Replacing exhaust manifold with headers. But which ones??

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ahoppj

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Which headers do you suggest. I was looking at long tube from summit racing. Isn’t too bad of a price.

THANKS!!
 
shiftpro

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ahoppj said:
Which headers do you suggest. I was looking at long tube from summit racing. Isn’t too bad of a price.

THANKS!!
Click to expand...
They are just fine for the price, but test fit them first, hammer in any clearance you need, don't be shy it won't hurt performance, and then get 'em sandblasted and paint with proper header paint.
 
ahoppj

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shiftpro said:
They are just fine for the price, but test fit them first, hammer in any clearance you need, don't be shy it won't hurt performance, and then get 'em sandblasted and paint with proper header paint.
Click to expand...
Any other brand you suggest? Ceramic coated should be fine yes?
 
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ahoppj said:
Any other brand you suggest? Ceramic coated should be fine yes?
Click to expand...
Well if $ is no problem and you want high quality then look into Hooker. They have Ceramic coated. Better than paint any day..
 
Turbo4whl

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As stated, you get what you pay for. When I put headers on my small block '74, I got Hookers. Long life from them. Years later when I Stuffed the 402 big block in my '82, I had less funds after the engine build and I bought a set of cheaper Cyclone headers. They rusted pretty quick. I replaced them with a set of Doug Thorley headers. They are chrome plated, not bright plated for show, but plated to prevent rust. They are still good. Fit was also very good. And you may have guessed, they were a lot more money than the Cyclone set.
 
Jake_S

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I went with Flowtech headers on my K20. Fit was decent, but I did need to dent a few tubes to make plug access easier.

Jake
 
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Also when looking at headers, look at the gauge of the steel the tubes are made of.
18 gauge will not last as long as 16 gauge.
Flanges are also very important too.
You want a nice thick flange to be on them so they do not warp and cause gasket issues.
Typically a 3/8" flange will be perfect.

Look at how beefy the 3/8" flanges are on this set of headers I pulled from the junkyard.
If they were a lesser header, they would have been left there for some other guy.
I googled the part number and that told me what I wanted to know...

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Snoots

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I picked up a set of Hooker Headers at the boneyard for $25, bead-blasted them, wiped them down with alcohol, and them painted them inside and out with Eastwood's ceramic paint (2 cans). After about 500 miles they look like they did the day they were put on and the under hood temps are WAY down.
 
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These are Hedman Elite for GM A-body cars. No beating it into a shape that works, 3/8” flange and coated.
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AuroraGirl

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Not to jump on his post, but would an otherwise stock engine see any benefit from headers? Im not running any emissions equipment and it would become a dual exhaust vs a single tail pipe.

And can they be made as quiet as single manifold exhaust?
EDIT: single tailpipe manifold exhaust*
 
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Green79Scottsdale

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For the small block in my '79, I have my eyes on Hedman Elites, part #69830. I was able to check out the fit of these first hand on a truck at a local show. The guy was a bit alarmed at first when he saw my head was buried in the wheel well of his truck! We started talking and everything was good. I liked the routing of the primaries and everything cleared well. His truck was a sbc, TH400, NP203 combo, same as mine.
 
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AuroraGirl said:
Not to jump on his post, but would an otherwise stock engine see any benefit from headers? Im not running any emissions equipment and it would become a dual exhaust vs a single tail pipe.

And can they be made as quiet as single manifold exhaust?
EDIT: single tailpipe manifold exhaust*
Click to expand...

Your engine will benefit from them.
*Note: After you install them you will need to re-tune the carb to work with the headers.

You can make them as loud or as quiet as you want.
That is a function of the mufflers.
You can even buy flowmasters that keep things quiet enough.
 
AuroraGirl

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Catbox said:
Your engine will benefit from them.
*Note: After you install them you will need to re-tune the carb to work with the headers.

You can make them as loud or as quiet as you want.
That is a function of the mufflers.
You can even buy flowmasters that keep things quiet enough.
Click to expand...
I ask because I have enough parts to revert to my grandpas old dual glasspack headers he used to run.. I would just change a muffler in there to quiet it down so neighbors... hmm
 
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AuroraGirl said:
I ask because I have enough parts to revert to my grandpas old dual glasspack headers he used to run.. I would just change a muffler in there to quiet it down so neighbors... hmm
Click to expand...
I want to see how you’re going from headers to dual exhaust to dual muffler to single tailpipe. You’ll likely make a car payment for the muffler guy easily. And no he won’t want your crusty old exhaust pipes and some extra pipe from the back 40 to work with.
For what you’re doing, the only benefit will be power to weight ratio due to the weight loss from A. Your lighter wallet and B. The weight loss from sweating while removing 40 year rusted on exhaust manifolds.

How much power you need to push a snowplow around the yard?
 
AuroraGirl

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No I meant dual exhaust, which will be headers, that go to mufflers plural.originally my GPA had headers and two glasspacks inline each side
 
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