Bending Stainless Steel for custom exhaust

[Dom660]

Hi has any body had any experiance in bending 38mm Stainless tube for a custom exhausts, I've watched a few videos on youtube, though i've not found many home made pipes, most guys are in professional workshops using expensive machines.

I've found some sections of pre bent tube, but have visions of it looking like spaghetti junction.

I'm looking to build a set of down pipes for an XS 400 that has the twin high side exhaust "Flat track style" and then use some Megaphone silencers as tailpipes.

[dt502001]

Bending stainless is hard without the expensive equiptment as it likes to crack my neighbour has a hydrulac mandrel bender and even then some pieces end up in the scrap bin.

The realy tight bend you will want at the front will be a nightmare best to leave it to a pro pipe bender .

Option #2 buying the prebent piece and have the straighter section bent the way you want it Then take it to the best tig welder you know then file and sand it out then brush it with a wire wheel, my buddy does it that way and his pipes look great. If the customer doesn't want to pay the extra for removing the welds he sells them that way and realy they don't look bad as his tig welds are so nice.

Post some picts of the pipe when done in projects if you can i'd like to see it

[drewpy]

Harris performance will make you a pipe, but they need the bike for reference.

I have seen little bits of pipe pre bent and you choose the bits you need. A bit like a jigsaw.

http://exhaustpartsuk.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=88

[Dom660]

I contacted Redmax speed shop about custom exhausts, but the same as Harris they need the bike to construct the exhaust, the problem for me I live in Guernsey a small Island in the English Channel. I might buy a few bits of pre bent tube to experiment with, I would like to as much work as I can on this project.

[nayruf]

Hi

Might be a dim idea but,

Would it be possible to make the pipe in copper tube as a mock up then get a company to make a stainless copy

[dt502001]

Hi

Might be a dim idea but,

Would it be possible to make the pipe in copper tube as a mock up then get a company to make a stainless copy

Now thats one great idea a bit expensive but no reason it shouldn't work. that said hmmm a copper pipe would look nice sob to keep clean but nice

[nayruf]

Now thats one great idea a bit expensive but no reason it shouldn't work. that said hmmm a copper pipe would look nice sob to keep clean but nice

You would only be able to use copper as a mock up, the temperature would be too great for copper, but hopfully you would only have to mock up the first 2 pipe bends as the rest of the pipe would most likely be fairly straight,

[Dom660]

Not a bad idea on using copper first, though I think I might have found someone locally who might be able to make some pipes up for me, I'll keep you posted on the progress.

Cheers.