Hey guys, well i'm about to start attempting my first turbo manifold. I just had a couple of ?'s for you guys that have been doing this for a good minute. Since I havent done one before and am actually just starting to get into fabrication, not to mention I have about 4 weeks of welding experience total, I don't want to spend the $$ on a bunch of stainless that I could potentially ruin and not to mention not know what I need. I do have access to a good amount of fab tools. I would like to make one out of mild steel so that I at least have an idea of what I would need to order pipe wise. Is there any problems that anyone sees with this? Before I get hammered I KNOW that this will not be a permanent manifold and will not stay on my project so please don't worry. I guess my main ?'s is what size tubing should I use? What O.D. and wall thickness? Any help you guys could give would definately be appreciated. Also, i'm not making this or these for "customers" so don't worry about me stealing your customers! haha.

 

Forgot to mention this will be for a B16 Honda.....whoops

 

Try searching.

 

Practice is always good, newb or not. Whatever you plan on building the manifold out of in stainless, get the equivalent in mild. It's a good idea. As mentioned, there are a few hundred manifold threads in here. Take the time to read through a bunch of them. You need it anyway.
Nobody in here is worried about losing business. We work together and share stuff for the benefit of all involved. Post the welds on the mild steel one and we'll all be happy to critique it for you so you can do better on the next one.

 

Well I got part of it started. I'm trying to build this 100% from scratch so i'll update this as i'm able to work on it. I'd like to see if I am good enough to create every piece myself. Even though I know the cost of some of these things i'm going to be fabbing arent that expensive and would save me boatloads of time, but hey i'm stubborn and like doing things the long and hard way sometimes. The flanges won't be as beautiful as some of the ones that i've seen on here but hey i'm doing all this with a Oxy torch, and various hand grinders/ files. I started on the manifold flange today. I simply took a new exhaust gasket traced it onto 3/8" flat stock and started cutting out a rough shape with the oxy. From there I used the sawzall to cut some V's and then it was cut-off wheels and closed coat grinders from there. Here is my rough out stage of it. I'd like to finish the sides a bit better which will come. I'm going to post a couple of pics so you guys can see my direction and give me some constructive critisism, please be gentle though, like I stated i'm a rookie.

p.s.- on a side note i've decided to actually ditch the stainless completely for this first build and later on down the road I can simply build another one when I know what to expect. I have chosen 1 3/4" x .120 DOM for my tubing. After talking to a guy local who does ALOT of custom manifold work i'm thinking it will work just fine, assisting with heat retention and also strength. I'm honestly not worried about the weight. Anymore input on this just lay it on me.

 

you're NUTS doing the flange by hand!

 

awesome.

 

hahahah! I knew at least one person would tell me that. But honestly I don't mind the grinding and finishing work. I just have to hope I don't shoot it all to hell when I try to drill/ mill out my ports and mounting holes.

 

i would have sawzalled that and then cleaned it up with carbides and a belt sander. i hate cleaning up torch mess.


mike

 

Draw it up and get it laser cut.. wont be much as long as its drawn

 

Hey guys, just wanted to update you on my newbie progress. I got my manifold flange "rough out" complete also my runners and mounting holes milled out. I know it's not the most BEAUTIFUL flange but it fits PERFECTLY and the runner openings are matched PERFECTLY also. In the picture I have the gasket installed underneath so you can tell the runner fit up is nice also. Hopefully tomorrow I will try to get a jig setup to hold the turbo where I would like it and then i'll start working on my 4-1 collector. I'll keep you guys updated in case anyone has some good tips for me. And please no nay-sayers! I am going to make every peice of this. I understand that they are easily and cheaply available for alot of the flanges and peices that i'm going to try and fabricate, but hey i'm saving a few bucks and getting very good fab skill practice. Thanks guys!

 

NIce, I wish I had tha skills just to do what you did. I am good with wood and fiberglass, But no metal!

 

Nice! The very first manifold I made I did everything by hand!. No milling machines. A die grinder, some carbide burrs, 5" grinder and a drill press and I had my flanges!

Good luck on your project.

 

keep at it! :thumbsup: for doing it yourself!

 

I am going to subscribe to this. I really want to see the outcome.

 

You should definitely do this to acquire new skills. Here is an example of something I did like 5 years ago using all hand tools. The only thing I bought were the mild steel weld-els. This was for a LS using a Toyota CT-26 turbo.

 

Next time you make a flange like that. You should put it in the mill first. Drill your holes and mill the ports before hand.

 

Before i do which part? Keep in mind i just started with a 12"x16"x3/8" piece of flat stock.

Thanks for all the kudos guys! Honestly a bit suprised there are at least a few people saying that they could have done alot better or that something about it sucks. I think i should have stopped by these forums over the main ones ALOT sooner. Seems like alot less flamers over here. Ill keep you guys updated!

 

i will applaud anyone who wants to build something themselves instead of buying or paying someone else to do it... even when it is something as simple as a flange.

 

I still have to make the turbo flange and 4 wastegate flanges. But I think next (tonight) i'm starting on my jig to hold my turbo in place and HOPEFULLY the collector

 

Before you cut the outline of the flange. I would never put it in a vise like that after you cut it with a torch and grinded it down to size. Since you grinded/filed the part to size its not the same size all the way down. So when you clamp the vise down on the part your vise is actually tightening more on one side than the other. Not to mention hanging almost half of the flange off the vise.

Personally I would lay out the flange. Put it in the mill with the material sitting pretty evenly. Meaning you have the about the same amount of hang over out of the vise on each side. Than you can drill the holes and mill out the pockets. Lastly, cut your outline of the flange. Keep up the good work

 

Thanks for the advice man, trust me I definately figured out that I should have done the mill work prior to the grinding/ cutting. But.....lesson learned. Also, next time I will NOT use an Oxy for my cuts (too much HAZ to grind through). Lastly I just want to point out for my own personal saving that the flange was not milled on every hole in the position it is in in the picture. I used a set of parallels to raise the flange up and readjusted it so as to not get chatter or a "push" on the flange while I was milling. All of the millwork was done over or very close to the vise.

 

Only got a little done today just got to "jig" the turbo where I ideally would like it to sit (will bring it up farther if possible)

Also: If someone can PLEASE tell me....This is a divided housing turbo (BW S360sx) but to my knowledge is not a true twin scroll. Should I still run my tubing as 1+2 and 3+4 or does this still need to be paired as 1+4 and 2+3?? I keep hearing conflicting arguements on it. Plleeaasseeee help so I can start tacking some tubing soon

 

nice work man, to another fellow DIYer

my input: Some shops consider it bad practice to mill on parallels. I was taught this way, but after workin in industry for a few years I have heard mixed opinions on this.
if your not concerned about the parallels though (or have a set just for milling) then thats good.
also, not sure if you milled the ports by hand or with a quick cnc program.
when i do them i use a cnc program, and after the ports are done i pop a slightly larger diameter cutter in, and without changing the program except for depth, i run the paths again creating a nice counter bore that you can sit your pipes in and weld inside for a super smooth finish with minimal cleanup.

 

Bad practice to mill on parallels? Thats a first time I heard of that.