Okay, I'm going to sound like an idiot asking this, but I honestly don't know. I have an extra muffler sitting in the garage. It's one I had picked up for my Laser, but since my Laser doesn't run at the moment, and I need a new muffler, I'm wanting to use it. Here's my problem. It's titanium. Not that I don't like titanium, but it's real fricken expensive and I don't want to ruin it. I have aluminized steel pipe right now and I don't have any extra cash to get a new stainless pipe, let alone a new titanium pipe. I want to know if titanium can be welded to aluminized steel. I picked up a step-pipe to match the 2.25" pipe with the 2.5" inlet, but I don't want to clamp it on. I don't weld, so I honestly don't know. I'm having a friend weld it for me. And I need a new muffler because my old one fell the f*ck off on the interstate when the clamp came loose. Hence why I want to weld this new one on.
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wow, why in the world would any one take the money to produce a titanium muffler?
can i ask how much did you spend on this muffler? if its anything less that say $5,000 theres no way it could be titanium. . . . .
what would the advantages of titanium even be?? a little lighter?? i'd guess SS i dont know any one else any ideas?
2.2 OHV
wow, i did a search on google, sorry for my first post i take it all back.
2.2 OHV
well, technically no you cant.....actually technically, no you shouldnt...but its a damn muffler.
i happen to have some aluminized piping and some titanium right here, so im gonna go out to my shop and give it a go.
Yeah, it's not as expensive as you might think. Not cheap, but not 5 grand. It cost me about $500, but that's just what I paid at the shop I used to use. They went out of business and I have no idea what it would cost me noe, but a friend paid about 2,500 for an HKS 3" setup for his Supra.
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i really, really widh they made a mandrel bent titantium catback for our cars. original poster, can u please post a pic of the muffler when you have one? was thinking about picking one up. and it is more than a little lighter, btw, guys. the jic bullet brand ones weigh 5 lbs....as opposed to the 20lb magnaflow one i have right now. i love my magnaflow...but was thinking of replacing it, as it is damaged.
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ok, i just tried it. and No, it doesnt work.
i established a decent puddle, and carried it all the way accross the 3 inch piece of titanium. i sat there and watched it cool....and listened to it ping (lol), then grabbed the titanium and ripped it right off the pipe. this was gtaw with titanium filler by the way.
So it can't be welded. Not what I wanted to hear, but hey what the hell, clamps it is. I'll see if I can track down a picture of the muffler. I don't have a digital camera so I can't download one, but it doesn't look any different than the typical round can with a 4" tip. As far as a full titanium catback for our cars, it wouldn't be worth it unless you planned on getting every ounce of weight savings you can for racing. It flows just the same as stainless, just ways a lot less. And I honestly don't know if one could get raw titanium pipe to have bent or not. But it wouldn't be cheap that's for sure.
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^^^^^ yerp, itd be for weight savings. check my registry, ive probably knocked off 150 lbs off the original wiehgt of the car.
...don't hate!.. respect people that have talent, even if it is in something you don't like or understand.
Johnathan, look into the stainless-steel band type clamps, such as the Dynomax (available from Summit Racing or Jeg's for $8.50-$12.99 each) or the Jeg's brand. They seal better than the U-bolt type and won't crush the pipe.
I'm seriously thinking about those, MadJack. I just got a Jegs catalog about a week ago and I looked through it last night and I'm thinking they'd be the best bet. Atleast that way if I decide to change the pipe I can do it and the muffler won't be ruined. Actually it's when. I have a new cat and I'm wanting to get a header and a resonator at some point this year so I'm just waiting to have some extra cash. Those clamps will come in handy.
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Most likely just the outer case is Ti, otherwise yes it would be quite pricey. If you want a fully Ti, mandrel bent cat back, contact Burns Stainless.
Ti is a great material for headers in NA engines where it doesn't get super hot, but you need to lose a bunch of weight.
If you don't want to use clamps, you can always have a V-band flange welded onto each component., made of the respective material and then V-band clamp them together. Great seal, lasts forever and its easy and fast to take apart. But a little pricey.
Good luck.
