History When did aftermarket headers appear?

Perhaps it's a coincidence but I like the picture so much, because you see the remnants of your project in the reflection of your car.

 

it is a 33 chevy and i am not a fan of ford suspensions, always seemed like half a suspension to me.

that is a 2 bottom plow and a small single bottom plow in the reflection. i "restored" all of the parts of this car, there really weren't any leftovers.

 

here is the build thread.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/33-chevy-3w-time-for-a-cool-change.863287/

 

the work was done by my dad and uncle back in the late '50's. been on/with the car since.

 

Was attempting to add pic to my post #26, Belond midget headers, still learning Mobil app

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Post #26, still thinking on how to reply to specific post

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Those are some old Fentons in my avatar on a sbc

 

I've seen the Fentons are still availible. But ist seems to be a bit difficult with clearence. Or not?

 

My steering linkage will be a little more complicated. These are on a 32 3 window that i plan to have open hood sides. In a regular car with hood open you see the top of the motor, in my 32 Ford you will see the side of the motor because I will have the top of the hood on but open sides. With the Fentons it makes mine a little different from the many many sbc 32 Fords so it was worth it to me to have a more complicated steering linkage. The exhaust is more complicated also but the previous owner did that already.
Haben sie guten tag
Greg

 

The V8 Fenton headers won't clear any installation using '58 up side mounts.

 

Thanks Chief 64. That was what I expected. I think I will look for some non-cast headers. I don't want to change to much at the steering linkage. But you are right: It looks very extraordinary.

 

When I first saw the title of this thread, this car came to my mind. Nice to see it again. Bill

 

I would suggest buying some mid '50's Hot Rod Magazines; from the end of 1954 through 1956 you will find articles on the first soupings-up of Chevy engines and several of the first engine swaps replacing a flathead with a Chevy... right beside the ads as the first equipment comes out.
Also, look into hunting down a few speed equipment catalogs like Honest Charley and Ansen from the years that interest you.
Belond was making tube headers long before the SBC came out, and must have made Chevy ones when they were needed...
Iron Fentons existed, but I think were already seen as an obsolete idea...I think practically no one used them.
Remember also to look into Corvette restoration catalogs...Corvette parts were Chevy's own speed equipment suppliers, and were VERY commonly used. The typical "Ram's Horn" manifolds from Chevy and Corvette applications were considered a pretty good cheap substitute for headers.

 

Thanks, Bruce. That's a good advice. I found some Hot Rod Mags on Ebay and will buy them for some research.

That's also on my plan to build the car "correct". I also will use at first "Ram's Horn manifolds" if I will not found a tube header before.

 

Hello,

We built a 40 Willys coupe for the street and drags in early 1960. The 283 SBC fit easily into the engine bay. The Hedman Headers also fit neatly and cleared all components. They went back under the car and not out of the side. We had a local muffler shop add the legal extensions of tube mufflers and downward tips to stay legal for the street and the drag strip rules. The extensions bolted onto the ends of the headers and could be moved over to run open for the drags. No provision for the current popular “Y” flanges. As they were not part of this design process during this time period. In other words, the mounted, tube mufflers were never used as they were bolted onto the car to clear the tech inspection. Hedman Headers could be purchased at almost any speed shop or mail order.

One thing I did not like was the burning of the hands and wrists when changing spark plugs after a warm up.(even with plug rachet extensions)

Jnaki

 

Interesting story told by Isky that Douglass headers was displaying at one of the early trade shows. On the table was the first exhaust cut-outs, JC Whitney(Warshinskis in Chicago) had scouts in the building looking for new ideas and saw them, a call back to the shop and started to make them, had them on the table the very next day as a new product

 

I am convinced that Sandy Belond was the first commercially available header builder. Before the war he ran Sandy's Muffler shop where he made his "w" series headers, but they were not the same as the later Belond Equa Flow. The early version sold for $15.00 if you were a timing association member. Sandy learned the muffler business from Archie Porter, Porter's muffler in the early 30's and started his own shop. Sandy joined the Marine's in '46 and after the war he went back to Porter's for a short time. He wanted his own shop again so he used the back shop at Karl Orr's speed shop and in late '47 Bud Gregory and Sandy started making Belond Headers. Bob Hedman joined him in 48. By 1958 they had over 2000 dealers and were hugely successful, so Sandy Sold the business to A-P Industries, better known as Appliance Plating. They re-branded them as Appliance Headers but they could not figure out how to run the business so they hired Sandy to run it, and he did so until his passing in 1988. A-P was bought out by W.R. Grace around 1965, a company that dates back to the 1850's, and was in everything from Fertilizer to Steam Ships, Pan Am airways to Miller Brewing and got heavily into the automotive aftermarket in the 1960's - they also made wheels and owned quite a few other companies, including Mallory Ignition, Cyclone Headers and Blackjack.. When Sandy sold to A-P, Bob Hedman started Hedman Hedders as a full time gig. This was 1958, although he had dabbled in his own stuff since '54.
Doug's Headers (Doug Thorley) started in 1958. Gary Hooker started building in 1964. Someone mentioned Smithy and Porter, but neither of them built headers. We currently own and build Smithy, which we bought when Ermie Immerso retired (look him up if you don't recognize the name) and they have been built since about 1928.

 

I think that Doug Thorley was building headers by the later '50s too.

Indeed they are nice looking and they probably flow well besides.

 

Wow Don, great information.
I was 19 and working at Cyclone when the W.R. Grace deal was being worked out. Chet and Lee Knox were not much fun to work for. An ex workmate of mine at Cyclone had gone to work for Hedman and called told me to get down there and talk to them as they were looking for someone for the engineering dept. I hadn't been at Cyclone all that long and wasn't sure what I had to offer Hedman but I went anyway. They were great. I hired in at almost double my Cyclone wages. AND, since I was living in Hermosa Beach back then it was a helluva lot closer to home. (I rode my Harley along the beach to Culver City everyday!)
I really enjoyed my years working with Bob, Dick and Kenny Hedman. We did all kinds of stuff for all kinds of racers; Traco, Edelbrock, Falconer, Drake-Offy guys. Not to mention all of the sponsored drag racers and Bobby Allison's NASCAR cars. I did a lot of experimental stuff with Bill Million and at one point Bud Gregory came back to work with us (he had a Ford powered sprint car at that point) I miss Bob Hedman. I wish I could tell him how I appreciated him taking a chance on a scruffy kid. Great people, great times.

 

I just pm'ed you some early sixties catalog pages pertaining to headers from your time frame.

 

I got them. Thanks a lot!

 

Some Belond info from the old HAMB.
http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/sandy-belond-equa-flow-exhaust-trivia.359942/

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/belond-headers.261431/

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/the-last-belond-w-header.389782/

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/sandy-belond-header-owners-question.660939/

 

*cough* I have a pair of old chrome '50's Hedman headers for sale.. *cough*




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Here is a set of Fenton's. This were designed circa 1957 for stock car racing.






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The Lewie Shell flyer is from '49. Check out the 3'' boom cans ...
The Porter sheet is July '50, and the first I've got offering headers & all components, but no complete header dual sets. No earlier catalogs show them, only dual sets.
The Smithy's are from '54, probably not the first catalog to offer them. I have a gap from '50 to '54, and no headers are listed in '50.