Does anyone put them on anymore? When I was a kid I used to have them put on everything I owned. V-8, 6 cylinder. If I drove it and it ran it got a pair of dumps or at least one lake pipe with a cap. Everytime I go to a car show these days and see a car with lake pipes of any kind I always get on my knees to see if they are hooked up to the exhaust or are just for looks. Unfortunately it saddens me to see that almost 100% are phoney and just for looks. Recently at the Pomona Winternationals car show not one of the cars on display had functional lake piples. Pretty lame if you ask me.
I put them on everything I build. My 56 will have the more modern 3 bolt type. I'm actually trying to get the pipes done this week. It's a bitch to not have a bender anymore.
a freinds got a roadster hes had forever, he spent good money on custom stainless headers with dumps and full exaust out the back. When he picked it up he told the guy how good of a job he did, took the caps off and they haven't been back on since. That was at least 10 years ago.
In the old days they were just stabbed into the side of the header pipes at a 90* angle. Not very efficient. I do mine a little differently by making it a smooth bend to the cut out for when it is open (which is often) then the pipe to the muffler is stabbed into it. Who cares? it's going through a muffler any way. Not a big deal but it's my way of doing it.
Absolutely, and always - with one exception. My rule of thumb - if it has mufflers, it's got dumps somewhere. If it's running straight pipes - cut outs or dumps etc are irrelevant. Haven't run lakers for a while, but would never run 'em without hooking them into the undercar exhaust, or using them as the only exhaust.
I wish I knew more. I spotted them on Ebay and had to have them. They screw onto a 3/8-18 thread that I welded inside the pipe. I had to make a special socket to tighten them without scarring the aluminum caps. They did come with the gaskets. I've never seen any others like them.
Tommy - I couldn't make out the wording, but if I am not mistaken they say Exhaust Spec.? If so these were made by Exhaust Specialties out of Portland Oregon. Not sure when they started making them (my guess the 60's) but the guy I have do my exhaust had a pair up into the 80's - had I thought I would have bought them, but would have used 'em anyhow. Exhaust specialties did some neat stuff, such as Johnson Wheels back in the 60's. They started in Portland, and had a shop in Seattle later, and that I know they're long gone now. Maybe Dennis from O'Brien Truckers would repop them? (he's a Hamb'r) I would be down for a couple of sets - they'd be cool on a gasser or just about anything. I have a cherry set of 15" Johnson Wheels - date coded 1963 - that I bought NOS in the boxes (still have the boxes too) from Salem Speed Shop about 16 years ago and the advertising flyer for 'em. Exhaust Specialties used the foundry that cast some of the early American Wheels and the Riviera Mags (VW) etc in Portland. Sorry to bug ya with all the history, but now you know a little more about those caps - that is IF that's what they say!!
Yes that is what they say. I've never seen them on the east coast. I started doing exhaust in the late 70s.
Very cool - definitely a Pacific Northwest thing. Would love to find a set eventually. Oh Dennis.......
I have cut-outs on an OT Merc. It's a 68 Comet (looks like a Fairlane/Montego). It's a no option big block 4 speed. Not even a radio!! Sitting in a parking lot, it looks like your grandmothers car. It sounds all mean and nasty when it's running. Truthfully, it's kinda like a playground bully. It makes a lot of noise but isn't all that bad. It's a big heavy car at about 3400 lbs. Taking that into consideration, it runs good...
Actually used the lake pipes on my '52 Chevy. Ran a 350 thru those with no mufflers. It sounded good.
By the testament of my neighbors I don't cap my lakes pipes often enough! I think there's still mufflers under there though.
Alex, I had cut-outs welded on my first car and several cars since. Back in the 60's I would open my cut-outs whenever I headed out on a road trip. I can even remember seeing signs at the city limits of small country towns stating "closed muffler zone." I used plumbing pipe caps on my '59 Galaxie and at first on my '63 Galaxie. Then I went big time on the '63 and stepped up to 4-bolt block off caps that dumped out of the cast iron headers. Cut-out caps with pipes off the side of them styled after the max wedge Mopar set ups looked cool under my other cars later on. You can see the cut-outs hanging down under my '59 Galaxie. And there are Traction-Master bars under the rear springs.
Travis, I was first exposed to the plumbing caps style on a friend of my older brother's 56 Chevy with some kind of a hopped up small block with 4 dueces. I distinctly remember him sliding under it with a pipe wrench to open them up after a tune up session. What a sound when he got behind the wheel and cranked it up. I was the most in awe 9 year old in Chicago that day.
Here's the pipes on my 3-window. They come off the headers with the muffled pipes off of these. The caps have the winged V-8 milled into them. Mick
We used to weld a piece of bar stock on to the top of the plumbing caps and loosen and tighten them with a hammer.
I'm running lake headers with caps and full exhaust all the way back. I usually run them open, pulled up in traffic next to cops. they don't even glance at me. I've driven from Salem Oregon to Long Beach Washington with the headers open. I keep the plugs in the back "just in case". Most of the time it's open pipes and ear plugs.
I've had the coupe done for almost a year, When the weather permits it's my DD. Open pipes, my wife has put an end to that once it's nice out she is going to the muffler shop.
I was a steamfitter in the early 60s. the hot lick was to weld on a pipe nipple and special order a brass screw cap. Cast iron caps would rust and seize up. The brass caps were always easier to remove on the side of the road preping for the street race. Back then you could not get away with open pipes on the street. Today it's done all the time.
are you talking about the ones with Xbars made into them,then there was the ones with bolt head made into them,i thought those after i posted.
No I was just talking about a normal screw cap that was just cast out of brass instead of cast iron. You won't find one in a hardware store. They were made for industrial piping but you could order them. The cast iron caps would freeze up and you'd need heat to get them off.
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