Are copper manifold bolts best?

bridgedino · Spanner Monkey Joined: 22 Oct 2012 Karma :

Are copper manifold bolts best?

My new bike has a standard soft steel exhaust which I would like to swap for a stainless steel system when they become UK available and when funds allow. In the meantime, thinking ahead, is it a good idea to change the current manifold bolts for copper ones?

Maybe try to stop them seizing up / rusting/ corrosion?

In past experience I have found manifold nuts to be a real bugger once the UK weather gets into them

DrDonnyBrago · World Chat Champion Joined: 03 Jan 2010 Karma :

Use steel studs and copper/brass nuts. They shouldn't corrode too bad, and if they do the brass/copper strips before the stud snaps.

Edit: typo.

Bezzer · World Chat Champion Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Karma :

Raffles · World Chat Champion Joined: 14 Apr 2009 Karma :

spikenipple · Crazy Courier Joined: 20 Nov 2007 Karma :

You could use phosphor bronze nuts. Considerably stronger than brass, self-lubricating as per brass and other bronze alloys and most likely will not seize.
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Bezzer · World Chat Champion Joined: 14 Apr 2005 Karma :

kestrel · Nearly there... Joined: 04 Sep 2006 Karma :

orac · World Chat Champion Joined: 25 Sep 2011 Karma :

stainless steel work hardens, altho unlikely to break the brittleness will develop over many heat cycles and the load of the exhaust expansion will be the work it has to resist.

i have mild steel alen bolts holding my down pipes (allen bolts are standard on the old 400 - even shows them in the manual), eveytime the pipes come off they get a healthy dose of copper slip and the come undone fine the next time the pipes come off.

alot of it come down to how you treat it when you put it together, stainless should be fine for exhaust studs but i would still use something like copper slip on them, aluminium can corrode - which tend to be the problem more than the studs corroding from my expierence
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stinkwheel · Bovine Proctologist Joined: 12 Jul 2004 Karma :

Brass manifold nuts work fine. They are holding the exhaust on my VFR750 as I type. I use two per stud so the whole length of the stud is covered.
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