Long story short. My exhast manifold was broken. We welded it. The pieces fit together perfectly, there was no material missing. I went to install it last night, and it's about a 1/4 of an inch too short. It lines up with all the holes except the part where it was broken. You can see about half the hole in the block through the hole in the manifold. This leaves me with 3 options. 1. Make the holes in the manifold bigger. 2. Get a new manifold (local junkyard $80, ouch!!!) 3. Somebody has got to make headers for a decent price. What do you all think? $80 seems kind of steep for a manifold. I am at a loss as to why it is too short in the first place if the pieces fit back together so perfectly... Will drilling make it weaker since it's already obviously brittle? Please help
Unless, you are a really good welder, it is likely to just break again from all the heat and repeated stress. I say go for the new one, especially if they already saved you the hassle of getting it off the donor car and you can also check it out closely. Be nice and offer them $50 and see what they say. If not, just fix what you need to fix to get it to fit and hope for the best. You might get lucky, but no big loss at this point if not.
where was it broken? was it between the port and the mount? or in the manifold it's self? if it was in the manifold, the shrinkage from welding may have pulled the port out of alignment also. 80 bucks does not sound too bad to me to know that it is right.
52 Plymouth 218. The manifold itself broke. It has 4 ports near the middle and one on each end. The one on the end closest to the firewall broke completely off. I had to cut a hole in the firewall in order to get the bottom bolt out...I don't know if another stock manifold will fit, because I was told by a guy that was a machinist/welder that they shrink and expand and who knows what else. That's why I'm considering headers. They would be new, therefore, it is more than likely there would be nothing wonky happening. This other stuff has been kicking around since the Eisenhower administration. I would hate to spend 80 bucks on a new manifold and have it not fit, it's not like I can take it back. My man swears up and down that the new one will be okay and that the welds will hold, but I'm skeptical as hell. Besides, he's not the one who has to take it all apart again if it breaks! I waited for several months to get the stove fixed so we could heat it up to weld it. I really just want the car on the road. Do you all think a stock manifold from a donor will fit on my block?
Might not be too tough to make a simple header. Here's where you can start if you decide to take that route: http://www.hotrodchassisandcycle.com/parts_cars.php
Yes, a stock donor should fit. I'll have a spare as soon as my split manifold arrives. It's yours if I can get it off in 1 piece (you'll just have to pay for shipping). Now, let's see some pictures of that beast! Gary
YOU F-ING ROCK!!! I've been dealing with this crap for about 4 months now...Like I said, really long story. Let me know when and if you're ready to send it my way...I'm starting to feel better! If you could kindly remind me of that "safe" place I stashed my carb which seems to have slipped my mind, I should be on the road sooner than later. As for photos, I think there are some in my album. Not much to look at. In fact it's pretty much the same except for a few spots where I've sprayed paint to test color combos. As soon as I get her on the road, I'll put up some pics of the first cruise. Thanks again, if I could give you a massive, smothering, breath-crushing hug, I would!
Dont Know if a stock manifold off a 251 desoto/chrysler is the same. If memory serves me correctly i think they are. I have two and one has your name one it! Its complete and think i have an extra Carter fuel filter to go with it too. You pay shipping from Denver it yours. Pm me.
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