Moparts
Painting Headers What to use?
Posted By: Mopar_Mike
Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 02:49 PM
I am sick of my headers always looking rusty and crusty! So, I am going to sandblast them and paint them. What should I use though to make sure they stay looking good?
Thanks!
Posted By: DAMOPARS
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 02:59 PM
VHT Paint Flameproof
Posted By: Mr.Yuck
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:07 PM
I used the VHT and it burned off quickly. I'm a BIG fan of charcoal grill paint. They sell it at home depot or lowes and it works. Painted an old set of heddmans and they looked good after 3 years of driving. I'll be heading to HD this weekend to pick up some for my new Super Comps
Posted By: mymcodebee
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:09 PM
Does this require any kind of primer or direct over steel?
Posted By: Mr.Yuck
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:14 PM
Quote:
Does this require any kind of primer or direct over steel?
I strip the factory paint (it's worthless) and then I wipe then down w/ brake clean then paint it on. Usuallly 3 light coats. Only problem is you can only get it in Black..well they might have red but who wants red headers?
Posted By: hemigod426
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:18 PM
i use eastwood manifold paint, the stuff they want you to brush on, on thin it and shot it out of my spray gun, blast headers, hang then i put on around 6-8 coats with that little pint, must be over bare steel or will flake off. works well
Posted By: BELVEDERE67
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:20 PM
I used the charcoal grill paint as well, but I have to tell you it didn't work either......but here's a bump as I know there are paint's out there that will work.
Posted By: Mr.Yuck
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:27 PM
Quote:
VHT Paint Flameproof
ahhh just found this on the VHT paint. Maybe this is why mine didn't last.
On the Vehicle
• Paint must be completely dry before curing
• Run at idle for 10 minutes
• Cool for 20 minutes
• Run at idle for 20 minutes
• Cool for 20 minutes
• Run under normal operating conditions for
• 30 minutes
Off the Vehicle
• Paint must be completely dry before curing
• Heat to 250°F (121°C) for 30 minutes
• Cool for 30 minutes
• Heat to 400°F (204°C) for 30 minutes
• Cool for 30 minutes
• Heat to 650°F (343°C ) for 30 minutes
Not a chance a normal guy can run a heating cycle like that.
Posted By: RapidRobert
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:31 PM
and after the cleaning/sanding/brake kleen should it be primed 1st (if so with what)
Posted By: Mr.Yuck
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:33 PM
Quote:
and after the cleaning/sanding/brake kleen should it be primed 1st (if so with what)
I don't think you need to prime it. If you did you'd have to have high temp primer too, so what's the point?
Posted By: RapidRobert
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:38 PM
Quote:
. If you did you'd have to have high temp primer too, so what's the point?
the point would be to achieve a paint that would last which is what we are trying to figure out here
Posted By: Mr.Yuck
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:40 PM
Quote:
Quote:
. If you did you'd have to have high temp primer too, so what's the point?
the point would be to achieve a paint that would last which is what we are trying to figure out here
most cans of hightemp paint I have read say apply to bare metal... 
Posted By: coronet1966d
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:44 PM
VHT wants you to use there white high temp primer
Posted By: RapidRobert
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:47 PM
Quote:
most cans of hightemp paint I have read say apply to bare metal...
yeah that is what I was wondering as I've done very little painting and I did not know if the same (painting) basics applied to headers just like car panels and since it sounds problematic when I get to that point I want to increase my odds of it not burning off. Alright NO primer. Now on to the best paint/technique and I think some sort of heat curing is the key. There is a plater close by, would that be doable & if so what metal?
Posted By: Mr.Yuck
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:49 PM
Not sure what's local to you but there are companies out there that will jet coat your headers. Not sure how much it costs.
Posted By: JeffC
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:54 PM
Quote:
Not sure what's local to you but there are companies out there that will jet coat your headers. Not sure how much it costs.
My local coating shop wanted about $400 to coat a set of BB headers.
Posted By: RapidRobert
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 03:57 PM
Lincoln plating (now Lincoln Industries) does plating for Speedway motors and Harley Davidson an they do chrome gold and nickel. I'll have to call them & see if they will do a piece for an off the street customer, how much and what other metals they offer and what they might recommend. I'm not a painter but I think some kind of heat curing is going to be required for a paint to last. EDIT unless maybe a specialty aircraft type which would be $$$ but if that's what it takes
Posted By: 2boltmain
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 04:07 PM
What ever happened to the
"Aluma Coat" BlackJack offered in the 80s? They would spray their cheap headers with molten aluminum. The finish was a very course abrasive aluminum colored coating. It was durable and not expensive.
