archangel571
Member
- :
- Mazda, Protege5, 02
*I never saw this topic over at how-to so I guess I will just write one myself, so please if there are any duplications with others, don't flame, I am not plagerising any ideas here. *
Intro: (you can ignore this crap, just me bitching, jump to procedures!)
Going around looking for threads on OBX 4-1 header installations, one can always find posts warning others to clean that darn thing with windex or soap water so the finger grease or other crap can be cleaned up which could have potentially (actually more of a guarantee) marred the bronzing finish of the header later on. People b**** about the regrets but the story just ends there. I, for one, just received a used header that's horrandously bronzed with grease spots all over the place. At first I was pretty much like I don't give a crap, performance over looks. Then yesterday I started to play with that stainless steel polishing wheel made by dremel to clean up some xacto knife blades, then got bored and started to look for other things to polish and eventually ends up in the livingroom (of my school apartment) and out of curiosity, landed that polishing tip on the lower part of the header. Surprisingly, the silverish finish reemerges after only a very very thin layer of bronzing's been brushed off. Remembering some person on the forum that scrub his header to DEpolish it, and mental madness out of boredom on a friday night, I took out my sandpaper packages that's leftover from fixing up my terriblly F-ed up bumper.
Procedure: (The juicy part, maybe I should put this above my crap intro)
-It is a really easy process just costly on labor time.
-Test out the bottom exhaust part of the header first to see how much sanding is required. I used P400(400 grits) from 3M's Imperial Automotive Wet/Dry sandpaper. I am sure P320(320 grits) would do a faster job but mines are screwed up with putty from before. I don't know how the depth of the bronzing will relate to the mileage the header has been on, but if it take more than 1 minute or 2 to see anything, give up. Mine lightened up really quickly. If all goes well, (you just gotta do a small area, come on, who's going to look under your car), go onto the far right or far left upper pipe and continue.
-I recommend use your hands for the sanding cuz it's a circular pipe and nothing contours better around it other than your hand (that sounds dirty =P). Use the 400 grits on all four pipe in the first go. Best recommendation will be using wet sanding and be sure to wash the sandpaper once in a while to wash off those residual metal dust so the sanding speed can be improved. Also, wrapping the sandpaper around the pipe. go beneath the pipe with both hands to hold both sides of the sandpaper going at a inversed up and down motion, which simulates belt sanding, gives a slightly smoother finish. I never took basic sanding 101 so I did it by instincts so do whatever you are used to get that Brushed stainless steel finish on your pipes after the first go.
-Repeat the last step with 1000 grits, 1500 grits, and finish with 2000 grits for almost a mirror shine.
-En voila, there is you original polished look for that header with about less than 3 to 400 um sanded off. (caution me if this is going to damage the header performance or logivity)
Note:
-I recommend doing 4 pipes at the time using the same grade of sandpaper and continue to the next grade. For a quick view of how it's going to look like, you can do all the steps on one pipe first but later on when you are working on the others you can easily scuff that nicely polished one.
-I can't guarantee a better bronzing after doing this because I will still have to yet to see how it's gonna look like after several month, so PLEASE, don't hold my words to this fix! I just wanted a slightly better looking header to be put in the car than that crap finger grease stained...thing...
-Got a free friday night and saturday and feeling like jack up your car and take down that ugly header to refurbish it a bit? DO IT!
Photos References:
-Here is mine after spending like an hour last night. I doubt I will have time until next weekend thanx to my senior engineering projects but I will update the finished photos before it goes in my dear p5.
-The white balance are a lil off on two of them but the one with the flash came our all right. I prefer to use my camera with aperture priority n no flash, so sue me.
UPDATE
Finished Pictures:
Intro: (you can ignore this crap, just me bitching, jump to procedures!)
Going around looking for threads on OBX 4-1 header installations, one can always find posts warning others to clean that darn thing with windex or soap water so the finger grease or other crap can be cleaned up which could have potentially (actually more of a guarantee) marred the bronzing finish of the header later on. People b**** about the regrets but the story just ends there. I, for one, just received a used header that's horrandously bronzed with grease spots all over the place. At first I was pretty much like I don't give a crap, performance over looks. Then yesterday I started to play with that stainless steel polishing wheel made by dremel to clean up some xacto knife blades, then got bored and started to look for other things to polish and eventually ends up in the livingroom (of my school apartment) and out of curiosity, landed that polishing tip on the lower part of the header. Surprisingly, the silverish finish reemerges after only a very very thin layer of bronzing's been brushed off. Remembering some person on the forum that scrub his header to DEpolish it, and mental madness out of boredom on a friday night, I took out my sandpaper packages that's leftover from fixing up my terriblly F-ed up bumper.
Procedure: (The juicy part, maybe I should put this above my crap intro)
-It is a really easy process just costly on labor time.
-Test out the bottom exhaust part of the header first to see how much sanding is required. I used P400(400 grits) from 3M's Imperial Automotive Wet/Dry sandpaper. I am sure P320(320 grits) would do a faster job but mines are screwed up with putty from before. I don't know how the depth of the bronzing will relate to the mileage the header has been on, but if it take more than 1 minute or 2 to see anything, give up. Mine lightened up really quickly. If all goes well, (you just gotta do a small area, come on, who's going to look under your car), go onto the far right or far left upper pipe and continue.
-I recommend use your hands for the sanding cuz it's a circular pipe and nothing contours better around it other than your hand (that sounds dirty =P). Use the 400 grits on all four pipe in the first go. Best recommendation will be using wet sanding and be sure to wash the sandpaper once in a while to wash off those residual metal dust so the sanding speed can be improved. Also, wrapping the sandpaper around the pipe. go beneath the pipe with both hands to hold both sides of the sandpaper going at a inversed up and down motion, which simulates belt sanding, gives a slightly smoother finish. I never took basic sanding 101 so I did it by instincts so do whatever you are used to get that Brushed stainless steel finish on your pipes after the first go.
-Repeat the last step with 1000 grits, 1500 grits, and finish with 2000 grits for almost a mirror shine.
-En voila, there is you original polished look for that header with about less than 3 to 400 um sanded off. (caution me if this is going to damage the header performance or logivity)
Note:
-I recommend doing 4 pipes at the time using the same grade of sandpaper and continue to the next grade. For a quick view of how it's going to look like, you can do all the steps on one pipe first but later on when you are working on the others you can easily scuff that nicely polished one.
-I can't guarantee a better bronzing after doing this because I will still have to yet to see how it's gonna look like after several month, so PLEASE, don't hold my words to this fix! I just wanted a slightly better looking header to be put in the car than that crap finger grease stained...thing...
-Got a free friday night and saturday and feeling like jack up your car and take down that ugly header to refurbish it a bit? DO IT!
Photos References:
-Here is mine after spending like an hour last night. I doubt I will have time until next weekend thanx to my senior engineering projects but I will update the finished photos before it goes in my dear p5.
-The white balance are a lil off on two of them but the one with the flash came our all right. I prefer to use my camera with aperture priority n no flash, so sue me.
UPDATE
Finished Pictures:
Last edited:
impressive
i'm not gonna take it off though, i'll just try it with it still on. and hopefully it works.
