So... Q? for those who get off the tar with a 1330.

[Isopedella]

I do get off the tar from time to time.
Yeah I know... No lectures required as im aware of possible belt damage.
Nothing too stupid, gravel roads and the odd track.
Has anyone damaged their muffler at all?

Iso
ADV rider on a Spyder.

[Mikey]

You can ride all the gravel roads you want, just don't ride like an idiot. Keep your speed down and pick your track!

[GreyGhost]

What Mikey said..

[Gwolf]

Tar on a muffler, try some tar remover from auto parts store. If it is stainless steel mufflers, it can be polished off with Blue Magic and Dremel or buffing pads on angle grinder.

[Jdr00ejr]

I do get off the tar from time to time.
Yeah I know... No lectures required as im aware of possible belt damage.
Nothing too stupid, gravel roads and the odd track.
Has anyone damaged their muffler at all?

Iso
ADV rider on a Spyder.

You don't mention which Spyder you are riding. The lower muffler is no lower than anything else on the Spyder so if you are rubbing it and causing issues you are likely rubbing other areas and causing issues. Rock dings/etc are certainly as possibility - but wouldn't stop me.

Too many people are so scared of riding on gravel. Just don't ride "stupid". If you are purposely racing down gravel, spinning tires, sliding it around then yeah you risk throwing a rock up into the belt. Ride normal and enjoy. Is there a risk with normal riding - sure - but certainly not enough risk to be as scared of it as many are.

To be honest, what they call "Chip Seal" here in the states - where they lay down oil and then gravel on a paved road is actually a greater risk than a gravel road - because if a "normal" rock goes through the belt it usually passes on through and that's that - but when a tar/oil covered rock goes through the belt it can stick around and keep causing issues.

Just my 2 cents...

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I do get off the tar from time to time.
Yeah I know... No lectures required as im aware of possible belt damage.
Nothing too stupid, gravel roads and the odd track.
Has anyone damaged their muffler at all?

Iso
ADV rider on a Spyder.

I've had good luck using .....NON-PETROLEUM based Paint thinner ..... especially on our WATER-BASED paint ...... Good Luck .....Mike

[Isopedella]

Cheers.
Chip Seal - with tar then gravel-then rolled is everywhere in NZ. No concrete here all. Nearer the larger cities there is something called hot mix. Tar and something - no gravel on top.

Give you an idea - there are 10 new and 18 used Spyders for sale here. Thats it. 2nd hand parts N/A.
I found a muffler for sale locally as the bloke swapped it out for a noisier one.

Used is $200 new is $850.

So I wondered if the muffler gets damaged with ATV riding.

Thought I might grab it and put it on the shelf in the shed for a rainy day.

I'm on an F3 Ltd.

[FrogmanDave]

I think people misinterpreted your comment about "getting off the tar". Lol, giving you advice about how to remove tar from a muffler......

[Jdr00ejr]

I think people misinterpreted your comment about "getting off the tar". Lol, giving you advice about how to remove tar from a muffler......

Noticed that too huh? LOL!

OP is talking about going off pavement - driving on "unimproved" roads.

[Peteoz]

Just for future reference, Jdr……..ISO’s model/year is in his signature

Pete

You don't mention which Spyder you are riding. The lower muffler is no lower than anything else on the Spyder so if you are rubbing it and causing issues you are likely rubbing other areas and causing issues. Rock dings/etc are certainly as possibility - but wouldn't stop me.

Too many people are so scared of riding on gravel. Just don't ride "stupid". If you are purposely racing down gravel, spinning tires, sliding it around then yeah you risk throwing a rock up into the belt. Ride normal and enjoy. Is there a risk with normal riding - sure - but certainly not enough risk to be as scared of it as many are.

To be honest, what they call "Chip Seal" here in the states - where they lay down oil and then gravel on a paved road is actually a greater risk than a gravel road - because if a "normal" rock goes through the belt it usually passes on through and that's that - but when a tar/oil covered rock goes through the belt it can stick around and keep causing issues.

Just my 2 cents...

[Isopedella]

Yep. Guess I need work on my American.

I will rephrase my question.

So I wondered if the muffler is likely to get damaged with ADV off road riding on my 2017 F3 Spyder.
That is to be off pavement - driving on "unimproved" roads. Tracks and stuff.
Anybody up north do that?

Pete you do get out there I read. Cleaned up a muffler at all or heard of it?

[Peteoz]

Yep. Guess I need work on my American.

I will rephrase my question.

So I wondered if the muffler is likely to get damaged with ADV off road riding on my 2017 F3 Spyder.
That is to be off pavement - driving on "unimproved" roads. Tracks and stuff.
Anybody up north do that?

Pete you do get out there I read. Cleaned up a muffler at all or heard of it?

Hahaha……yep, it must be your Kiwi accent, Iso……I understood exactly what you were asking. I don’t ride off road as much as Peter A, but I do get out on gravel and dirt roads (these days our graded dirt and gravel roads are smoother than our asphalt ones ), and I have never had an issue, or heard of one.

But……given the cost of mufflers and shipping, and the lack of spares in UnZud, I can’t see that you can go wrong with buying a spare (apart from being $200 out of pocket of course), especially if you are riding on rougher tracks…..good insurance.

Pete

[Isopedella]

Yeah. I hear ya.
Graded dirt ...ya have a few k's of them in the middle. 1 or 2 k's or so. I have only seen a tiny bit of it.
Probably be like the LJ's ( life jackets for boating) I have. Got them but hope to never need them.
PS. I'm working on my Strine as well. Peter A may chime in.

