[Vic1947]

By the end of 2011, I'd roughed in some of the bodywork, but it was making such a mess with the doors closed due to cold weather, I took a break and started building the exhaust system. I had previously set the engine and trans in place, so I began by laying out pieces on the floor to get an idea of what worked. I started with a 2.5" SS, mandrel bent, universal kit from Flowmaster. It showed a suggested layout, but by swapping a couple of the pieces around I was better able to route it around my crossmembers.

For best results with stainless tubing, it's recommended to purge the inside of the tubing with argon. I picked up a nice little kit that incorporated double silicone sealing discs with a sintered bronze diffuser in the middle. I would pull it past the first butt joint about 6", seal off the other end, leaving a small hole to let the purge gas slowly escape. At that point, I could weld the seam using a minimum of weld rod. In fact, most joints were done without any filler at all.