Staggered 22: Many you are the bomb. Thanks for the help! Exactly what I was curious about. I honestly, watched how the shops and header manufacturers coat the headers on Youtube. It's not much different than what you would do at home. Only the polishing setup I don't have. They were using a tumbler with likely millions of miniature sanding balls then turning it in the machine to polish the headers. Otherwise they were using a sprayer to ceramic coat them, same as anybody else would use.
Couple questions:
- Did you up the size of the exhaust (diameter)?
- I'd prefer to keep the truck emissions compliant (with cats).
- I'd like long tubes but to maintain the cat back exhaust for now as is a large investment.
- Additionally, looking to swap my engine for a 6.0, assuming exhaust is same for that and 5.3
I've honestly never done an exhaust upgrade before so a bit of a novice when specing it out.
Hi Matthew. The polishing / tumbling portion of the operation is one of the most important parts of the process. Hence the cost difference and reason why I would suggest you get them done professionally. Besides appearance benefits that result from a nice smooth finish, the tumbling process eliminates surface imperfections where contaminants can find a way to attach themselves to the stainless surfaces resulting in poor adhesion, bare or light spots, and bad results all around. As with any type of application process be it paint, chrome, adhesion, bonding, grounding etc. the result is as good as the preparation work.
Besides meeting and working with different shops (chrome, powder coat, polish, paint, music etc), I work on programs where surface prep not only has to be maintained but adhered to witness and verified before the next processes can continue.
There are also differences in materials known as stainless steel grades. The better the material / grade the better the result, the fitment, longevity and the higher the price of course. All of that matters. Your goal then would be to find the header that works best for you in terms of quality, performance,
With regards to your questions.
1. No I did not up the size of my exhaust on any of my vehicles as of now. I did however re-do the exhaust on the SS. I split my exhaust on the crew cab the 02 Silverado, & did a magnaflow catback exhaust for the Escalade. So there was some modification to the exhaust but none involved upsized the diameters. I would and will on a Duramax that is for sure.
2. ARH makes a system where you could go with or without cats. I live in Florida. No cats.
3. You might want to hold off and save some funds then go long tubes with cats. You don't have to change the rest of the exahust if you don't want to. What year is your SUV? I actually have a spare cat back exhaust the i put in my attic not long ago. Long story on that. But I have a brand new one in the box.
4. I hear mixed (good and bad stories about 6.0s). I guess it all depends on the condition the 6.0 is in or so. 6.2 has me sold based on what I've experienced with this Escalade.
Hope this helps. Enjoy the homework and the effort as it is all part of getting your vehicle dialed in just right. It's never easy. Especially if you have all sorts of other things going on in your life (i.e. family, career, business, funds, expertise, etc).
