Moparts
Mandrel Exhaust Bender
Posted By: DeMopuar
Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 12:12 AM
Does anyone have a good experience with an exhaust shop that does mandrel bending? I'm looking at having a 2.5" setup installed on my car with an X pipe, etc.... They seem few and far between, but I really want a shop that can bend it -- not one that welds mandrel bent stuff together.
I'm located 4 hours from Chicago and 2.5 hours from Minneapolis in Wisconsin -- and the distance isn't the biggest pain, it's finding the right guy to do the work. I've seen photos of mandrel exhaust systems done right and they are gorgeous. Please don't try and talk me out of this -- I know what I want..........
Thanks all,
Mark
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 01:35 AM
Good luck! The reason why mufflers shops don't have mandrel benders is they are VERY, VERY expensive, & the machines are very elaborate. Demand & recovery of cost don't jive.
Posted By: JohnRR
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 01:55 AM
Quote:
Good luck! The reason why mufflers shops don't have mandrel benders is they are VERY, VERY expensive, & the machines are very elaborate. Demand & recovery of cost don't jive.
The one shop near me has closed since the last time I had a system worked on ... 
Posted By: 72RallyeGY8
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 02:10 AM
I am just north of Milwaukee and have two places that I am going to look at. It probably won't be until the spring as the truck is now snowed in for the winter. One place is in West Bend and the other is in Sheboygan. I will have to dig up their contact information if you are interested. I have not had the truck in to quote yet, so I have no idea the pricing.
Posted By: DeMopuar
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 02:42 AM
I know they are more expensive -- I'm willing to pay for it.........please no more posts telling me what I already know.
Yes, 72RallyeGY8, I would be very interested in what you found out. I am interested in a shop that has a mandrel bender on premises, as this is the best way to get what I want. If you want to PM me here on Moparts that would be great, or just list them for all to see -- works either way for me.
Once you see one of these on a car -- you don't want to go back.......
Posted By: Jwilli500
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 08:34 PM
What are you working on?
Posted By: mikemee1331
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 09:13 PM
Quote:
What are you working on?
you broke his post rule! he already knows what he's working on 
Posted By: TJP
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 10:10 PM
Quote:
Quote:
What are you working on?
you broke his post rule! he already knows what he's working on
Posted By: John_Kunkel
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 10:35 PM
Quote:
Quote:
What are you working on?
you broke his post rule! he already knows what he's working on
The question is pertinent since there are bolt-on mandrel-bent X-pipe systems available for many Mopars.
Posted By: JohnRR
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 11:00 PM
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Quote:
Quote:
What are you working on?
you broke his post rule! he already knows what he's working on
The question is pertinent since there are bolt-on mandrel-bent X-pipe systems available for many Mopars.
that is correct and unless he is doing something off the wall buying one is going to be cheaper than having it done locally , been there and have a $1000 exhaust system to prove it .
Posted By: moparpollack
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 11:05 PM
Harold should be able to build you what you need.
http://www.furoracing.com/exhaust.shtml
Posted By: Supercuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/13/15 11:16 PM
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
What are you working on?
you broke his post rule! he already knows what he's working on
The question is pertinent since there are bolt-on mandrel-bent X-pipe systems available for many Mopars.
And now we go off into the wild Moparts tangent.
Dunno why some people cannot just answer the question asked.
I am sure the OP knows there are a number of premade systems. Logic dictates they are not what he wants.
Posted By: TJP
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/14/15 01:15 AM
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Harold should be able to build you what you need.
http://www.furoracing.com/exhaust.shtml
he wants non welded pipes. IE: Single piece with no sectioning /welding 
Posted By: moparpollack
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/14/15 01:23 AM
Quote:
Quote:
Harold should be able to build you what you need.
http://www.furoracing.com/exhaust.shtml
he wants non welded pipes. IE: Single piece with no sectioning /welding
It's central Wisconsin there isn't much there. 
Still wondering what the application is? 
Posted By: Stanton
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/14/15 01:25 AM
I think a valid question would be: why he doesn't want a welded system".
These days the vast majority of custom, large tube systems are welded systems. The advantages outweigh the cons. They can be fitted to the car much better than a guy "eyeballing" and bending up the system. Keep in mind here that time is money! Welded by a competent welder they'll look great - even better if the welds are cleaned up afterwards. If you're worried about welding sparks damaging a finished car, just imagine what can occur when a guy has to wind pipe up there a few times to get it right! A welded system can be tacked in place then taken out for final welding and things can be protected while tacking.
Personally, I'd take a fabbed system any day over a bent system.