Posted By: MRHWS
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/12/10 04:08 PM
Posted By: RalleyA12
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/13/10 01:56 PM
www.techlinecoatings.com you can buy the same type coatings that jet-hot uses and apply them yourself. Save a lot of money, check them out.
Posted By: Chris2581
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/13/10 02:02 PM
I haven't used it yet,but I'm going to give the RustOleum high heat paint a try.I just used their Hemi orange engine enamel and it worked great.Plus I've never had a RustOleum product let me down.
Posted By: Dcuda69
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/13/10 03:04 PM
Quote:
i use eastwood manifold paint, the stuff they want you to brush on, on thin it and shot it out of my spray gun, blast headers, hang then i put on around 6-8 coats with that little pint, must be over bare steel or will flake off. works well
Posted By: wingman
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/13/10 06:30 PM
Quote:
Quote:
i use eastwood manifold paint, the stuff they want you to brush on, on thin it and shot it out of my spray gun, blast headers, hang then i put on around 6-8 coats with that little pint, must be over bare steel or will flake off. works well
I've had good luck with this stuff too. But blast the headers to bare metal first and make sure they are FREE of any greases and oils before coating them.
I don't even pick up the bare headers with my bare hands to keep the skin oils off--not sure if that is overkill, but no flaking or peeling on mine.
Posted By: patrick
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/13/10 07:42 PM
first set I used the eastwood high temp coating (used it sucessfully on cast manifolds) but it flaked off quickly. this time I used rustoleum BBQ paint and it's holding up real well.
Posted By: yellow sixpack
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/13/10 08:14 PM
Eastwood makes the best product used their high temp manifold paint on old set of manifolds made them look like new.
Posted By: Anonymous
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 01:09 AM
Sandblast them clean and coat with BBQ black.
Posted By: Alikazam
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 04:58 AM
Another vote for VHT paint. Have done a few headers with it, sand blasting, degreasing, then painting several coats (about 1 can per header). Put on the engine, let warm up for a while idling, then shut off and let sit for a good half hour, then just run em. That's all I've done and gotten 3 years plus out of em with only minor rust spots in the highest heat areas of them (bends right out of the head flange). Good luck!
Posted By: Wicked49670dart
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 05:53 AM
I use POR-15 , Black Velvet. Its good to 1200 degrees. Brush it on and it will dry in 24 hours and cures once the headers get up to temp. Will not burn off either.
Posted By: DaytonaTurbo
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 05:59 AM
I used the VHT stuff. The headers will smoke like hell for 5 minutes when you fire them up for the first time. And the stuff is not durable at all until it's heat-cured. If you use it, make sure you sandblast, chemical strip or whatever to get ALL the old paint off. If anything flaking off now or kinda so-so, another coat of paint won't look good for long.
Also I would not go black. Black emits more heat than a lighter color like white or even grey.
Posted By: 440challenger
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 12:24 PM
VHT flame proof. Last a while...if it chips,scuff it up and do a re hit. Its only flat black..... beats coated headers that still rust anyway
Posted By: Exit1965
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 02:40 PM
Another vote for Rustoleum BBQ paint. I used the silver paint on my Schumacher headers, and even when parts of the headers got red-hot on breakin, when they cooled down the paint was fine.
It was inexpensive so I put a couple coats on each header and still had leftovers.
Posted By: macmic87
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 05:06 PM
Quote:
Another vote for Rustoleum BBQ paint. I used the silver paint on my Schumacher headers, and even when parts of the headers got red-hot on breakin, when they cooled down the paint was fine.
It was inexpensive so I put a couple coats on each header and still had leftovers.
buddy at work swears by it and i have to agree his headers still look good after 2 years.
Posted By: 440newport
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 05:42 PM
I used Seymour "cast blast" on mine with a zinc chromate primer. I did them about a year ago and they still look good. They smoked a lot for the first few drives though.
I tried a vht header paint on my last set of headers and they turned to rust in no time.
Posted By: MonGoo$e
Re: Painting Headers What to use? - 03/14/10 06:03 PM
I went to a farm store, bought the brush on stove blacking "stuff" and brushed it on..after on the car and some fairly heavy use, they would just turn a charcoal grey, looked even, it wouldn't flake off or anything because it wasn't a 'shell' coating like paint is..more powder based I guess. it let it breathe, now and then I would touch up the visible areas and it's freshen up nicely.