Does Header Paint degrade performance?

Would a flat black high-temp coating on the headers degrade the performance at all?


What's the best way to prep chrome headers for a paint application that will last?


Thanks

i wouldnt think so. if anything it would be better to hold in the heat in my opinion.

I agree, I dont think it would harm performace at all. the only thing i have ever read on this issue is that ferdinan Porche didnt paint the exhaust headers on the origional VW aircooled motors due to the fact that he felt that the paint held in some degree of heat. But only by fractions of a degree. On the other hand I have seen headers wraped with heat protectant fabric with no ill efects

Would it be safe to say that it could have positive effects then if its moving hot exhaust on through the pipes as oppose to uncoated headers (negatively) helping to heat up the cylinders? I know thats the concept in a car, but I dont think I baked the coating on properly on my 454 because the first thing the engine did was cook off all the exhaust coating.

i would be amazed if you could see a difrence even on a dyno. as far as preping the surface for paint, I would try and take all the crome off i could. another idea would be the old Black Crome idea. they use to do it in the 70's alot on choppers. you can still get it done today. it might fit ya alot better

Before getting ready to post, I entered "painting chrome" in the forum search. Found some discussion there that might interest you. I'm sure you need to rough up the surface, or etch it, somehow to prep it. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.

there is a reason why chevy paints their high performance crate engines black ,it disipates heat better

You will need to etch in some way before painting. I have sanded small chrome pieces and the paint stuck. I have also sandblasted bigger pieces and the paint stuck there also. It needs to be roughed up in some form to give the paint something to grab on to otherwise, it won't get a good hold and will want to peel off. Years ago, Honda painted the whole engine and exhaust flat black because the texture of the paint finish left more surface area so it ran cooler. Chrome will hold heat in and is not a good finish to use on a motor...it just looks cool in my opinion. Trade off! It won't hurt performance at all. I would even spray some paint down the inside of the pipes even...especially on new chrome pipes. It will help keep the pipes from blueing. Don't be stingy with the paint you spray on the inside either. I used to spray the header pipes flat black heat paint and keep the megaphone chrome. Nice look on the right bike. I wouldn't worry about painting the header might cause any kind of performance worries....good or bad. Only problem with paint is that over time it usually turns a grayish tint of black and will need repainting every so often, but that's a minor problem if you ask me.

It's better to have the heat in the pipe in most situations. There are even header wrap products designed to do that very thing. Keep in mind the heat from exhuast headers under the hood of a car is detrimental. Bike exhausts are out there in the air stream.

Exhaust velocity increases with temperature. Getting exhaust out of the engine is a good thing.......

What kind of heat is generated? Should I be looking at a 1200 degree coating or a 2000 degree?

The flat black paint will have more air friction, vs a shiney surface, which will cause you to lose .00025 mph at top end. I use hi heat paint I got at the auto parts store and it works just great. Get some rust remover, the liquid kind, it also comes in a spray can. Apply it after wire brushing any rust then wash off. Dry, then paint. The paint will be fairly fragile until the pipes get hot and set it......chris3

It looks good, but I don't know yet how it'll hold up. I'll let you know once I get it back on the road...