Obx Headers/sidepipes

6t8vert

Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2010
Messages
16
Location
Jacksonville FL
Been tossing around the OBX stainless steel headers and pipes on the bay. I currently have Headman side exhaust headers with the Patriot side pipes. They are okay but do not have the muscle look of the Hooker type side exhaust headers. The question is; has anyone installed a set of the side exhaust OBX headers? I know there are varing opinions about an off brand exhaust system but the price seems very attractive. Lot's of C5 drivers have installed the OBX on their C5's with little comment on quality etc except that they are very pleased. How about a C3? Anyone have any insite or suggestions on these side mount header systems?:beer:
 
Welcome to the motley crew of the Flying Dutchmen....

sorry I have NO knowledge of your inquiry there, but must be 50 guys here that do....

:beer::beer:

OH BTW, Orange Park hotrodder here....
 
I just installed OBX headers on my '06 vert. Half the price of what so called "name brand" headers cost, got mine for a little over $700 shipped. They fit just fine and so far I have put roughly 2000 miles on them, no complaints whatsoever.
I had to clearance the floorboard heatshields and move wires out of the way, I consider that normal ... I welded the intermediate pipe because I do not like all these clamps... installation with the provided clamps would have been possible though... I have a thread with photos in the 'modern corvettes' section.

You won't find much about these ebay headers or mufflers on other forums because they are not from a supporting vendor...LOL...very often you find people who say that "if it's not name brand and cost less than $2000 it must be junk"...

don't get me wrong, I don't like supporting this "made in China garbage" but these headers are not all that complicated to make.... The Chinese are not too dumb to weld a few pieces of 1 7/8" stainless tubing.....

Didn't know that they also made C3 sidemount headers...I knew there are Ebay headers but didn't know they are OBX.... I guess I paid way too much for my Hookers then....
 
Been doing research on the HKR headers and pipes. I love the look but not the price. I had my side mount Headman headers ceramic coated. Did it at the time to keep them looking nice. Did not realize at the time it would also reduce heat. The OBX are T304 stainless steel polished. If I get them I'll have the headers ceramic coated but not the pipes. Will still be way under the cost of HRK's. Have not decided on headers for my C5 just yet. Several companies out there with great products but of course price is a consideration also. I just want to get the most I can for the buck. I'm not a cheapee person but don't spend unwisely either. I have been told you get what you pay for. This is true. Have you read the thread on CF in the C3 section about some of the experience a guy had with HKR's. Following that you would never buy a set. We all know sometimes things just don't go together as planned. My 68 is a vetrod and I have had to alter several things to get them to work right. Well hope someone will chime in and give us your thoughts on the OBX side mount system for C3's. I'm getting ready to pull the trigger and if I do I'll certainly post my experience with them.:beer:
 
Hey MYBAD79, looked at your photo's of the headers (OBX) for your C6. They look great. Also looked at the side exhaust on your 79. Very nice. I like the heat shield deal on the side pipes. I'll need to do that as well. The shields look fine. My wife has already been introduced to side pipes when she got out of the car and put the ole leg down to close to the pipe. The Patriot pipes do have a heat shield screen so it was not a total desaster. Just wanted to say thanks for the good photo's of your work.
 
Yes, austenitic (non magnetic) stainless turns "hay" colored when ehated. They will turn that color once you start them. If you weld with backing gas so there is no sugaring (or if you weld with elss than full penetration) no oxygen will contaminate the weld and you get those rainbow colors (on titanium the rainbow colors indicate a lack of shielding gas!), if the weld is contaminated it will turn gray.

Anyway, the color can be buffed off or can be removed by chemical or electrochemical pickling.

Here's the discoloration on austenitic stainless
24bca1beb7cae9.jpg

This is how a set of those chrome luster polished pipes will look after you get them nice and hot.

Before:
24bf658c4d0cef.jpg
After:
24c4040669e8fa.jpg

For the price it's hard to beat those sidepipe headers in stainless.
 
