Muffler Question.
 

So... I was polishing the tips of my exhaust, and they sure are pretty now. They'd been neglected by the PO.

Anyway... I was thinking... I wanna remove the mufflers and paint them. And probably repolish the tips with a dremel on low speed (for a dremel) instead, so that they're almost mirror like, but I want them to stay that way, and not need a lot of polishing.

So the thought was this. Er, thoughts were this. Are these. Meh, you get the idea...:

1) Remove axle back mufflers and such. as needed.
2) clean up mufflers completely.
3) polish exhaust tips as desired for close to mirrorness
4) tape off tips
5) prime muffler with high temp epoxy primer base
6) paint with either
...a) high temp satin (semi-gloss) black
...b) wrinkle finish black.
...c) (open to suggestions, as long as the color is black.)
7) Tape off muffler
8) paint tip with clear coat to protect polished finish.
9) after all that, put it back on the car.

http://www.duplicolor.com/products/engine.html
DE 1636 Clear for the tips, DH 1614 Primer and DH 1602 Black for the muffler. The clear is supposed to be...well, clear and shiny, and the black (if the yellow painted caliper in the picture example is right) is going to have the finish I want. This paint is shown for examples, if you know of better, I'm all ears.

Overall... Silly? Awesome? Meh-ness?

No, I don't wanna put on different mufflers. I like the sound fine. Just want it to look a tad better, that's all.

Yeah, rolled chrome tips and all that... I like the stainless, just don't wanna have to cut my hands on the facia to polish them up, nor remove them to do it. Somethin' more permanent with the clear, I hoping...

Maybe I'll go to a salvage yard and find me a pair to test with... probably the best thing to do.

Anyway, all thoughts appreciated!

Sounds like a lot of work.

I say go for it. I would think the shine on the tips won't last long.... of course I could be wrong

I painted my Hooker AeroChambers while they were on the car. I masked off the entire rear of the car (and muffler tips) with newspaper, scrubbed the mufflers with sandpaper to give them some tooth, a couple of light coats of hi-temp primer, a couple coats of flat black BBQ grille paint, let it sit for a bit, pull all the paper off. I painted only the sides and bottom of the mufflers, nearly 2 years ago and no peeling/flaking.

I painted my GTA's prior to installation with BBQ grill paint with good results. All I did was wipe down the new mufflers, mask the tips, and spray away. I think it was Rustoleum paint.

How well does paste wax work on exhaust tips? That might make them easier to clean.

Paste wax did the trick for me. I just hit them with a (Chip Foose endorsed) Powerball once in a while and they're great.

I can tell you that when clear heats up,it turns a yellowish ugly color. Happened on my rotors and it was VHT high temp spray. That stuff was supposed to be the best

Ok, I don't want yellow. Ok then, I suppose an occasional polish session isn't a terrible thing...

As to the 'lot of work' issue... I wanna do it right, completely, and all the way. Can't really do that on the car, and it's only a couple of bolts to do, so I figure why not?

Technically... the end of the pipe is still behind the pax compartment... so I would still pass legally speaking... it'd just be louder. :D

/hmm...

The stock tips are T-304SS. The muffler and pipes are all T-409SS. SS is an alloy that is corrosion resistant, so there is no need to coat it with anything unless you want extra protection. In that case, you can just sand/polish it down periodically.

I use Meguiars Cleaner Wax on everything I want to be able to easily wipe off. I used it on my motorcycle windscreen. I use it on almost any surface that is smooth. I used it on my motorcycle exhaust to allow for easy removal of the rubber from my wife's boots.

You can use Meguiars as a protectant layer that wipes away easily. I usually use that in conjunction with some NXT Generation Spray Detailer. You can keep a rag in the trunk with the NXT and wipe stuff off at shows and burger stands.