My Motorcycle Exhaust Wrap Installation (TBR7 / Hawk 250 / etc).

Now, as always, much of the installation information I share here about wrapping my exhaust piping can directly apply to many of my TBR7’s Chonda-Cousins(Hawk 250, Brozz 250, Raven 250, etc.) Also, much of the exhaust wrap information here can apply to any internal combustion motorcycle.  

Note: I love the colors on my upgraded exhaust system( My Completed TaoTao TBR7 Exhaust Upgrade. ). However, I feel wrapping my motorcycle exhaust is a necessary step and made it look more zombie apocalypse to me—a nice look for the TaoTao TBR7.

Preparing For The Exhaust Wrap Installation.

Safety First!

Ensure the engine is off for some time and the motorcycle is on a stable surface, preventing it from moving while installing the wrap. Engine exhausts are made of thin metal, so they heat up and cool down fast, but make sure you wait long enough to ensure the motorcycle engine is cool to the touch.

Author’s Notice: This page contains affiliate links, for which I may earn a commission by their use. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases.

Items I Used For Wrapping My Motorcycle Exhaust:

Motorcycle Engine Exhaust Wrap Materials: Wrap(in box), wire and pliers.
Engine Exhaust Wrap with pliers and wire.

FAQ: Motorcycle Garage Safety Rules

1.- Engine Exhaust Wrap. I used (Amazon Affiliate Link) Titanium 2 Inch x 50 Feet Exhaust Header Wrap Kit

2.-Tools and Materials: Wire-Pliers, Scissors, and Steel wire.

FYI: Building My List of Must-Have Tools For Motorcycle Owners

3.-(optional)Gloves.

I say optional since I started out wearing gloves and then did not wear gloves. I used thin gloves, which were torn up quickly by the wire I used. I have these gloves type of gloves, and in hindsight, should have used them(An Amazon Link): Nitrile Work Gloves

My idea of tough gloves.
Before image of my gloves.
Why you should use the right gloves for the job.
What my gloves looked like during installing the engine exhaust wrap.

Note: I did not remove my motorcycle engine exhaust, which I later regretted(Previous Post: How (Not) To Install Motorcycle Exhaust Wrap). Not removing it made installing the engine wrap more complex, so in the future, I will remove the exhaust, wrap it, and then reinstall it. However, I did my installation while the engine exhaust was still installed on the motorcycle.

Planning The Engine Exhaust Wrap Direction.

Now I planned the exhaust wrap to overlap so that the airflow wouldn’t try to peel off the wrap. I layered the wrap like you layer shingles on a roof. The rain comes from the sky, but the layers of roof shingles are installed from the bottom up.

I started wrapping my exhaust distal from the engine outlet. From the furthest point, I wanted to have my wrap be. This way, as I wrapped the exhaust, the new layer would partially cover the old layer, and I worked forward.  

Wet Or Dry Engine Exhaust Wrap Installation?

I went with wrapping dry. I did like the idea of pre-wetting the engine exhaust wrap to have maybe expanded and shrink dried, leaving a very tight installation, but I read the type I ordered didn’t require it to be pre-wetted. So I went with a dry installation.

In hindsight, I might have lightly sprayed the wrap to keep down the dust levels for my peace of mind. But again, I went with a dry installation.

Installing My TBR7’s Engine Exhaust Wrap.

1.- I fed enough wrap loosely around the exhaust. I pulled a lot of wraps and tried to guess the length(loosely wrapping the exhaust and tried to dry-fit it) and then cut the wrap when I reached a point where I was sure I had enough.

Dry fitting exhaust wrap, guessing at needed length and cutting.
You can see the roll being fed up around the exhaust for dry fitting, prior to cutting.

2.- I secured the start of the wrap using the stainless steel wire. I pushed the wire through the wrap, overlapped the wrap over the pipe. I took the two ends of the wire and twisted them tight. The twist wire pliers came in handy, but any pliers could do.

Start of engine wrap, first loop.
First wrap loop, and starting the first wire installation.
Starting engine exhaust wrap and securing with wire.
First wrap loop completed, now securing with twist wire. Was tightened up and trimmed.

3.- Once my exhaust wrap was secured at the starting point, I slowly wrapped the exhaust piping moving forward. I overlapped about 1/2 of the wrap, pulling it tight. 

4.- As I moved along with the wrapping process, I occasionally took a small piece of wire and twisted them over the wrap, holding the coils in place.  

Using Temp wire to hold loops of exhaust wrap.
Just holding wrap in place with small wire, will install proper wire at end of installation.

5.- As you reach the end, you have the choice of cutting the excess off and securing the end with wire. I found I had so much wrap leftover; I covered some of the wraps with additional wrap. I was moving back towards the bike’s rear till I ran out of the remaining wrap.

Excess Engine Exhaust Wrap.
I over estimated the amount of exhaust wrap I needed. So used excess to wrap backwards.
Engine Exhaust Wrap end.
Now I have a double layer at start of exhaust. This can help engine run cooler in end.

6.- Now, I went back using the wire and secured points along with the wrap that needed to be secured and tidied up. I twisted the wire tight and moved the twisted ends inside toward the engine, and this step prevented snagging the wire ends into my leg. After installing the permanent wire, I removed the temporary wire I used while installing the wrap.

Engine Exhaust Wrap Completed.
Removed temp wire, and installed properly twisted wire. Ends toward the engine.

7.- Once completed, I ensured I had proper ventilation and then started the engine. This installation step will generate smoke. Foul-smelling smoke. Yuck. It seemed that each time I ran the motorcycle after the wrap installation, I still had a smoke, but it was less and less till it disappeared.

Last Step, Clean Uptime.

Ensure you secure the remaining wrap; you might want to use it for a later project and get any stray pieces of material off the floor. Wire clippings might cause problems if they end up in the wrong place.

Engine Exhaust Wrap Installation Final Thoughts.

I like it. The final result is a good look. I had very few problems with the installation, other than gloves tearing up, and I made the process more challenging by not removing the exhaust in the first place. But I am hopeful this upgrade will limit the amount of heat radiated to the engine and my leg.

I plan to follow up with this post about whether this upgrade was worth it. Face it; I now covered over that great-looking patina my exhaust had. I did like the blues in the metal.

TBR7 exhaust colors.
Loved those colors on my TBR7. The exhaust looks good here, but bye bye. :/

Thanks for following along, and here is the list of materials I used that you can get from Amazon. Remember, as an Amazon Associate; I could earn fees off qualified purchases. Thank you.

Thank you again, and Ride Fun, Ride Safe!


Click To See My Recommended
TBR7 Upgrades


Picture of me, as a New Motorcyclist.
Just Me…Newly Licensed.

Hi I’m Tom, A New Motorcycle Rider and Blog Author.

I am a new motorcycle rider(Pa Motorcycle Learner’s Permit at the end of 2020, and I received a full M-Class Pa Motorcycle License in 2021, only after passing the Pa Motorcycle Safety Course).

I bought my first motorcycle, a TaoTao TBR7 (A Chinese Dual-sport motorcycle), at the beginning of 2021 and have been doing upgrades on that motorcycle since.

I added to my motorcycle collection by buying a Boom Vader Gen 2 motorcycle in 2022, and that little Grom-Clone bike has been upgraded by me as well.

I continue to ride my Boom Vader Gen 2 motorcycle as well as my TaoTao TBR7 dual-sport bike.

Read more on my About Me page.

Fun Fact: I’ve only been on one group ride.

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