4inch DownPipe and Stacks (Progress)

[Tippin Spotted Cow]

I've just been hangin out with my ex-girlfriend a lot recently. She always thought it was sexy when I was all dirty from workin on my truck. Most girls like a man who can get his hands dirty... once you prove that its just stain and wont come off on their clothes that is. I have had my days where I met her for lunch and I got black finger prints all over the bread of my sandwich. But I think everyone in that particular Denny's was looking at me wierd then... not just her. Just don't plan on doing her any favors until you shower though...

 

[JGrefenstette]

yea i agree with you matt. women sure do like a guy with some greaz under his nails and a sunburnt neck. :-laf trust me i speak from experince. oh and the black fingerprints on the food, happens every time i go anywhere, because if im out to eat, i got there in the cummins, and everytime i get out of the cummins to go anywhere i have to crawl under it and either mess with something, or just admire its beauty



tonight in put a 4foot peice of 5inch pipe with a 45* elbow on the end. starts just past the TC and goes just under the bed. i put it on just to drive it tonight and check for leaks and temps and rattles and all that stuff. tomaro ill cut off the elbow and weld on the 90* elbow to go up through the bed to the y-pipe. i picked up the stackes today, they look okay, but then again the wont start to flake untill a day or two later. if the flake this time, im going to ask the guy for my money back and go get them done somwhere that can actually get em done right the first time. i can wait to here it with the 6inch stacks tho, its unbelievebly loud right now. i think a lot is because if echoes off the pavment, but still, that 4inch DP is LOUD! the turbo whistle is amazing, everytime i clutch it gives me a huge WWOOOOOSSSSSHHHH!!! i love it, it sounds like an old Mack dumptruck. the throttle response it improved a lot too.

 

[JGrefenstette]

i have two seams left fo finish then im done. ive welded the lower half of them but i cant get my welder up ontop of the pipe, its 5inch pipe and is too close to the frame on one side and the drive shaft on the other. is there any other way to seal the top of those seams??? one of them is not fully flush, there is a slight over lap of pipe due to a unusual angle. i know guys that have used duct-tape on their exhausts but they usually put a flat band clamp over top of it. and i cant use a clamp on this pipe cause of the wierd angle its at. any ideas??

 

[DCreed]

cut the pipe in a good clear spot and weld the problem area first. then use a band clamp on the cut to enable removal as needed.

 

[Greenleaf]

I cut my exhaust pipe TWICE and it was STILL TOO SHORT!!

 

[JGrefenstette]

twice??? haha ive had to cut and re-cut probly a thousand times with this system. seeing how ive literally hand made the entire thing there is not one piece that is used the way it is designed. im thinking i may just try to get a small mirror and try to slip the welder up there and see what i can do. hopefully the mask will still auto-darken for me, ive had trouble with that before, mostly due to smoke tho.

 

[JGrefenstette]

not done just yet, but darn close... Pictures of Progress

heres where im at as of last night. i still have those two seams to seal up down underneath, but the stacks are solid. i can shake the whole truck if i grab on the top of the stacks. when im done with the orange box it should slide right in between both of the stacks and be almost flush with the backs of them. i cant wait to see it when im all finished.

 

[JGrefenstette]

and a few more, had to get one in there with a clear shot of the TDR badge

 

[Tippin Spotted Cow]

Its amazing how good stacks look when your bed is still square... .

 

[PToombs]

Jimmy! I found your FSM! It's lost in the pile of sh** behind the passenger seat! :-laf:-laf



I hope you have a piece of flex pipe in there someplace. If not, your gonna get some bad vibrations.

 

[JGrefenstette]

quite true matt :-laf



hahah yea pete i keep it in the center box between the seats. my truck is a total mess right now, cause ive been living out of it off and on while doing this project. no pete, not a single piece of flex pipe anywhere! haha dont worry, those stacks and the other pipes are solid. i can move my whole truck by the stacks and they dont budge... but the pipe that goes from the bell housing back to bedind the TC is long enough that it does have a little give to it... enough to allow for the motor to shake during startup/shutdown, and take off from a stop. i drove the truck without the stacks, just with the 5inch pipe under the bed, that rattled a bit on take offs, but it was because it was too loose. over time, my manifold may brake due to the stiffness of the exhaust and the added pressure from the down pipe being soo stiff on the turbo, but that will just give me a good excuse to get a ATS manifold right im not that worried tho, my truck doesnt get terribly hot all that often anyhow, and i always let it cool before shutdown, so the manifold should be alright.

 

[DCreed]

... if you're lucky the head wont be damaged!

 

[JGrefenstette]

how serious are you with that statement Creed?? ive watched the motor with the hood up on startup and it still moves just as much as before. its not like i welded my exhaust to the frame, the only thing its actually really bolted to it the mount on the bell housing, but that moves with the motor. i mean, its bolted back in the bed, but the pipe is long enough inbetween to flex.



do i really have anything to worry about here, i dont think i do, but i could be wrong.

 

[DCreed]

from what I've been told the "ears" can snap off the head from manifold shrinkage, so not something to tempt with any added strain.

 

[JGrefenstette]

oh i see. ok then... im not that worried about it. dont get me wrong that exhaust is tight and aint goin nowhere, but what its tight too, is the bell housing, so its really floating with the main part that needs to move. it would be a different story if its mounted it to the frame or some other unmovable object. i probly would have broke somthing the first time i started the motor.



what are you thoughts pete?? any words from you matt?? i think im in the clear here, but some confirmation would make me sleep better.

 

[Tippin Spotted Cow]

Your manifold probably wont crack. If anythings going to break, it'll be the weakest link, and on the stock exhaust, that means the flange rips off the downpipe. I would guess if anything, thats where you'd have a problem. Then you weld it back on, and you're good for another 50k. Mine broke there from the weight of the exhaust when I pulled my stacks off for 3 months so nothing was holding the other end of the pipe, which let out just under the bed. Same thing happened to my buddies truck about 3 weeks later because his hanger was rotted out that held the back of the exhaust. I would venture to guess a manifold/head crack would be more of a heat and expansion rate issue.

 

[PToombs]

You should know better than to ask for my opinion! Something is going to break for sure. DP flange, bolt in the bell housing that holds the pipe, pipe will crack, etc.

You should cut it where there is a straight spot about a foot long, and put in a piece of flex pipe. Never mount an exhaust solid. It will also send vibrations thru the truck from the pipe.

My nickels worth!

 

[JGrefenstette]

hmmmm... . this is very interesting. im going to run the truck for a while and see how it does, and keep a close eye on it. if i notice any issues... well then ill do exacly as you say, go to my 3foot long piece of 5inch pipe, remove a 1foot section from the center and, drop in 2 band clamps and a piece of flex... no problemo amigo :-laf

 

[GHarman]

Lots of WORK!

Jimmy, Man you have been busy! Nice work. Hope you got hangers on it. I like your orange peel fitup to the turbo flange. Looks like excellent work! GregH

 

[JGrefenstette]

thanks greg! i just finished it all last night. after super here in an hour our soo ill post the photos of the final product. thanks for the help and ecouragment guys!