Stainless LT's question
 

I know this topic has been beaten to death but is LPP still making LT's for LT1's? I heard they stopped making them. If that isn't an option correct me if I'm wrong would OBX be another good stainless LT header?

Thanks

I just bought a set from LPP the other day. They still have them in stock. Not sure how many though.

I recently bought a set from TSP. They looked great sound even better. cant beat the price from what ive seen .....

Can't comment on your question however I have read a lot of bad things about LPP. Apparently some of the sets of headers some folks have received have had some really bad welds, some with fitting issues. TSP just recently released LT1 style stainless LT's that are dirt cheap and look very nice. IMHO with the price of LPPs... I'd get the TSP brand.

Mine look awesome. Welds look to be solid. I didnt encounter any real fitment issues. Its dangerously close to the steering on driver side but theres room. My only complaint is that theyre hitting my floor when ideling but clears up under load. I used fel pro gaskets and ss arp hardware and very happy with the headers

Try some poly- mounts. I'd first try it with the trans mount. It's a super quick and easy fix. The Poly mount is pretty much a lifetime fix.. I've never seen one give out. That should.. In theory stop them from hitting. If it doesn't is try some Spohn Solid motor mounts.

i bought the speed engineering stainless headers. the flange is thick, and the welds look clean. at 230 plus shipping its pretty cheap. havent installed them yet though.

I've been around for a while and have never seen anyone with a problem with the welds. You will hear of fitment problems with every set. My dad had some stepped kooks headers and the Y pipe doesn't come close to fitting. LPP has had their issues but have done some work to alleviate the issues. The latest batch seems to fit much better. You have to remember each car is different so a lot of the issues are case by case. I bought the first batch of LPP's and had to move the steering shaft 1/4 inch. Took 20 minutes and they fit great. I haven't heard of issues with the latest batch. The TSP's are good if dirt cheap China made is what you're after. The LPP headers are designed much better (stepped to 1 7/8 primaries, collectors built in a way that speeds up flow, and have a merge spike, and are built in the USA). Cost a bit more but what you get for what you're paying is worth every penny.

??? The welds on my LPPs look great compared to my old pacesetters that had a piece of wire sticking out on a primary. I can't comment on the fit because I haven't installed them yet, but they look very nice. You're comparing apples to oranges. The TSP/ebay and OBX headers are made from 304 stainless which can deform or crack on high powered FI/nitrous cars. LPPs are 321 like Kooks and can handle the elevated exhaust temps. I would take coated mild steel over cheap stainless with a serious build.

Unless something has changed, I believe most, and perhaps all, of Kooks headers are 304 stainless. For most applications, 321 is probably overkill. All things being equal, I would take a 304 stainless header over coated mild steel. Mild steel is eventually going to rust, coated or not.

I started with Jet-Hots and now have coated pacesetters. Both sets have rusted. Obviously here is Ga. we don't have to worry much about salty roads causing premature rusting issues... So, I have to agree 100%.

I have jethot Lts now. They have some surface rust on the primaries and a lot more at the collectors. I'm also in Houston so I'm sure that doesn't help with the rust. I was going to have them recoated but instead I got a great deal on some new LPPs from za355tx. I haven't installed them yet but I hear that the 3rd gen design is supposed to be a lot better. Once I install them I'll post about fitment along with my build thread.

To prevent rust on headers what I've always done is take some VHT header paint, and wrap them. Most people will say that header wrap will cause them to rust faster.. Which I can understand if it's only a weekend drag car or something that doesn't get driven much. If you don't drive your car that much and have your headers wrapped moisture will get trapped inside and cause them to rust them prematurely. Header wrap is fine on a daily driver street/strip car. But you also have to take into consideration the hotter your pipes are the more scavenging you have. Hot air travels faster through hot pipes!

Sorry I haven't been on this forum for bit even tho I'm a sponsor here:(
But to answer some questions reading through this thread.
We are on our version 3 LT1 headers and Y. And yes not every car is the same that's why we have redesigned them 3 times. Each time is just making small changes to fix issues people have had.
Now comparing our headers to others.
Ours are 321 Polished Stainless compared to even Kooks that are 304.
304 stainless is what you kitchen sink is made out of:(
321 can take extreme high temps for a long time and not fail.
Also our headers are 1 3/4" to 1 7/8" stepped headers with a high velocity merge collector with a merge spike that no one else offers. Our headers and y are also Tig welded and back purged to insure perfect welds.
So like someone said you get what you pay for:)

Thanks guys all the suggestions. I'm not sure about the Texas spped ones. 220 just sounds too good to be true. I'm a believer somewhat you get what you pay for and there has to be something half ass about those headers if they are dirt cheap. Maybe I am wrong. But I think I got my eyes set on the LPP set but looking for a true dual X pipe setup. Not sure if I should just get the LPP with ORY package or just the headers and have a custom shop do the X pipe with bullet mufflers.

Btw LPP do you guys have the ones with the EGR pipes? If not no biggie. Just was wondering the steps I'd need to take if I did an EGR delete with a tune or doesn't matter. I currently don't have the air pump anyways. I threw it out a few years ago when I did my water pump.

We have a true dual setup for the headers with an X-pipe.
http://lpparts.com/store/page6.html
But it's not polished like the headers it's satin. But it is still stainless.
Sorry we don't have headers with emission connections.
I could probably do a deal for you if you want the headers and the true duals :)

My LPP headers look amazing. 0 issues with mine, but I would recommend a custom y-pipe if you are adventurous.

Possibly implying that 304 SS headers fail? It's a good marketing strategy, but I'm just going to have to hold my breath on it being a legitimate concern.

For turbo builds, 321 is generally used closest to the turbo due to the high heat. I just know 321 is better lol. I don't think it'll make or break the header, but 321 is better ;)

But we're not talking about turbos, these are LT's. You could argue that they could possibly be used with a remote turbo, but that's not close. I'd be genuinely interested to find if anyone has actually had problems with 304 SS LT's due to heat, but I suspect this is simply a marketing tool.