Hooker headers S/S or chrome?
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 67
Likes: 0
From: Wiltshire
Hooker headers S/S or chrome?
Hi
I was looking for some advice,
I am in the process of chosing my new exhaust pipes and I think I would like Hooker headers with side pipes, I love the look of them on
Red73 (who is often on this forum) which ones would you choose?Where is the best place to get them from, I have heard that the S/S ones go yellow after a short period of time so my other choice is to get chrome ones but how good are the chrome ones, do they rust as I live in the UK, how long do the chrome ones last and how noisey are they on a long journey. regards Jerry
I was looking for some advice,
I am in the process of chosing my new exhaust pipes and I think I would like Hooker headers with side pipes, I love the look of them on
Red73 (who is often on this forum) which ones would you choose?Where is the best place to get them from, I have heard that the S/S ones go yellow after a short period of time so my other choice is to get chrome ones but how good are the chrome ones, do they rust as I live in the UK, how long do the chrome ones last and how noisey are they on a long journey. regards Jerry
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1,962
Likes: 5
From: Schererville IN
Both SS and chrome will yellow from heat.
My Chrome Hookers are yellowed from the heads to the collectors.
To me, it looks cool and is just part of having hookers.
Chrome will rust/pit eventually-SS will not.
If you can afford the upgrade to SS, then I'd suggest SS.
Both look good though.
I've got the STS spiral baffles and they are more quiet than my old dual system with Flowmasters. Inside the car, the STS baffles are actually more quiet, with less resonance. The dual Flowmasters made the car "hum" at highway speeds. The STS are not noticable at cruising speeds.
My Chrome Hookers are yellowed from the heads to the collectors.
To me, it looks cool and is just part of having hookers.
Chrome will rust/pit eventually-SS will not.
If you can afford the upgrade to SS, then I'd suggest SS.
Both look good though.
I've got the STS spiral baffles and they are more quiet than my old dual system with Flowmasters. Inside the car, the STS baffles are actually more quiet, with less resonance. The dual Flowmasters made the car "hum" at highway speeds. The STS are not noticable at cruising speeds.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 3,248
Likes: 48
From: westland mi
i had the chrome headers n sidepipes n they rusted after 4 yrs n my vette never seen rain n my vette is garaged w/carpeting on the floor so i had them stripped n jetcoated. as for the noise it's music to my ears. i'll go out on a limb here n say Red73 will say "chrome " since his hookers are chromed
buy the coated hookers direct from JetHot. i drilled a 1/2" hole into the STS endcaps for more sound, they're to quiet undrilled.
buy the coated hookers direct from JetHot. i drilled a 1/2" hole into the STS endcaps for more sound, they're to quiet undrilled.
Last edited by rosslato; Aug 14, 2008 at 12:26 PM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 8,295
Likes: 30
From: one night in Bangkok you are never lonely
Jerry, I have the Stainless steel Headers and side pipes and the headers do turn a little gold color but the side tubes don't. With my Steel Shields being high quality stainless steel they make the tubes look off color. I have found that the Stainless steel Hookers do polish up to make them look better. The advantages in stainless is they will last for a long time. I did heat wrap them 12 inches from the flange down to help engine compartment heat plus save the spark plug wires. I also made a stainless steel cover to also keep the heat from rising in the engine compartment.
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 67
Likes: 0
From: Wiltshire
Thanks for your replies so far,
After your comments I think I may go down the S/S route, who would you recommend to get them from? I am putting a 1972 LT1 motor with 4spd manual into my 1977 C3 so I need to know if there will be any problem fitting them?
After your comments I think I may go down the S/S route, who would you recommend to get them from? I am putting a 1972 LT1 motor with 4spd manual into my 1977 C3 so I need to know if there will be any problem fitting them?
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Drifting
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 1,716
Likes: 280
From: New York
There is a very good technical Specialist at Summit. His name is Norm and he is at extension 6652 or RKoval@SummitRacing.com. The guy is great. Here is an email we shared. His replies to my questions are in blue. Hope it helps
I have chrome and I am not sure how durable the Ceramic is. Ceramic would be okay due to the fact that this engine is already broken in. The down side is that in two-three-or four years you would start to get tiny spots of rust and/or blotches through the ceramic. Even with the best care (cleaning-washing-drying) they will continue to progress. You can get a very good service life out of them though, and when it becomes too much (visually speaking) you could take them off, have them bead blasted in and out and send them to Jet-Hot for an internal and external coating. Ceramic coated pipes would be HOK-2224-1HKR (729.95) and ceramic coated side tubes are HOK-50735-1HKR (359.95).
From Hooker site, I did see stainless steel. Available? Yes they are available. This would be the “hand polished” stainless, therefore 304-SS. Stainless pipes would be the HOK-2224-3HKR (999.95) and stainless side tubes would be HOK-50735-3HKR (425.95).
The most durable? My friend the most durable with a nice look would be a 409-series stainless and/or a ceramic coated 304. Unfortunately no one offers a 409-SS or a ceramic coated 304 for headers (pipes) and side tubes in regular off-the-shelf part numbers. 409 stainless is much more forgiving when it comes to thermal cycling and corrosion, however 409 does not lend itself to polishing. This stainless always looks dull and grey. One could purchase the 304-SS pipes and side tubes and subsequently send them to Jet-Hot for prep and internal and external coating – this may very well be the ultimate in longevity, looks and of course price.
The chrome was very problematic to keep in good shape. Give me some feedback on these. Are there different primary tube diameters? Sorry, no. All Hooker small block Chevy Corvette header/side pipe listings use the same primary tube and collector diameters. The primaries are 1 -7/8 inch OD. with the 4.0 inch OD. Collector.
I have chrome and I am not sure how durable the Ceramic is. Ceramic would be okay due to the fact that this engine is already broken in. The down side is that in two-three-or four years you would start to get tiny spots of rust and/or blotches through the ceramic. Even with the best care (cleaning-washing-drying) they will continue to progress. You can get a very good service life out of them though, and when it becomes too much (visually speaking) you could take them off, have them bead blasted in and out and send them to Jet-Hot for an internal and external coating. Ceramic coated pipes would be HOK-2224-1HKR (729.95) and ceramic coated side tubes are HOK-50735-1HKR (359.95).
From Hooker site, I did see stainless steel. Available? Yes they are available. This would be the “hand polished” stainless, therefore 304-SS. Stainless pipes would be the HOK-2224-3HKR (999.95) and stainless side tubes would be HOK-50735-3HKR (425.95).
The most durable? My friend the most durable with a nice look would be a 409-series stainless and/or a ceramic coated 304. Unfortunately no one offers a 409-SS or a ceramic coated 304 for headers (pipes) and side tubes in regular off-the-shelf part numbers. 409 stainless is much more forgiving when it comes to thermal cycling and corrosion, however 409 does not lend itself to polishing. This stainless always looks dull and grey. One could purchase the 304-SS pipes and side tubes and subsequently send them to Jet-Hot for prep and internal and external coating – this may very well be the ultimate in longevity, looks and of course price.
The chrome was very problematic to keep in good shape. Give me some feedback on these. Are there different primary tube diameters? Sorry, no. All Hooker small block Chevy Corvette header/side pipe listings use the same primary tube and collector diameters. The primaries are 1 -7/8 inch OD. with the 4.0 inch OD. Collector.
