Vetterman Exhaust Installation

Hey all,

I have a couple questions regarding my RV-9 Vetterman installation.

1. What should the distance be between the top of the tail pipe and the bottom of the fuselage (right at the firewall)? It is an adjustable dimension and I want to provide some clearance from the fuselage and also the cowling which is yet to be installed.

2. Considering question 1. What is the dimension between each tail pipe? (either at the tips or firewall)

Thanks much!

I have a vetterman 4 pipe exhaust

and recommend that you wait until the cowl is installed to finish this part of the install. You need clearance in all directions, and it would be really hard to know whats what until the cowl is installed...

Mine was very tight with the cabin heat muff and the cowl installed. I don't have much more than 1/2" from the pipe to the bottom of the firewall, 3/8" from pipe to engine mount (A-model leg structure) and 1/4" from cabin heat muff to cowl. I had to fiddle with it for quite a while to get it that good.

Several variables set the spacing, etc.


When you see this view, you realize the spacing between the pipes is not the only issue. I have a burned spot at one location on my cowl where the pipes moved when one of my hose clamps broke about 3 years after first flight. In this photo, the pipe on the left was the one that burned the inside of the cowl.

The photo above was taken just after my first flight on June 9, 2005 when I found a bolt not properly torqued on my prop governor. It was a minor oil leak that was quickly fixed.