Headers for Dauntless 1970

Hey,
I ordered a exhaust system from JC whitney, headers all the way back to front of rear tire. It did not list a manufacturer for the header. I was wondering if anyone has seen or used this system. I do not see a lot of dealers for headers just headman and pacesetter. What do you guys think at 270$ for the whole kit plus hardware? :v6: :stout: It't friday baby!! :stout: :stout:

 

FWIW, I got my headers from J.C. W and wouldn't recommend them. They were pacesetters. Paint burnt off in about 2 minutes and any attempt to repaint after that met the same fate. Already rusted through 2 sets (yeah I know, fool me once...). The collector area being right in the line of fire from the front tire was the weak area. Going back to stock manifolds as soon as I can. Less troublesome IMHO.

My .02

Jon

 

If the paint burns off that fast get the header and manifold coating from Eastwood and coat them right off the bat.

 

My hedman headers lasted about 6 years, never bothered to repaint them. They are actually still usable except for a small rust hole in one pipe where the 3 come together at the collector.
I bought another set of Hedmans direct from JETHOT with their coating on the headers. Just got them and they are coated inside and out and look like dull chrome. LIFETIME guarentee against rust thru.

I agree stock manifolds may be less troublesome but I had some fitment problems due to the location of my swapped in 231. Plus I think one may lose a little torque/hp switching from headers.

Jethot kinda pricey ~$400 but I figure with a lifetime warrenty can't go wrong, unless I smash them on a rock (which is possible I guess, although it never happened with the old ones)

http://www.jet-hot.com/

 

I thought that it was explained that you lose some low-end torque with headers, but gained high-end hp?

I also don't see how a paint can hold up to the constant barrage of rocks/mud/sticks/ and heat that will be coming at it behind the wheels. I guess you can repaint them every few years, but that was the point of my "less troublesome IMHO" comment.

Jon

 

Thanks for the replies, exhaust systems never withstand time like other things. What is the cost of the hedman headers?

 

Jon the stuff that Eastwood sells is not really paint, its hard to explain but the stuff is as hard as rocks, once cured it would take sand paper to scratch them up. You can't even scratch them by banging wrenches on them when installing them back on the motor.
My Hedmans are 13 years old and still don't leak, they still had some paint on them unitil I blasted and coated them with the Eastwood product about 2 weeks ago. We will see how it holds up but right out of the can and painted on (with a brush), it is far superior to any paint I have ever seen, I put 2 coats on it and so far haven't been unable to scratch them with any of my tools and even dropped one on the concrete before it was cured and it didn't scratch them.

 

I"m following this because I've got the same issues. I actually snapped a stock exhaust manifold off of the motor on the rocks at Attica 2 years ago. I haven't decided which way to go this time, but I went from headers back to the stock cast iron about 15 or 20 years ago & from what I remember it runs better for my driving style with the stock mainifolds.....I had trouble welding it as it was a poor casting to begin with, full of sand which just popped & melted into glass. I brazed it back together, but it's time to improve because I squished both pipes against the frame where they turned out behind the front spring hanger. I need to do something ASAP no matter which way I go.

 

I am in Hawaii so the salt air here can make wood rust.

I have had several exhaust shops tell me the best thing to do to make your exhaust last longer is paint it once a year with regular hardware store aluminum colored paint.

I bought some heat resistant black paint, I think it was a por15 product and painted my glasspacks and tips (not much to a header/glasspack/tips system) and it was really tough stuff and they didn't rust like the headers. I just didn't feel like going thru the trouble of taking the headers off to paint them. In my experience even the best ones only last 8 years or so if you live near the coast (like Marines do) or where they salt the roads in the winter. Hence my decision to try the jethot ones.

I think the hedmans go for about 150-160? Give them 6-8 years a set and mine better last 18-24 years for the money spent. Course that doesn't include the trouble of removing/reinstalling new ones every 6-8 years either. Of course one has to have the commitment to keep the Jeep that long to go that way. I do.

As for as torque/hp gains I don't think it's wise to make generalizations. A lot depends on the original manifold design, the replacement header design, etc, etc. I do know that most experts agree that a better exhaust is usually the most gain for the buck. With a 231, granny t18 and 4.88 gears I'm not worried about losing a few footpounds in the low end.

