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Exhaust System Thermal Ceramic Coating - Keepin' The Heat InWhat You Need Is A Nice Warm Coat! From the March, 2011 issue of Rod & Custom By Kev Elliot
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Here's where we left the Purple... Here's where we left the Purple Pig's exhaust last time, with the system tack-welded, some MIG and some TIG, depending on whether I could access the tubing that snaked around the ShockWaves and over the rearend. In some places it was all I could do to sneak the MIG gun between components to tack-weld the joints. With the axle removed, it was time to drop and remove the exhaust system before Jimmy White at Circle City Hot Rods TIG welded it solid. Having fabricated an exhaust system for the Purple Pig '49 Chevy project car from mild steel mandrel bends, it would have been a shame to leave it naked and susceptible to rust. Sure, I could have sprayed it with high-temperature paint from rattle cans, but figured it deserved something more substantial after all that hard work! As the Sanderson headers and Patriot VaraFlow mufflers have thermal ceramic coatings, it made sense to use a similar finish for the tubing. Embee Performance is a company local to the Rod & Custom offices, and offers ceramic coating, powdercoating, nickel plating, and anodizing, plus they just happen to be one of the sources Patriot uses to coat its headers, as well as the preferred powdercoater of many top motorsports industry manufacturers. So I paid them a visit to discuss my options. A quick perusal of the ceramic coating choices on display on headers in their showroom made the choice easy, and I left the six sections of my system with them to be coated in a titanium color. A number of colors are available, including polished silver, matte silver, satin black, titanium, gray metallic, blue, and white, and Embee guarantees components coated will not blue, stain, or rust. Such coatings will increase the efficiency of an engine by increasing exhaust velocity and improving airflow, resulting in reduced underhood temperatures. I took a number of pictures... I took a number of pictures like this for reference when it came time to re-fit the system. There was a definite order in which it had to be removed, and hence re-fitted, and such pictures were invaluable. Embee also offers sulfuric, chromic, and hard anodizing as well as multiple color options and Teflon impregnation to enhance lubricity, nickel plating to produce an extremely durable surface, similar to high-grade stainless steel, which is both wear and corrosion resistant, as well as a thermal dispersant coating for crankshafts, connecting rods, valvesprings, and oil pans. They also coat pistons from manufacturers such as J-E, CP, Arias, and Ross. While these processes are aimed at motorsports applications, the thermal ceramic coatings and powdercoating will be primarily of interest to hot rodders. As I am using VaraFlow mufflers... As I am using VaraFlow mufflers from Patriot Exhaust on this project, I called Don Lindfors at Patriot to enquire who applies the ceramic coating on all their headers, only to discover, amongst other coaters, they use Embee Performance, located very close to the Rod & Custom offices. I'd assumed this was a new business when it opened alongside the freeway recently, but it turned out Embee acquired this building for its freeway frontage, while retaining their huge facility a few blocks away. Though unable to photograph the actual application process in the booth, I spent some time at Embee's impressive facility while they sprayed my tubing first with a primer, then with the thermal barrier, and removed them from the booth for me to photograph before they headed to the oven, where they were baked at 500 degrees F. The following day I was able to collect and install my parts, and despite taking care I still managed to get greasy fingerprints all over the tubing, but was pleased to note that they wiped off with de-greaser and left the exhaust looking like it had when first coated. Though I'd welded a couple of mounting rods to each side of the system for rubber mounts, I'd not as yet mounted the tailpipes. For this I used billet aluminum hanger/clamps from Deeds Engineering, which proved ideal to secure the rearend of the system in precisely the position required, while allowing for necessary minimal movement. They also look good, though in my case they're almost hidden from view under the back of the car.  We spied this pallet of freshly...  We spied this pallet of freshly powdercoated wheels awaiting return to one of our advertisers, and this, coupled with Patriot's referral, assured us we were in safe hands.  The spacious reception area/showroom...  