I swear this thing is gonna be the death of me.
 

Hey guys, so I've been having trouble with the exhaust studs staying in. Well, I broke one of them so I ordered a new head (which was somehow cheaper with the cylinder kit as well). All put back together, rode it around for a while, and it got louder again. So I looked underneath and one of the exhaust nuts had fallen off. Also noticed I have a pretty extensive oil leak from the gasket on the side crankcase cover. Anyone have tips on what to do to keep the exhaust in place? I've tried a jam nut before and lock tight (blue) and neither worked for very long. I'm about to drill holes in the nuts or studs and put a wire through them like they do on race cars. Also noticed the driver's lower control arm needs to be replaced (bottom spindle hole is walleyed pretty badly). About ready to just tear the engine out and rebuild the whole thing and blow this thing apart to repaint it since it was once red and now it's more of a pink color thanks to the previous owner storing it outside all the time.

Have you tried a nylock nut? It may be getting lose because if the expansion/contraction of the metal as it heats and cools. It's it being tightened enough?

nylock will just melt. if the studs have not come loose, install the nuts, run the engine til it's warmed up, tighten the nuts again. then, take a second nut and run it against the first. Hold the first nut with a wrench while you tighten the second nut into it. that's a double jam nut. should end your issue.

Is your exhaust properly supported? Seems odd that you're having that issue

Factory exhaust with just the one hanger on the side of the motor.

Probably why most factory original application's use a flanged long acorn nut - more surface / thread contact area to maintain the torque . Also if your using stainless studs and nuts , I've heard it said , hard to maintain torque -- doesn't get the " crush " on the thread because of the hardness .

Drill some holes then safety wire. 100% fix, but a pain.

Could be over torquing them and stretching the stud. Once the yield point of the material is reached, it's all down hill from there. As you broke one after having repeated trouble....this might be what happened.

Something to consider in the event you're not using a torque wrench. Sometimes less is more.

Al

Hey,
Im a noob on here, but have you tried adding a lock washer under the nut? I hadnt seen that suggestion used.