Time to see what all the Tecate hype is about?

[Red Rider]

It’s tempting to want a chrome pipe on a ride like that, but long term that coating will outlast chrome by decades. This has got to be one of the best looking Tecate builds of all time

If Dynoport had offered a chrome finish, I'm sure mr tecate would have gone that route. We considered getting a bare pipe, and sending it out to be chromed, but that was going to be crazy expensive. Thanks for the kind words. This is the first time I've done a build from the ground up. It's been a huge learning experience, for mr tecate and myself, and more importantly, it's been a ton of fun.

[Red Rider]

Last night, I spent some time fine tuning the pipe fitment. I finally got it fitting nicely, where it clears the cylinder/head, and the R radiator-to-water pump hose. The radiators, radiator louvers, hoses, & radiator shrouds are all mounted now. It's almost there!

[knappyfeet]

Last night, I spent some time fine tuning the pipe fitment. I finally got it fitting nicely, where it clears the cylinder/head, and the R radiator-to-water pump hose. The radiators, radiator louvers, hoses, & radiator shrouds are all mounted now. It's almost there!

After looking at this porn I don't want to go back to my 200X.

Looks great!

[Red Rider]

After looking at this porn I don't want to go back to my 200X.

Looks great!

Thank you. Yeah, the little porn actress loves to bare it all for the camera.

[Red Rider]

I test fit the rear fenders today, and had to snap a pic. Unfortunately, it is evident that the pipe fitment will need to be massaged yet again, as I don't like how close the stinger portion, of the exhaust, is to the rear fender tunnel.

[HondaRidr]

This machine is turning out . You do great work!

[Red Rider]

Thank you. Seeing it side by side, with my 250R, it's obvious I need to show my R some love, and polish her up a bit.

[El Camexican]

I test fit the rear fenders today, and had to snap a pic. Unfortunately, it is evident that the pipe fitment will need to be massaged yet again, as I don't like how close the stinger portion, of the exhaust, is to the rear fender tunnel.

One of the things I love about an unfinished pipe is that you can bolt it on and then just warm up the connections to Cherry red with a torch and all the metal relaxes into place. The pipe fits like a glove from then on. It’s too bad you couldn’t have done that before that pipe got coated.

[Red Rider]

One of the things I love about an unfinished pipe is that you can bolt it on and then just warm up the connections to Cherry red with a torch and all the metal relaxes into place. The pipe fits like a glove from then on. It’s too bad you couldn’t have done that before that pipe got coated.

Yeah, I prefer the unfinished look myself, but mr tecate, not so much. The pipe came ceramic coated from Dynoport, so we never had the option to test fit it first unfortunately. It is what it is, and we will have to deal with it now.

I'm curious how the welds look after using your method? I would imagine, heating up the entire pipe cherry red, would degrade all of the beautiful heat marks, around all of the pipe joints?

[El Camexican]

Yeah, I prefer the unfinished look myself, but mr tecate, not so much. The pipe came ceramic coated from Dynoport, so we never had the option to test fit it first unfortunately. It is what it is, and we will have to deal with it now.

I'm curious how the welds look after using your method? I would imagine, heating up the entire pipe cherry red, would degrade all of the beautiful heat marks, around all of the pipe joints?

You can sand off the heat marks that you don’t like with say 600 grit paper and some WD-40 and if you want to replace or any you can just take a torch and add them back on. It takes a little bit of playing with, but if you get it wrong you can just sand the marks off and start again.

[Red Rider]

You can sand off the heat marks that you don’t like with say 600 grit paper and some WD-40 and if you want to replace or any you can just take a torch and add them back on. It takes a little bit of playing with, but if you get it wrong you can just sand the marks off and start again.

Gotcha. Sounds like the same process used, when one restores an old, hand-coned pipe.

[Red Rider]

March was a busy month for me, so I didn't have much time to work on the Tecate. Yesterday, I finally decided to tackle the pipe fitment issue, and spent a few hours out in the garage, getting that ironed out. As usual, fixing one problem, created another. When I would get the stinger portion of the pipe, tucked in closer to the frame, and a safe distance away from the rear fenders, the expansion chamber portion of the pipe would then be making contact with the back corner of the cylinder head. Even though I hated to do it, the only remedy I could come up with, was to slightly dent the pipe, where it was hitting the cylinder head. About 8, well placed, controlled blows, with a ball pean produced a dent, about 1/2" in diameter, and 1/8" deep, providing the necessary clearance, to get the pipe routed, right where I wanted it.

Now, with the stinger portion of the pipe, so close to the frame, the silencer wouldn't mount properly. To remedy this, I drilled out the rivets, attaching the silencer can onto the silencer inlet flange, and rotated the can of the silencer a few degrees, in relation to inlet flange, until everything lined up properly again. Then, using the existing holes in the silencer can, I drilled new holes into the silencer inlet flange. In the pic, the pipe is mounted up properly in it's new position, and the new, TM Designworks "No Leak Exhaust Collar" is installed as well. The silencer still needs to be riveted back together, as I didn't have any 3/16" rivets.

[oldskool83]

I ran into that PIPE issue on a YZ250. It pained me to try and bash in a flat spot to clear a cylinder but not sure why no one didn't figure that out in 1986 with FMF's

[knappyfeet]

Everytime I see your updates I feel like throwing my 200X in the garbage.

It's looking fabulous!

I had to grind a little spot on the swingarm on my XR1200 to make the shock relocators fit with the V&H exhaust.....it made me sick doing it.

I figured $300-$400 (all day long) for a used swingarm on eBay vs. $1000-$1500+ for a used V&H exhaust (if you could find one).....the math said grind the swingarm and leave the exhaust alone.

[Red Rider]

...the math said grind the swingarm and leave the exhaust alone.

Yes, trust the math! I ran a similar math problem through my head, except it was a ratio of melted rear fenders to dented pipe. And please don't throw away your 200X. I don't want that on my conscience.