Rice's Epic 323 worklog........

[1st Gen]

Didn't that manifold crack a while back? I didn't hear much from you after that so wasn't sure if your were disgusted with the whole thing. I'm glad to see you spinning the ol Rice Magic again.

[wheresthericego]

Didn't that manifold crack a while back? I didn't hear much from you after that so wasn't sure if your were disgusted with the whole thing. I'm glad to see you spinning the ol Rice Magic again.

The manifold did crack a while back and I finally got around to fixing it.
I now have a completely new problem with the manifold and I do not know what the hell to do.
After I got the manifold back from jet hot the damn thing was warped about 1/4 inch from left to right. The flange is not straight anymore.....
I cant have it pressed to straighten it and dont think I can have it milled to make it true either......

Pics for documentation...

[Turpro]

I just cringed

[yunvmyegt]

wow, heat it up and tighten it down, hope it comes back?...lol.... really not a clue thats ****ty tho

[bomdoutscort]

Did it do that from the coating job or from the welding after the crack?

[MD323]

you can still get that milled flat, really sucks to see it that way though.

[Racerboy]

Did it do that from the coating job or from the welding after the crack?

I'm wondering the same thing.

[wheresthericego]

Did it do that from the coating job or from the welding after the crack?

I honestly can not say for sure whether the manifold was warped after the welding or if the coating process is the blame. What I do know is that it was not leaking/warped when it came off the car. It was very apparent when sitting on the exhaust studs that it was not true.
I do not think that the small amount of repair welding would have generated enough heat to warp the entire manifold 1/4 inch simply because the welding was concentrated at the collector in between the runners. I think if the welding from the initial fabrication did not warp it than it is very unlikely that the repair could have.
I will be contacting jet-hot tomorrow to see if they have had this problem before and if there is anything they can do.
It looks like I can have it milled and still be at a safe thickness for the flange.

We'll see.....

[1st Gen]

I honestly can not say for sure whether the manifold was warped after the welding or if the coating process is the blame. What I do know is that it was not leaking/warped when it came off the car. It was very apparent when sitting on the exhaust studs that it was not true.
I do not think that the small amount of repair welding would have generated enough heat to warp the entire manifold 1/4 inch simply because the welding was concentrated at the collector in between the runners. I think if the welding from the initial fabrication did not warp it than it is very unlikely that the repair could have.

I was thinking about this during my pre-work nap and came to the same conclusion. What do you know about the coating process? I don't suppose they bolt it to a frame while heating it, and just how hot does it get?

The repair would not have heated the flange and I'm pretty sure that would have had to have happened for that type of warpage.

Good luck Nate.

[92_2_fast]

Just to throw in my 2cents, I've seen this a lot on cars that are running too lean. Not to say yours is, just running hot. I've seen so many turbo manny's glowing red hot after a bit of hot lapping. Than, when unbolting it, if you unscrewed the ends completely loose befor the mittle, it could have that effect. Either way, good luck getting it fixed. Milling it is surely the best option. Shouldn't cost that much. Worst case, you'll have to cut the flange off and weld a new one on.

[bomdoutscort]

Just to throw in my 2cents, I've seen this a lot on cars that are running too lean. Not to say yours is, just running hot. I've seen so many turbo manny's glowing red hot after a bit of hot lapping. Than, when unbolting it, if you unscrewed the ends completely loose befor the mittle, it could have that effect. Either way, good luck getting it fixed. Milling it is surely the best option. Shouldn't cost that much. Worst case, you'll have to cut the flange off and weld a new one on.

You do realize you'd be milling an eighth to a quarter off to make it flat.

[u.k gtr]

milling is best op . .

[wheresthericego]

Talked to jet-hot today. I asked them to elaborate on the coating process. It includes a thermal cleaning where the part is super heated to burn off all impurities, something else, coating, and a final baking to cure the coating. I did not ask the temperatures at which the manifold is exposed to.
I also asked them if they have ever had this problem before which they said that they have not.
However they offered to have the manifold picked up by fed-ex tomorrow so they can take a further look at it.

I realize milling would probably be the best thing to do but the amount which needs to be milled off makes me nervous. It needs at least an eighth taken out of the center. I am not an expert but that seems like a lot..

Turbo flange also seems to be warped. I think it would be better to check it with some sort of machine measuring tool to be sure since it is so small. My level/straight edge is kind of hard to see since the flange is so small.

I will post updates as I get them...

[Racerboy]

While I don't think it's a good idea, I think milling is the only thing you can do.

[wheresthericego]

While I don't think it's a good idea, I think milling is the only thing you can do.

same here