thanks!

***UPDATE*** I went ahead and ordered both from Partzilla, along with the lower shock mount roller bearing, dust seals and insert.

***DOUBLE UPDATE*** Aaaannnndd so back to my original question...the two parts arrived and look significantly different than each other, and from the parts manual:

Single bolt included, no band holes punched

Two bolts required separately, band holes punched

In addition, the parts manual calls for 5 flange bolts but the right side clamp already includes one bolt as a unit; the other requires two, which when combined with the crossover clamp would make for a 5 count. But if that's the case, why the two part numbers/different parts?

These are what I have/had installed; the broken one is off the left, the right is still in place for now:



Does anyone else have the strange looking single bolt clamp above (18371-MAT-000) installed on the right side? Just curious. I may end up swapping back to stock exhausts, using two left side clamps since I already have all 4 bolts, and see if Partzilla will take the other back for exchange of other parts to mount the stock mufflers (the fwd bolts/nuts that I don't have currently).

Not complaining about the quality at all; the broken one was just fine until I tried to take it off. Just a curious situation...back to the project!

 

[SMSW]

I cannot answer your question about those tabs and reversing one clamp.

IIRC, there is no need to use OEM muffler/exhaust pipe clamps. When I was working on mine I was sent pictures of alternate aftermarket exhaust pipe clamps by folks here. The OEM clamps are heavily made and are very strong, aftermarket range from worse than garbage grade to good ones. If your original clamps just gave up the ghost, consider that they lasted 22 years. How's that for quality?

 

[Gus1300]

I returned the heavier single piece band and used two of the same style with the punched holes and welded nuts. Dreading that they'll have to come off or rotate from that more forward point (the 2Bros used an extension that stayed on when the mufflers came off) for brake work or anything else they have to be moved to clear.

Okay, additional question about whether the mufflers go inside or outside the frame mount points with the sleeves and rubber cushions.

When I slid the new OEM mufflers into the exhaust tubes, they lined up nicely with the inside of the mounts but according to the parts diagram below, they should go on the outside? It looks to me like the flat flange that is welded onto the muffler wouldn't match the curve of the outside whereas the inside is flat, and to pull them enough to get them to the outside would likely either bend or stress the tubes exiting under the engine. Anyone else have this experience? Where are yours mounted (inside vs outside)? I left them there and there is plenty of clearance from the swing arm and other parts, so leaving them that way for now but wanted to check in case I'm reading something wrong from the parts diagram or not understanding how mine 'fit'. Thanks!

 

[Chris09]

I think I'm going to go ahead with the extra cost of the OEM clamps next tire removal they were about $125 my way last time vs $30 or so for whatever I ended up using
Reason being the greater clamping area and two bolts to spread the tension better. Twisting the mufflers a bit seemed to break off a bit of the gasket material and the new clamps might make a better seal especially on
once the mufflers have been twisted a few times thus far, no evidence of leaks
I also made the mistake of applying a bit of force removing a couple of the bolts and agravating the situation instead of just cutting the bolts off of clearly rusted-through clamps
so it'll probably be gaskets as well which I think were $60 each

 

[SMSW]

I think I'm going to go ahead with the extra cost of the OEM clamps next tire removal they were about $125 my way last time vs $30 or so for whatever I ended up using

Wow! I think I remember paying $30+ for one (OEM) around 11 years ago. Or was it in the 40's? Regardless, a buck and a quarter sort of takes my breath away...for muffler clamps. Smear copious amounts of a high temp anti-seize on the bolt threads, that will make removal in a few years easier.

 

[Gus1300]

$30.84 for one band, $29.03 for the other (but as noted above, that one wasn't the same part shown on the webpage despite the part number matching), $27.21 for each gasket on Partzilla...Canada prices may be higher.

 

[Obo]

I bought aftermarkets thru Amazon. Cost me Cdn $17 (plus tax) for a pair.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07XTCRQ5G?th=1

You want the 1.75" clamp (51-59mm)

Worked excellent. Someone else in the forum had said they'd used them.




Obviously, if you need the graphite/mesh gaskets you'd have to get them thru OEM, but you'd really have to have messed them up to need replacements.

 

[Bmacleod]

I bought aftermarkets thru Amazon. Cost me Cdn $17 (plus tax) for a pair.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07XTCRQ5G?th=1

You want the 1.75" clamp (51-59mm)

Worked excellent. Someone else in the forum had said they'd used them.




Obviously, if you need the graphite/mesh gaskets you'd have to get them thru OEM, but you'd really have to have messed them up to need replacements.

I had used these in the past as well and found them much better than the factory clamps