Headers for C3
#41
Melting Slicks
Adam, it appears you are NOT, building a "race" car, track or strip.
Why would you spend $1200 or more on headers with merge collectors and "supposedly?" equal length primaries for a lowly 450hp engine?
Buy the XS Headers for only $350 made from 304 Grade Stainless Steel and Never, buy another set of headers for your car!
P.S. The primaries are 1 7/8" internal diameter, build in some "future proof".
Why would you spend $1200 or more on headers with merge collectors and "supposedly?" equal length primaries for a lowly 450hp engine?
Buy the XS Headers for only $350 made from 304 Grade Stainless Steel and Never, buy another set of headers for your car!
P.S. The primaries are 1 7/8" internal diameter, build in some "future proof".
(Is a $1,000 or a $1,200 header option a legit replacement for a high-quality $350 alternative? -No, of course not.)
The main reason, though is that this is my toy and one of my hobbies and I want to do it my way and the way that sticks close to the ideal engine theory for my application and goals. That's it. I'm looking to take as much modern technology as possible and incorporate into my car and I want as many ft lbs / cubic inch as possible; aiming for the goal. The only off-the-shelf Tri-Y available for these cars with a full-length exhaust is Stan's and they're close to $1,000 coated (or maybe slightly over now), and they're mild steel; a modern merge collector with a nice small diameter collector provides many of the same torque benefits and is a more modern, higher-tech design and I think will hold onto power higher into the RPM band, so it's interesting to me.
-Why the @#%# did Richard 454 put a BMW v12 engine in his car, especially when he easily could've had a much higher HP SBC in it for far less $$ and trouble? (cause he wanted to) Why did Richard spend probably $400 or more to put an electric parking break into his C3? -Just cause he wanted to.
Does going with port injection and Holley HP with a crank trigger and LS coils provide even REMOTELY close to good value for any potential power or MPG improvements? (No, not even close; the Holley HP vs Holley Sniper decision makes no financial sense at all.)
-Does putting gapless 1.2mm Total Seal rings on 70s stock pistons provide like $300 of extra performance or mpg "value"? (No way in hell)
Is the extra $75 or so for 0.102" wall pushrods instead of 0.080" pushrods really required or worth anything even with an aggressively ramped cam? (Car has an HP peak of 6,000 if I'm lucky: nope!)
This is my first automotive toy and I want to have fun with it and make it my own. I got the car for FREE so even if I dump some money into it, I won't be horrifically underwater if I decide to sell it. Any money I end up underwater on it at sale time, I just consider "self-improvement education" and "sanity money" -probably CHEAPER than a psychologist and then I have an excuse for being crazy, still.
Adam
Last edited by NewbVetteGuy; 04-26-2019 at 04:17 PM.
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shipahoy (04-26-2019)
#42
Melting Slicks
At the same time, there's LOTS of out-of-the-box headers to choose from for our C3s and you have to choose one of them; knowing what and "ideal" header for your car WOULD look like, and choosing an off-the-shelf option that's in your budget and closest to "ideal" could be worth something.
If the only options for our cars were $350 1 5/8" coated mild steel FlowTech's, $350 XS Power stainless 1 7/8", or "$1,500 custom headers", this thread probably wouldn't exist.
Adam
#43
Melting Slicks
(I literally just searched Google and then found 10 or so threads and started documenting which headers people reported fitting just fine and which ones people reported issues with. -If it just took a small dent to make it work, I tried to note that, too.))
Adam
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vince vette 2 (04-27-2019)
#45
Race Director
I definitely haven't come across that Calvin quote before.
At the same time, there's LOTS of out-of-the-box headers to choose from for our C3s and you have to choose one of them; knowing what and "ideal" header for your car WOULD look like, and choosing an off-the-shelf option that's in your budget and closest to "ideal" could be worth something.
If the only options for our cars were $350 1 5/8" coated mild steel FlowTech's, $350 XS Power stainless 1 7/8", or "$1,500 custom headers", this thread probably wouldn't exist.
Adam
At the same time, there's LOTS of out-of-the-box headers to choose from for our C3s and you have to choose one of them; knowing what and "ideal" header for your car WOULD look like, and choosing an off-the-shelf option that's in your budget and closest to "ideal" could be worth something.
If the only options for our cars were $350 1 5/8" coated mild steel FlowTech's, $350 XS Power stainless 1 7/8", or "$1,500 custom headers", this thread probably wouldn't exist.
