Heat Shielding

Discussion in 'Mechanics Garage' started by gregrunt, Oct 30, 2017.

  1. gregrunt

    gregrunt New Member

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    I've bought a set of aftermarket Chinese fairings for my 2005 VFR800 and I was wondering how effective different kinds of heat shielding would be on the fairings and where it should go. Currently, I've taken off the side and lower fairings. Neither of them have any heat shielding at all aside from one foam strip on the side fairing (see picture). I was wondering if this was the same with other 6th generation VFRs. There's been no noticeable melting or deformities, so I'm not too concerned, to be honest.

    Moving forward I was wondering what kind of heat shielding others have applied to their fairings, if any. The aftermarket fairings I've ordered will be coming with some amount of heat shielding that's attached to a thin cardboard backing, if my research/memory serves correctly. However, I'm not too keen on using this because I think it's going to be incredibly rigid and difficult to fit to the curves of the bike. As such I'd be interested to hear if others have used something like aluminum thermal tape or other adhesive thermal products and their effectiveness. I'm led to believe that I'd be fine if I used no heat shielding based on the OEM fairings' condition (at 15k miles) but I'm worried that the aftermarket fairings may be slightly thinner and, thus, more susceptible to deformity.

    Finally, I was wondering where heat shielding should be applied. I feel like the obvious answer "anywhere it gets hot" (eg side fairings, lower fairing, rear fairing near exhaust), but if others' experience dictates otherwise I'm all ears.

    Edit: For those curious, I'm going to settle on DEI Reflect-A-GOLD High-Temperature Heat Reflective Adhesive Backed Roll since it seems to have good reviews pertaining to motorcycle applications. You can even get a 24" x 150' roll for a mere $3,000!

    Runner up products included:
    1. DEI 010468 Cool-Tape Self-Adhesive Heat Reflective Tape
    2. Mr. Gasket 6323 Inferno Shield Heat Reflective Tape
    3. Thermo-Tec 13575 Adhesive Backed Heat Barrier
    4. Heatshield Products 340250 Thermaflect Tape
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2017
  2. Allyance

    Allyance Insider

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    I had a problem on my 83 with the Vance & Hines headers being too close to the original chin fairing for the lower radiator. It burned a hole through the plastic. I bought some insulating tape on Amazon that works great. Header is in direct contact to tape which is two layers thick, so far no problems. Don't think you are going to have anything that hot and that close.
     
  3. gregrunt

    gregrunt New Member

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    Awesome, glad to hear insulating tape actually works and isn't some cheap gimmick. Not that I expected it to be considering it's used in HVAC applications, but I didn't think it'd be that effective. I'll probably buy a few rolls of that and cover as much of the fairings as I can.
     
  4. Allyance

    Allyance Insider

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    I bought special high temperature tape, it was about 1/16" thick. The insulating tape should be aluminum to reflect heat. What I bought was both aluminum and some insulating material. If you are just wanting to reflect normal engine heat, the tape you found should do the job.
     
  5. MechTech

    MechTech New Member

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    I removed the oil and dirt soaked foam and taped up the inside of the plastic with aluminum duct tape. Use a putty knife to remove the foam and then a paint brush with plenty of lacquer thinner to remove the remaining adhesive. Works well and sheds a few ounces as well.
     

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