 

Headers generally flow exhaust gasses easier than stock manifolds because they are made of tubing instead of cast and this makes for a much smoother wall inside. they also tend to have less restrictive bends than a stock manifold. Unfortunately, the real benifit of headers is somewhat lost on the fenderwell design used in jeeps.

headers use the exhaust pulse from one cylinder to create a momentary low pressure area in the adjacent pipes. this pulse if timed correctly creates a scavenging effect when the exhaust valve of one of the other cylinders is not quite closed, effectively drawing more of the exhaust out of the cylinder and allowing for more inlet charge.

all of this is time dependant which means that the length of the tube from the flange to the collector is critical and the scavengine effect will only happen at a rather narrow RPM band. (the longer the primary tube, the higher the engine RPM before they are really effective).

to develope REAL low end torque with a set of tube headers you want the primary tubes as short and straight as possible. last time I looked at my headers I saw about 2 feet of pipe on each cylinder, ideal if I were running in the 6K-7K RPM range... not likely.

But they do look cool

Just thought I would throw that out there...$.02

 

Headers. HELP!

I have a 67 that came with the 225. It is mostly original, including the Ross steering (Eric at Novak said that the Sanderson may not go around the Ross steering). Currently Blue Goose has headers (don't know what kind) that go strait back inside the frame, and out the back on both sides. They are old, rusty, and irrepairable.

I'm looking for an economical (not read cheap) replacement. I'm open to a manifold too, but would prefer to stay as close to what I have as possible.

Please post links to where I can buy what I want, as I'm getting weary of the header search. In short, what have you put on lately that worked, and you're happy with.

Thanks,

Goose

 

Due to the rock damage from the Ca desert I went the cheaper price from JC Whitney. 9 years now and I still like them. They've been scratched and hit a few times, but have never split or needed repair. Every couple years I pull them off, blast them clean and re-paint with VHT header paint (nice to replace gaskets anyway). Sure, they'll eventually look cruddy again (rocks, road grime, desert alkali mud) and with the 17.00 turbo mufflers from PAW the total cost can't be beat.

 

i have had both heddman (which i currently run) and the JCW ones bought by my dad. i wont purchase anything from JCW...its like the dollar store of automotive.
the heddman work well. everything $ sink put in is great..it depends on your driving style and rpm range. he forgot to mention tho that the size of the tube is critical, these tubes are skinny which keeps velocity up all the way to the end of the tube to where the collector is, which in turn creates more of a scavenging effect but if you get too much exhaust flow, small tubes will restrict it. stock manifolds actually restrict escape velocity no matter what rpm or length. they have no scavenging effect at all, so the piston has to push the air out the whole length of the cylinder. a good cam will allow the exhaust valve to open before BDC and allow it to be drawn out along with sucking in some gas too. stock manifolds hinder you on fuel economy and give a small power loss. the headers are tuned for a specific rpm as stated and these from heddman are for like 1000-3500 due to smaller tube size. thats great for me..i really dont go bonzai in the rpm range unless i am passing someone on the hiway.
(please forgive any typos you see, i cut the tip of my middle finger off while working on my dads steel beam garage this weekend and its hard to type...and its my good finger too).

but..stock vs headers? is it a 4X4 drive that see's alittle street or is it a street jeep that you take banging around in the desert? if its strictly a desert jeep, stock is fine. you wont reach an rpm where it will matter. if its a street jeep and everything counts....well, headers willl give a boost in power, economy and sound...which in my opinion, is well worth it.
mine was a 50/50 jeep. daily driver to and from work/mud hole. if it broke, i knocked the cobwebs off my truck and drove it (once i had to put it in 4X4 due to the ammount of spider webs holding my truck down and they were pizzed too). =)

 

Hooker made headers at one time. Advanced adpators sells them for :v6: conversions. (unsure of brand)

 

Hello. I just bought a 72 CJ5 that someone put the buick v6 in. The steering shaft is hitting the exhaust manifold cause it dumps in the front, and if I got another manifold that dumped in the back it probably wouldn't fit. I was wondering how the hedman headers fit. Could you tell me, maybe in relative position and dimensions. Do you have any pictures? The things that would be in the way are the motor mount and the clutch assembly that is mounted on the frame. Thanks for the help

 

not the best pic, but my dig camera is down.

 

I used to run those JCWhitney fenderwell headers. HOT, LOUD, SMELLY. If you are in a pinch and need something cheap and easy, they are a good way to go. I put them on with the intent of doing something else down the road. The paint did burn off them in about 5 minutes but they lasted me a couple of years until I could get some other stuff fixed on my jeep. I guess it all depends on what you are after.

 

thanks for the pic 66cj5. If anyone else has pics of the drivers side header that shows the clearance from the steering column, clutch linkage, frame please post. thanks