KwakNut
Senior Member
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SuzukiSavage.com Rocks!
Posts: 332
Sheffield, England, mostly.
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If you're fitting header wrap for a performance boost, what you get will be negligible if anything - in terms of $ per horsepower it's about the last thing to do on an application like the Savage. There is theoretical (but so small almost impossible to objectively measure) improvement to be had from keeping the gas hot and fast, but then gas that has cooled a little takes up less volume and therefore doesn't need to go as fast in the back half of the exhaust!
The real advantage of header wrap for race cars is that is reduces underhood temperatures - and that means the engine is breathing cooler air - thats where the measurable power gains comes from. For obvious reasons just won't apply to the Savage.
On a bike, advantages are the rough 'n' ready 'look' of the wrap and the fact that the pipe won't burn your ankle any more. Disadvantages are the cost of wrap (it's not cheap for what it is); likely corrosion of the pipe underneath unless you're in a very dry region; occasional smell; and it tends to look bad after a few months.
First tip - if you really want wrap, get the 1-inch wide stuff rather then 2-inch, because it looks way neater when in place on bends.
Second tip - use a little blob of superglue every now and then as you wrap it (it sticks wrap quite well) to stick the fresh layer of wrap to the one it's overlapping, just in case you slip and let go, so it doesn't all unwind on you before you manage to secure the far end.
Main tip - take the money you were going to spend on wrap and stainless clips to secure it, and put that cash towards saving up for a new pipe instead.
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