The spacious reception area/showroom features a couple of race cars sponsored by the company, as well as color cards and exhaust headers featuring all the finishes offered in the various plating procedures.  Pick a card, any card. The...  Pick a card, any card. The color range is pretty extensive for powdercoating.  Half powdercoated/half polished,...  Half powdercoated/half polished, as evidenced on these Porsche wheels, is also an option.  Embee Performance can apply...  Embee Performance can apply coatings to many parts of your project. Here are the company's event displays showcasing its powdercoating capabilities on suspension and drivetrain components. The drag racing and especially off-road scenes know the value of these resilient coatings.  Though they're off-road parts...  Though they're off-road parts and not our exhausts, all ceramic or powdercoated parts are baked in ovens to cure. Ceramic coatings are baked at 500 degrees F, while powdercoatings are heated at 400 degrees F.  Embee has a number of headers...  Embee has a number of headers on display showing the various ceramic coat colors, making my selection easy. I went for titanium finish (top right).  We weren't able to photograph...  We weren't able to photograph the coatings being applied in the spray booth, but you can make out the difference between our blasted tube on the left and the rapidly drying primer applied to the tube on the right. The titanium-colored coating we selected requires an etch-type primer.  Blasted and ready for ceramic...  Blasted and ready for ceramic coating, these are all Doug's or Patriot's exhaust products.  Here's a bare blasted tube...  Here's a bare blasted tube in comparison with our finished coated section of exhaust. While the shade we opted for looks almost like bare metal, it'll remain looking this good as well as help reduce under-car temperatures, which is important as our exhaust runs so close to a number of other components.  The metallic ceramic thermal...  The metallic ceramic thermal barrier coating available as an option on Patriot headers is corrosion and heat resistant up to 1,600 degrees F, providing increased thermal fatigue protection and lower underhood temperatures.  We collected the six sections...  We collected the six sections of our system, wrapped in protective paper, and were installing them within 10 minutes. Most customers won't be lucky enough to be situated so close, though Embee offers collection and delivery in the L.A. basin, and can ship parts nationwide.  Need your whole chassis powdercoated?...  Need your whole chassis powdercoated? Embee Performance can handle that too, and it's a great way to protect the frame as well as make it resistant to stone chips.  With the Purple Pig up on...  With the Purple Pig up on the rack, we laid out the system on the floor below, ready for installation. Looks pretty good, huh?  I kept all the wrapping once...  I kept all the wrapping once I'd unpacked the tubing, as I knew I'd need a bunch for protection during the installation, in order to prevent the system from scratches. Clearance is so tight in a number of spots that this really became an issue. I'm not sure I'd have the patience to assemble a fully detailed show car!  Though there are two mounting...  Though there are two mounting points on each side of the system, one at the trailing arm crossmember and one just forward of the rearend, each tailpipe required a mounting. Deeds Engineering's aluminum hangers provided the perfect answer, as they are a clamp and hanger combined. The soft, high temperature resistant bushing dampens vibration to the chassis too.  It seems a shame to hide such...  It seems a shame to hide such nice brackets up out of sight between the rear chassis rail and the dropped trunk floor, as this is all that's visible once installed!  The tailpipes had been designed...  The tailpipes had been designed and fabricated to exit the rear of the car at a set distance between the top of the rear chassis crossmember and the bottom of the rear panel, allowing clearance for the gravel pan, which meant the mountings had to be exactly placed. Measuring the distance between the top of the tailpipe and the underside of the floor, followed by a quick diagram, determined the height of the required bracket, which was formed from angle iron, then drilled and tapped, and bolted through the trunk floor.  Here's the finished system...  Here's the finished system in place on the '49. I just have to wire the VaraFlow mufflers and install the rearend for a final time and it'll be back on its wheels. At a later date, I'll modify a one-piece bumper for the tailpipes to exit through, and add chrome tips to complete the installation.
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