I bought some Pacemaker headers from Overland Cruisers last year to replace the log style OEM manifolds. The Pacemaker pipework is much longer than the OEM manifolds so they're not a bolt in replacement, the OEM cat pipes have to be cut 20mm forwards of the cats, be expanded and then have the supplied flange welded on.
Pacemakers:
I looked into having the headers ceramic coated but that's an expensive option in the UK, as much again as the headers cost so I decided to use a wrap instead. I painted the headers with high temp paint, wrapped them in some fancy stuff from http://www.agriemach.com and gave them another few coats of high temp paint again. Why? The headers are bulkier than the OEM log manifolds (which have heat shields) and will sit a bit closer to surrounding items so it seems sensible to keep the heat in and also there are supposed to be performance benefits. You can buy stainless steel zip ties or use SS welding wire to hold the wrap in place but I found SS CV boot clips worked very well and I already have a tool for clamping those up nice and tight. No pics of the wrapped headers but they would just have shown black versions of the above really
Rather than messing about with the OEM cat pipes / system I booked the truck in for a session at Pro-Speed (http://www.pro-speedexhausts.com) so they could fit the headers and build me a custom SS exhaust from there all the way back. Charlie at Pro-Speed really wanted me to arrive the afternoon before and stop over in a B&B so they could get it all stripped down ready but I thought they could get it all done in a day
Access to the OEM manifolds and their heat shields proved to be a real problem and of course all the nuts decided they were happy to stay where they were 
Once the OEM manifolds were eventually removed there were still fun and games getting the passenger side header into place (not enough room with studs / engine in place) so the engine had to be raised and of course the nuts were just as hard to get at, maybe harder with header pipes all over the place although at least this time they weren't seized! In the end it took all day to get the headers on and there was still the rest of the exhaust to be built!
The system they've built me is a work of art, really, very neatly tucked up out of harms way, TIG welded, quality thick wall stainless steel, sports cats into a Y pipe into a hand made silencer and then out the back end. I've had custom 'stainless' systems built before and the difference in quality of workmanship, attention to detail (and materials) between those and what Pro-Speed have built for me is huge and well worth a little extra for the Pro-Speed version!
I could have got the train home and gone back for it today but I've never liked leaving my truck behind if I can avoid it. It took till 11PM to get finished but they never showed any signs of cutting corners or reducing their standards to get this PITA customer off their premises
Because of the late hour I didn't take pictures, didn't want to be getting in the way, but I'll crawl under it with the camera sometime soon and shoot some pics then and drool a bit more over my pipework.
I would highly recommend Pro-Speed but I'd also recommend taking Charlie's advice on how long it's going to take to do the job, he just might know a bit more about the job than you ;-)
Pacemakers:
I looked into having the headers ceramic coated but that's an expensive option in the UK, as much again as the headers cost so I decided to use a wrap instead. I painted the headers with high temp paint, wrapped them in some fancy stuff from http://www.agriemach.com and gave them another few coats of high temp paint again. Why? The headers are bulkier than the OEM log manifolds (which have heat shields) and will sit a bit closer to surrounding items so it seems sensible to keep the heat in and also there are supposed to be performance benefits. You can buy stainless steel zip ties or use SS welding wire to hold the wrap in place but I found SS CV boot clips worked very well and I already have a tool for clamping those up nice and tight. No pics of the wrapped headers but they would just have shown black versions of the above really
Rather than messing about with the OEM cat pipes / system I booked the truck in for a session at Pro-Speed (http://www.pro-speedexhausts.com) so they could fit the headers and build me a custom SS exhaust from there all the way back. Charlie at Pro-Speed really wanted me to arrive the afternoon before and stop over in a B&B so they could get it all stripped down ready but I thought they could get it all done in a day
Access to the OEM manifolds and their heat shields proved to be a real problem and of course all the nuts decided they were happy to stay where they were Once the OEM manifolds were eventually removed there were still fun and games getting the passenger side header into place (not enough room with studs / engine in place) so the engine had to be raised and of course the nuts were just as hard to get at, maybe harder with header pipes all over the place although at least this time they weren't seized! In the end it took all day to get the headers on and there was still the rest of the exhaust to be built!The system they've built me is a work of art, really, very neatly tucked up out of harms way, TIG welded, quality thick wall stainless steel, sports cats into a Y pipe into a hand made silencer and then out the back end. I've had custom 'stainless' systems built before and the difference in quality of workmanship, attention to detail (and materials) between those and what Pro-Speed have built for me is huge and well worth a little extra for the Pro-Speed version!
I could have got the train home and gone back for it today but I've never liked leaving my truck behind if I can avoid it. It took till 11PM to get finished but they never showed any signs of cutting corners or reducing their standards to get this PITA customer off their premises
Because of the late hour I didn't take pictures, didn't want to be getting in the way, but I'll crawl under it with the camera sometime soon and shoot some pics then and drool a bit more over my pipework.
I would highly recommend Pro-Speed but I'd also recommend taking Charlie's advice on how long it's going to take to do the job, he just might know a bit more about the job than you ;-)
Like these that were waiting their turn:
