FJowners.com

General Category => Maintenance => Topic started by: chiz on January 26, 2022, 04:08:49 PM

Title: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: chiz on January 26, 2022, 04:08:49 PM
Hi
I'm polishing these ss pipes from a later FJ and noticed the welds that are attaching the steel stubs that go into the head are lumpy and gross and take up quite a bit of area. Not like the clean small welds of the 84 pipe... has anyone encountered the same? and can the welds be ground down a bit? or is this asking for trouble?
Thanks Chiz
Title: Re: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: FJmonkey on January 26, 2022, 04:37:59 PM
A picture or two of the welds would help understand what you mean by lumpy and gross.
Title: Re: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: ribbert on January 27, 2022, 03:17:13 AM
Quote from: chiz on January 26, 2022, 04:08:49 PM
Hi
I'm polishing these ss pipes from a later FJ and noticed the welds that are attaching the steel stubs that go into the head are lumpy and gross and take up quite a bit of area. Not like the clean small welds of the 84 pipe... has anyone encountered the same? and can the welds be ground down a bit? or is this asking for trouble?
Thanks Chiz

Chiz, your mention of welding is puzzling, do your pipes look like the ones below? They are standard SS late model headers.

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51846383890_df3c03b0bf_c.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51846383005_8d4e25cfb1_c.jpg)

(https://live.staticflickr.com/7415/13102780604_ed4116d6db_c.jpg)

Noel
Title: Re: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: chiz on January 27, 2022, 08:04:05 AM
You can see the bulbous welds on inside od ss pipe
Title: Re: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: fj1289 on January 27, 2022, 11:25:39 AM
I wouldn't worry about that at all!  "Theoretically" it may be best if those are all smooth and tidy everything - but in the real world there will be absolutely no difference - measurable, perceivable, or otherwise! 

Polish them up - get them looking nice - and enjoy!
Title: Re: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: Pat Conlon on January 28, 2022, 07:13:15 PM
Tip: After they are polished up nice and shiny and after you reinstall them....wipe them down with lacquer thinner and a clean cloth....do it twice....that way when you heat those tubes up, you won't burn in any of your oily fingerprints.
The tubes start off shiny silver but then turn to a golden color after some heat cycles.

Hell yea, I ground down those nasty inner welds, just because I could....love my Dremel.

Cheers
Title: Re: Polishing SS exhaust pipes
Post by: chiz on January 29, 2022, 05:16:38 PM
Yes thanks been doing that all through this episode and plan to do what you suggest in the end as well... It's too bad that the pipes were not formed as carefully as I would have liked but they figured they were painting them black anyway.
Chiz