Back in 02 I bought a set of Edelbrock headers for my 97 Trans Am and sent them off to Jet Hot [ http://www.jet-hot.com/ ] to get the stealing silver coating. For anyone not familiar with their products - they provide a heat shield coating for headers and other exhaust parts. Quality work and very quick turn around time. The headers were perfect and they took great pains to ensure that inside the O2 return ports were not coated as well as the bolt-hole threads.
Fast forward 4 years.
I sent a brand new set of Yoshimura 4-1 headers to be coated by Jet Hot. These headers were brand new out of the box and assembled.
When my headers arrived to Jet Hot, I got a call from them and was told that the headers would be disassembled so they could ensure the coating would get into all the nooks and crannies. I said okay, but insisted they be reassembled before they were shipped back, because I was worried that the coating on the joints would increase the fitting tolerance and they wouldn't go back together. She said that had never been a problem in the past and they would put them back together.
Fast forward 1 month
My headers arrive, and they are in pieces. Every part is disassembled. The coating looks like crap with visible bubbles inside and outside the tubes, and to be what looks like a thumb print on the inside of each tube where is looks like it had been grabbed.
Expletives withheld
I attempt to reassemble the headers and immediately notice that the ends of some of the tubes are out-of-round, like they had been put in a vice or something.
I call Jet Hot and spoke with a manager, and after some phone wrangling which really changed my perception of the company, he agreed to have Fed-Ex pick them up and have his repair guy look at them.
I complained about the headers being taken apart in the first place, and his reply was that he was surprised I didn't want them back in pieces.
Fast forward 3 weeks
Headers are back from repair, and still in pieces. The tubes are now round, but the joints are still too thick with coating to fit properly.
So I'm trying to figure out my options. I'm done dealing with those fools, and will never recommend nor use them again.
A. I can try and perform the finish work myself, but have never done anything like this before, therefore can't draw any reference of experience.
B. I can take them to the stealership and get them done properly, but get butt rapped in the process.
Does anyone have any idea what a job like that would cost? Finishing the header joints so they fit back together within tolerance and no leaks?
If I do it myself, anyone have any idea what sort of material I can use to start sanding that coating off? Should I get a rubber mallet and give it a whack here and there to make they fit?
Any help would be great.
Fast forward 4 years.
I sent a brand new set of Yoshimura 4-1 headers to be coated by Jet Hot. These headers were brand new out of the box and assembled.
When my headers arrived to Jet Hot, I got a call from them and was told that the headers would be disassembled so they could ensure the coating would get into all the nooks and crannies. I said okay, but insisted they be reassembled before they were shipped back, because I was worried that the coating on the joints would increase the fitting tolerance and they wouldn't go back together. She said that had never been a problem in the past and they would put them back together.
Fast forward 1 month
My headers arrive, and they are in pieces. Every part is disassembled. The coating looks like crap with visible bubbles inside and outside the tubes, and to be what looks like a thumb print on the inside of each tube where is looks like it had been grabbed.
Expletives withheld
I attempt to reassemble the headers and immediately notice that the ends of some of the tubes are out-of-round, like they had been put in a vice or something.
I call Jet Hot and spoke with a manager, and after some phone wrangling which really changed my perception of the company, he agreed to have Fed-Ex pick them up and have his repair guy look at them.
I complained about the headers being taken apart in the first place, and his reply was that he was surprised I didn't want them back in pieces.
Fast forward 3 weeks
Headers are back from repair, and still in pieces. The tubes are now round, but the joints are still too thick with coating to fit properly.
So I'm trying to figure out my options. I'm done dealing with those fools, and will never recommend nor use them again.
A. I can try and perform the finish work myself, but have never done anything like this before, therefore can't draw any reference of experience.
B. I can take them to the stealership and get them done properly, but get butt rapped in the process.
Does anyone have any idea what a job like that would cost? Finishing the header joints so they fit back together within tolerance and no leaks?
If I do it myself, anyone have any idea what sort of material I can use to start sanding that coating off? Should I get a rubber mallet and give it a whack here and there to make they fit?
Any help would be great.
