Thank you, gentlemen. Now let's get to it.
I started back up on the passenger side, mocking everything in place and then making a few tack welds.
I finally had the entire "Pseudo-Boss/H-pipe" assembly tacked up. I could now remove it and weld everything up. I made a narrow root pass at each fillet before making a second pass. I wanted a healthy fillet what with the pipe being cantilevered off of the original exhaust system.
Trying to mig with 308L (stainless) wire was becoming a challenge as I didn't use a helium gas mix - just a CO2/Argon mix which isn't optimized for stainless. Even with my Miller mig set for sheetmetal, the wire and base material turn to an orange glow very quickly. My weave pattern became one of alternating the trigger on and off before trying to move too far (1/4" or so) or I'd burn through. Not a big deal as I did it quite a bit but stainless is easy to crater back up rapidly.
I also "hopscotched" from one side to another to minimize flange warpage. Once done, I did a quick scuff with some medium sanding foam and hit the welded in sections with a quick coat of stove paint. I was interested to see any heat pattern that might be evidenced by discoloration or peel where I painted as well as providing a contrasting color for comparing the Boss H-section to the GT500 assembly via an overlay (which you'll see later).
Anyway, here's the PHRP H-pipe that I had previously welded up and now stubbed ala the 2012 Boss...
I had been itching to get the pipe off if for anything, an inspection of the cats. The Whipple I added over a year ago was supposed to be set up in "safe mode" what with the fat and lazy ProCal tune I'm running. I was happy to see they look the same as they did before the blower upgrade.
I remember seeing 7 to 10 specks in the honeycomb the last time I had the pipe off, just as I saw today.
I was interested in seeing how the GT500 pipe compared to the Boss section. My assembly ended up being a bit wider...
Adjusted with the end lengths matched up...
I kept mental track of the flange clocking but didn't go all-out scientific on ensuring mine perfectly matched to Boss pipes. I don't know how much rotation the Quicktime valve/plate assembly can stand before floorpan clearance becomes an issue so I wanted to be close to original.
With the sun going down I really wanted to slip underneath the car and get the pipe assembly back in place. There's that one O2 sensor on the passenger side that is difficult to wrench into place, requiring a mastery of automotive Braille. Once in, I added the quad pipes as well as the original Boss steel shim gaskets and 1/2" spacer.
:banana:
My gut sense was on. Turning the key, the car emitted a very light cackle upon initial fireup - as always. I got out and held my hand in front of each pipe. As I had read previously, there really isn't much flow from the side pipes. I'd equate what I felt to holding my hand about 6 inches away from the wife's hairdryer on medium. Upon revving, there is a subtle burble that I've heard from the Boss cars without any attenuation plates in place (I forgot to mention that I bolted everything up without using the restrictor plates I had purchased).
I have to say - I'm really not into loud exhaust systems (anymore, anyway
), but the quad pipes running without restriction sound the way the car should come right from the dealer. Which leads me to ponder...If I don't need to close up the system, what do I need the cutout valves for? I'm already planning to whip up some custom, one-off quad pipes, with no resonator inside. Much louder than these, making a shutoff necessary. Part of my devious plan will be to open the valves when sitting next to a someone jawing on their cell while next to me at a red light. That, or I'll keep a cellular frequency jammer on in my pocket.
I'm charging my phone battery so I won't have any sound file up until tomorrow. I think most will find the sound to be a nice touch. This one was time consuming but worth the effort if for nothing but to be different.
I started back up on the passenger side, mocking everything in place and then making a few tack welds.
I finally had the entire "Pseudo-Boss/H-pipe" assembly tacked up. I could now remove it and weld everything up. I made a narrow root pass at each fillet before making a second pass. I wanted a healthy fillet what with the pipe being cantilevered off of the original exhaust system.
Trying to mig with 308L (stainless) wire was becoming a challenge as I didn't use a helium gas mix - just a CO2/Argon mix which isn't optimized for stainless. Even with my Miller mig set for sheetmetal, the wire and base material turn to an orange glow very quickly. My weave pattern became one of alternating the trigger on and off before trying to move too far (1/4" or so) or I'd burn through. Not a big deal as I did it quite a bit but stainless is easy to crater back up rapidly.
I also "hopscotched" from one side to another to minimize flange warpage. Once done, I did a quick scuff with some medium sanding foam and hit the welded in sections with a quick coat of stove paint. I was interested to see any heat pattern that might be evidenced by discoloration or peel where I painted as well as providing a contrasting color for comparing the Boss H-section to the GT500 assembly via an overlay (which you'll see later).
Anyway, here's the PHRP H-pipe that I had previously welded up and now stubbed ala the 2012 Boss...
I had been itching to get the pipe off if for anything, an inspection of the cats. The Whipple I added over a year ago was supposed to be set up in "safe mode" what with the fat and lazy ProCal tune I'm running. I was happy to see they look the same as they did before the blower upgrade.
I remember seeing 7 to 10 specks in the honeycomb the last time I had the pipe off, just as I saw today.
I was interested in seeing how the GT500 pipe compared to the Boss section. My assembly ended up being a bit wider...
Adjusted with the end lengths matched up...
I kept mental track of the flange clocking but didn't go all-out scientific on ensuring mine perfectly matched to Boss pipes. I don't know how much rotation the Quicktime valve/plate assembly can stand before floorpan clearance becomes an issue so I wanted to be close to original.
With the sun going down I really wanted to slip underneath the car and get the pipe assembly back in place. There's that one O2 sensor on the passenger side that is difficult to wrench into place, requiring a mastery of automotive Braille. Once in, I added the quad pipes as well as the original Boss steel shim gaskets and 1/2" spacer.
:banana:
My gut sense was on. Turning the key, the car emitted a very light cackle upon initial fireup - as always. I got out and held my hand in front of each pipe. As I had read previously, there really isn't much flow from the side pipes. I'd equate what I felt to holding my hand about 6 inches away from the wife's hairdryer on medium. Upon revving, there is a subtle burble that I've heard from the Boss cars without any attenuation plates in place (I forgot to mention that I bolted everything up without using the restrictor plates I had purchased).
I have to say - I'm really not into loud exhaust systems (anymore, anyway
), but the quad pipes running without restriction sound the way the car should come right from the dealer. Which leads me to ponder...If I don't need to close up the system, what do I need the cutout valves for? I'm already planning to whip up some custom, one-off quad pipes, with no resonator inside. Much louder than these, making a shutoff necessary. Part of my devious plan will be to open the valves when sitting next to a someone jawing on their cell while next to me at a red light. That, or I'll keep a cellular frequency jammer on in my pocket.I'm charging my phone battery so I won't have any sound file up until tomorrow. I think most will find the sound to be a nice touch. This one was time consuming but worth the effort if for nothing but to be different.
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