1988 Pontiac Fiero, engine transplant underway.
2004 ECOtec, built and boosted
It can kind of be welded. it will never be as strong as titanium to titanium, or steel to steel. If you want the best chance of the weld holding, you need to TIG weld the joint in a purge tent, meaning that the inside AND outside are free of ALL oxygen. And it needs to come down from high temps slowly. Basically, it's not worth even trying though, since exhaust systems are exposed to high vibrations. It wouldn't last long anyway. Just use a clamp and be done with it.
I thought Titanium was damn near impossible to weld, to steel, and especially to titanium itself, from what I understand thats the problem the military faced then they wanted to make titanium frames for fighter jets like the F-14. To do this they needed to create a whole new set of welding equipment. But yeah, Titanium-anything, aint gonna happen unless your an ungodly welder with some high dollar equipment.
Cory-titanium isnt that big of a deal, its a little sticky in its liquid form, but with a good amount of practice and good instruction, pretty much any welder can do it. equipment wise-you just need a good TIG machine, a gas lense, and you need to know how to build a good purging setup for each weld.
Nitro-have you tried it? i did a T-joint, so the gas was all there, it was nice and shiny when i was done. But somethin really funky happened when the Ti filler mixed with the steel. The bead just basically turned to crap, when i broke it, it broke right down the middle of the weld.
It's because it cooled down too fast, and you didn't use a purge tent. It has to come down from high temp real slow, being purged the whole time, inside and out. Purging just the inside doesn't work on titanium. It makes it very brittle. And yes, I have tried it. I've been welding just about everything you could imagine (TIG of course) for about 12 years now, and not to be cocky, but I know my crap. And for the most part, I agree wholeheartedly that a steel to titanium jiunt will not be permanent, especially on something that vibrates.
Well, guys, look at the bright side. We've all learned something. I'm just going to order up sone band clamps like MadJack suggested. I didn't want to use the typical U-clamps because they crush the pipe a bit and I want to be able to fit the new rear section in when I put on the rest of the exhaust. I figured welding would be best since I could just cut the pipe and weld the new section in no hassles. No biggie. But atleast now we know the truth about welding mixed metals. And I talked to my welder friend and he didn't think he could do it either.
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Quote:
It's because it cooled down too fast, and you didn't use a purge tent. It has to come down from high temp real slow, being purged the whole time, inside and out. Purging just the inside doesn't work on titanium. It makes it very brittle. And yes, I have tried it. I've been welding just about everything you could imagine (TIG of course) for about 12 years now, and not to be cocky, but I know my crap. And for the most part, I agree wholeheartedly that a steel to titanium jiunt will not be permanent, especially on something that vibrates.
ya i think with some postheat it could probably be a bit stronger. you can hear it start to crack real quick though, like right when you break the arc. im guessing it would require a second person to come along with some postheat before you even break the arc.
lol, ya i know all about people thinkin im cocky to, seems like everyone with a buzbox out in their shed has to tell me that theyre a welder to, and i have to explain to them the differnce between that, and what I do.
Maybe im just pulling straws here, but evertime i see real ti used, its riveted. So why not rivit it to the steel adaptor, grind the inside clean, and then weld that adaptor part to the rest of the steel piping.
Dan Morrison wrote:
ya i think with some postheat it could probably be a bit stronger. you can hear it start to crack real quick though, like right when you break the arc. im guessing it would require a second person to come along with some postheat before you even break the arc.
lol, ya i know all about people thinkin im cocky to, seems like everyone with a buzbox out in their shed has to tell me that theyre a welder to, and i have to explain to them the differnce between that, and what I do.
Actually, preheating the joint in an oven helps even the heat out, and the heat from the welding doesn't saturate into the rest of the part as quickly becasue there's already heat there. If there is a possible way to post heat it immediately, that helps too.
And I know exactly what you mean about all those self proclaimed welders. I never assume anybody knows how to weld unless I talk to them enough to see if they know what they're talking about or see their work. It's so funny to see people come into my workplace to take a weld test for hiring purposes. So many people swear they can weld but they lay down chicken scratch, and forget about TIG, lol! I get the feeling that if you go through the same things, you're ok in my book.
Sorry for the mild threadjack, Jonathan! But yea, the clamps you are planning on using are the best bet for you. Good luck!
