Staintunes on the MTS1000
(installation tips added below)
by
Jeff Gough (GrayMia) and Jon Bourke (jrbourke)
Based off of all the recommendations from fellow riders at
www.mulstistrada.net, I bought the Staintune Slip-ons. I got them from
http://www.motorsports-network.com/index.htm for $749.99 including
shipping AND a free Staintune hat! I searched around and found this was
the best price by about $50 bucks. I dealt with “Bill” from the site and
he was very quick to respond, helpful and informative.
I went with the Staintune because I liked the look of them. Also and
importantly, I wanted that deep, throaty growl of a Ducati but at the
same time I didn’t want obnoxiously loud. I don’t like blatant loud. I
also didn’t want to get into changing the airbox or ECU configs. The
Staintune’s from what I read had that to offer.
And now that I have installed them...I know they delivered exactly what
was promised. They give the bike that deep gnarly Ducati growl that
immediately makes your dick hard! Damn, it sounds SAAAAAAWWWEEEEEEETTT!
The stock pipes give the Duc that “tinny” Honda civic on steroids sound.
The Staintunes make it sing! I first left the db killers in, and was
very pleased with the sound, it is terrific. But just to hear how much
louder it was I removed them. It really makes a great difference having
them out; the sound is ten times throatier, not louder, throatier! (I’m
not sure that’s a word) Several people throughout this site comment on
how you’ll anger your neighbors without the db killers, but I don’t
think so. I sincerely don’t think it’s too loud at all. I would say it’s
the perfect decibel, its fitting for the Ducati. Maybe I’ve been swayed
by the loudness of my quad or by the obnoxiously loud Northern VA area
“hardley” riders, but I don’t think it will offend anyone.
Installation was simple and straightforward. An hour, hour and half
tops. Just break down, test fit install, and finish. Simple. No crazy
tools or ripping the tank off.
Now I haven’t ridden with the new pipes yet, it was pouring rain all day
today. I just sat outside my garage during the brief pauses of
precipitation and revved the beast for all its worth. Maybe my neighbors
were at the mall, or maybe they were just terrified from the deep growl
of the beast but I got no complaints. I’m taking my baby with its new
voice out tomorrow and I’ll let you know how it goes, but for now I
whole heartily, completely recommend the Staintune Slip-ons.
Q. I received today my Staintune headers. Beautiful metal work! However no clamps were included. Should there be clamps where the header pipes enter the collector?
A. (by Jon Bourke)
No, They are slip fittings. Smear the inside of the female (wide) end of
the slip fitting with a little bit of red high temp rtv just before you
are ready to do the final assembly. Word of advice: do a full "loose but
firm" install of the entire system to make sure you have the proper
sequence of installation understood and to adjust all the slip joints
and muffler pieces into their proper places before you snug up all the
Allen bolts and band clamps. Also, the trimming of the heat shield is
one of those things which you have to do by trial; trim install trim a
little more install etc... When you get it to the right shape, use a
little more red rtv to seal the sharp edges on the aluminum shield to
protect the bodywork and prevent delamination of the shield. It is worth
doing a couple dry installs before rtv'ing all the joints for final
install, because it can get awfully messy if you don't do it right and
have to take it all apart and clean it up to try again. Buy 2 new header
pipe gaskets from Ducati and remove the old ones before you do the final
install as well. That should guarantee that you won't get any air leaks
that cause popping and backfiring on decel. Removing the old ones can be
hard: use a sharp but stiff scribe pick to punch a hole in the inside
edge of the old one sitting in the head and try to dislodge it by prying
outward toward the outlet. Do not try to run anything "between" the
gasket and the head because it will gouge the aluminum head where the
gasket seats and that could lead to a leak.
There are some elongated slots in the outlet of the exhaust port that
you can stick the scribe through at the right angle to punch through the
inside edge of the gasket( it is a metal over composite material that is
compressible, so it can be easily penetrated if the scribe is sharp
enough). Pry outward until it lifts enough to get something underneath
it to lift it out the rest of the way. If you have the time, clean all
the machine polish and crap out of the inside of all the pipes before
you begin so you don't have to deal with smoking and flying crap on
start-up like Staintune says to be aware of. Bullshit, use a couple cans
of electric or contact cleaner and avoid all that hassle. Besides, it
makes it easier to handle while taking them in and out during your
initial fitting installs.
The full system took me 5 hrs time with no undo's. They fit perfectly if
everything is twisted and plunged and snugged in the right way. If there
is anything not right, it means that there is some wriggling in to
alignment that needs to take pace before torque-up. Call me if you need
any help. 770-331-6986 est USA. JON
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