Just my 2 cents !!
Posted By: dodgedon
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/14/15 04:13 AM
Look up Heartthrob Exhaust INC. Litchfield MN. They are about 65 miles West of Minneapolis.
Posted By: Pale_Roader
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/14/15 11:29 AM
Quote:
Does anyone have a good experience with an exhaust shop that does mandrel bending? I'm looking at having a 2.5" setup installed on my car with an X pipe, etc.... They seem few and far between, but I really want a shop that can bend it -- not one that welds mandrel bent stuff together.
I'm located 4 hours from Chicago and 2.5 hours from Minneapolis in Wisconsin -- and the distance isn't the biggest pain, it's finding the right guy to do the work. I've seen photos of mandrel exhaust systems done right and they are gorgeous. Please don't try and talk me out of this -- I know what I want..........
Thanks all,
Mark
At least you are in a fairly populated area as far as car stuff goes. You WILL have to travel to find this unicorn, but it should be there if you do.
What I'D do is call/contact every exhaust company out there, you know, the ones that already offer these pre-made systems you dont want, and see if they'll make a one-off for you. It'll cost ya, but art is not cheap. If you are willing to pay for what is essentially their inconvenience (these companies dont make money on one-offs), i'd wager at least one will accommodate you. I'd start with the smaller companies first... The Pypes, Kooks, suppliers ov mandrel bends, etc, before you bug the big ones like Flowtech, Dynomax, Hedman, Flowmaster, etc. There are a lot ov these machines out there, and people are making pre-made systems with them. You just gotta convince one to work with you and whatever Ford GAA-engined 62 Dart stretch-limo you're working on.
Maybe sleuth out and track down the cars you've seen (and liked) in photos and find out where they got it done?
Posted By: John_Kunkel
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/14/15 11:45 PM
Quote:
I am sure the OP knows there are a number of premade systems. Logic dictates they are not what he wants.
Don't be so sure. Many people (myself included) are often amazed to find what's available out there.
Posted By: VincentVega
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 01:03 AM
Doesn't TTI make full mopar exhaust? get a 3" system and then it won't matter if it isn't mandrel bent. In fact I've seen comparisons where 3" tail pipes freed up like 25HP over 2.5. And I'd imagine they could be clamped together with the nice band clamps.
Our garage actually has a real hydraulic bender, up to 2.5". Not mandrel though. just shoes. good enough for us. You can pick up some neat stuff on the used market
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 02:56 AM
We do everything your looking for, but our shop is out here on Long Island. I know we can't help, but make sure when you find a guy ask about V clamps. They are leak-free and you can disassemble and re-assemble them without issues for servicing if needed. And spring for stainless tailpipes and have them polished. They'll look killer!
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 03:15 AM
We did everything exhaust-related on this Corvette road racer.
Our exhaust guy did R&D work for Kooks. Here you can see the V clamp is off on the drivers side engine pipe. The inner sleeve slides into the other pipe and the vertical lip is clamped. Nice & tight!
Posted By: VincentVega
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 06:17 AM
my 2.7 V6 has those V clamps off the manifolds. Along with a bell and socket kind of connection. I love those things. easy on, easy off. good seal. Goodbye gaskets and frozen bolts
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 06:28 AM
Quote:
We did everything exhaust-related on this Corvette road racer.
Our exhaust guy did R&D work for Kooks. Here you can see the V clamp is off on the drivers side engine pipe. The inner sleeve slides into the other pipe and the vertical lip is clamped. Nice & tight!
Uh-oh - I see welds! He wants NO welds - a seamless system. It's going to be next to impossible to find a shop that can do all he wants. I know many places that have CNC mandrel benders. One approach would be to have a muffler shop fab a system using compression bends, then remove the system & get the pipes to an industrial tubing fabricator that can roam them, & then program a CNC bender to spit the pipes out. They can be made out of Aluminized steel, 409, 304, etc.
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 01:03 PM
I'll post pictures of the polished, seamless, fully welded system we just did for an LS3 swapped into a '65 Vette. I posted the above pictures because they were handy.
BTW: Our exhaust shop has a MOUNTAIN of Flowmasters as a Dynomax selling point!
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 03:27 PM
These are the pipes....
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 05:17 PM
Posted By: Stanton
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 07:48 PM
So even though the tubing is mandrel bent, its welded together in sections. To my point - it would be a real time-consuming PITA to make a one-piece system !!
Posted By: mikemee1331
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/15/15 11:55 PM
for the clueless among us, is this the V-clamp you are talking about? do you weld the 'sleeve' in place?
