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Cl350 exhaust gasket or no?

beachinwesty

Member
Joined
Nov 26, 2020
Total Posts
33
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Location
baltimore
Ok, so here’s the dilemma. My bike is louder than it should be, and it seems it might be because of my missing exhaust gasket. it doesn’t really bother me but it ain’t perfect, and isn’t that what we’re supposed to obsess over on these long dark days of winter? I’ve rebuilt the engine and properly installed the crush gaskets, etc on the pipes. No holes in the pipes or mufflers. Rebuilt the carbs and dialed her in like buttah!

I”m missing the exhaust gasket that sits at the joint where the right side exhaust enters the muffler. There is a soft graphite ring that goes between the pipe and the muffler body and, you know, seals it.

There are pros and cons to installing the gasket and I’m curious to benefit from your experience.

pros - better carburetor or fuel efficiency or some such voodoo with more effective back pressure? I currently just give the pipe a couple of wraps of beer can aluminum to tighten her up so the clamp tightens more easily, if I do anything extra at all.

cons - a royal PIA to take the exhaust apart and reinstall. I’ve watched videos of this and it’s a nightmare. The result of a tightly sealed exhaust is just that. It’s tight. I find that I need to take the exhaust off to get to stuff because that cl exhaust really can block access.

so I’m inclined to leave the gasket sitting in the toolbox and just be happy with my well functioning bike, but I’d love to hear input from the forum.
 
Well, once you get everything dialed in with the carbs and have clean air filters, it can be a long time before you have to remove the exhaust to get to them. Or, a piece of trash can stick the needle valve in a carb wide open tomorrow...lol. That gasket is a pain to get in there the first time, but not too bad to reinstall after you’ve taken it apart again for whatever reason. I’d put one in and hope for the best. That said, I got sick of removing mine repeatedly due to carb problems and put CB pipes on it.
 
I've never had to split the muffler from the pipe for access, I just remove the assembly as needed and say unkind words about Honda every time. Being that far back in the exhaust will have little effect on the engine performance and no danger really of burning the exhaust valve. I understand the dilemma but personally I'd use the gasket.
 
Good advice. Thank you. I think what I’ll do is just run it for a while and if I find myself not pulling it apart much anymore, then I’ll put the gasket in. At some point I’ll stop tinkering with it so much, and that will be the sign to finish it off with the gasket.

Cheers,
 
A good example of having to remove the exhaust to gain access was last week when I had to rebuild the starter clutch. Those cl pipes get right in the way and have to come off to get proper access to the stator etc. if I had to fight that right pipe out of the muffler I would have been very unhappy, instead of just pulling it off clean and moving on with the rest of the job.

that’s what I mean when I say I think I’ll just wait and see for a season maybe before I jam that gasket in.

I may be a glutton for punishment, but I am getting wiser over time.
 
I just take my CL pipes off as an assembly. I’ve got it down to just a few minutes. Probably like 5 minutes...


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Yeah, I could do it that way. I’m probably making a bigger deal out of it than it needs to be. I could learn to just take off the whole assembly. I guess it’s just the dead of winter and I need to ***** about something :).
 
I just take my CL pipes off as an assembly. I’ve got it down to just a few minutes. Probably like 5 minutes...


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I've done it that way in the past while working at the Honda shops, it can be a bit more struggle but in the end it's simpler and with the right technique (some brute force and a few expletives) it isn't too bad. :neutral:
 
Same. I leave the two rear plates on and just unbolt the top rear bolt from the hanger, pop the center bracket fasteners off, and then the four collar nuts.

Both pipes can come off and be put back on in this way. Sort of a push, tilt, pivot, yank scenario.

Helps to loosen the hanger off the handle to give you more play to get everything aligned.

But yeah, five minutes or so to get it all off.

Same about to get it back on unless you’re replacing the copper gaskets and they refuse to budge.


-Ed
1972 CL350
 
Like others I remove the whole thing

ive also cut away a bit from the sprocket/clutch cover so it comes off without needing to remove the exhaust

I also had a bike that needed an exhaust gasket (between the engine and exhaust, not the primary and muffler) and was loud without it. I used RTV red to seal it up, and it held til I removed the exhaust the next time. It's been many years and miles and no issues... so if you're ina pinch and don't mind a sloppy solve then reach for the red rtv
 
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