Copper donuts + Ultra copper gasket maker????

[ranger1]

Just received my copper donuts from Sled Toyz. I am wondering if it would be recommended to apply some copper gasket stuff all around the inside of the clamps prior to install to fill in the minor gaps and make a more uniform fit or is it best not to use anything?
There is no indication that there is anything wrong with the donuts but I am a firm believer in "preventative maintenance"! Spend 80 bucks now could save hundreds if the donuts go then take out the y pipes on their way out, lmao!!

 

[DigitalFusion]

that stuff holds up really well in my experience. I'd do it if for no other reason than to make the donuts easier to remove if you need to. I recently had to replace one of the exhaust joints between the motor and the y-pipe. The only way I was able to get the damned copper donut back out was to slice and dice with a cutoff wheel!

 

[ranger1]

Oh, so the copper donuts can sort of fuse together with the flange, that not to good. So like you say, maybe the copper gasket stuff might make it easier to seperate the next time.
You also said that you replaced the exhaust joint, can you just buy the flange part then weld it in place instead of replacing the whole manifold pipe?

 

[DigitalFusion]

not when this happens!

 

[Blue Dave]

not when this happens!

Tom,

Did you figure out the difference with the updated part number and if it was interchangeable allowing you to just replace one?

 

[DigitalFusion]

interchangable? yes

difference? I couldnt really tell any noticeable difference from the originalto be honest.

 

[yamaha convert]

Oh, so the copper donuts can sort of fuse together with the flange, that not to good. So like you say, maybe the copper gasket stuff might make it easier to seperate the next time.
You also said that you replaced the exhaust joint, can you just buy the flange part then weld it in place instead of replacing the whole manifold pipe?

I just checked the copper donuts on my sleds and the clamps on both sleds were tight after 2000 mile on one and almost 3000 on the other. Curiosity got the better of me and I decided to pull one of the exhaust joints of from the cylinder head to see the condition of the donut. I too had a B$#%! of a time getting the donut off and I had put them on with hi temp anti seize on the ID only. I ended up letting it soak overnight with some WD40 and I still had to use multi grips with plenty of force to get the donut free. Half the problem is when you use the multi grips on the donut you are inadvertantly clamping it to its flange. Regardless it was far too tight on its flange.
I dont know that they need to be so close a fit to the flange. The clamping is achieved on the sides of the donuts so if the bore was a little bigger it should still work fine?
As for the copper sealant I would use that as my donuts dont seem to be sealing 100% on their diameter. I will take a pic of the donut I got of as well as the ones on the sled with the clamps removed.

 

[ranger1]

Thanks Yamaha convert for sharing that info, that helps me & others very much!!! The pics of the donuts will be much appreciated as well because then we can see what is happening!
BTW, you mentioned using "multi grips" when installing the donuts, what exactly are the multi grips used for?
Thanks!!

 

[yamaha convert]

Thanks Yamaha convert for sharing that info, that helps me & others very much!!! The pics of the donuts will be much appreciated as well because then we can see what is happening!
BTW, you mentioned using "multi grips" when installing the donuts, what exactly are the multi grips used for?
Thanks!!

Sorry if I was not clear. I used the multi grips to get the donut off.
Will get pics here soon

 

[Blue Dave]

I can hardly wait to see a picture of your donut! LOL!

 

[yamaha convert]

I can hardly wait to see a picture of your donut! LOL!

Warts and all

 

[ranger1]

I can hardly wait to see a picture of your donut! LOL!

Warts and all

Ewwwwww, so much for eating my lunch, hahahaha, lol

 

[yamaha convert]

Used donut pics

So this is what the copper donuts of one of my sleds look like after about 2000 miles.
As you can see especially from the ones still on the sled they have a reasonable amount of carbon build up. The one I took of isnt as bad because I cleaned it.
The build up isn't as bad on the cylinder head side as it is on the Y pipe side on the donut I removed.
At first I thought the buildup may have been graphite left from the previous donuts, buts thats not what it is and I went to great lengths when I changed to copper to clean them and I had no recollection of graphite being left on either side of the flange.

I dont beleieve this is a problem with the copper donut and I did not modify the clamps like some have as the clamps felt tight when I was installing them and because the copper donuts were thicker than the factory donuts. The clamps were still tight when I pulled them apart and I had tried blocking the exhaust and the sled would idle down a little, but I did not hold it and try to see if it would stall.

Looking closely at the clamps they all have different contact wear marks under the clamps and are not consistent from clamp to clamp. This could be because they are a stamped unit and they will vary somewhat.

 

[ranger1]

Do you think possibly that the copper is to hard, therefore has no give, can't compress when the clamps are tightened thus not getting a good seal?
We heard many times that they should last much longer but if they don't seal good maybe they are no better.
These donuts are a pretty new thing & not many have taken them out to inspect yet, I guess.
Anybody else seeing the same thing as Yamaha convert?
As for the flanges sticking to the copper, anyone have a solution to this? Apparently anti seize didn't seem to work, don't want to have to cut the darn things out, lol!
Thanks for posting the pics, they were very helpful!

 

[Hammer 1]

I recently attempted to stall the Apex with no success. I checked this because on deceleration I would have backfire (occasionally) so I thought maybe the Copper donuts or I thought maybe the gaskets that connect the header to the muffler pipe since I installed a Excell Exhaust last season (i used the old ones when I took off OEM exhaust). I changed those and still had the backfiring. I realize it could be other things Timing too much fuel etc..(I run PCIII,Ignition) but I wanted to check this first. I also checked the donuts to find that on the one side it didn't appear to get a good seal. I too think they may be to hard and not seal correctly. I went and put hi temp gasked maker on the the two on the clutch side. I will see if this helps with my backfire. I didn't try to remove them and I don't like the fact that you had such a hard time. My sled has only 500-700mi on with the new copper donuts.