Posted By: VincentVega
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 12:13 AM
since he hasn't posted in a few days, I'm starting to wonder if this was a chain-yank
Posted By: Fat_Mike
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 12:22 AM
I presume either he's following up on some of the leads above, or he found out that what he envisioned isn't reasonably achievable.
BTW Fastback340, nice work!
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 01:37 AM
Quote:
I presume either he's following up on some of the leads above, or he found out that what he envisioned isn't reasonably achievable.
BTW Fastback340, nice work!
Can't take credit for the pipe work, that's our boy Red. He does do nice work. And yes, those are the V clamps I mentioned. One end has a sleeve that fits into the other. Weld these on your pipes and you can assemble & disassemble repeatedly without leaks or alignment issues. Neat stuff!
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 11:09 PM
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Quote:
I presume either he's following up on some of the leads above, or he found out that what he envisioned isn't reasonably achievable.
BTW Fastback340, nice work!
Can't take credit for the pipe work, that's our boy Red. He does do nice work. And yes, those are the V clamps I mentioned. One end has a sleeve that fits into the other. Weld these on your pipes and you can assemble & disassemble repeatedly without leaks or alignment issues. Neat stuff!
Fastback, aren't you running MY mufflers on your B-Fish? Also, you can simply flare the pipe ends & join them together with a V-Band - there are many configurations of V-Band clamps with varying widths of the "trench" in the V-Band insert. You don't necessarily need to weld on turbo repair flares.
And also NICE WORK on the pipes!
Posted By: VincentVega
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 11:12 PM
I like a swaged fit (slip joint) with those long compression band clamps. Sure makes it a lot easier to get apart later, too
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 11:31 PM
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I like a swaged fit (slip joint) with those long compression band clamps. Sure makes it a lot easier to get apart later, too
You are talking TorcTites aren't you?
Posted By: VincentVega
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 11:38 PM
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Quote:
I like a swaged fit (slip joint) with those long compression band clamps. Sure makes it a lot easier to get apart later, too
You are talking TorcTites aren't you?
Yes! never knew the name (or brand name, at least). sure probably would make me sound a lot more intelligent if I had known it
or not. probably would take a lot more than that to make me sound smart
Posted By: Copper Dart
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/16/15 11:50 PM
South Florida shop did my 3" mandrel bent custom stainless system.
$1,300+
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/17/15 12:29 AM
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Quote:
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I like a swaged fit (slip joint) with those long compression band clamps. Sure makes it a lot easier to get apart later, too
You are talking TorcTites aren't you?
Yes! never knew the name (or brand name, at least). sure probably would make me sound a lot more intelligent if I had known it
or not. probably would take a lot more than that to make me sound smart
Made right here in Michigan too! I love made in USA or Canada stuff.
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/17/15 12:30 AM
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/17/15 01:23 AM
Quote:
Fastback, aren't you running MY mufflers on your B-Fish?
.......And also NICE WORK on the pipes!
Yes, I'm running your Powersticks and I love 'em! You wouldn't believe how many compliments I get on how my car sounds. And this spring when I get the car out of storage I'm V banding my system too. I hate those damn slip-joints!
Posted By: FASTBACK340
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/17/15 01:24 AM
Posted By: Sunroofcuda
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/17/15 01:27 AM
Looks & sounds very bada$$! I love it!
Posted By: DeMopuar
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/21/15 02:21 AM
Not yanking anyone's chain -- I've been out of town and away from the computer for quite a while. I didn't want to say what it's going on because all one get's here is ".....why don't you do X......." when I know what I want -- sorry if that's not allowed here anymore.........
All I really was looking for was a shop I can take my car to in order to have a custom made mandrel bent system -- looks like the shop out west of Minneapolis will be a great lead -- THANK YOU!!!!!! I do appreciate the information.
Posted By: mikemee1331
Re: Mandrel Exhaust Bender - 01/21/15 02:49 AM
Quote:
Not yanking anyone's chain -- I've been out of town and away from the computer for quite a while. I didn't want to say what it's going on because all one get's here is ".....why don't you do X......." when I know what I want -- sorry if that's not allowed here anymore.........
All I really was looking for was a shop I can take my car to in order to have a custom made mandrel bent system -- looks like the shop out west of Minneapolis will be a great lead -- THANK YOU!!!!!! I do appreciate the information.
one of the great things about all the helpful guys on this site is wealth of knowledge here. when someone asks a question usually there are 10 other guys who want to know or will want to know in the future. not all the replies to a question will help you in your particular circumstance but you can bet those replies answer other folks!
