How do I fix a bent exhaust hanger?

[jeff03064]

Welp, after over 4 months of waiting I finally got to ride my T7. I made it a whopping 29 miles before I had spectacular zero mph tip over that snapped my RH mirror and bent my exhaust hanger. Ugh! I'm going to replace the mirror with Double Take but what do I do about the bent exhaust hanger? I assume I can just bend it back, but how? Is there any general consensus on how to bend it back? Hit it with a hammer? Somehow get leverage on it and pull? How are people dealing with this?

 

For those who just got your bike and are hitting the trail for the first time... those mirrors rotate in. Do it.

[Fraz's T7]

Get a high exhaust kit from Camel Adv and all your worries will go away haha. 

[Enduro boy]

I would take the silencer off, and get a big adjustable spanner and slide it over the bit where the silencer bolts on and gently lever it back to shape.

[Cruizin]

Moved this to the tech questions section. 

[Limey]

I just take the boot to it from the left side or pull the bolt and thread in a longer bolt or threaded rod. 

[JohnfromDP]

I dont think I would kick it back into place. The exhaust hanger and subframe are part of the frame ( the subframe doesn't detach like a dirt bike) I would follow enduro boys advice.....take your time and do it right.

[Limey]

1 hour ago, JohnfromDP said:

I dont think I would kick it back into place. The exhaust hanger and subframe are part of the frame ( the subframe doesn't detach like a dirt bike) I would follow enduro boys advice.....take your time and do it right.

Good job doing that on the trail.

[Limey]

6 hours ago, Hogan said:

 

It can be bend back with a small pair of multi grips or locking pliers. Easy to do on the trail.

I know how easy this hanger bends and there is no reason to remove the silencer to straighten it. 

[jeff03064]

Here's what I ended up doing. First I pulled the exhaust off and used a large clamp as a lever. This worked ok but I wanted to try something different. The hanger bolt goes through a metal flange that sits in a rubber damper. (I'm not sure if those are the correct terms or not) Anyway, I pushed those out of the hanger hole and then used a metal pipe with a 7/8" O.D. in the hanger hole to fine tune my bending. This worked really good and it was pretty easy to bend. You may be able to achieve the same results in the field with a strong stick.

 

Also, when you're putting it back together, separate the rubber dampener from the metal flange before you try to reinsert it. It'll got in way easier if you put the dampener in first AND THEN insert the metal flange.

[Larry710]

Has anyone tried to prevent this from happening in the first place?  Every time this get bent/straightened it further fatigues the metal until one day it'll break off.   

[Oldhorse]

I like the garage methods.

On the trail alone, I sat down in leg press position with feet against tire, held the muffler on the bracket area and arm pulled, foot pushed and bent it back to normal easy peasy.

The damned thing bends in both directions way too easy so don't over think your inner caveman skills.

If it breaks it weldable.

If you replace it with heavy duty you risk frame damage because the force has to go someplace...weakest link.

[Samm]

1 hour ago, Larry710 said:

Has anyone tried to prevent this from happening in the first place?  Every time this get bent/straightened it further fatigues the metal until one day it'll break off.   

This was my solution. Cheap and fairly simple to do with hand tools and a drill. I’ve yet to drop the bike since installing but methinks the theory is sound...

[jeff03064]

1 hour ago, Larry710 said:

Has anyone tried to prevent this from happening in the first place?  Every time this get bent/straightened it further fatigues the metal until one day it'll break off.   

Originally I hadn't planned on getting pannier racks but I've come full circle on that idea. As others have said, that hanger metal is really soft and is so easy to bend. I'm not sure how many times it can be bent back and forth before it breaks but I don't want to find out. I'll throw on some racks (most likely Tusk) and be done with it.

[Oldhorse]

This got me thinking.

Right at the bent bracket(black section) of the OP photo could use a barrel type hinge welded in and only snug tight so it could move in a fall but easily be repositioned.

Similar to only snug tightening your levers so they don't break so easy in a fall.

Might do mine if I bend it again...after spring thaw.

The replaceable bracket idea is good too.

Either way it needs to be trail fixable and no solution is perfect for sure.

[TimmyTheHog]

I don't own a T7.....yet...

 

but looking at the bracket, can't we brace this portion?

Or does the bracket still bend somewhere else...

[Alan M]

35 minutes ago, Oldhorse said:

This got me thinking.

Right at the bent bracket(black section) of the OP photo could use a barrel type hinge welded in and only snug tight so it could move in a fall but easily be repositioned.

Similar to only snug tightening your levers so they don't break so easy in a fall.

Might do mine if I bend it again...after spring thaw.

The replaceable bracket idea is good too.

Either way it needs to be trail fixable and no solution is perfect for sure.

It's a difficult one, the problem is if you make it easier to bend it just puts the impact load somewhere else. Might be you bend the exhaust pipe, then you might be screwed trying to bend this back away from the swingarm.

 

Shame the hanger wasn't a removal part like the rear peg hanger, then you could just replace when it finally cries enough.

 

[Limey]

2 hours ago, Hogan said:

So what exactly is your point?

