Here are some pics of my new 3" exhaust pipe/muffler. Please disregard the crappy welds...

Pic from side:


Clearance under gas tank:


the whole system sans heat shield:


From the backside:


Under the car"


I know some folks don't like the under tank setup and all that, but I wanted to have a 3" ID straight system with very few bends. I used ovalized pipe from http://www.drgas.com to reduce clearance losses under the tank while maintaining some distance. There is a heat shield that is held about 1/4" away from the pipe and another 1/4-3/4" away from the tank. The system is mounted with dr.gas short rubber mounts and has very little lateral flex, but allows the system to move along with the engine during accel/decel.


Modified by ZhaGg at 1:47 AM 4/25/2005

 

looks good...

 

i like it

 

i like it, going to oval was a good idea. it looks like you just have one low spot b4 the rear wheel, which should be fine. you could always wrap the part under the tank if it got too hot.

got any motor pics?

 

yeah, I have some engine pics, but I'm using an SSauto manifold and don't want the usual H-T "OMG you have THAT sh!tty manifold" treatment...

 

Let's see your welds.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ZhaGg &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">yeah, I have some engine pics, but I'm using an SSauto manifold and don't want the usual H-T "OMG you have THAT sh!tty manifold" treatment... </TD></TR></TABLE>

haha who cares... it works right?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by parasonic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Let's see your welds.</TD></TR></TABLE>

They are crappy... I'll see if I can find a pic for you. Maybe you can give me some pointers...

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by speeddave &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

haha who cares... it works right?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah... but you know... I'll post something regardless of the flak...

 

Definitely nice man....I just probably would've tucked it a bit closer to the bumper. Nice work though

 

Yeah, I intended it to be a bit closer, but I must have moved the last joint when I welded it or something...

I found some pics of the build so far just in case you're interested. I'll find some weld pics too.







Tack-welded DP. Had an issue with one of the sections. Cleaned it up a little before final welding. The DP expands from 2.5" to 3" and has an initial tight radius bend in order to clear future A/C compressor...

 

for making a nice exhaust and using a cat.

 

it looks good! something to think about... you should run a brace from the block to the turbo manifold(t3) flange... let that take the weight

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by speeddave &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">it looks good! something to think about... you should run a brace from the block to the turbo manifold(t3) flange... let that take the weight</TD></TR></TABLE>

I've got some bracing set up in the final installation. Its a little different than most I've seen though... It actually is mounted in the power steering location and consists of a length of 1" angle iron with a 1/2" * 1/8" steel piece welded onto it. It connects to one of the bolts on the turbine housing and bolts into the power steering bolt holes. The brace is able to support the full weight of the turbo/DP combo without the exhaust studs in place. I'll go take some pics this weekend. Meanwhile, here's a pic of one of the welds in the system. It has been mildly filed and painted (to hide the true crappiness...) It was done with a Hobart Handler 140 with flux core wire...

 

looks ok dude.

 

Rocking the SSAC, nice.

 

**** the ssauto haterz. You **** look good. He's probably pissed off for paying too much for a shitty log mani. If it works then rock that ****.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by egizzle8 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">**** the ssauto haterz. You **** look good. He's probably pissed off for paying too much for a shitty log mani. If it works then rock that ****.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Well, thanks for getting my back. I bought the mani before my H-T membership and didn't read reviews. After researching, I may have been scared off, but I am not going to back down from using it... If it breaks, I'll let you know. I just hope this doesn't turn into yet another SSauto thread. That's why I was reluctant to post a pic...

BTW, thanks for checking out my exhaust. Honestly, I was expecting a bit more negative feedback since this is one of my first fab projects and its not necessarily the most conventional Honda set-up. Thanks again for all the feedback!

 

I really like the oval idea, it seems to have worked well in this app. How does it sound, I am curious to know if the tone or note changed with going round to oval?

 

It sounds good. I haven't run it under any real load (still no I/C pipes, and no radi...) Its pretty loud, but it is very low, probably because of the turbo... Maybe I can get a sound clip... Anyway, I don't think the ovalized pipe really changes the sound too much, thought the "heat shield" I installed has some resonance issues at certain RPMs... I was able to make some bends in the sheet meta to prevent the vibrations.

According to Dr.Gas, they use this tye of pipe on a lot of NASCAR applications and other High HP apps to clear frame rails etc. on muscle cars. I took it a step further and inserted a length of ovalized 1.5" tall pipe into the frame clearance tube. It is approx 24" under the tank and the ovalized section is simply welded to the ends of the clearance tube.
I wanted to initiate a bend as soon as possible in order to reduce the muffler angle. Even with the angle as shallow as I could make it (without additional bends) the muffler angle still seems a little bit extreme to me. What do you guys think? Is it pointed to the side too much? I feel like its such a fu-fu set-up since its all cocked to the side like all the kids around here try to make their mufflers... I swear its all configured for function over form...

 

the part in yellow looks alright
the part in blue i would have knocked down with a grinder and rewelded
and the part in red looks like you werent welding it at an angle, you could have also ran a little more heat or slowed your wirefeed down a little.
otherwise it looks pretty good for your first time. maybe some more experienced welders and engloid can give you some more pointers dont let people on HT bust your *****. the best welders in the world had to start somewhere, and i would bet money that their welding skills have gotten better with time. yours will too.

 

Thanks for the input. I had a hard time being cosnistent while trying to folow the tube as I welded. This particular example has very poor fit-up and was a bit tough for me. I also don't have room for a workbench, so all my welds are done on the floor... Its sorta hard to get a good position and follow through while kneeling over the workpiece.

Any of you guys have pointers on how to maintain the correct angle while following the pipe joint?

 

you just have to rotate the pipe, and keep an eye on your positioning. you will get it


Modified by lohatch at 1:49 PM 4/26/2005

 

looks sweet a few things...get rid of that deltagate also you can grind down the welds and use JBweld to smooth over it and make it look like one piece

 

nice work there mate.....teh welds will improve with time, but damn, you have the general idea.....it can only get better.

 

I think that is badass for making your own.