has anyone made a custom turbo manifold for their 1.6? i dont really want to put out 500 bucks for one, if i can make it for like 50 or something. might just try to weld one together using the stock flanges and parts of the existing stock headers
I made my manifold from scratch... I used a 120v MIG welder (I made it before i got my TIG). Its made from mild steel schedule 40 piping.
-dave my pictures
that manifold is real nice looking, how hard was it to make, looks complicated with all those bends, yet also looks like something a major company like hotshot or something would sell, real nice job on that
Dave, what the difference between a TIG and a MIG welder?? do the actually welds look different? I am about to buy a MIG welder and am learning this week.
The manifold took me a while to make, I would work on it a little bit every couple of days, so its tough to say how many hours I have tied up in it. Having a extra engine on a stand was very helpful to mock up where everything went. I used schedule 40 mild steel weld els which where about $8 a bend. I made the flanges out of 1/2 in plate. The collector is actually made out of 4 45 degree bends cut and welded together. I used a Lincoln Electric wire feed MIG welder (I ground down a lot of my welds to give it a seamless look) I haven't really haven't given much thought on making them for sale, mostly because I made my manifold as an application specific (1 off) piece for my car and turbo. I don't have any JIGS that would enable me to mass produce them. An easier approach for a manifold would be to make a log style manifold, they may not be the best for flow, but they do work well. There are a couple of ga16de-T guys running this style manifold. I just got a TIG welder (uses an electric torch and filler rod instead of wire feed) I have been using it to weld up my intercooler and intake plumbing. My turbo should be on the road in a month. I'll post my impressions when I get running.
-dave
So far I,ve burned and melted beyond all usefullness, and I can tell you this. It takes alot of patiants to weld up a mani. So far I've gone through about a hundred dallors of weld els and still not happy with what I got. The hardest form me was the collector but I saw some other welders using these but weld reducers and it clicked.
Tip make a jig with the two flanges. Using your turbo to measure for clearance(mount it some how were you want it ie wire hanger or angle iron) Then use a small piece of steel to connect the two flanges together. Then have at it. Note you need the turbo before you begin(I'm using a t3 from a ford as reference). Eye ballin measurments will only lead to frustration(speaking from my trial and error method I started with)
that's good advice, having a fixture helps making a manifold a lot easier. I had an extra engine and bolted my turbo to it using brackets. All I had to do was connect the two with weld els.
Yeah, Its like a big jigsaw puzzle this way. And if you don't have a spare motor to work with it only take about 10-15 minutes to undo the top section of your header and then you can use the bottom section to help locate the turbos best postion, and allow for good clearence for the down pipe and compressor discharge and inlet piping.
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