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How do people keep their exhaust manifolds "fresh" looking like factory? No matter what I use to paint them, bake them, wait, smile just right, etc., my exhaust manifolds look like A$$ after driving the car for just a few miles and i am trying to get them show quality for the OCA nationals coming up in just 1 month!
Are people taking them off and freshening them up just before the show? How do they keep that factory fresh paint/cast appearance? Is there a trick to painting them on the car?
Not an Olds, but on my Cadillac, I used the cast iron grey exhaust and manifold paint from Bill Hirsch Auto Parts. I did mine last spring, and a year later, they still look good. His products are expensive, but the quality is the best. I rather pay more for a product that works as expected, then to save a little and get an inferior product. I have also used his space age bright aluminum paint on automatic transmission cases. For differentials, frames, etc., I used the Space Age Black coating. Just make sure to wear protective gloves and old clothes, since these paints don't come off until they wear off. Also, as with any paint, preparation is paramount for success.
I used the High Temp Cast Blast on the manifolds on my 67 Delta. Sand blast the manifolds, wipe them down with lacquer thinner, spray the Cast Blast (use several coats and make sure you have full, thick coverage), and let dry.
This paint needs to cure by running the engine, so use clean gloves when installing the freshly-painted manifolds. I used stainless bolts and lock washers on mine - I REFUSE to reinstall those PITA lock tabs.
I used the High Temp Cast Blast on the manifolds on my 67 Delta. Sand blast the manifolds, wipe them down with lacquer thinner, spray the Cast Blast (use several coats and make sure you have full, thick coverage), and let dry.
This paint needs to cure by running the engine, so use clean gloves when installing the freshly-painted manifolds. I used stainless bolts and lock washers on mine - I REFUSE to reinstall those PITA lock tabs.
X2, I'll add if you get any oil on them after they are installed, quickly wipe it off or it will stain.
The VHT products are very good also:
If you really want to spend some money Bill Hirsch and Eastwood have products also.
i used the calyx manifold dressing, its not a paint but a coating it looks similar to bare cast. With the manifolds off i gave them a real good coating, once installed and run i touched up a few spots and after about 1 k miles and a year they still look good, if they do develop any less then perfect areas its easy to touch up. its about $20 for a super small can, but after being real thorough w mine i still have more than 1/2 the can left.
edit lol i just checked mine after winter storage....needs touch up i willsay its easy to touch up just rub some dressing on w a tooth brush (preferably not your current in use one) they do look good after application tho
Last edited by RetroRanger; June 29th, 2017 at 09:12 AM.
I just used Eastwood manifold paint because I had a bunch left from the last time I did them ten years ago. It didn't last more than a year or two the first time but I put a lot more on this time so we'll see.
When I get a chance I'm going to swap out to stainless bolts
I used the Seymour high heat cast blast on my '68 back in 2007 after bead blasting the exhaust manifolds. They still looked fresh at to 2011 OCA Nationasl in Reno (Best In Class) and they still look pretty fresh now!
X2, I'll add if you get any oil on them after they are installed, quickly wipe it off or it will stain.
The VHT products are very good also:
If you really want to spend some money Bill Hirsch and Eastwood have products also.
Anyone else have issues with the VHT cans plugging up? I have bought 2 cans of the flat aluminum with this issue, bought multiple cans without issue. Yes the VHT actually holds up for more than a few hours.
blast, then apply this. lasts for years and easy to touch up.
It is good stuff, but I don't know how well it works on exhaust manifolds. I used to use a similar product called Molybdenum Disulfide (MoS2), in my 4 speed transmissions, and it made shifting as smooth as silk. I know that graphite and Molybdenum Disulfide while looking similar and working similarly are two distinctly different products.
June 28th, 2017, 06:56 PM
i willsay its easy to touch up just rub some dressing on w a tooth brush (preferably not your current in use one) they do look good after application tho