HD sells a polish that will bring back the luster I myself quite like the blue, purple and gold colors that they turn.

If it don't go you can always chrome it ;)
 
I'm not a fan of coating, chrome will flake off and turn blue too. I don't have personal experience with ceramic but I would think it can be scratched during the install .. no idea how resistant it is to rocks being thrown up by the front tires........ I like the look of "seasoned" stainless :D

Polish will bring back most of the shine.... lots of work though....
 
I'm not a fan of coating either. It will rust. If you want to reduce underhood temps, nothing better than wrapped stainless headers. They will last forever and the wrap works so much better than the coating.

Even if you don't scratch the coating during install, road debris will make pits and scratches and it will corrode. Also, the coating does not cover in the seams and welds, the rust always starts where the pipes nest at the collector.
 
Bought the headers

well pulled the trigger and bought the OBX side mount headers and pipes. I'll take pictures and let you know what if any problems I have with them. I am thinking about having just the headers ceramic coated to help reduce the heat from the headers. I am not a big fan of heat wrap. Any thoughts on having the coating applied? is it really worth it? Local shope will do it for about $250 for the pair. I have to figure out how to post pictures on here. First time really getting involved on a forum other than reading threads.:beer:
 
fit the headers first to make sure they clear the steering box, mine were a tight fit and I dented one of the primaries for additional clearance. Since mine are stainless without coating it wasn't a problem to simply hit it a few times with a hammer :D

I think your money is better spent on the heat shields (http://www.steelshields.com/), better protect your legs :bump:
 
Shields look very nice, a little pricy but isn't everything. So I gather from your comment that I would not benefit much from just ceramic coating the headers? I was thinking about the reduction of heat in the engine bay. I have read that it can be reduced about 30 % or so. I have some Headman headers that I had coated and they get hot but not blistering hot. I will leave the side pipes alone and or get the shields. Just thinking about the headers themselves. By the way thanks for all the comments. As I said I will continue this thread about my experience with OBX headers so we all can learn a little about the other guy.:beer:
 
Shields look very nice, a little pricy but isn't everything. So I gather from your comment that I would not benefit much from just ceramic coating the headers? I was thinking about the reduction of heat in the engine bay. I have read that it can be reduced about 30 % or so. I have some Headman headers that I had coated and they get hot but not blistering hot. I will leave the side pipes alone and or get the shields. Just thinking about the headers themselves. By the way thanks for all the comments. As I said I will continue this thread about my experience with OBX headers so we all can learn a little about the other guy.:beer:

Back when I had sides on a vette, I was burnt a couple of times...still have the scars! When I sold it, I warned a prospective buyer to be carefull...but he didn't tell his wife...and you guessed it:lol:

That was before Dean was making his shields. Had he been making them back then, I would have gotten a set. Dean is a member here.
 
Even with the shields you will still KNOW when you touch the hot pipes but it doesn't take your skin off and won't leave a scar.... money well spent....

Now, I'm not so sure about the underhood temperature as you normally have air flow either due to the fan or simply wind blowing thru the radiator at 40+ mph.... that air exits under the car and on its way out it cools the engine and header pipes.... the coating or header wrap would be beneficial at a red light (standstill)......
 
If you do decide to get a set of my steelshields.com send me a message on the [email protected] and I can arrange a vettemod members free shipping and you can use your credit card as we use Google checkout service.
 
Be sure to post a picture of them and tell us how they fit after you get them. Normally i'm not into chinese junk, but imo the hookers are way overpriced.

BTW : I recently read complaints over at CF about the fit quality of the hookers.
 
Be sure to post a picture of them and tell us how they fit after you get them. Normally i'm not into chinese junk, but imo the hookers are way overpriced.

BTW : I recently read complaints over at CF about the fit quality of the hookers.

I thought a hooker could fit any guy's pipes with no sweat......


:club::cool:
 
Top