Headers and other goodies

[quickjagg]

I am planning on putting some headers, and a truedual exhaust on my 81. I was looking at these, Dynomax headers(mostly because of the price) and that Max Performance True Dual exhaust from Mid America. how difficult of a job would this be? Any suggestions on closly priced headers that may fit better(if these wont fit well)? I'm mostly doing this so that my vette will sound better, I got talked out of sidepipes =(

Thanks for any help you can offer!

 

[Bill C]

Ceramic coated headers are GREAT.

They make the engine perform, sound fantastic and look COOL. The headers in your post come from a good company. I too would like to do the same. The Dyno Max mufflers on my 85 sound good but caused a L O T of interior compartment resonance. Maybe somebody else can express their vievs on mufflers. One persons view of a dynomite system may seem like a whimpie system to the next guy.
My recommendation is: **** Find a car like yours with an installed system that you can listen too!!!!!!!!!!! ****

If you are going to install a TRUE duel exhaust system I would add an "X" pipe cross over! :cool It will make the entire system work together and smooth out some of the unwanted noise(gurggling/poping) that some systems have. It may also provide you some more HP.

Someone on the forum may live close enough and have a system that you can examine and listen to.


just my 2 cents

Bill C

 

[DDLS3]

Hey quickjagg

I have headers and true duals on my 81. You are a couple of hours away as I live just west of Augusta. I expect to have the car home in 2-3 weeks, your more than welcome to come and have a look. I also plan to make a couple of minor changes this spring which will include fabricating an X or H pipe. Headers, true duals,no cat, and some free flow mufflers will give you about an extra 30 horses out of that L81. As far as headers go ceramic coated is by far the best, but there are alternatives if you don't want to spend the extra bucks. Mine look like they are probably Headman or Edelbrock,(they were on it when I bought it) so I really don't know. The folks at Summit Racing have several options available and they have always been very helpful whenever I have called with questions. Summit or Jegs will beat the snot out of any of the other catalogs on header pricing.

 

[Dave L.]

I have that Mid-America system on my car.I put it on myself but did have to take it to my buddy at the muffler shop to tweak it abit.It defintely adds the power and sounds great.I just had the whole system welded together to elminate clamps and give it a clean look.

 

[Tom Bryant]

Hey Chris,

Your Corvette is a year older than you are. I don't think I have ever met anyone like that before. Yeah I know, there aren't any Corvettes older than me. What can I say.

Tom

 

[69MyWay]

With the extra rumble that you are after, you will also get some annoying rumble that will creep up on you at lower RPM in traffic or at low highway speed.

With that rear window design, and the pipes with headers, it will pick up a low bass droan at certain speeds. Usually, you can turn the radio up above it. You may LOVE it for the first six months, but after a while it gets really old. With CATS on the car and a cross over it is not so bad. True duals and headers however will talk to you.

I really don't care when it is just me in the car. When Nikki is riding with me it is annoying because at certain speeds and gears all you can hear is Whaoooooooooooooooooooooo (do that in your deepest possible tone and have somebody plug your ears and you kind of cup your mouth for effect).

However, sometimes the slightest things can change this from car to car. For example, good lean fuel, and tight advanced timing with a crisp gear ratio will keep it humming above the droan zone. So, some cars may sound really sweet, and those exact same exhaust components won't sound the same on another.


One cool thing is you can install regular budget headers. Dent, ding, scratch, do whatever you have to so that they fit. Bolt it all together and listen to it. If you are happy, get them off and send them out to Jet Hott or any of the places that ceramic coat. Now you have a decent investment and the headers will look good and last a long time. Hey, if it is too noisy, or you are tired of header gaskets blowing etc. yank them off and go back stock. No big investment.

 

[Ken]

...header gaskets blowing

I can't remember the manufacturer now but my builder is using header gaskets that he says will never blow or develop leaks.

_ken

 

[69MyWay]

I can't remember the manufacturer now but my builder is using header gaskets that he says will never blow or develop leaks.

_ken

Never say never :nono

 

[quickjagg]

Woah, thanks guys! That would be great if we could get togeather Dale, I would love to hear your car running, maybe sometime this summer? (I don't have a car untill they sweep the roads ) Do header gaskets blow out a lot? Might this be a bad idea for a daily driver?

 

[DDLS3]

Oh I've heard the stories

But as of yet I have not developed a leak or blown a gasket. My take is, if you buy guality, all metal gaskets for both the head/header fit and the collector your off to a good start. Follow that up by correctly torqueing the header bolts in the proper sequence. Headers are not the hassel they once were when the only gasket that was available was some old crappy Garlock sheet material.

 

[quickjagg]

ok, I just was hearing lots of bad stories from my uncle about blown gaskets, what gaskets do you recomend? I was watching some hotrod show and they recomended to get them from Mr. Gasket

 

[DDLS3]

I have bought all my gaskets from www.summitracing.com
I have the aluminum soft metal gaskets on the collectors and the gaskets that came with the headers on the head flanges. Most of Headman, Edelbrock, Hooker, and Summit brands come with quality gaskets as part of the package. If your looking for gaskets to upgrade I like any of the all metal such as Percy's, Earls, or SCE that are made expressly for headers.

Dale

 

[quickjagg]

oh btw Dale, I forgot to ask you, how do I sign up for the 81 registry? Thanks for all the help, all of you, I love this msg board!

 

[DDLS3]

guickjagg

I had just finished a response when Rob started the down time and it didn't go through. Just as well I guess since the hyperlink isn't working at the moment. Rob will get it fixed though, he always does. To answer your question http://www.l81vetteregistry.com then click contact info for the webmaster Kevin Sems with your info ie name, handle, location and your done. You will find lots of interesting stuff there too.

Dale

 

[Bill C]

Headers reguardless of what "SUPER DUPER WHAM O DYNE" brand of gasket that you purchase and install will leak if you do not keep the bolts tight. New gaskets require re-torque until they take a set.
When the engine is hot I would check the torque. Then when the engine was cold I would check it again. After a while you will find that they remain torqued over a longer period of time with out needing to be tightened.
Some new gaskets are required to be soaked in water over night prior to installation. If the flange gets loose you WILL get a leak. Headers expand and contract alot and the bolts and gaskets work loose. they just need a little more maintenance than stock manafolds.
I purchased some cheap gaskets and kept up with the torque requirements to keep them tight and they lasted a long time.

I found a wrench that helped me keep the bolts tight with out alot of trouble. Its a 1/2 inch, 7/16 inch box combo that is bent in the shape of a half moon. The wrench is fantastic for headers!

Bill C