Register now to get rid of these ads!

When was header wrap invented???

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by hotrod-kenny, Jun 4, 2009.

  1. hotrod-kenny
    Joined: Oct 16, 2007
    Posts: 270

    hotrod-kenny

    When did header wrap become available? I have seen a few hot rods and 30-40s style race cars with headers/pipes wrapped with a tan bandage. was this done back in the day? perriod correct for 40s race car?

    anyone have old pics?

    I actually like the look if its a car/ motorcycle with a race look to it...
     
    Last edited: Jun 4, 2009
    Stogy likes this.
  2. captainjunk#2
    Joined: Mar 13, 2008
    Posts: 4,420

    captainjunk#2
    Member

    i wonder if maybe it was made for another purpose originally we use a product that looks suspiciously like it to wrap flexable steam lines in the steam power plants and ive often thought of wrapping my harley exhaust with it
     
    Stogy likes this.
  3. dana barlow
    Joined: May 30, 2006
    Posts: 5,115

    dana barlow
    Member
    from Miami Fla.
    1. Y-blocks

    Right after the guy bruned hell out of him self.:eek:

    May have burned up his thinking too,that is ugly crap if out in the open.
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2021
    Stogy, Deuces, doug j and 1 other person like this.
  4. I don't know how correct it is, but I love it - at least until I build my own pipes.

    [​IMG]
     
    Stogy and Deuces like this.

  5. DocWatson
    Joined: Mar 24, 2006
    Posts: 10,273

    DocWatson
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    It has been around LOOOOOOOOONG before cars were invented, like Captainjunk said it was used as an insulation on steam and hot water pipes in buildings and ships.
     
    Stogy, dana barlow and Deuces like this.
  6. Although the concept has been around for ever, I can't say I remember seeing it used much until the late 80's
     
    Stogy likes this.
  7. oilslinger53
    Joined: Apr 17, 2007
    Posts: 2,500

    oilslinger53
    Member
    from covina CA

    since the advent of steam powered machinery
     
    Stogy likes this.
  8. DocWatson
    Joined: Mar 24, 2006
    Posts: 10,273

    DocWatson
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    It was used on aircraft quite a lot in the early teens through to the 30s
     
    Stogy likes this.
  9. that is fuckin beautiful.. love that the finish on the exhaust wrap is toatlly a color scheme transition between the air cleaner and the body.. nicely done!! leave it i say
     
  10. I once had a 1935 Packard that still had the factory asbestos wrap on the exhaust system.
     
    Stogy and Deuces like this.
  11. Pitbullgoingpostal
    Joined: Jan 2, 2009
    Posts: 450

    Pitbullgoingpostal
    Member

    Keep in mind that it is just that, AN INSULATOR! It doesn't let the pipes dissipate heat as well. There is a huge underground movement to dispell the use of it. Not sure why(?). It does exactly what it is supposed to do. It lowers the engine compartment temperature. It does cause premature header failure from moisture and rust forming underneath the wrap. Most of "our" cars don't run hoods or have plenty of air movement around them, such as the beautiful T above.

    My original statements are of off topic from the original question, but it has been used and debated about since asbestos cloth was used in the late 1800s to wrap steam pipes...
     
    Stogy likes this.
  12. perfect statement my friend.. and i, too, enjoy alcholism without suffering :D and it is a beautiful T isn't it? the owner should be proud
     
  13. but then again you also have to keep in mind thermal efficiency.. whether it's running a hood or not any time you can cool things down in the engine compartment will net you at least a little bit of an edge.. if the headers get super hot then those are bolted to the head, which will make the oil and the coolant hotter.. and also confined as part of the head is the combustion chamber which suffers greatly from over heating.. any time you can keep the intake temperatures down is good ol' horsepower (I was taught 10 degrees= approximatley 1 horse-power as a rough measurement from my high school science teacher that was a total gear-head.) All in all it was probably more of a catch on because form always follows function... what worked for the racers was duplicated on the street rods of yore..
     
  14. hotrod-kenny
    Joined: Oct 16, 2007
    Posts: 270

    hotrod-kenny

    Good info and thoughts guys!

    The reason i mentioned racing, is I have seen pics of old dirt track cars ( from 30-40s i think) with exhaust pipes along the side of the car, wich were wrapped, probably as an insulation to avoid flesh burns?

    But i cant find the pics.....

    I think I might use wrap on my modified.....But not asbestos:D
     
    Stogy likes this.
  15. skajaquada
    Joined: Sep 14, 2004
    Posts: 1,642

    skajaquada
    Member
    from SLC Utard

    pitbull and knuckle...you guys are missing something big with your thermal efficiency talk. the fact that it's an insulator is a good thing but not for reasons you are stating. it actually creates a less severe thermal barrier on the escaping exhaust gasses through heat retention. in laymans terms, that means boom goes out better. on a properly tuned engine with headers you will notice increased throttle response and many times have to richen the fuel mixture slightly due to the increased exhaust velocity.
     
    Stogy likes this.
  16. I believe header wrap came from the same corner of area 51 that spawned - wait for it - DRYER SHEETS!
     
