33 Coupe Engine Install 21        10/11/03

Exhaust Time!

It's time to get some headers bolted up so I thought I would check out some companies that make them but the way I wanted them to go through my chassis would take a special set, and no body makes them exactly the way I want them. So I decided to make my own. The first thing I needed to do was match the adapter plates to the heads.
 

 

 

By bolting up the adapter plates to the head, then the gasket to the adapter plates, I was going to make an outline of the gasket on the adapter plates and then machine out the excess material.
 

 

 

Here you can see the amount of material that needs to come out of the adapter plates. By using these adapter plates, you can use large tube headers on an engine that's not designed for them. I'll show you want I mean as we go.
 

 

 

Here are the adapter plates ready to be machined. Notice how many holes that they have. I talked about them in the "engine" section but let's review how they work and what there for. Everyone of them have two countersunk holes right next to the exhaust opening. These are used to hold the plates to the heads. The reason they're countersunk is because the header flange will bolt up this surface so they can sit flat. The other holes are used for bolting the header flange to the adapter plates and have steel threaded inserts in them. The reason for the steel inserts is because headers installed and removed quite often. This way the threads don't get worn out.  You still with me so far? Good!!
 

 

1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26
27  28  29  30  31  32  33  34  35  36  37  38  39  40