[East]

I was on the phone with R.A.R.E to finally order the down pipes SHP1-7 when I was told that they are no longer mandrel bent.

The gentleman said that they now have an in-shop bender. He also said that they are still 2 1/2 inches , but have a small bend in them.

I thanked him for the information and ended the call to think about it.

I ordered the 409 stainless DGF10S from Pypes.

They are sold as 16 gauge Stainless Steel Mandrel Bent downpipes.

I hope that made a good choice because I usually suck at making choices.

[b-man]

https://forums.maxperformanceinc.com...d.php?t=875319

Recent discussion on this subject.

[72projectbird]

So are they kink bent?

If so, wtf are they thinking? Buying good flowing manifolds that exit right into kink bent crap? lol

[PAUL K]

I don't think you made a poor choice.

Most things are turning to poop for one reason or another. It's not good when "good parts" become NLA

[grivera]

I don’t understand why they would change to an in house bender that’s inferior. Glad I bought my head pipes from them years ago/

[Formulajones]

I'm guessing to reduce cost. And no one wants to pay what it costs to get a mandrel bender anymore. I remember 25 years ago they were $30k id hate to think what one costs now.

Either way I'd stick to mandrel bends. It's been tested many times and shown on the dyno the first bend right off the manifolds is the most critical and a mandrel there is worth a few hp. That is if you're squeezing ponies like I do.

[Keith Seymore]

(subscribed)

K

[East]

Originally Posted by 72projectbird

So are they kink bent?

If so, wtf are they thinking? Buying good flowing manifolds that exit right into kink bent crap? lol

I believe that he was saying that was the case.

I even asked if there was a chance that there was a remaining set of mandrel bent, but there wasn't.

I am always late out of the gate.

I will let you all know what the results are with how they fit.

[Verdoro 68]

What a bummer. I have a set of long branch manifolds on the way for the Venutra and was eyeing those head pipes. Looks like I'll may be visiting the exhaust shop after all when the time comes to do the system.

[hurryinhoosier62]

That would be my suggestion to everyone: find the best muffler/exhaust shop with a mandrel bender in your area and have the head pipes bent and flared there. That’s what I did with my ‘72 GP years ago.

[East]

I spoke to a gentleman on the phone that confirmed my order.

I asked him if the pipes were mandrel bent and his answer was yes.

I have read through other posts about the angle not being just right at the flange, giving the wrong pipe path towards rear.

I have a MIG welder, but haven't won any awards for skill. The pipe is stainless steel which increases the need to be proficient at welding. I imagine that the thickness of the material increases the difficulty even more.

My current down pipes are small, maybe less than 2 and a 1/2 inch, were not mandrel bent, and hung down too far resulting in being flattened by speed bump. The exhaust system was installed at Midas muffler back in the 1980s.

I am due to replace. I envisioned a system that was tucked up under the car tight, and not as exposed from the side view.

[East]

It's been a while, but are there mounting points for exhaust hangers for the muffler that fits in the rear axle well? Should one be used with mufflers under rear passenger area?

I have been looking at the rest of the system and see X pipe and H pipe systems. Is one or the other better, or skip both?

[b-man]

No local exhaust shop is going to fabricate those headpipes any better and most certainly not any cheaper than whatever you can buy from PYPES. Even needing to slice the pipe a couple inches past the flange and carefully grinding the angle then welding them back together isn’t a deal breaker. If you’re not the best welder then just put enough tacks on them to hold alignment and let a pro complete the job.

Those long branch manifolds have the exits so low it’s a must to trim a little out of the headpipes anyway to keep them as high up as is practical.

[Cardo]

I called Ram Air Restorations today. Paul assured me that the A-body head pipes are still mandrel bent. I ordered the 2 piece head pipes, the front piece is still mandrel bent on the curve coming off of the manifold, but the back piece is bent on a regular bender. I'll report back when I get them. It'll be 2 weeks or so. He's waiting for a shipment of pipe.

[East]

I received the head pipes this past Friday by UPS delivery.

The rear of the car is already on jack stands so I positioned the headpipe on the passenger side to have a look to find out how the fit would be. I couldn't get an exact feel of how the pipe would fit with the current exhaust still bolted together, but I have a good feeling.

The current exhaust is smashed flat, and the bend takes a lot away from the original diameter of the pipe.

I should continue this thread on the exhaust forum as I am on the fence between using the cross flow muffler verses the under rear passenger area mufflers.

I prefer less exhaust sound over loud and look at me attention. The engine has 068 cam and it would not make sense to have so much exhaust noise level and unpaired forward momentum.

[b-man]

Thread moved to Exhaust Tech forum.

[East]

I am trying to collect the remaining part of the exhaust system.

I have watched a Summit video explaining X-pipe and H-pipe configurations and want to ask others of why they chose either one over the other.

I was looking at Pypes kits SGF42 and SGF60. These kits do not include mufflers. I would have the opportunity to purchase Dynomax for quiet exhaust note.

I am pondering the cross flow option based on opinions that may be offered.

Another pestering decision is the way the tips exit the rear. I read that 67-68 have the configurations of the Pypes kits, but 1969 should be further to the rear pointing back.

I get overwhelmed by too many choices/decisions and that's why I procrastinate. I'm always too late, like with the R.A.R.E. head pipes.