OutdoorKing Repair Forum Forums Repairs and Maintenance Questions on Engines Questions On Victa Two Stroke Engines Noisy Powertorque Exhaust.

Yesterday, I attempted to quieten down the exhaust by swapping for another used muffler. Upon examination of the removed one, there was some missing metal from corrosion at the exhaust outlet, but the muffler case was fine. There was a lack of mesh inside.
I decided to fit another with a fully intact outlet, and it looked like it also needed more mesh inside, so I inserted some of that stainless steel dish scrubbing pad (not steel wool - the more coarse and porous stuff). It made no difference and some smoke came out the left side as well. It makes that pronounced crack sound which should be a lot more muffled.
I think the baffling I put in was not very effective and it needs the original type stuffed in. That doesn't explain the smoke out the side though. Maybe the bottom clip isn't located properly on the engine end?

I took it off and put two more pieces of original mesh I found inside the previous muffler exhaust and added the stainless dish washing mesh as well, to pack it in tight. I made sure the bottom clip was secure before fitting the exhaust back in.
Runs like a top and is satisfactorily quiet now. Also reshaped the outlet of the muffler to follow the original shape before putting it back. I have a new one I used as a guide.
No smoke coming out the side either!
Pics showing the mower, the previous exhaust with the corroded outlet (should be metal most of the way down -all gone.) and posed next to a sister unit of mine.

G'day I just want to ask about the mufflers on these powertorque engines.

Is there much difference between a genuine Victa muffler and an aftermarket muffler? Apart from the Victa one has the name stamped on it and it looks nice and shiny?

Is it worth spending extra money on a genuine Victa muffler or better to just get a cheap muffler?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Cheers!

MF a bead of roof and gutter silicone around the neck of the muffler will seal it up there.
Converse as I said plenty of mufflers here that I will never use

Thanks again for that NormK, but i'll be getting a few other bits and peices from the same place so i'll just grab a new muffler from them they don't cost all that much.

I just wanted to ask if the genuine ones are more quiet? longer lasting? etc? Because I know with the full cranks and the old rectangle muffler you can only buy an aftermarket one. But with the powertorque you can still buy genuine mufflers.

Cheers

Most of the probably 40 dead Powertorques I have here have mufflers on them and they will probably end up in the scrap bin one day

I don't think the genuine muffler with Victa stamped on it would any better. The one I replaced on the engine above ^ had the Victa lettering and the neck that goes on the engine had a hairline crack all the way around. The muffler I put on was the older type without lettering I have never seen that cracking on them.
I think what matters is how much packing is in.
I have another PT mower I pulled out after a long time in storage and struck at how quiet it was compared to the one above. That makes me wonder if packing is the only factor for effectiveness.
NormK, can you into some more detail on the gutter beading idea?

MF it is just roof and gutter silicone, run a bead around the neck of the muffler and push it in and clip it up, you can do the same on the full cranks, works fine, been used on motorcycle exhaust where they push into the heads for years

Where the neck meets the muffler body? Also, are you saying it can be used in lieu the sealing ring for the full crank?

I can't remember MF I think I have done them both ways with the sealing ring and without it, seems to work ok either way

G'day everyone,

Just a question on these powertorque mufflers. On the full crank with the rectangle muffler I installed a little round gasket that sits between the muffler and the exhaust outlet.

But I noticed that these powertorque mufflers don't seem to have this little gasket, I have searched the web and shops and they don't mention or list any sort of gasket for a powertorque muffler.

I will soon be replacing the muffler on a powertorque engine, and I just want to make sure you can fit these without a gasket?

Also Mowerfreak, when I was looking for powertorque mufflers I read that you were talking about the packing and mesh etc. Anyway going by the Victa spare parts description it seems the early powertorque mufflers have one mesh installed inside and on the later style shiny "Victa" embossed mufflers they have 2 mesh wires installed inside from new. Just something I found out while searching for replacement parts.

Hi NormK, I could use a bead of roof and gutter silicone when installing the powertorque muffler. Does this stuff hold up well to the extreme heat of the exhaust? As I think the little gasket I used on the full crank has some sort of steel ring inside it with some sort of high temp paper material?

I guess they don't make gaskets like they used to now. They probably had asbestos material on these high heat exhaust gaskets many years ago. As this stuff could handle the high heat with no problems. I remember buying some exhaust manifold gaskets years ago for a car and there was a warning on them saying they contained asbestos. Same goes for brake pads and shoes for cars from years ago. All contained asbestos. Nasty stuff when breathed in but probably the best thing for high heat applications.

Cheers!

Giday Converse, believe it or not the silicone can handle the heat, weather it works or not I always put a bead around the mufflers when I refit one, same thing with the washer on the F/C's , silicone on both sides of the washer and put the clips on and that is about as good as you can get it, I just say to people, if the noise bothers you just put on a pair of ear muffs.

Hi Converse,

As far as I'm aware, there are no gaskets for the PowerTorque engine mufflers. They fit in place against a flange and are held in by the spring clips, that's all.

If you insisted on putting some sort of gasket material on there to try to reduce noise or ensure all exhaust gasses exit from the exhaust as they should, under the mower, I would recommend using a high-temperature gasket material, such as Loctite SI 5920. I'm not sure what temperature the exhaust should be, but that should handle it. Remember (Most people use gasket material incorrectly), you should wait until the gasket material is dry/set before assembling or you'll just glue the 2 surfaces together. Remember, silicone gasket material like this is designed to replace a gasket which you don't have, so you need to put it in place, let it dry, and then assemble the components.

Cheers,

pau13z

Roof and gutter is much cheaper and has been used on motorcycle exhausts for years on the push in exhausts

Cheers NormK and Pau13z,

When I get around to it i'll have a look at how bad the exhaust outlet is on the engine, it's been sitting for years it might be a bit rough and i'll use some sort of silicone if it needs it.

Yes NormK, don't worry I know all about the ear muffs mate..lol

You know how loud a full crank can get at full revs when your mowing for over 1 hour. When you stop the mower and your ears are still ringing for a while it's probably a bit too loud, not to good for your hearing. Ear muffs or plugs are great if your mowing for a long time with a loud mower that's for sure.

Cheers!

Ok so has anybody come up with some sort of easy fix for these noisy PT mufflers. I just haven't really tried but somebody must have a fix that reduces the noise. Some are ok but some are very noisy. I have not cut one open to see if there is any sort of baffle in there. I did get some stainless steel pot scourers some years ago but I never got around to trying them. I was thinking I could stuff it inside the throat of the muffler and see how that goes.

Another member here said you can use that dish washing stuff as an alternative.
I have pulled out the wire mesh baffling out of the old faulty muffler with needle nose pliers and stuffed it into another. You make sure it fills the chamber as evenly as possible. There seems to be two lots minimum that go in there.
I just find some mufflers work better than others, but your ears can tell when the noise is blatantly excessive, especially that snip snip snip noise from detonation.
As long as it sounds acceptable to your judgment.

I have a bag of insulwool here I might try some in a muffler and see how that goes. Probably slowly blow out or get clogged solid with oil/soot but nothing too loose