Have you considered just how many beers I can buy for $200 Kiwi. Summer is on the way. Big decision.

For you northern folk. Its a bit of tongue in cheek Downunder attempt at humour.

[Peter Aawen]

I've checked over quite a few 1330 powered Spyders Iso, a fair proportion of them F3's, but I haven't seen any 1330 mufflers damaged by riding off the bitumen... a couple of Catalytic Converters maybe (their damage looked a whole lot more like curb damage to me tho! ) but No mufflers!

And while my Spyder isn't powered by a 1330 motor, it does do a LOT of 'off bitumen' travel with no real outward signs, & no additional belt guards either! The only things that I do directly attribute to my regular riding on 'non-sealed surfaces' is that I feel it prudent to regularly check the belt etc just to make sure it's still fine; and that I need to ride in the rain more often... If I don't, then the dust & mud etc. tends to build up a bit, so if I couldn't go riding in the rain, then I'd hafta wash my Spyder more often!

Ground Clearance will be your major concern - these Spyder things are low!! And you probably already realise that dirt/gravel roads that start out looking OK can often lure you out & along them a fair way before the ruts &/or deep gravel sets in, at which stage keeping your Spyder's belly off the road surface becomes a little problematic! To minimise the potential damage from that sorta stuff, I've swapped out the plastic belly tray (under the frunk) for one of Noboot's Alloy Skid Plates and it has really earned its place on my Spyder!

Not sure if he does one for the F3's, but it's a great piece of kit for my RT - there's no loss of ground clearance due to its thickness like that you suffer with a Bump Skid or the Halo Skid Plates; and it also doesn't project out beyond the leading edge of the tupperware like they do, so it doesn't reduce your approach angle &/or get hammered/hung up on rocks or curbs etc. either! That means there's no risk of damage underneath caused just by nudging something a bit harder than you expected - which is also a good reason for avoiding those 'bolt-on bumper' thingies or the bumper/grille guard combos that are available for Spyders!! Those things either bolt onto the frame, & so can write your Spyder off if you hit an obstruction with that projecting lip, even if you only juuust nudge whatever obstacle instead of just scratching the paintwork; or they screw onto the bottom of the frunk, so can write off your Spyder's frunk instead of just scratching the paintwork if you hit an obstruction, even if you only juuust nudge it!!

But overall, I think many people worry FAAARRR TOO MUCH about just riding their Spyders... IIRC, I reckon there's even this little saying I've seen around the place that might apply..... now what was it???

Oh, I know...



Ryde More, Worry Less!


Just Sayin'

[RayBJ]

I've ridden 'off-road maybe 25 miles all told on my '20 RT so far on long-haul trips. Dusty hard-pack, loose and packed gravel, even some 2-track. Other than a few scrapes and grass strains, the stock muffler is fine. Note, I have a cat-delete so slightly less risk of contact.

[BCNewell]

Accidentally rode about 7 miles of damp dirt / loose rock, complete with some fairly steep hills to climb, with the F3-S this weekend near Spyders In The Ozarks. Found out my “connecting roads” between two highways were not paved! Traction control kicked in a few times while going up. But no problems. Just try to navigate the ruts best you can with the front end, and the rear end will take care of itself. No rock dings or anything ... just lotsa dust etc on the tires, wheels, fenders, seat, etc. I actually quite enjoyed it! Got a few surprised looks from some locals, too - human and canine alike!

[Isopedella]

Think on this a little more.....
I'm thinking on sticking to car friendly gravel roads at the worst.
I have a DR650 and a Zook Jimny if I want to get a little more serious.

My F3 handled this stuff quite well once got off the throttle a bit.
Just dodged the bigger potholes as well as I could.
20230507_131326.jpg 20230507_124713.jpg 20230507_123800.jpg

Cheers for your thoughts.

Iso

[Peteoz]

Have you considered just how many beers I can buy for $200 Kiwi. Summer is on the way. Big decision.

Gee Iso…….you didn’t tell me it was a choice between a spare muffler and BEER. Please disregard my previous comment

Pete

[Isopedella]

Fixed it for ya.

Gee Iso…….you didn’t tell me it was a choice between a spare muffler and more BEER. Please disregard my previous comment

Pete

[Mikey]

The thing I would worry more about would be your actuator for your shifter more than your muffler, some hang down lower than most and when those get hit, they don't like it.

[Isopedella]

Zactly. Very good mention Mickey.

I had another look yesterday arvo underneath after the the cat and was mentioned.
Spotted that actuator / shifter set up. That could be a problem.

Himmm.... Yeah nah. Nice car (2WD) type routes from now on up to a bit of loose stuff on top.

[2dogs]

You are not the sharpest person in the clubhouse if you take a $30k spyder out and ride it in the dirt or off road. I've been around those kind of folks before. They're fun to watch but be sure and keep your distance. JMHO

[bigbadbrucie]

PS. I'm working on my Strine as well.

Hmmm, working on my Strine..... haven’t heard that expression in 50 - 60 years. Didn’t realize that it was still being used.

[Peteoz]

Hmmm, working on my Strine..... haven’t heard that expression in 50 - 60 years. Didn’t realize that it was still being used.

Well and truly still in use, Brucie. There are a serious number of books available and still in print

Pete

[ollicat]

A little off topic, but one of the things I like most about my RTL is how easy it is to stand up while riding, So when I am on gravel or hard packed dirt roads, I can easily inspect the immediate road ahead and make adjustments when necessary.