Adam
#47
Race Director
#49
Melting Slicks
The other side of this issue is if you have to buy a header in a box from your local speed shop? If it fits and doesn't burn things up or leak? Your good. Worry about something else.
Link: https://speedtalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=51295
Adam
Last edited by NewbVetteGuy; 04-26-2019 at 07:29 PM.
#50
Melting Slicks
Per the Corvette Forum Policy on "Personal attacks / hostility toward others" and general human decency:
"The Forum should be a place where we treat one another with civility so that it remains a fun and friendly place to hang around with other Corvette enthusiasts. Hostility to others is rude and inappropriate.
Personal attacks cannot be tolerated. Attack ideas, not fellow Forum members."
Adam
Last edited by NewbVetteGuy; 04-26-2019 at 07:36 PM.
#51
Team Owner
Indeed they are nice headers. Just installed their blockhugger pair on my straight plug heads. They are so tight, that you can barely get the plugs in! Plus, you should run boots over the spark plug wires, because the wires run so close to the pipes. They are coated for sure and that might help with the heat problem, I had with my last (unnamed brand) block hugger headers, that the number 3 pipe, ran only an 1/4" from the steering box. In the past, this pipe would heat up the steering box, which in turn, heated up the steering column shaft and then the floor mounting plate. I measured with a temp gun, from the inside of the car and got a temp reading of 160 degrees! Here's the kicker, the Sanderson headers run even closer! But due to the silver ceramic plating inside and out, the heat, might just be reduced. I will report on this, as we go, as I just got my C3 back on the road, with a 383 stroker and of course, Sanderson Headers.
https://www.sandersonheaders.com/san...category_id=26
#52
Race Director
Adam, it appears you are NOT, building a "race" car, track or strip.
Why would you spend $1200 or more on headers with merge collectors and "supposedly?" equal length primaries for a lowly 450hp engine?
Buy the XS Headers for only $350 made from 304 Grade Stainless Steel and Never, buy another set of headers for your car!
P.S. The primaries are 1 7/8" internal diameter, build in some "future proof".
Why would you spend $1200 or more on headers with merge collectors and "supposedly?" equal length primaries for a lowly 450hp engine?
Buy the XS Headers for only $350 made from 304 Grade Stainless Steel and Never, buy another set of headers for your car!
P.S. The primaries are 1 7/8" internal diameter, build in some "future proof".
1. Because some people like nice things. Regardless of it being cameras, cell phones, wine, beer, shoes or suits. Everyone's budgets and tastes are different. Otherwise we'd all be drinking $10 bottles of Whiskey and using $50 Android burner phones.
2. Features. While it doesn't seem like much the ARH piece has O2 bungs on both sides and more modern collector joints. Buy a set of $400 headers and it'll cost $XXX to have those features added and they'll look like crap from the welding and cutting
3. Modern design. Most C3 headers are 40 year old designs. General exhaust knowledge and theory has changed a lot since then. I wonder what a C3 header would look like if someone were to design one from scratch? It'd probably be like the ARH but with 'V' band connectors. Raised exhaust ports are a big problem. Most new aftermarket heads have raised ports but some companies (Profiler for one) didn't raise the bolts holes so now there's a mismatch.
But, as you mentioned, will any of them really make a difference on a 450hp SBC? Eh, probably not.
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shipahoy (04-28-2019)
#54
Race Director
#55
Le Mans Master
Adam,
I had shorty headers with 1 5/8 inch primaries before I went with the XSPower LTH 1 7/8 inch headers both on the rebuilt/upgraded 355 L-82 and noticed zero loss in low end power with the 1 7/8 inch XSpower headers and a BIG increase in mid to high RPM power with my AFR heads and roller cam. Absolutely the best LTH C3 headers on the market made from SS and with local ceramic coating done to mine, all in I was at $520....
I had shorty headers with 1 5/8 inch primaries before I went with the XSPower LTH 1 7/8 inch headers both on the rebuilt/upgraded 355 L-82 and noticed zero loss in low end power with the 1 7/8 inch XSpower headers and a BIG increase in mid to high RPM power with my AFR heads and roller cam. Absolutely the best LTH C3 headers on the market made from SS and with local ceramic coating done to mine, all in I was at $520....
#56
Melting Slicks
If you are looking for side exits, THESE are the ones you want. If my car was a small block, these would be on it. https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...l-headers.html