OK, this will make you jealous, so don't say I didn't warn you. Around 1990 my original 4 in 4 had served around 75.000 kms and needed to be renewed. Not so much the outside, but the inside was loose. I remembered a Honda dealer had two genuine CB500 exhausts lying around that he wanted to get rid of because he needed the room. He let me have them for € 50,- each. I couldn't believe my eyes, they were indeed NEW. I made some phonecalls and found #3 in Haarlem, not even 20 kms from here. That dealer would not sell that one for less than € 75,-. So for € 175 I had three exhausts NEW (unused!). I decided I had had enough luck, went back to the first dealer and ordered #4 new for the Honda price and bargained a 20% rebate. Now the reason those dealers had those exhausts lying around was because in the 70s, for some silly reason, some bikers bought a new CB500 and wanted a 4-1 on it from the start. They had heard all kinds of nonsense. I just came in the right time at the right place. Those dealers were tired of those exhausts hanging around and didn't expect them to sell them anymore. Had I waited another three weeks, I could have had also #4 for € 75,- as well, again NEW. It was advertised but was a 100 km from here.
Now as if my luck was not complete yet: some months later the technician that came to inspect my central heating system turned out to be an CB500 owner too. He told me he desired his bike to look original and was in search of the genuine 4-4, but could not afford new ones. I showed him my old set that still hang in the garage and said he could have the four for € 100,-. Mind you the headers were stiil as new. Glad like a child he was. All in all, I must be the person that had a new set of 4-4 for the lowest price in the world.
So now my second set has done 60.000 kms and are still as new. Here's the secret. Inspect every now and then the little drainholes at the bottom are still open because that's where they will start to corrode. Apart from holidayrides I always park the bike in the garage and most important: I never make rides shorter than 25 minutes and part of it has to be on the open road. Ride your bike hot (they love it and especially the 500/550 has lots of reserve in temperature). A benificial sideaffect is that you'll not experience drainage of the battery which seems to be an issue in this here forum.
