Out in the Heat !
 

I took a little break from the Camaro because I was getting a little burned out (literally and figuratively). Hot weather sort of slows down things when I can’t open the garage door anymore. We have a pretty good summer going. So far the hottest day is 119F.
I had a week furlough so I got out and figured out where I left off on the exhaust system 4 weeks ago. I decided to keep this in smaller sections so that it is easy to remove, repair, and even modify in the future. Some V-bands were added directly behind the flex-couplings. I already like how easy it is putting this thing on the car.

https://i.imgur.com/Wczx8aYl.jpg

I had a little difficulty figuring out what I am going to do with the mufflers. I finally decided that everything fits best when the mufflers are angled outward. I modified the X-pipe to kick out and up a little just in front of the mufflers. I also finished tacking the front flanges on the cross-over so it now bolts into place.

https://i.imgur.com/eqRb9zFl.jpg

With the mufflers kicked outward, I had to modify the shape of the finished RH tail pipe. It is pretty much complete but still some minor tweaks.

https://i.imgur.com/OlIycYyl.jpg

Here is a photo of what I have completed all laid out. It will be 7 pieces in all.

https://i.imgur.com/EoKJjMVl.jpg

Next I will perfect the fit of the RH tail pipe, copy for the LH tailpipe, weld the LH muffler inlet flange and figure out what the tail pipe exits are going to look like. It sags a little due to the expansion bellows so I will probably also add another couple of X-pipe hangers up front. After that I can final weld this whole mash-up!
I also started dreaming about getting the car down off the rotisserie so I can start playing with this thing!

https://i.imgur.com/g4PAhsOl.jpg

Nice work on the exhaust! Your desire to make the system easily removable will definitely pay off in the long run. I took the same approach with my system and am very happy I did. I was able to pull my transmission without removing the headers or even loosening them. All I had to do was pull the mid section of the system out of the car which was two band clamps and two vbands. Easy peesy.

I love this build. Your fab work looks great in the raw. It's got me looking for more projects on my "finished" car.

Thanks for the kind comments guys. Just shows you can do anything if you are slow enough :-)

Wow, this project is insane - in a good way :-) Pro-level fab skills in a home grown project. Wish I had half that much skill and motivation.

I asked a question about your cooling fan over in the cooling section - trying to order the same thing myself and work with C&R on a custom radiator. You're right that you can never have too much cooling, even if you don't live in AZ.

Scott

Yes the part number in the cooling thread is the same one I show in the photos (23455465).
I think it looks like Mikels also confirmed over in the cooling thread. I bought the fan first and then had C&R draw up the radiator to make sure everything would match. This is probably a good idea because GM may make improvements to the fan at any time!

The radiator I ended up with was similar to one for Stielow but I deleted trans/diff cooler in the RH tank and also the intercooler bracket in front of the radiator, leaving just the Vintage air condenser. C&R are good to work with so don't hesitate to contact them.

I would make a couple of small changes if I had to do it over.

1. The condenser bracket is just a little more flexible on mine than I would like. You may want them to beef that up a little to make sure the condenser screws never flex into the core.
2. Also the VA outlet fittings are pretty close to the core support. If the bracket was moved up and forward slightly I would have had more room for A/C fittings.

These are minor points you can see in my photos, but could save you some fab time if you fix them ahead of time. Don't hesitate to ask more questions. I know I asked a bunch !

Scott

Thanks much Scott for the info and advice. I've already ordered the fan, and I'm in contact with the C&R folks and have drawings to start with. Great people, the kind of folks that make your day just to deal with.

I'm upgrading to an LT4 engine, so I'll have an intercooler in the stack as well. That will change the VA condensor location for me, as well as the core support. I'll end up modding the core support around the cooling stack a la Stielow in JA 2.0. Mine won't look as cool as yours, guaranteed :-)

Keep the posts coming on the rest of your build, awesome car.

Scott

Happy New Year!
 

I took off some time last year because I was getting burned out. The last two weekends allowed me get started on the exhaust again, clean the garage and finally get the Mast engine out of the crate and on the engine stand. Not much progress to show but that mast 427 sure looks great, really nice piece of hardware. I threw the manifold on just for fun. It is easier to move around without that big engine crate in the way and the big block rests nicely on the small cradle. I am pretty motivated again!
This week I will try to finish tacking up the LH tailpipe and maybe start some of the final exhaust welding. Here is a quick photo dump.

https://i.imgur.com/6IzqRfK.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/UY64zD1.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/YOJkyeT.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/SEDNBTW.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/WqNgsoDl.jpg

That motor sure is pretty!!

X2 :gitrdun: