bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

Full tubular, mandrel bends, SS 304

Retains stock steering shaft, brake lines, master cylinder and booster.

This thread will be the complete build up of the headers all the way to the turbo flange, but this is the first step. I figured I would start with the hardest part first.

Questions/comments welcome. Ill post again when I get the collectors and some of the cross-over pipe in place.

IROCtheThird

iTrader: (15)

What size are the primaries they look huge! Nice stuff so far, a little off topic but I want some specs on that beast to be.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

Primaries are 2" OD, I got a mix of 14 gauge and 16 gauge, so inner diameters vary a few thousands, no big deal.

It will be a single turbo setup, Garrett TA51, 78mm turbine, 76mm inducer, 1.33 A/R, T6 inlet, 4 inch DP. Starting with the base 330 hp, Im hoping to get 500 hp to start with low boost, we'll see how much I can squeeze out when I turn it up.

ericjon262

I hope you're planning some kind of heat wrap/ coating, that looks pretty close to your master cylinder and brake lines.

Looks good otherwise.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

The headers will be ceramic coated, but mostly for looks. I plan on building a barrier between the engine and everything else, like the mc/etc. I've been doing some reading on heat insulation and such, i think I'm going to use sheet aluminum and see if i can get it coated with something. I've heard of gold being used, but I can't say for sure if I'll need to go that far.

All I do know, is these headers with the aluminum intake a few threads down is going to look pretty unique under the hood

ericjon262

sure will, keep it coming!

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/imag...6d69f10fa7.jpg


Thats how it sits today, I have the cross over mocked up, the passenger side headers mocked up. Im waiting on the materials/collector to finish the headers and basically the entire hot side.

The intake is just a matter of money. 200 for the lower, 400 for the upper. So next 600 I get is for the aluminum to make the intake. And lemme just say, I CANT WAIT for that thing to be milled out.

AlkyIROC

You should be welding stainless tubing with stainless wire. MIG is ugly. TIG is the way to go.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

If I had a TIG machine Id be making all sorts of beautiful parts. Im not quite there yet though. MIG is VERY VERY ugly, I almost hate myself for even trying. I have the right argon and stainless wire (which is stupidly expensive, 40 bucks for 2 lb spool), but it still looks like crap! Ive been trying to find a reasonable TIG for a while now, the Millermatic 180 I have is great for everything mild steel, but thats about it.

Ive been forced to make the welds prettier by hand, about 3 hours for the drivers side to be exact. The collector and cross over are going to be sent out to this guy that does TIG for our other super top secret parts at the machine shop. Hes ridiculously expensive, which is why Im trying to find my own TIG. I started this thinking it would be show quality, but ya I was wrong.

Im 20 and a full time student, Im doing the best I can.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

So I know I havent posted here in a while, Ive been busy with school, work, and blah blah blah. I finally got a few days in so I could finish up the crossover, passenger header, the dual 3" into one 4", etc. I attached a picture of how it looks right now.

Now before you start asking, no it wont clear the hood, not even close. I havent quite figured out exactly what I want to do, I might just make a nice smooth bubble where it is, sort of like I have to do for the intake. Im hoping in the next couple weeks I can start getting the downpipe in place and atleast past the transmission, at which point I can pull the engine and begin cleaning everything. As for the intercooler piping, its going straight through where the battery was, forward 8 inches, and into the intercooler, and then the intercooler exits straight up, at which point a 3" round to oval transition into the throttle body.

Id just like to say, I am so glad this part is over. Everything from here on is just fun, nothing like trying to fit a damn tubular header inbetween a big block and a giant wheel well.

hydrolic144

iTrader: (2)

DAMN!

