welding v-bands
 

Any trick to welding these on to avoid warpage and keep a good seal? Had my headers off for the hundredth time and figure I might as well get rid of the slip joints which are a PITA after the car has been sitting for a while.

Thanks,
Frank

Not sure if its a documented... trick. But I do opposing side tack welds. Then clamp them together fully while I do the full weld up.

Thanks. I figures one of you non-3rd grade welders (like myself) would chime in.

I'm only a first grade welder, but my buddy is pretty good. What I've seen him do is opposing tacks like splitime suggested. Then he'll weld a 1-2" bead on one side, then to the same on the opposite side, repeat. If something really needed to be perfect I've seen him divide it into quarters.

I mock it all up with the clamps clamped in place on the car and then tack weld in 2-3 places depending on access.

then I usually weld it in opposing 1-2 inch strips, flipping the pipe around in between welds.

are the vbands you have stepped for the pipes or just free sliding?

I just ordered them so I'll find out in a couple days.

I guess now is not the time to tell you I had some v-bands lying around?

I do this, plus wait for it to cool after 4 opposing stringers. Sixteen 1" stringers and 3 cooling periods total for one 3" v-band.

What size? I bought two sets of 2.5 for the header to mid-pipe connector. It then goes into a Y pipe where I'll have a 3 inch but I might use the 3 inch by the muffler and could do two more 2.5s prior to the Y. That would still make the mid pipes with Ys about 4 foot long.

How wrong would it be to just weld around the goddamn pipe and be done with it?

I prefer slip joints. stainless bandclamps FTW.

The problem with slipjoints is if the actual exhaust isn't stainless, they tend to bind and are a pita to unslip. That's why I'm going v-bands. Especially for the places you can't get a hammer to bang them off.

AHH right, I can see mild steel slip joints being a problem.

If I could do it over, I'd go SS and be done with it. But alas, I'm working with what I got. My exhaust fab wasn't bad, but I don't want to replace it all with SS now, especially since the car doesn't see rain or winter.

I think I have at least one each 2.5 and 3" and maybe a second 3". They're all stainless but that doesn't matter if you use 309L wire.

edit: and I still have your come-along

For the record, going vband will reduce the flexibility of your pipes. The slip pipes do allow for a few degrees of movement. How else would they be able to leak exhaust?

I'd rather have no joints where I'm putting them, but it would make removing the exhaust a bitch!