Removing the silencer takes all of a minute, so what make @Enduro boy's method so difficult to do trail side?

 

You don’t need to remove it. I’ve straightened mine 3 times in the middle of nowhere and once in my garage. I’m try to save someone doing unnecessary work.

[jeff03064]

19 hours ago, TimmyTheHog said:

I don't own a T7.....yet...

 

but looking at the bracket, can't we brace this portion?

Or does the bracket still bend somewhere else...

I would imagine that someone with metal fabricating/welding experience could make some kind of reinforcement in the area you circled. I'm not sure what kind of unintended consequences that would have in a fall though. If that part doesn't bend I would imagine something else would either bend or break. Maybe something more expensive.

[tenerecanada]

Step one: plant your foot on the back end of the exhaust from the opposite side of your bike.

Step two: in one heaving motion pull the bike towards you while pushing outwards with your foot

Repeat as necessary, checking the clearance against your swingarm as you go.

 

 

[TimmyTheHog]

1 hour ago, jeff03064 said:

I would imagine that someone with metal fabricating/welding experience could make some kind of reinforcement in the area you circled. I'm not sure what kind of unintended consequences that would have in a fall though. If that part doesn't bend I would imagine something else would either bend or break. Maybe something more expensive.

ya, I was thinking the samething...but that tiny welded part toward the end does look like the weakest point..

 

And the whole exhaust bracket honestly looks very after thought or "the bike is done!, but where do we mount the muffler...oh Shet..." type of moment to me...

[Limey]

2 hours ago, tenerecanada said:

Step one: plant your foot on the back end of the exhaust from the opposite side of your bike.

Step two: in one heaving motion pull the bike towards you while pushing outwards with your foot

Repeat as necessary, checking the clearance against your swingarm as you go.

 

 

Done that a couple of times.

[JimmyTheHuman]

I think if keeping the exhaust in this position its better to have this bracket cut off and made into a detachable that always bends on the bracket side and not the mounting side. eg cut it with 40mm remaining on the frame and then a sleeve type tube over both sides.

[RobR]

On 11/16/2020 at 11:49 AM, jeff03064 said:

Originally I hadn't planned on getting pannier racks but I've come full circle on that idea. As others have said, that hanger metal is really soft and is so easy to bend. I'm not sure how many times it can be bent back and forth before it breaks but I don't want to find out. I'll throw on some racks (most likely Tusk) and be done with it.

Well, I bend mine yesterday, with Yamaha panniers and racks. Not much, but enough to touch the swing arm and rub 2mm of the swing arm before I noticed it. 

[mrboni]

On 10/24/2021 at 10:48 PM, RobR said:

Well, I bend mine yesterday, with Yamaha panniers and racks. Not much, but enough to touch the swing arm and rub 2mm of the swing arm before I noticed it. 

 I just did this.  Grated the swingarm like cheese!

[Firebolter]

4 hours ago, Fraz's T7 said:

Get a high exhaust kit from Camel Adv and all your worries will go away haha. 

Ditto, looks good and raises the pipe up and out of the way and greatly reduces the leverage ratio-

 

[Yasenia]

On 11/15/2020 at 12:22 PM, jeff03064 said:

Welp, after over 4 months of waiting I finally got to ride my T7. I made it a whopping 29 miles before I had spectacular zero mph tip over that snapped my RH mirror and bent my exhaust hanger. Ugh! I'm going to replace the mirror with Double Take but what do I do about the bent exhaust hanger? I assume I can just bend it back, but how? Is there any general consensus on how to bend it back? Hit it with a hammer? Somehow get leverage on it and pull? How are people dealing with this?

 

For those who just got your bike and are hitting the trail for the first time... those mirrors rotate in. Do it.

 

On 11/15/2020 at 12:22 PM, jeff03064 said:

Welp, after over 4 months of waiting I finally got to ride my T7. I made it a whopping 29 miles before I had spectacular zero mph tip over that snapped my RH mirror and bent my exhaust hanger. Ugh! I'm going to replace the mirror with Double Take but what do I do about the bent exhaust hanger? I assume I can just bend it back, but how? Is there any general consensus on how to bend it back? Hit it with a hammer? Somehow get leverage on it and pull? How are people dealing with this?

 

For those who just got your bike and are hitting the trail for the first time... those mirrors rotate in. Do it.

The same thing happened to a guy I met at a restaurant.  But he is a machinist and knows how to weld. He cut off the exhaust bracket at the frame, then machined two "stubs" (as he called it) about 1 1/2" long and welded that to the frame. Then he made a bracket that looked similar to the original. The bracket was fastened to the stubs using a pivot hinge joint. Similar to the one in the pictures.

 

 By adjusting the tension in the bolts he could tight it enough so that the bracket that connects to the pipe stays in place, but if enough force is applied to the pipe, then it will give in to prevent damage to the frame. If the bracket bends he can just unbolt it and install a new one. Genius!

 

I mentioned to him that I wanted to do a trip through Central and South America and asked him if he coukd do it to me bike, he said he would for free and gave me his number. But my ex found the paper with he guy's number and threw it away thunking that some guys had given me his number, I guess to date me or something. Sad!