Manufacturing motorcycle mufflers<\/strong><\/p>\n Fabricator finds improvement with rotary swaging<\/p>\n September 1, 2009<\/p>\n Like all manufacturers, Woodsage Industries is always on the lookout for a better way to manufacture the many components it produces for OEMs. It recently devised a way to make one-piece external muffler shells for motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles.<\/em><\/p>\n The allure of motorcycles is centered mainly on three criteria: How does it look, how fast does it go, and how does it sound? All three result from extensive engineering, prototyping, and manufacturing efforts. As in all other areas of manufacturing, the OEMs are always on the lookout for a better method. One motorcycle manufacturer, Victory Motorcycles, a division of Polaris Industries Inc., turned to one of its suppliers, Woodsage\u2122 Industries, for input on its exhaust systems.<\/p>\n![\"manufacturing-motorcycle-mufflers\"](\"\/blog\/joewelder\/wp-content\/manufacturing-motorcycle-mufflers.jpg\" "\\"manufacturing-motorcycle-mufflers\\"")
You don’t have to look far to find a motorcycle these days. Riders purchased 900,000 motorcycles in 2008, nearly triple the number sold in 1995. The best-known motorcycle rally, held annually in Sturgis, S.D., regularly draws more than 400,000 riders. In total, organizers put together nearly 1,000 motorcycle-related events every year. That’s not bad for a mode of transportation that was once the domain of not-quite-law-abiding individuals who formed nonmainstream social clubs (biker gangs).<\/p>\n