    Stogy and Deuces like this.
  17. todd_a
    Joined: Apr 18, 2009
    Posts: 397

    todd_a
    Member
    from Tyler, TX

    I've heard it is bad for the header pipes themselves, not necessarily because of the moisture issue, but because of the heat that was "trapped" in and not allowed to dissapate. But my assumption was that the header was partly used to pump that heat out and wrapping them would just force them to pump more heat out the end of the exhaust.

    I do know they are beneficial in a turbocharged application if the turbo(s) are not located extremely close to the heads because you want to keep the heat in as that keeps the exhaust gasses expanded taking up more room in the pipe and turbine which will cause the turbine to spin up quicker because of the extra volume of "stuff" flowing through there then heated as opposed to less volume of stuff at the same engien RPM when cooler.

    So, I guess from that you could argue a small loss of power due to keeping the exhaust gasses hotter and expanded, effectively reducing the volume available to move gasses out inside the pipes with the header wrap on there. it is probably very minimal with a free flowing type of exhaust, but may be more noticible on a restrictive exhaust.
     
    Stogy likes this.
  18. todd_a
    Joined: Apr 18, 2009
    Posts: 397

    todd_a
    Member
    from Tyler, TX


    So you are saying that keeping the heat in causes the exhaust gasses to move through the exhaust system faster?
     
    Stogy likes this.
  19. skajaquada
    Joined: Sep 14, 2004
    Posts: 1,642

    skajaquada
    Member
    from SLC Utard

    that's exactly what i'm saying. less thermal barrier causes the gasses to exit faster. cooler air is more dense than hot air thus more of a barrier to the escaping hot gasses.
     
    Stogy likes this.
  20. VA HAMB
    Joined: Jun 14, 2006
    Posts: 1,377

    VA HAMB
    Member

    I think it should stay on steam ships!
     
    Stogy likes this.
  21. dana barlow
    Joined: May 30, 2006
    Posts: 5,115

    dana barlow
    Member
    from Miami Fla.
    1. Y-blocks

    So all gas takes up more space when hot,and some how ya think keeping it hot makes it go out tubes EZer. You need to think more about that:eek:
     
    Stogy likes this.
  22. Truckedup
    Joined: Jul 25, 2006
    Posts: 4,661

    Truckedup
    Member

    You guys who like Smokey Yunick;he spoke about header wrap and increase in power from hotter exhaust gases.
     
    Driver50x and Stogy like this.
  23. sailingengineer
    Joined: May 17, 2007
    Posts: 14

    sailingengineer
    Member
    from CT

    When gases are hotter they are less dense than when cold. So it would be easier to move when hot.
     
    Stogy likes this.
  24. AnimalAin
    Joined: Jul 20, 2002
    Posts: 3,416

    AnimalAin
    Member

    Thermal barrier coating (Jet-Hot, etc.) has most of the same benefits as wrapping, without most of the downsides. If you want it as a fashion statement, that's something different.
     
    Stogy likes this.
  25. uglydog56
    Joined: Apr 8, 2008
    Posts: 331

    uglydog56
    Member

    Cooler gases = less density = less volumetric flow rate = less backpressure. That's why your car will make more power with the muffler further back. The gases have more time to cool before they get there.

    There are many benefits to removing heat underhood. I wouldn't wrap my exhaust all the way to the rear bumper, though.
     
  26. Little Wing
    Joined: Nov 25, 2005
    Posts: 7,505

    Little Wing
    Member
    from Northeast

    Been used in plumbing and steam pipes forever,,old huge boilers were wrapped in it
     
  27. gas pumper
    Joined: Aug 13, 2007
    Posts: 2,957

    gas pumper
    Member

    There's some pictures on old race car threads where the exhaust is wrapped as it passes the driver/mechanic area.

    This looks like what I've seen as asbestos blanket wrap. Not the tape wrap.

    I did buy a turbo wrap kit one time and it had a woven blanket in there to enclose the turbo.

    I do think the banket material is more suited to old time than the newer tape wrap is.
     
  28. fur biscuit
    Joined: Jul 22, 2005
    Posts: 7,828

    fur biscuit
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

  29. zman
    Joined: Apr 2, 2001
    Posts: 16,730

    zman
    Member
    from Garner, NC

    Fact... it increases the velocity of the gases through the exhaust...

    But I wouldn't run it on anything but a race bike or race car. Silly on the street and the exhaust/headers. Ceramic coating on the inside and outside of the pipes is the ticket.
     
  30. 5window
    Joined: Jan 29, 2005
    Posts: 9,516

    5window
    Member

    I really like the T, don't personally like the header wrap. Kind of reminds me of electrical tape on a baseball bat. I like the Jet Hot product and run it on the exposed exhaust pipes of my hood-sideless A coupe.

    However, if it's your car and you like it, run what you want.
     

Share This Page

Register now to get rid of these ads!

Archive

Copyright © 1995-2021 The Jalopy Journal: Steal our stuff, we'll kick your teeth in. Terms of Service. Privacy Policy.

Atomic Industry
Forum software by XenForo™ ©2010-2014 XenForo Ltd.