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

Its been a long long time, but semester is finished and I can finally focus some attention on my baby. New updates include the new color for the car, pure white (basically a gloss white). Right now I got the engine out of the car with the turbo + headers mounted (attached pic) so everyone can see how the routing is. I ordered a set of the brackets from Kwik Performance so that I can use the old brackets that I thankfully kept from the 305, saving me about a grand in parts. Im in the middle of painting the engine bay gloss white, the engine will be gloss black, headers ceramic polished, intake black, IC piping chrome, etc etc. The new color theme for the car is chome, white, black. Im stuck between the Boze Friction rims or the Boze "Boost" rims, the lip will be painted white (whichever I chose). Ill be putting AC back in the car, because of the 4-5" downpipe I cant just fab a new heater/ac box so Im going to be ordering a "Vintage Air" gen 2 AC/Heater unit and install it behind the dash where the old box sits. Oh and after looking at my turbo and seeing what my goals are (800+hp at the crank) I think Ill be getting a new/used turbo (GT47 with a T6 housing) so that Ill run out of fuel before I do boost, as I suspect the Ta51 will do. Im very anxious to get this engine running before the spring (I dont have the money for the T56 swap yet, so it wont be drivable).


http://img143.imageshack.us/i/photo5p.jpg/

89_RS

Lincoln Electric makes a great portable TIG for $1300:

http://www.mylincolnelectric.com/Cat...t.aspx?p=55733

100% duty cycle at 100amps, thats overkill for headers.

AlkyIROC

I'm not sure how well your "mock up" will work out of the car. How are you going to know if the tubes have clearance?

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

All the pipes were welded while inside the car, I pulled the engine and just reinstalled the pipes/headers so everyone could see. The problem I see right now is the serpentine pulley is going to hit the flex coupling after I install the new brackets for the tpi setup. The pipe was setup for the v-band pulley which was just 2 pulley widths wide, instead of the TPI setup which sticks out like 5 or 6 inches. If this is the case Im going to have to move the pipe either up or down. However, once the new brackets are in place Im gona see if I can get a v-belt/serpentine combo for the main crank pulley to make it fit nicely.

Oh and I convinced my dad to buy a Diversion 180 from Miller, so all the finishing welds will be in TIG.

89_RS

The duty cycle on that Diversion is lower than the Lincoln. Miller lists it as 35% at 125amps on 115v. That means you'll only be able to weld for 3.5 minutes out of every 10 minutes.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

I wish I saw that a couple weeks ago. The miller does a good job, really easy and it can do AC. I like the 220 and 125 connectors so I can bring it wherever. That Lincoln is certainly a cool machine though.

I'll update again once I get the new brackets and figure out how that crossover is going to run and if I needa move it.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

So here it is. Up and running. Still have to make the body harness for the lights/dash/everything else. Its got a triple pass aluminum radiator, 2800 cfm fan, 85 lb/hr injectors, twin in-take 255lph walbros being fed by a -10AN feed; -8AN return through the biggest regulator I could find (SX Performance), custom throttle linkage because of the ridiculous runners on the intake. Uses all stock sensors from the LT1 5.7L. The downpipe is a 4" mandrel bent pipe that fits in the stock location with just 1/4" to spare. It had to be ovalized near the starter for obvious reasons.

Overall Im pretty happy how it turned out. Its obviously not finished yet but the hard part is over. Learning Megasquirt and TunerStudio was probably the hardest part, that and the downpipe. As before the turbo is a Garrett T6 turbine Gt42 compressor that maxes out at 850hp which is okay because I got enough fuel for 1000hp. The O2 sensor is an LC-1. The oil scavenge is handled (because of how far it is from the center of the engine) with a TurboWerx pump with some 1/2" line. Hasnt hiccuped yet.

Whats next? Finish the interior and get a new drivetrain. Its bolted up to the stock 700R4 (dont laugh) until I can afford a new one and a nice rearend.

Questions, comments welcome.

AlkyIROC

How long does it take to pull the spark plugs?
How long does it take to pull the passenger side valve cover?

It's nice to have that custom "I made it" look but wow does that ever look hard to work on.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

The sparkplugs on the passenger side and the #1 and #3 cylinder are put in from the top, #5 and #7 from the bottom. They were put in after the headers so I know it fits.

The passenger valve cover was tricky. The header couldnt go on with the valve cover in place and bolted up. Once the passenger side header was in place you could put the valve cover on, so if I have to pull it off (which I have to do tomorrow) I know itll make it past it as long as the downpipe is out of the way, and with two v-bands I dont mind. Careful planning was key.

The only thing that sucks is there is a certain order for things to come apart if you need to take the headers off. For example, the passenger side header had to be first, followed by the radiator, and then finally the driver side. There is no way to do it in any other order. So if the passenger side header has to come off its an all day ordeal.

Its certainly a tight fit. Lots of heat issues to deal with, but its really not as bad as it looks.

