Honda Spree and Elite 50 Forums

Read all the muffler cleaning posts and ideas but I'd like to go a different route. I'd like to cut an access panel opening on the back-side of the muffler and then re-attach the panel after cleanings. Before I do any cutting (want to keep the stock configuration and the stock 70dB noise level) I'd like to see a pic of what the interior baffles look like, how they are attached and which direction they run.
Anyone have a pic of the inside of a trashed 1986 Spree muffler?
I'll only have one chance to cut in the right place.

UPDATE:
Went to plan B below.

Here is a pic of a Spree muffler member keithw opened up

Good deal!
Thanks mouse . . . any other views?
It almost looks like a small Briggs style muffler is attached on the main input pipe?

I don't recall any other views of the cut open exhaust.

Thanks again . . . I read a brand new, clean, stock muffler and pipe comes in around 3 lbs and since mine weighs in at 4 lbs 8 ounces I'm long overdue (5000 miles) for a good cleaning. I figure if I can't cut a proper access panel maybe I can just install a brand new longer Briggs style muffler inside the stock muffler case from the backside only.
One other question . . .
If you plug the muffler outlet with your thumb, how long should it take to stall the engine?
I have almost no force exiting mine and this is with a brand new piston/jug.

Greetings:

MiniCooperS axt:

If you plug the muffler outlet with your thumb, how long should it take to stall the engine?

I dunno, but it takes about 6 hours in the ER for burn care and a Tetanus Shot. Consider using a rubber stopper. Also check for a rust hole or faulty flange gasket.

Greetings:

OK I can't believe you made me do that but I just did the muffler-thumbing thing on a cold Flash engine. Idled for more than 20 seconds, giving no sign of stalling. I think enough exhaust gas was escaping through the little cracks between the baffle and the outlet - and perhaps my fingerprints - to support idle speed. It died almost immediately when I cracked the throttle open a little. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to to to the ER.

Thanks for the update . . . ER's have cute nurses usually.

Okay, back to the topic at hand . . . anyone out there that has chemically dipped and rinsed their muffler . . . how much did you have to invest in drain cleaner? The reason being, before I cut my muffler, I priced small bottles of drain cleaner today at $7 ea for 32 oz.
Then I got a price of $50 for a radiator shop to boil my muffler in some kind of chemical at 500 degrees for a week if I want.

After further review . . . and talking to my local Mighty Muffler shop . . . I've decided to fore go the access panel and just remove one entire side of the stock muffler. The tech says to cut the case as close as possible to the existing vertical welded joint with as narrow a cutting disc as possible (Dremel #409 cutting disc) and he will weld it all back together for $25.
Didn't feel comfortable with the "boil-out" or "barbecue" method as I wasn't sure everything would be flushed. This way I can see everything first-hand.
I'll post progress pics.

Chemical is easy and inexpensive at the same time. It just takes a few days of flipping and flopping and a good rinse. Good old fashioned liquid plumber type stuff. One qt does the trick.

The muffler weighed in at 4 lbs 11 oz before I cut it open. After cleaning with barbeque grill cleaner and removing the oil saturated stuffing (5000 miles worth) I'm off to Mighty Muffler to get it all welded up for $25. Decided not to replace the old stuffing and now I know for sure the inside is clean.
Progress pics . . . I didn't take a pic of what it looked like when I first opened it though. There is no way to get the old stuffing clean.

continued

that stuffing is sound deadening i think you will find its louder than stock .But only time will tell .Oh and nice job

Plugging the muffler outlet of a stock spree should kill it in seconds when idling.

Greetings:

Very nice and thanks for sharing. How much did the pipe weigh post-operatively?