After running the hedman headers for a bit, I can honestly say, DON'T buy them. I was under the truck at least once a month tightening the connectors, mainly at the drivers side flange. It appears that connection is a weak link. It appears the "Y" pipe is expanding to allow the header ball to sink further and further into it.
Hard to see, but, here are some pictures:
"Y" pipe flange:





Under a hard load, such as pulling our 5th wheel over the pass, it would leak so bad, it would sound like a diesel. These headers do not hold up under a hard load, or for daily use.
I put the factory manifolds and "Y" pipe back on. No more exhaust leaks, and runs quieter.
I will be saving up some money, and switching to the Banks system later.

 

My Thorleys showed up today. So, depending on the weather, I'll try to do the install this weekend. 👍

 

Hey!

My brother is doing the same headers on his rebuild. What's funny is we found this post from a long time ago as a reference for which headers to go with! Saw your from Alaska as well, small world!

I'm holding out on my X until I spring a leak on the exhaust manifold, will be interesting to see how the swap goes.

 

No they are not stainless, 14ga steel which is thicker than the 16ga used on most headers.

Mine have been on for like 7 years now. The front of the crossover pipe has most of ceramic peeled off and bubbles here and there of the ceramic coating peeling. This is with painting them with header paint twice a year.(wire brush loose stuff, header primer and then header paint) Right before winter I painted them again and found a small hole (rust through) right in front of the triangular flange where the Thorleys bolt to the trucks exhaust. I'm going to see if I can weld a patch over it in the spring. I'm still going to order another set of Thorleys to keep on hand in case there is rust through I can't repair well.

Overall I am happy with the thorleys. I just wish they would be made out of 304 stainless 14ga tube instead of plain ole steel. I'd pay the several hundred dollars more for the stainless too. I'm so tired of dealing with rust on everything....

 

I just recently installed a set of used Thorleys. There was rust in places where gravel has chipped the coating. Mainly along the bottom tubes and Y pipe. Nothing major just on the surface. I can see how lots of snow and salt could eat them in time.

BTW Love the headers. Really woke up the truck.

 

I had today off for Presidents' Day, and the weather was cooperative, so I decided to tackle the Thorley header install. I'll make another thread for pics and a description of the work, but I'll say this now... Installing the Hedmans was SUBSTANTIALLY easier than installing the Thorleys. In fact, I spent most of the day on it and I'm not done yet. Total PITA! At this point, the headers are bolted to the heads, which I'm calling a major accomplishment. After work tomorrow, I'll be bolting the headers to the cat, tightening the band clamps, and reassembling everything I had to take apart to get to this point. Ugh... I'm tired.

 

I managed to get mine on.... I have one last bolt to tighten down (top rear bolt on the passenger side). Major PITA! I tried a 12mm wrench, a 12mm socket with extensions and swivels... Just no dice. Seems like you have to come from the back of the headers and somehow get a wrench on it that way and slowly turn it.

 

I got the Thorley install finished tonight, along with new o2 sensors. Was running the truck to check for leaks, and putting the tools away as the sun went down. ... Then I realized I hadn't reinstalled the dipstick tube. 😖😖 Sooooo..... now that everything's good and hot, I'll be doing that after work tomorrow. 😒

 

I know this is an old thread, but I'm looking for some headers. How have those held up?

 

Mine have done well after the warranty replacement. They are rusty as hell, because I put it down "wet" the last two winters with road salt on them.

But that is to be expected.

Other than that, again, they've held up well.

Personally, even with the warranty replacement I went through and how good they were doing it (with some "I'm a moderator on the ford-trucks.com website" thrown in) I would go with Banks or some other stainless header.

I still have a spare driver's side they sent me because the first warranty replacement they sent me was warped. Like they don't know to lay the header down back on the template after welding to check it. Sigh...

 

How has this worked out for you?

I might be replacing my Hedmans soon if I keep the truck.

 

I run the Banks headers, they have treated me very well. They have been on the truck for about 4 years now with no leaks or other issues. We tow heavy (11k lbs) so they do get worked hard with lots of throttle opening under load for hours at a time and they are holding up very well. They do provide a noticeable performance gain and are built to very high quality standards, I would buy them again if needed.

 

The Heddmans... I recommend passing on the false value of their low price and buying something better. Out of shear frustration with the collector leaks, I removed them and gave both my sets (original and 'bulletproof' replacements) to my brother. He is thinking about having the collector joints replaced with something else, but hasn't installed them yet.

The Thorleys... I haven't had any issues at all since I bolted them on. Not one leak, and performance comparable to, or a bit better than the Heddman set. I don't have any experience with Banks, or other brands. But I can definitely recommend the Thorleys.

 

nice post ,thanks, next years project

 

Was just passing through and thought I'd give another update on my Thorley Headers. I installed them in February of 2016 and it's now July of 2018. So, I've been running them almost two and a half years now with no leaks, no significant rust, no problems at all... just like it should be. Sooooo much better than the leaky Hedman units I was dealing with before.