440 exhaust issues and loss of power

I have had the bike a couple of months but it is having some problems.

My left side of the exhaust is getting very hot very fast and also it is twice as loud as the right side. The spark plugs are black so to me that says it is running too rich but who knows.
The previous owner took off the stock the stock exhaust and made some stright pipes for the exhaust. the right side exhaust has a bolt that is broken... You can feel exhaust coming out. This is also the side that is much more quite and takes much longer to heat up. Due to how loud the exhaust was i put little 4 inch baffles in there.
Once everything is warmed up the left side(the not as loud side) back fires when i am in fifth or forth gear when i am not applying throttle.
I am also losing power in forth and fifth gear and I top out at 60mph...
I am new to the DIY on motorcycles but i want to learn. I cant tell if this is a problem in the motor or the carbs so I thought i would ask here first. Thanks for any help.

No one can help me?:huh:

joebus wrote:

... am new to the DIY on motorcycles but i want to learn. I cant tell if this is a problem in the motor or the carbs....

Likely to require testing of several components for diagnosis of various problems in both motor and carbs, and assure all settings to factory specs.

DIY'ers, whether newcomers or old pros, need a Factory Service Manual. Don't know if a FSM is available on this site for downloading, or from the membership. Could also check eBay.

In this particular case, would start with a complete tune-up.

Good Luck!

do you know how to set and re - set points?..start there

put in some new plugs and don't get discouraged.

research bolt extractions and get an experienced mechanic to help- pay him good to show you a thing or two.( even if he has bad habits)

shock and heat are the keys to removing that pesky exhaust bolt. replace both exhaust gaskets at that time

Thx for the responses. I will start checking things out better. the bolt on the exhaust is a two sided bolt i believe. there is enough sticking out that i should be able to get it out.

After you get that exhaust fixed and the points set up right, synchronize the carbs. Basically this means setting the vacuum level in between the carbs and the motor to be the same. If the vacuum isn't the same the engine will still accelerate but when you even it out and just cruise it will pop and miss. This could also explain why one cylinder heats up more quickly. To do it pull the carbs and look at the butterflyies that go in to the engine. Set them up so that they close at the same time (both butterflies are the same distance from the fully slosed position). This is the bench setting just to get them close. Then put a vacuum gauge on each carb and set it up so that each one pulls the same amount. there is a way to do this with a piece of plastic tubing. It's described better in the articles sections. Good luck.