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Repacking the muffler

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steveg

steveg

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Here's an interesting thread on repacking a Lotus Elan muffler with a Brit product - Acousta-Fil:
https://www.lotuselan.net/forums/lotus-twincam-f39/how-repack-non-repackable-silencer-t36438.html

My Moss replacement, which had been used for several years, had fiberglass packing in the front 2" or so but was otherwise empty.
83 - 85 DB in spirited driving.
MufflerBody.jpg
MufflerFront.jpg


I've ordered the product from the aptly-named DemonTweeks.com and will follow up with the installation.
 
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Hi Steve,

Very interesting and I know a friend that will be as well. Looking forward to hear about your experiences in this area. I am always interested in Fixing or making rather than buying.

Ray(64BJ8P1)
 
I remember reading a story in Road & Track magazine many years ago about some guy's first MG TC, he talked abouthow the sports car guys would pull the stuffing out of the mufflers with a bent wire hanger to get a more sporting exhaust note. I have never tried stuffing or unstuffing, but it is good to know a man on a budget has options. Certainly much better than tuning the "engine sound" that some modern cars play through their sound system.
 
I have the DWR side exit exhaust which has got louder to such an extent its right on the scrutineering noise limit of 105 db. They are expensive to replace so I'm interested in the re-packing option. BTW Demon Tweeks is a long established, very successful UK speed shop. Its owners race some very expensive classic cars including a Maserati 'Birdcage'.
 
I had a Micron exhaust on one of my motorcycles. It was designed to be repacked in that it didn't use rivets but stainless screws. Take 4 screws off and the core would slip out. I repacked with long strand stainless wool. Micron's website.
 
Randy--

There was a Supertrap on my Courier when I bought it. It made the car (MGA engine) sound like the typical fart can-equipped Honda Accord that flat-hatted kids seem to love. I removed it in short order.

Think about meeting at Sebring this March 1-3....
 
don't use steel wool. not a good idea.

a few years ago i had a 66 vette that i put side pipes on. wow were they loud. the whole car would resonate and vibrate. even with the top down you could not hear yourself think.

i went out and bought a bag of scouring pads. they are stainless steel and do not rust. first i drilled a hole in the pipe before/after the muffler chamber. ran a screw that would go all the way to the other side. then i stuffed in one ball in each side. then 2 balls and then 3. i ended up pulling the last one back out and keeping just two in there. then i drilled and put another screw behind them. they never blew out and really made the car a lot quieter. at idle it sounded more like the mufflers that were on it to begin with. it was a little louder under acceleration but nothing unbearable.
i had read where guys had taken off their mufflers off and put the balls in the down tube. they said it made for a better / different sound. i never tried that. i was happy with them behind the muffler.
 
DerekJ said:
I have the DWR side exit exhaust which has got louder to such an extent its right on the scrutineering noise limit of 105 db. They are expensive to replace so I'm interested in the re-packing option. BTW Demon Tweeks is a long established, very successful UK speed shop. Its owners race some very expensive classic cars including a Maserati 'Birdcage'.
Click to expand...

Demon Tweeks just sent me a 538 page catalog for rainy-day reading. Their name has got to be a marketing masterpiece! Roger Corman (I Was a Teenage Frankenstein) would approve - IIRC he considered a good title to be 80% of the marketing!
 
steveg said:
Demon Tweeks just sent me a 538 page catalog for rainy-day reading. Their name has got to be a marketing masterpiece! Roger Corman (I Was a Teenage Frankenstein) would approve - IIRC he considered a good title to be 80% of the marketing!
Click to expand...

Agreed, very cool name and must have worked since they've been around since the early 1970s. IIRC they were primarily a Mini supplier in their early days.
 
Demon Tweeks .....theres a blast from the past for me . I remember buying a cherry bomb muffler for my Ford Fiesta XR2 from them way back 35ish yrs ago when I used to live in the UK . They were located in Chester which was just a quick drive for me to go to the store . They were the go to guys for performance tuning parts for many cars .
 
The muffler I bought for my TR3 was too long so I cut out a section. Full of fiberglass stuffing. I put it all back in and welded it back together. It sounds good and does not leak! I never expected to find so much stuffing in there. I do wonder how long it will last.
 
Michael Oritt said:
Randy--

There was a Supertrap on my Courier when I bought it. It made the car (MGA engine) sound like the typical fart can-equipped Honda Accord that flat-hatted kids seem to love. I removed it in short order.

Think about meeting at Sebring this March 1-3....
Click to expand...
Absolutely!

Yes, I said the SuperTrapps were popular, I never said they sound good ;)

(press your hand tightly over your mouth and blow; THAT's what a SuperTrapp sounds like!)

I once saw a pair of them on an M Coupe, but years later when I worked on that car for another owner, they were long gone.
 
Current build status - building the muffler while awaiting the Acousta-Fil from Demon Tweeks.
I used reducers from the auto parts store as slightly-bell-mouthed connectors for the internal perforated tubes.
The internal locator piece is 1-1/2" x 1/16" aluminum from the hardware store. Screws are 10-32 x 3/8" SS threaded into the aluminum.
MufflerBellConnectors.jpg
MufflerEndCap.jpg

I staked the bell connectors in as I don't yet have welding.
MufflerEndPartialInstall.jpg

Tomorrow will fit more screws into muffler body.
Muffler ends were enlarged to fit header connectors.
 
I don't think the aluminum will stand up to the temperature, leaving the screws to fall out.

Steve, I think it's about time for you to step up to a MIG welder (just think of what you can accomplish then!)! Check the classifieds (Craig's list, ebay) for a good used Miller, Lincoln, or even Century.

If you're dead-set on screws, to be able to have future access, change out the aluminum to steel__and a little thicker to get another thread or two in there wouldn't hurt either.
 
Randy Forbes said:
I don't think the aluminum will stand up to the temperature, leaving the screws to fall out.

Steve, I think it's about time for you to step up to a MIG welder (just think of what you can accomplish then!)! Check the classifieds (Craig's list, ebay) for a good used Miller, Lincoln, or even Century.

If you're dead-set on screws, to be able to have future access, change out the aluminum to steel__and a little thicker to get another thread or two in there wouldn't hurt either.
Click to expand...

When/if the aluminum poops out, will switch to stainless sheet - for which I need to find a source.

Concerned about regular steel corroding away. Whatever I build needs to be able to be disassembled to be repacked.

Addendum: Read up on aluminum melting point; bought some SS sheet and will redo and follow up.
 
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