AlkyIROC

Oh, I also got stuff on the car like that so I know what that's like.

Get the headers coated to deal with the heat issue.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

What kind of coating do you suggest? I was thinking ceramic one day

blackbmagic

Mig welding does'nt look like crap...If you do it right. Any novice will slop up a mig weld, the beauty of it is, it will still work. Thats why people mig.

I started using my HTP 200 with pulse setting set to half second, on full heat. This sets a nice uniform bead super low with 100% penetration. This is using a 75/25 mix argon co2. I can make it looks just like a TIG.

I have done this technique using the simple miller we have at the shop as well as a harbor freight mig one of my buddies bought. Once you get the technique down pat, you should be good. It works the best when you have a pulse setting, but can be done with a good sense of trigger pull.


Coating suggestion: JET HOT 100%, or if you are a DIY guy, coat it with this stuff by Tech Line. Its pretty expensive and you need to spray it, but its well worth it. The best stuff I have used. Cheaper than Jet Hot.

Twin_Turbo

iTrader: (25)

Wanna bet you can't get it like this?

blackbmagic

Pretty damn close, I don't have to bet.

The heat pattern usually looks different on the metal, there is a small dimple in the center of each mig bead, and the weld pattern is spaced a little further, but they tend to look damn good.

With some practice making pretty welds with the mig, you can be more than happy. Not as universal as a TIG though.


EDIT: Not my welds but off some other welding forums.
All done using either pulse or trigger bump method. Dont let anyone fool you. You can get pretty welds with MIG, more time consuming, but worth it.

Pocket

iTrader: (24)

MIG is faster, any way you slice it

You just described my whole car

Twin_Turbo

iTrader: (25)

Clearly welds done by a pro with excellent skills, but you said you could do it like a TIG weld and post someone elses welds....typical. I'll admit, I can tig weld half decent and mig too, I can make a pretty mig weld, not as pretty as the
welds above but still pretty decent



Now let's see some of yours!

blackbmagic

(Takes breath)...Why point fingers, the photos clearly show the point I was trying to make. Not really necessary, though I do see your point.


Those are some awesome beads. I'd like to have some nice pictures of my work.

Sure, I just ordered up some 45degree bends for part of my new exhaust setup. Not stainless, but when I join em up ill post something.

Twin_Turbo

iTrader: (25)

No, it's not a popularity contest but you make it sound like it's easy. It's a common misconception that MIG welding is easier than TIG. Sure, burning wire is easier but welding MIG right and getting a pretty weld is a lot harder than TIG. With TIG the bigest hurdle after learning to set your machine is hand eye control over 2 differrent motions with your left and right hand. Assuming you have foot or thumb control, you are constantly in control of your welding process and the feeding rate. With MIG you set your machine and when you pull the trigger you're dedicated to the settings you have selected. Then it becomes a lot harder to do right and get a pretty weld. I'm willing to bet that anyone who says MIG welding is easy can't weld for crap.

I'll be looking forward to your pics, and just to clarify, I'm a self taught welder, never took a lesson in my life so not a pro by any means. However, I don't think I have to be ashamed of my welding.

blackbmagic

MIG welding was the easiest type of welding when I first started. Compared to the stick welding I learned on. I didn't use TIG until years later and still don't own a machine. I agree with you 100% TIG you have more control, you just have to know what to do with it.

I too am self taught, as many of us are on here. Some just go alot further with it than others. Yes I cant wait to start, finishing up paint then putting the motor in next week, Exhaust soon after. All the pieces are ready to go.

irocbirdbuilder

Since unfortunately i do it for a living everyday i cant go anywhere without critiquing welds, kinda like body guys go to car shows and pick apart the body....But in your case at the end of the day thats a turbo big block!!!! Who cares!

The diversions not a bad machine at all, you really dont need anything crazy for at home unless you start doing production work

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

All this talk about welding I thought I'd just share a little bit. The welds on my car right now are sloppy and are the result of welding in odd places with no control and using one hand to hold other things in place. When at my dads shop and I'm tig welding 304ss industrial fan blades, they come out beautiful. I think I have a split personality when it comes to welding. At the shop it's all about perfection, I get home and the gorilla comes out of the cage and well the result is what you see in the pics. Like the others here I'm self taught, just lazy sometimes.

