Im confused If the spray can says header paint can withstand temp. of 1800 degrees. Yet it still chips after a certain number of miles. I mean headers couldnt possibly reach that temp. without glowing red. Is there another type of coating that needs to be put on? No matter how many coats u put its still cracks into flakes. I would like to prefer to coat them with the spray if it is possible, I really dont want to spend the money on jet hot coating them and waiting. Anyone ever coat there headers sucessfully with a spray, and can u tell us ur secrets, im sure there others here that also would like to know. thanx in advance.

 

80% of it is in prepwork the other 20% is in the cure process. Your having chipping problems because the surface is not clean! Use some brake cleaner and spay them down with that 1st. I like to paint my headders when they are hot, this instantly bakes the paint on, this works for my truck. A car headder can fit in an oven and can be cured that way but dont use your oven that you bake food in! If you properly clean the headders sand them, clean with a good cleaner like brake cleaner, paint them and then bake in an oven they should hold up for a while. I think some people are cooking them for 20 min @ 400*. You could probabably pick up an oven at a thrift store for $40. I called a powder coat place and they wanted $80 to coat my truck headders (aluminum color) so that might be an option for you also.

 

hmmm, interesting thanx. But lets say i didnt use the oven method could i sand clean the headers and spray them on and leave it like that or will it still crack into flakes? I mean once starting it shouldnt the heat from the motor bake the paint on to the header?

 

i ahve always read that baking them is better

 

You can probably do much the same thing by coating the headers then running the engine only long enough to warm up the headers. Let it cool back down, then run the engine again only long enough to warm up the headers. That will help "cure" the coating without it getting a full temp blast right after application.

Rob

 

I'm not sure what you define as "successful", or how many miles you're talking about. I painted mine in November, smoked up the house baking them in the oven @ 400F, have about 2k miles on them now. Have very minor flaking around the A.I.R. tubes on the primaries, haven't bothered to try to reapply yet. Otherwise, holding up fine.

 

The paint I used said to run the car for 30min. after the paint dried at least 30min, no more that 6 hrs. I didn't follow that of course, but I didn't expect them to hold up as long as they have either. I know Eastwood sells some real good exhaust coatings. I would make sure I followed the directions on those.