What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

just recieved my Hedman Tork Step headers..... kinda feel cheap

Silver84k5

Silver84k5

1/2 ton status
Joined
Feb 7, 2002
Posts
3,769
Reaction score
0
Location
Hillsboro Oregon
I was going to go with the Elites but i didnt want to wait 2 weeks and these were a lot cheaper.... The guy at summit claimed hes been running hedmans for 25+ years.... so i gave them a shot, but damn they feel real cheapp.. My JBA shorties that im running now are much heavier... the Flange on these looks like 5/16 the paint they put on there is flaking. I give the paint about a week before it looks like complete crap...

First Question is What can i paint these with so they look decent and are a little protected..

Second question... Who all is running these, and can i get some feedback? (im sure a lot of people run these headers)

Thx a lot.
 
you have to get all the paint off first then there are a couple places that make header paint. First one that comes to mind is eastwood paints.
If you paint over the old paint it will still flake off.
I'm still running manifolds, I have air and TBI setup and haven't sprung for the TES setup yet. So I'm not much help there.
 
What are you doing with your shorties? /forums/images/graemlins/dunno.gif
 
Most headers are only painted to keep them from rusting in the box...you won't get more than 15 minutes out of that paint before it's completely burned off.

I sprayed a set of Flo-Tech headers with VHT flame proof (1500 F) header paint and 3 years later they were still the same dull silver color. They had a little flaking near the collector and that was it.

Rene
 
With headers ya get what ya pay's for. Period.
Ya don't get Hooker quality at Hedman prices,
I run Hooker Super Comps. /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gif /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gif /forums/images/graemlins/peace.gif
 
yea i was thinking that same thing, but i figured i would atleast get a year or more out of them and when i get some more money (got some CC's to pay off for this motor) I can get some Thorleys or something...
 
I had hedmans but they didnt fit so I tryed to get them to take them back but the wouldnt so I said screw it at tryed hooker and those are much much better quality, the welds are better looking and the flange is so much thicker im glad i got the hooker. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
3 years later they were still the same dull silver color

[/ QUOTE ]

Wow, the VHT on mine lasted about 4 months. That's because it was 4 months from when I put the headers on until they started dropping road salt. Don't you have salt there?

I have been thinking of trying the POR-20 high heat paint.

BTW, I used locally available Dupli-Color (I think) header paint on one header and VHT on the other and there was little difference, except the VHT cost twice as much.
 
I ran a set of hedman headers on an old 1980 K20 I had. They were on the truck over at least two winter, maybe three, don't remember for sure. Eventually the truck became mudracing only and didn't get driven on the road They held up great. The original paint burned right off, but I never repainted them, they rusted over, and usually had a nice coat of clay burned on them. I had the headers for five or six years, and they were still in good shape when I sold the truck.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Don't you have salt there?

[/ QUOTE ]

Very little snow here during the winter...so very little salt used. We had snow on the ground here for about a week total last winter.

Rene
 
Yep...I have'm...
They're not bad..yah...there are a little cheap..
I had to grind a wrench...to tighten 2 bolts...
at cylinders..1 & 2... /forums/images/graemlins/whistling.gif
 
I just got the hedman headers that have the AIR hookup. Might want to check on those because they are much cheaper than the TES. But, like you said they have that gasketless collector and the flange is not the thickest around. The paint was gone after a few hours of driving. They mention that the paint is only for shipping purposes. If you care what they look like may wantto go for stainless or ceramic instead of black.
 
[ QUOTE ]
son of a..... thats one of the reasons i got away from the JBA's...... Hows the spark plug access?

[/ QUOTE ]

#5 plug is a bitch with my heddman's. burnt a couple boots because it was so close to the plug. Other plugs are fine. had to put on those boot sleeve's and no more melted boots now.

Clay
 
I have the Dynomax jet hot coated headers and my only complaint is that number 6 is a pain in the ass to get to.

Other than that, they're great headers.
 
My elites fit perfectly, plug and bolt access is easy, and the exhaust flange is thick, as are the tubes.

Your kind of asking for problems when you can't wait for something you know is better.
 
Find where I said that.

And as an edit, I guess "perfectly" was an oversight on my part. They DIDN'T fit perfectly, at least I thought so. They didn't clear the shackles to my satisfaction (they didn't hit but not enough clearance for tolerance IMO) but they bolted up without me bending them at all. I just wanted to ensure there was no interference there with engine/frame/suspension movement, which is why I did put some effort into relocating them further away from the shackle. Which entailed me wedging and prying on a 2x4 between the frame and header while the engine was running.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom