HEADER KITS

TO AVOID ANY MISUNDERSTANDINGS:

These kits do NOT include any tubing that is pre-bent to fit any specific chassis or application.  All bends are 180 degree mandrel bent bends that must be cut to shape, tack-welded and then finish welded when the final header design is completed.  While there are header "kits" out there that do consist of pre-bent tubes, they are usually designed to create headers for dyno-testing or sprint car use.  Don't get fooled into buying them unless they are EXACTLY what you need!  Many fellows buy them - thinking that they are an easy way out of their "header problem and then end up regretting the purchase because the "kit" doesn't  give them the parts they need to build a header that will fit their car.  Another thing we have noticed is that when fellows call us who have bought the kits and need more parts to finish the headers or have decided to throw the kit away and start over, many of them had bought the WRONG tube and/or collector size(s) for the situation that they were in!  (Which means that, for some, the purchase of a "header kit" actually deprives their engines of achieving a FULL performance gain!)

       
HEADER KIT CONTENTS - EXPLANATIONS:

While we have header flanges for most American engines, perhaps the FIRST THING TO DO is be sure that we offer the necessary Header Flanges for your engine.  (If we don't, you may have to make them and we'll be happy to supply everything else that you will need.)
  

 V8 CAR HEADER KITS include:

One pair 1/4" thick PLAIN header flanges (formed starter tubes unavailable for most applications);
               (5/16" and 3/8" thick header flanges are also available)

One pair Header Gaskets or, if we don't have the header gaskets, we will add an extra U-Bend to the Header Kit;

One set Header Bolts;

Twelve Mandrel Bent U-Bends with 6" legs and Two Mandrel Bent J-Bends with at least an 8" leg on one side
               and a 15" leg on the other side in 2 1/4" OD and smaller Header Kits.  2 3/8" and 2 1/2" OD kits come with
               Twelve J-Bends (NOT U-Bends);

Ten Feet of Straight Tubing in 2 1/4" OD and smaller Header Kits -  Five Feet sent in 2 3/8" and 2 1/2" OD kits
               (Tubing is shipped 30" sections to reduce shipping and packing & handling charges.);

One Pair Formed Collectors or Custom Collectors (depends on Formed Collector availability - see listing above).
  

V6 CAR HEADER KITS include:

One pair 1/4" thick PLAIN header flanges (formed starter tubes unavailable for most applications);
               (5/16" and 3/8" thick header flanges are also available)

One pair Header Gaskets or, if we don't have the header gaskets, we will add an extra U-Bend to the Header Kit;

One set Header Bolts;

Ten Mandrel Bent U-Bends with 6" legs and Two Mandrel Bent J-Bends with at least an 8" leg on one side
               and a 15" leg on the other side;

Ten Feet of Straight Tubing;  (Tubing is shipped 30" sections to reduce shipping and packing & handling charges.)

One Pair Formed Collectors or Custom Collectors (depends on Formed Collector availability - see listing above).
    

4 cylinder HEADER KITS include:

One 1/4" thick PLAIN header flanges (formed starter tubes unavailable for most applications);
               (5/16" and 3/8" thick header flanges are also available)

One Header Gaskets or, if we don't have the header gaskets, we will add an extra U-Bend to the Header Kit;

One set Header Bolts;

Six Mandrel Bent U-Bends with 6" legs and Two Mandrel Bent J-Bends with at least an 8" leg on one side
               and a 15" leg on the other side;

Five Feet of Straight Tubing;  (Tubing is shipped 30" sections to reduce shipping and packing & handling charges.)

One Formed Collector or Custom Collector (depends on Formed Collector availability - see listing above).
    

V8 VERTICAL EXIT Pull & Mudrace HEADER KITS include:

One pair 1/4" thick PLAIN header flanges (formed starter tubes unavailable for most applications);
               (5/16" and 3/8" thick header flanges are also available)

One pair Header Gaskets or, if we don't have the header gaskets, we will add an extra U-Bend to the Header Kit;

One set Header Bolts;

Eight Mandrel Bent U-Bends with 6" legs in 2 1/4" OD and smaller Header Kits.  2 3/8" and 2 1/2" OD kits come with
               Eight J-Bends (NOT U-Bends);

Twenty Feet of Straight Tubing in 2 1/4" OD and smaller Header Kits -  Ten Feet sent in 2 3/8" and 2 1/2" OD kits
               (Tubing is shipped 30" sections to reduce shipping and packing & handling charges.);

One Pair Formed Collectors or Custom Collectors (depends on Formed Collector availability - see listing above).

The contents of our Header Kits are based on a considerable amount of Header Parts sales experience - dating back to 1964!

 Our Header Kits contain enough parts for about 98% of our customers to build a complete set of headers.  However, because chassis problems, the desire to make a header Equal Length, and/or each builder's individual fussiness can REALLY affect how many bends are going to be used to build a header, on occasion, additional bends may have to be ordered (BUT - see bottom of this page for Bend Buying Tips).  Phoned or Faxed in early enough, orders for more parts can usually be shipped the same day by UPS so we really minimize the inconvenience of not having enough parts ($25.00 minimum order, however).

UNLESS REQUESTED OTHERWISE, Header Kits are shipped with the following quantities, bend radii, and bend leg lengths.  The quantities listed assume the construction of a UNDERCHASSIS exit car/truck header for a V8 engine.  V6 kits come with 2 less U-Bends, 4 cylinder kits come with 6 less U-Bends.  VERTICAL EXIT Header kits are shipped with eight 3" radius U-Bends on all tube sizes through 2 1/4" unless requested otherwise.  2 3/8" and 2 1/2" VERTICAL EXIT header kits are shipped with eight 3" radius J-Bends.