My car is getting tuned tomorrow. Itll be just a few quick runs on the dyno to get close enough to where I can drive it the 10 mins to the shop and back. No power runs yet.

85z28kid

iTrader: (7)

Wanna make me some!!! Or sell me those lol.

It's looking good I wanna do this to mine I think I'm Gunna do twins just for the say so of it.

Any updates on this? I wanna know what kinds numbers you put down.

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

Well here's the scoop. I had a road block every week. First I had clearance issues with the headers and the radiator because as you know stainless expands more than mild steel, what happened with me is I had clearance when cool but lost over half an inch when at running temp. Fixed that. Then I had issues with mega squirt, fixed that. So I go to the dyno and am having all kinds of backfires and awful sputtering, got home, realized I had the distributor plug wires all messed up and one broken. Fixed that. Got to tuning again and ran out of fuel at 5k rpm with 5 psi. One of the rubber hoses on my twin in tank pumps broke off so I could only achieve 25 psi. Fixed that. Got it really running and started making 1st-2nd gear pulls and couldnt keep it on the road/get traction. It was a monster. I blew up the 700r4 in one week.

Which leaves me to where I am now, I got a t56 and am awaiting to win the loto to get the twin disc clutch I need. In the meantime the car is being painted black. I will say this, if your doing twins, like I should've, make sure you plan ahead, and then plan some more. I have enough issues with one.

85z28kid

iTrader: (7)

I hear Ive been having issues all summer with mine.

I'm Gunna hopefully build a set of headers really soon. I'm Gunna go to a blowthrough setup until I can order a fast setup but that's Gunna be a ways away. I got a t56 right and low it with the big block but I think I might sell it or trade it for a braked turbo 400 since you need lower gears to help load the motor and build boost faster.

I'm prolly Gunna run a 2.73 setup with a turbo 400 so i would only run 2800 rpms at 80 mph on the highway which isn't that bad.

What size gear in the rear you Gunna run?

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

I'll be running 3.42 for now on the 10 bolt, 3.73 when I get a proper rear end. I'm not worried about building boost fast, i have a two step setup in the works on mega squirt to help. Plus, starting with a 7.4L will get you moving.

The T56 gives me two overdrive gears so it won't be bad on the highway. Ideally, I'd like to have the 6L80E and just have the best of both worlds.

At this point, I'll admit I should've just went blow through and been done. For what I've spent on the fuel system I could've bought three carbs.

85z28kid

iTrader: (7)

Yea the bigger displacement puts out some air which really helps getting the turbos a spinning.

I think the 6l80 is only a .75 overdrive I think it only just splits 2 and third gear. I t just moves the spread around in between the stock first and overdrive gears which really suck.
Plus there trannies are huge compared to t56. The only reason I would go t400 is because they're cheap to have built to a 1000 hp trannies with a break. But I dont think I'll switch cuz I love banging gears with the t56.

Yea blow through is the cheaper way around it. I mean they're not the most ideal setup if you're going for gas mileage but who needs gas with 700+ hp? Lol

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

Well its been a long time since an update.



First vid had a lot of smoke but it wasnt all from the tires
Second vid is kind of a teaser. Ive been too busy to work on the car unfortunately but its slowly getting there when time is available. Oh and the car is no longer red, its black now so it matches the engine a bit better.

tylercamaro

iTrader: (1)

need to drop the rear down

bvahnee

iTrader: (2)

So I recently got my hands on a black 5-speed 87 IROC-Z G92 hard top thats got 62k original miles. The body and interior are in great shape and the PO installed weld-in SFC's. My plan for when the Northeast thaws a bit is to swap the engine from the 91 to the 87. So all this "mock-up" work on the 91 can finally go to good use into a car thats rust free.

Ive got a 4 post lift and overhead hoist now so it should make quick work of the engine swap. Stay tuned!

niceroc

iTrader: (2)

the biggest reason i would prefer TIG welding to MIG is the amount of heat put into the metal, which is EXTREMELY important when welding stainless. i set my miller dynasty to about 200 pulses per second to reduce the amount of heat and to make sure the welds will not become brittle and break later down the road. it doesnt matter much to me how the welds look, even though i am a professional welder who cant look at a weld without critiquing it, it is how it holds up.

ptpan

Inside the hood twin turbo from ebay...