Ceramic Coating on Pipe?

[LB400]

I'm wondering if anyone has experience having a ceramic coating applied to a two-stroke pipe?

I know in the snowmobile world it is common practise to help keep the pipe at a stable temperature (and to look better), but I don't hear much about it in the dirtbike world.

The pipes I want to do are Doma with the unplated finish.

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[scar tissue]

I have a ceramic pipe on my KLX 340 (4 stroke). The finish holds up well, I can't say anything about the coating providing better performance though. The coating was on the new pipe combo from Stroker. The pipe is great, I simply don't know how much of it is pipe design and how much, if any, the Ceramic coating helps.

 

[crkid]

i have heard on this site that the ceramic coating helps with heat dissipation or something like that, now if that's true i can't imagine it being any substantial performance gain. at least not worth it enough to pay to get it done.

 

[LB400]

Thanks for the replys guys!

I can get it done for about $75 Canadian, so it's not too expensive.

The main reasons I want it are:
1) Performance (may or may not help?)
2) To stop the rust (may elliminate the daily need for WD-40 on the pipe)
3) Apperance - the raw metal look is a little too much for me.

Any other comments?

 

[scar tissue]

It'll solve #2 and #3 on your list. Some guy on a dyno will probrably tell you you gain .0005 HP at 11000rpm on a mid summers day but only if your at the equater. Or something like that. :)

 

[LB400]

Laugh out Loud!
I guess I'll try it out and see if I DO get that .0005 hp -- we need all we can get!

Thanks again!

 

[lawman]

i had a big gun pipe on a yz250f for a while, it had the ceramic coating. it was pretty & worked well, but don't put up the wd 40 just yet. the coating is a mud magnet. the mud gets baked into the coating & it has to be scrubbed out. i used wd & a rag. i think i'd get that pipe nickel-plated.

 

[LB400]

Thanks lawman!

Good point about the ceramic coating collecting mud -- I somehow thought it would be non-porous, but maybe not.

The nickel would be cool, but I can't justify it just-for-looks.

Maybe I'll just leave well enough alone....

 

[Peer Lovell]

Is this a painted pipe? If so, you can buy an aerosol can of ceramic high temp spray at Wal Mart. Works pretty good. Its in the automotive accessory dept.
Say, where do you ride near Wasaga?

 

[LB400]

Hi (I tried to send you a private message, but the mailbox is full).

Thanks for your suggestion on painting the pipe. I think I'll just leave it raw metal, and WD-40 it after every ride.

My son races 50cc MX in the CMRC Southwestern Ontario series (finished second in the Provincials last year).

I trail ride around the Simcoe County forests with my road-legal WR400.

You?

 

[2fat2riderit]

I can't speak from experience or education on 2 stroke engines, but the theory behind ceramic coating the exhaust pipes on a 4 stroke engine is that the ceramic coating acts as a thermal insulator to hold the heat IN the exhaust. Hot exhaust gases travel faster than cold exhaust gases, ergo, the evacuation of the cylinder and subsequent exhaust piping is enhanced providing more power. How much power - only the dyno guy knows. But it is comforting to know the theory behind the topic because we all want and need more power.
:eek: :eek:

 

[Rich Rohrich]

Originally posted by 2fat2riderit
, the evacuation of the cylinder and subsequent exhaust piping is enhanced providing more power

The change in velocity resulting from a temperature change can influence the tuning rpm of the pipe but it has no direct influence on power otherwise. Power enhancement claims associated with pipe coatings are nothing but marketing spooge. Sorry.

 

[jadair]

You want the pipe as hot as you can get it. Hot gasses travel faster and act as a vacuum. So when the intake is all the way open it sucks more air, causing more power!

 

[KWJams]

The first year--

Ty Davis started racing them blue thumpers he showed up with that fiber wrapping on his head pipe.
Saw him at Tonopah and Jericho, but next time I saw his bike there was none.

 

[Rich Rohrich]

Originally posted by jadair
You want the pipe as hot as you can get it. Hot gasses travel faster and act as a vacuum. So when the intake is all the way open it sucks more air, causing more power!

No it doesn't. The interactions are much more complicated than that. Ceramic coating has it's value in some situations but increasing power isn't one of them.

 

[lawman]

i have an unpainted "works" pipe that i bought used to see if i liked the characteristics. i liked the pipe, but hated the finish. i'm sure it's great in the desert or arenacross but for me, riding enduros & hare scrambles in all kinds of weather, i couldn't keep up with the rust. i bought a new pipe with the nickel finish.

 

[LB400]

From what I understand, with the coating, the pipe remains at a more consistant temperature, so it's easier to jet for.

Still, it's probably not worth worrying about on a bike.