DIY Explorer 302 Headers

[97Sandbox]

Yeah, mine were garbage so I fixed a rusty set of TMH instead.

I may try again someday if I have a good TIG setup. MIG welds are just too porous to seal reliably and my attempts to seal over the beads were unsuccessful.

 

[410Fortune]

You are late to the party!!!

 

[JoshT]

What EGR tube?
View attachment 450151

Man, I love satin black. Really helps things disappear.

And just like that, the headers have virtually disappeared.
View attachment 450168
Looking forward to seeing what all the hype about TMH is...hopefully tomorrow!

I think I want to do this to my OBX headers. They don't have the coating like the real deal TMs so I doubt they will stay as nice looking once the heat hits. Don't really want them shiny either. Might spray with some of the Rustoleum or VHT 2000° paint. Don't expect it to last, just look better to me immediately after installation.

On these headers how do you mount the dipstick tube?

Originally they used a studded bolt IIRC. Do you reuse the OEM hardware with the stud, omit the stud and have the bracket directly against the header, or do something else?

 

[97Sandbox]

Might spray with some of the Rustoleum or VHT 2000° paint. Don't expect it to last, just look better to me immediately after installation.

If you try the VHT, you might want to sandblast the headers first. I used it on the headers I made and it started falling off during the final cure stage (see post #229).

On these headers how do you mount the dipstick tube?

Originally they used a studded bolt IIRC. Do you reuse the OEM hardware with the stud, omit the stud and have the bracket directly against the header, or do something else?

I bought a 2" stud with an internal hex, welded a nut on, and ground the points off the nut to make a "low profile" version of the stock stud (see post #209). I mounted the dipstick tube just like factory, no clearancing of the bracket or bending of the tube was needed in my case. I just put a nut onto the exposed part of the stud (and internal tooth lock washers on all the fasteners). You can kind of see it here:

 

[410Fortune]

I have obx headers on my sport trac
They were used when I got them
The coating still looks good!
I would not sandblast the coating off of it was me

Mounting the dipstick not terrible usually you can tuck the tab up behind one of your bolts or re use the factory stud or slightly modify the tab slightly… I’ve never run into much issue there

Coating is dull but still holding

With that said I often use the vht high temp primer and paint on turbos and it holds up really well

 

[JoshT]

Once I have them in place I'll see what my hardware options look like for mounting the dipstick. Have the original bolt. Have an APR header bolt kit with a little extra length for the thick gaskets. Also picked up a stud today to see if I might want to go that way for the one fastener.

I have obx headers on my sport trac
They were used when I got them
The coating still looks good!
I would not sandblast the coating off of it was me

Coating is dull but still holding

With that said I often use the vht high temp primer and paint on turbos and it holds up really well

My OBX/Maximizer headers look like they are plain stainless from the polish and coloration of the welds, unless they put some kind of clear coating on them. I don;t so much want to remove an existing coating as want to hide the shiny. I'd just spray them with the paint, but I doubt that would stick very well without giving the surface some bite. Probably wouldn't stick very well even if I did sand the surface, I doubt that I would take the time to do all the curing steps. Paint, let dry, and install.

 

[410Fortune]

If it is any consolation you can barely see any shiny bits once the engine bay is all together and the fender skirts are in… you have to really look to see headers on these rigs.

The only reason you see all the shine in the threads is because we are taking pictures of the headers and their fitment

 

[CDW6212R]

How much of a pocket is there in the collector merge area, can you get into it with anything like a putty to settle into it? I know not much will seal to those outside surfaces, but the leak is in that section you can't get too. Does anyone know of something they'd trust to survive the 99* or more heat? If something could live there, then maybe something else could seal enough to the edges after it's in there. Ultra Copper is very good but it's best for a compressed gap like a header gasket, not to fill a big crack.

 

[410Fortune]

Loctite Paste High Temperature Sealant, 946 mL, Brown, Temp Range 59 Degrees to 86 Degrees F 2374447 | Zoro

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Could try something like this and then wrap the header to move the heat downstream so the sealant holds up longer

 

[CDW6212R]

Loctite Paste High Temperature Sealant, 946 mL, Brown, Temp Range 59 Degrees to 86 Degrees F 2374447 | Zoro

Order Loctite Paste High Temperature Sealant, 946 mL, Brown, Temp Range 59 Degrees to 86 Degrees F, 2374447 at Zoro.com. Great prices & free shipping on orders over $50 when you sign in or sign up for an account.

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Could try something like this and then wrap the header to move the heat downstream so the sealant holds up longer

That is interesting, it's what I was wondering about if it existed. The 1500* rating is great, but for $121+tax, will it bond to the coated surfaces. If it could be forced in there well, and if it bonds well enough, it could stop the leaking enough to be useful.

That merge are is what I worry about for my Lincoln project, I hope to cut off the stock section behind where the four come together. I want to weld on a proper merge section which necks down below 2.5", and opens back up to the 2.5" collectors and pipes. Welding on the cloverleaf section should be no trouble, I don't want to get into the four pipes at all.

 

[410Fortune]

This one is 2000 degrees wow

Loctite Gray Fixmaster® 2000 Degrees F Putty, 8 oz. Can 235579 | Zoro

Order Loctite Gray Fixmaster® 2000 Degrees F Putty, 8 oz. Can, 235579 at Zoro.com. Great prices & free shipping on orders over $50 when you sign in or sign up for an account.

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And thermosteel
Made for exhaust $65
Amazon product ASIN B002UJ1EF4
I know you already tried some Liquid Metal stuff but these products maybe just fill in the gaps and stop the leaks

 

[CDW6212R]

That Loctite product sounds most promising. The test would be which one can adhere to the surface the best, and not harden/deform/shrink so it doesn't create a new crack and leak.

Will that coated surface scuff much at all with a sand blasting? I wonder if you can get down inside that are with a sand blasting gun, the tip, just to give it a little burst to roughen the surfaces. I know the spot in question is very tight, it's a hard thing to work on.

 

[97Sandbox]

Thermosteel is what I used to try to seal my DIY headers. While it hardens a lot after being heated and seems very strong, it's porous and does not stop leaks. I get the impression it'd be useful to pack into a massive crack in a cast manifold that you need to get back into service, but for plugging pinholes in welds it does not do the job.

I'd be curious to know the viscosity of those loctite products. If it's thinner than the thermosteel and can actually flow into the pinholes, it might work better. From descriptions I've read online, I'm interested in this VersaChem joint sealer.

 

[vroomzoomboom]

c'mon! whens the fire up date!!!!

 

[97Sandbox]

c'mon! whens the fire up date!!!!

You mean first fire-up? That was last weekend, the conversation is currently living in my Mounty thread.

Or do you mean the update when I say I went nuts and torched the Mounty to the ground because my headers still leak? That's probably a couple more days out hahaha

 

[vroomzoomboom]

You mean first fire-up? That was last weekend, the conversation is currently living in my Mounty thread.

Or do you mean the update when I say I went nuts and torched the Mounty to the ground because my headers still leak? That's probably a couple more days out hahaha

i ment start it up. didnt realize you had it running already lol.

 

[97Sandbox]

Yeah, it's running but feels down on power. No worse than before the headers, but it had a nasty exhaust leak at the right manifold then.

I'm trying to find anything besides the headers that could be the source of my lean codes. But there's a decent chance it's the headers.