Just for laughs (its been a slow day today ) I actually weighed the stock exhaust system on my blue GT750A this afternoon for two reasons: I've heard lots of numbers tossed around and so I was curious what the facts were, and secondly because I'm having it tanked at a place locally here in Calgary in preparation for possible re-chroming and I wanted a before and after measurement. I thought that the before/after might be interesting as they have never been cleaned or decoked so I'm wondering whether 40 years of usage have left a measurable amount of build up inside.
The complete system came in at a 'before weight' of 19.55 kg or 43.1 lbs. That included the 1.35 kg/3.0 lbs for the removable baffles. The exhaust collars were still on the pipes as were the hanger brackets for the two outside pipes. As a comparison, the Strader I have weighs 6.3 kg/13.9 lbs - and that includes the weight of the box it is still packed in , so it is roughly 1/3 the weight of the stock system. I have a set of Gibson's that I might weigh next time I have them off, but I know that they are very light and so suspect they might be slightly heavier than the Strader.
Ian
If at first you don't succeed, just get a bigger hammer !
According to the Higgspeed website. All 4 pipes weigh a total of 52 pds. Regardless, of what number is accurate. That is god awful heavy. Not my imagination. You can definitely tell the difference by simply pushing the bike around place to place without them. 40 -50 pds in the motorcycle world is equal to about a ton.
It would be interesting to know what the Delkevic repros weigh. As they don't have the sound deadening in the outside pipes, I suspect they may be lighter than the stock ones by several pounds.
Ian
If at first you don't succeed, just get a bigger hammer !
One of my 73 kawi 350 pipes is HEAVY and I think that is due to carbon build up over the years.
I guess I'm a little different than most as I like stock Pipes on my Kawi Triples or the GT's.
The other reason I like stock pipes is the noise level. With the new sound rules being place all over the USA and Canada it may not be long in the future where stock pipes will be in demand again.
I do know around here some V twin guys ( not Harley) have been nailed for excessive noise and they have been back to the dealers to buy stock pipes.
Then again I just like the look of stock pipes
Ian
T350guy wrote:One of my 73 kawi 350 pipes is HEAVY and I think that is due to carbon build up over the years.
I guess I'm a little different than most as I like stock Pipes on my Kawi Triples or the GT's.
The other reason I like stock pipes is the noise level. With the new sound rules being place all over the USA and Canada it may not be long in the future where stock pipes will be in demand again.
I do know around here some V twin guys ( not Harley) have been nailed for excessive noise and they have been back to the dealers to buy stock pipes.
Then again I just like the look of stock pipes
Ian
I agree. I like them on the 550. But, feel different in regard to the 750. The 750 cylinder head is too dense, big reason why the bike is too quiet for a 2 stroke and my taste. In regards to noise restrictions today. Yeah, that happens to a lot of Harley, sportbikes, etc. But, I've had police pull up beside me several times and simply ask, " What year is that ?, I just wanted to get a good look. " I just keep the rpms down or ride in too high of a gear when they are near. Never had a problem where I live. But, I also like to get away from people and traffic.
I recently repacked a set and I probably added a little too much packing. The pipes have a slightly sharper edge than stock. Not all that loud but more edgy. Sounds much better.
I weighed a single outer stock 380 pipe (with header clamp & baffle included) a few years back, and from memory it was about 12 or 13 pounds. The Piper 3-1 I had at the time weighed 14 pounds
Fitting chambers probably saves around 5% of the bike's total weight ...
1976 GT380 - wounded by me, and sold on
2006 SV650S - killed by a patch of diesel and a kerb in Feb 2019
2017 SV650 AL7 - naked and unashamed
Fitted a standard to the 550 and when I pushed it back in the garage, I thought the brakes were sticking. I reckon a 3-4 weighs as much as a small planet.
Think of how stupid the average person is, then realise that half of them are more stupid than that.
I have two GT750s parked side by side. One is light and easy to move and the other is stock and not going anywhere. The difference is staggering - well I was staggering after trying to move it.
oldjapanesebikes wrote:It would be interesting to know what the Delkevic repros weigh. As they don't have the sound deadening in the outside pipes, I suspect they may be lighter than the stock ones by several pounds.
Well - curiosity is a terrible thing. These followed me home from Montana the other day .........
And to answer my own question - they are 7 pounds lighter than the stock system - 35 pounds as compared to 42. Recall that my factory set was originally 43.1 pounds. After sitting in caustic and other nasty chemicals for a few weeks they came out 1.1 pounds lighter after all the oil and crap was boiled out of them. However, when I put a scope through them to check how they looked, I found that some of the sound deadening screening had been compromised, so I didn't want to go to the trouble of having them repaired and rechromed.
The Delkevics are certaily 'tinnier' (if you tap them with a spanner they go 'tink' instead of 'thunk'), but at least they are complete and new. I am thinking of having them ceramic coated internally before I use them - I'll let you know how that turns out if I go down that path.
Ian
If at first you don't succeed, just get a bigger hammer !
I'm sure that you could if the price was right!! LOL
Those are some sweet looking pipes OJB and without the internal screening, they are bound to be a bit lighter even if they are made from the same gauge steel. Before mounting a set on a GT550, I had meant to weight a set of new Jemco's but remembered again after they were all mounted but I've read they save anywhere from 13-18 pounds all in.
) I actually weighed the stock exhaust system on my blue GT750A this afternoon for two reasons: I've heard lots of numbers tossed around and so I was curious what the facts were, and secondly because I'm having it tanked at a place locally here in Calgary in preparation for possible re-chroming and I wanted a before and after measurement. I thought that the before/after might be interesting as they have never been cleaned or decoked so I'm wondering whether 40 years of usage have left a measurable amount of build up inside. 
, so it is roughly 1/3 the weight of the stock system. I have a set of Gibson's that I might weigh next time I have them off, but I know that they are very light and so suspect they might be slightly heavier than the Strader. 
