Good Evening All...I recently purchased a set of Stage - 2 Headers from a board member and once I opened them up I noticed a "ding" in the headers and am wondering how restrictive it will be. I am upgrading to Stage-2 and a hydraulic roller cam....possibly an aluminum block...that story and pic is for another thread. Expert opinions welcome and thanks in advance. Regards, 455NGLIDE
I wouldnt worry about it at all I have seen much worse. I have put many new sets on only to have the control arms clearance them, you will be fine.
"I wouldn't worry about it at all I have seen much worse." Seen much worse would imply a less than desirable situation....any other opinions out there? This dent was not presented in the pre purchase photos I received, only small dings. In an effort to make a point( and hopefully draw more opinions) I will exaggerate: Who does this to their headers in an effort to maximize performance? I hope its nothing...many views but only one reply, which I do appreciate. Regards..455NGLIDE
That would bug the hell out of me if i had bought those and found that. on a 500 hp engine probably not going to make a difference but on something that really makes some steam it just might affect it.
"That would bug the hell out of me if i had bought those and found that. on a 500 hp engine probably not going to make a difference but on something that really makes some steam it just might affect it. " I decided to pull the pan on my iron block for good measure before installing the Stage-2 heads and hydraulic roller. Well it was a good measure indeed. I discovered a crack in the block. I was planning on 650+ HP but now the iron block is junk so I am gonna go with the aluminum TA block. The plan now is 750HP+ which is why I am concerned about these headers. Regards..455NGLIDE
My question would be why is it there? Obviously put there for a reason. It looks like a right side header and that pipe looks like it comes real close to the firewall. Is it there to clear the heater box?
The engineer in me says:From an engineering standpoint the leading edge of the depression given the distance to the source of energy/heat will cause loss of performance, turbulence, and eventually erosion leading to failure. It is safe to assume that the previously coated interior of that tube is no longer coated as the stretching of the base material has caused a release of the protective coating. This failure of protective coating will cause a hot spot in the tube leading to failure. Based on my assumptions and findings I conclude you should immediately dispose of these headers. Real world experience says: Wish I had a picture of John massouds headers,he runs mid 9's with iron heads and his headers are worse than that. I agree its a strange place to cave the header in. If you need a less banged up set let me know I have a few and would take yours in on trade.
I would try to pull it out or replace that part of the tube. I'm sure you could recoat that section somehow.
Vern that dent in the headers was there when we bought the headers back in 2006 or so. Obviously it was there previous to them being coated. I assumed that it was there as a relief for a tight spot on another install and never thought much about it. To be honest I didn't think about pointing it out when I took the pics because it had always been there. It never caused a performance issue that I was aware of as the motor we had them on made 730hp.
Ok let's clear some things up since all the opinions are starting to creep in here. Vern paid $475 for jet hot coated Stg2 headers and a egt gauge. So basically $400 for the headers. These headers go for $625 raw from TA. Maybe these are the Stg2 headers for a car w a/c? I honestly don't know. Vern, as I mentioned before I didn't think anything about the dent as I assumed on a street car it might be necessary. If you are unhappy I'm sorry and I'm sure someone will give you what you paid for them if not more.
Vern that dent in the headers was there when we bought the headers back in 2006 or so. Obviously it was there previous to them being coated. I assumed that it was there as a relief for a tight spot on another install and never thought much about it. To be honest I didn't think about pointing it out when I took the pics because it had always been there. It never caused a performance issue that I was aware of as the motor we had them on made 730hp. 10-4 Chris...I was curious..if they worked for that much power it should be OK...thanks again. Peace.
I would guess the same as Jason on this one. I would also bet you would not see a HP difference on a dyno either. That is a relatively easy fix if you don't need the clearance that the dent provides. A few uni-spot pins and some heat and that would be about 90+% out or just remove the small area and weld back a correct piece and re-coat for 100% fix. Hope that helps
Re: Stage-2 Header Restriction Closure OK everyone- Chris gave me a good deal and cleared up the air, this is a solid deal, dent or none..(thanks again Chris) and per my Buyer seller feedback; I would still not hesitate to send Chris money for parts in the future.
Sorry, i wasn't trying to start a lynch mob, i was only stating i'd be a bit unhappy if i got headers with a dent and didnt know it until they arrived. my brand new TA stage 2 headers came with a clearance dent from TA that looks pretty amateur but nothing like the one in these pics. i'm guessing somebody was trying to clear the heater box or firewall with a set of the TA frame pads that allow the engine to be moved back 1 inch from stock. I'm sure these headers will work fine
id think its too far from the valve too matter, lots of arguing has gone on over this on yellowbullet prob a 50/50 split of people that believe since the actual area is the same just in a different shape and its very hot gas under high psi it in no way will matter vs the its not round and wont flow as fast crowd biggest drawback id say is the appearance but it is in a easy spot to replace
sorry but i think when a round tube is dented inward the area is NOT the same. if it was ovaled or oblong shape then the area would remain the same. not saying it makes a big difference in this case though.
I would fix it. No restriction, good even flow. I would rather cut my frame to clearance headers than to have dents restricting flow I did that on my 66 Special. Cut the back of the front cross member to get the 2" Kenne Bell headers in there and just welded in a plate to cap it off. And Done! :Brow:
As the tube is changed from a circular cross section to an ellipse or oval (such as a dent or a "squeeze"), the area always reduces. From that point forward the cross section will always be less, to the point of reaching zero when the tube is completely flattened. Devon
Hey, look at it this way. Its now a stepped header and will make more power on that cylinder :idea2: Guys pay big money for that. :laugh: Sorry, its hot as he double hockey sticks here and I might have got to much sun:bglasses:
