1-1/4" pipe size 304 SS pipe and weld-els
1/2" SS water-cut flanges
TIG welded
Tech Line Black Satin Ceramic Coating
Header FAQ
1. Those flanges look great. I was thinking that if
someone produced just the collector
without the
attached pipes, that it would be
something others
would be interested in buying.
That and the flanges
maybe.
The only problem with that is many times the welder
will need to take things apart to get at certain welds. Granted many
of
those are in the collector. I am looking into
having more flanges made, but I honestly think just using my drawings at
a local shop would be best.
2. I want to do something like this myself. I can
MIG
weld, but have no TIG welding experience
or
equipment. I don't know if
that would be good
enough. Your welds look awesome.
Maybe I can tack
up something and have a TIG welder
do it up like you
did.
I was going to try and MIG the whole thing, but
then reality sunk in. Just go get some 308 or 316 SS wire, some argon,
and
tack weld it. Make them as small as possible
because your welder will most likely grind them off anyways.
2. I don't even know where to buy weld-els.
Did you
source them locally or order them
from somewhere?
https://www.mcmaster.com/ has them, that's who I used.
3. It looks like you used PVC piping to mock up what
the shapes needed to be. I
think I got a good
understanding of how to do this from
looking at your
pictures, thanks for putting them
up. The plastic
pipe you used seems to be the perfect
diameter to
imitate the weld-els.
Yea, PVC is much softer and cheaper than SS, and
the bends are pretty close to the weld-els for dimensions. I used
it just to try and visualize the fit before I started hacking at the SS.
4. Are the straight pieces of piping also weld-els,
or
is that called something else?
Strait Schedule 10 1.25" 304 SS pipe, $4-$5 per
foot. I bought 10 feet, and have 5 feet left.
5. So, did you do everything except for the actual
final TIG welding?
Yes
6. Meaning you used the cutoff saw
and tack welds?
Yes
7. I suppose the measurements for the
flanges were just taken off the stock
manifold?
I used the gaskets to make the measurements.
8 . (speaking of which, this means you could use any
turbo at all, including those that
don't bolt onto
the Audi manifold, not that I know
of a particularly
better turbo to bolt on)
Yes, I was really tempted to go with a Garrett flange,
but I have an almost new turbo that I couldn't justify replacing. It
will
be easy to weld a different flange on in the future
if I want.
9. I notice the turbo is angled so that the exhaust
output is pointing down, I assume
this is to direct
the output right at the downpipe,
right? I know
that is probably a stupid question,
but I just want
to understand the thought process
involved.
That, and so the turbo intake points to a spot where
I can run a pipe under the fender for the air filter.
10. I suppose something that cuts super-straight like
that is necessary to get a good joint.
The best tool I had was and angle grinder with a
cut-off wheel. I made quick work of the SS. The chop saw is fairly
important since many times you do need really strait
cuts. A compound mitre saw with a cut off wheel would work even
better so you can get some nice clean angles.