Many header kits can be ordered with different radius U-Bends substituted at no extra charge.  If you feel that there are areas of your chassis that are quite close to the engine, consider substituting tighter radii bends in those "close" areas.  If you feel that your chassis has a fair amount of room so that wider radii bends can be used, consider the substitution of wider radii bends for those areas.  (Consider these same reasons to substitute extra cost narrower and/or wider radius U-Bends and J-Bends too!)

We also have other radii U-Bends plus longer legged U-Bends and J-Bends available for most of the tube diameters listed above.  Larger radii bends are useful for building fenderwell headers (where available, use 4" and 6" radius bends to make the last turns into the collector as the two radii fit inside one another quite well and also look nice).  Longer legged U-Bends and/or J-Bends are used to eliminate/reduce the number of welds in a header and also speed up header construction.  Since all of these bends cost more, if you want us to SUBSTITUTE these bends for bends normally included in a header kit, we subtract the kit's cheapest U-Bend cost (see the Header Parts Price List) from the cost of the desired bend and charge for the DIFFERENCE MINUS A 20% KIT DISCOUNT.  Note that there is a 20% discount given on ALL EXTRA parts ordered WITH Header Kits.

Because we give a 20% Kit Discount on ALL extra parts ordered with Header Kits, it is also a very good time to order:  EXTRA BENDS (if you think you'll need more bends than those included in the Header Kit or if you just want extras on hand);  HEADER TUBE FLANGES and GASKETS (if the header is going to be designed so that it can come apart in one or more places);  FLANGES and GASKETS for building a balance tube in the exhaust system;  LARGE DIAMETER BENDS and STRAIGHT TUBING to build the rest of your exhaust system, etc.  It's also a good time to order EXTRA Header and Collector Flange Gaskets, Header Bolts, etc. - items which tend to get used up or lost.

   
TO ORDER A HEADER KIT, we need to know:

1. Engine year, cubic inches/liters, and make;
     
2. Header flange port SHAPE desired (select from the names in the Car Manufacturers Listing at the top of this page to see if there is a choice for your engine);
     
3. Tube and Collector Sizes desired;
     
4. If applicable, Exhaust Pipe Size;
     
5. Any EXTRAS desired (increase header flange thickness, if we are to FINISH off the flanges for you, extra bends, tube flanges to make the headers capable of being disassembled, etc.).
       

• Unless you have already figured out what the header will look like and can then make a realistic estimate of the bends needed, buy at least 1 1/2 U-Bends and/or J-Bends per cylinder.  In other words, 12-14 bends for a V8 engine, 10-12 bends for a 6 cylinder engine, and 7-8 bends for a 4 cylinder engine.
• There are three additional factors that tend to affect how many bends get used to make a header (quantities assume the construction of a V8 header):
  • How fussy are you?  Fussy people tend to redo things that they are not satisfied with.  Order 1-2 more bends if you consider yourself a fussy person.
  • If you intend to make the header a true Equal Length design, chances are you will use up more bends.  Order 1-2 more bends.
  • If the chassis is quite tight for clearances yet you intend to build a reasonably long header (at least 30" long) and also want the tube lengths to be fairly equal, chances are you will use more bends.  Order 1-2 more bends.
• Sometimes, when building headers it is almost impossible to estimate how many bends might be needed, and for some, it is just easier to buy the quantity of bends recommended earlier, build the more difficult header side first (usually the side that has the steering box or column), count the bends used up in the process, assume you will need as many bends to finish the other header and then place a second order for the extra bends needed.
• If you intend to build a header with tube lengths under 34" long, order about 15" of straight tubing per cylinder (10' for a V8).  Otherwise, on headers to be 34" or longer, order about 20-22" of straight tubing per cylinder (15' for a V8).
• To save time and eliminate some welds, use longer legged J-Bends (most of our U-Bends have straight legs of 6" length on each side, whereas most of our J-Bends have straight legs of 8-9" on one side and 15" on the other side).
• Sometimes is is MUCH easier to build a header if it is designed to come apart somewhere.  We offer die-stamped two bolt Header Tube Flanges for the purpose (usually the tube flanges are incorporated into a header tube somewhere and then the header flange is cut so that the upper part of the header tube can be removed from the main header body).
• Where engines have shared or siamesed exhaust ports (two cylinders exhaust into a common exhaust port) use two different tube diameters in the header with the tube for a shared exhaust port selected such that its internal cross-sectional area is as close to double that of a tube for an "un"shared exhaust port.  The idea of using two different but properly sized tubes is to keep the exhaust gas velocities in all of the header tubes as near equal as possible so that the scavenging effects created by the header are affecting each cylinder in the engine also as near equal!  (Note that on some engines you can not build the larger tube size directly off the shared exhaust port.  If so, start the tube with a smaller tube and progressively "step" the tube size every 2-3" in 1/8" larger tube size increments until you reach the selected proper tube size.  Try to keep the length of the proper tube size at least 70% of the entire tube length so that the proper exhaust gas velocity is attained in the majority of the shared tube.)  Obviously this means you must buy more bends of different diameters to build the "shared" header tubes but the performance gain is worth it.  We'll also help you figure out what bends you will need to work with your specific cylinder head (or block) - IF that help is needed.