GM original Kustom headers?

Paranoid · 12-30-06, 07:50 PM

Anyone have any info on these pipes? supposedly used on L-88 Vette's and also available over the counter from GM The Item numbers are 3960709 and 3960710 and is stamped into the flange.

Looking for any additional info anyone might share. The primaries run a little different than the Hooker sidemounts and are said to mount without clearance issues. Here's a pic, the silver are Hookers and the black are the Kustom sidepipes.

Thanks
Len

67HEAVEN · 12-30-06, 10:20 PM

Len,

I drove HEAVEN to Flint, Michigan in the winter of '68-'69, right to the Kustom factory. I bought a set from them that Friday and installed them right in the parking lot on that very cold winter afternoon after their closing time.

That's right, I installed them in the parking lot with the car poised over a shallow drainage ditch.....just deep enough for me to crawl under. The biggest inconvenience was disconnecting the clutch cross shaft.

They stayed on my car for approximately 30 years until they dissolved into powder.

The company went out of business many years ago. I agree, they did fit better than Hookers do.

Here they are in use on my car in the early 1970's.

Paranoid · 12-31-06, 09:23 AM

Thanks Bob. That's a funny story, ah the good old days, changing parts on the street or in the bushes.

Makin mods to your car over the weekend so you can drive it to work on monday.

I wonder if there's a difference in performance with either set of pipes.

JohnZ · 12-31-06, 05:01 PM

Kustom Equipment was also the supplier for the '67-'68 Camaro Z/28 factory "shipped in the trunk" headers, and for the factory-installed headers on the Cosworth-Vega; was in their shop several times in 1975 when they were making the Cosworth headers.

motorman · 12-31-06, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnZ

Kustom Equipment was also the supplier for the '67-'68 Camaro Z/28 factory "shipped in the trunk" headers, and for the factory-installed headers on the Cosworth-Vega; was in their shop several times in 1975 when they were making the Cosworth headers.

i was kustom header dealer back then and i thought they were in standish mich. of course that was a long time ago and a lot of brain cells have died.

67HEAVEN · 12-31-06, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by motorman

i was kustom header dealer back then and i thought they were in standish mich. of course that was a long time ago and a lot of brain cells have died.

If you trip over any of mine, please send them back.

motorman · 12-31-06, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 67HEAVEN

If you trip over any of mine, please send them back.

headers or bain cells ??????

67HEAVEN · 12-31-06, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by motorman

headers or bain cells ??????

brain cells.

Mac · 12-31-06, 05:52 PM

This may seem like a silly question but are any of the current manufacturers making something like the Kustom header? If it fit better, wouldn't it make sense?

-Mac

Paranoid · 12-31-06, 06:41 PM

Yep, you'd think Hooker would have picked up on that.

Tom Bryant · 12-31-06, 09:21 PM

The Kustoms are a cleaner design. Someone should start making an exact copy.

Bob,

How could you see what you were doing with all of that hair in your face?

tom

Altered · 10-08-07, 10:48 PM

I was doing a search and found this post. A little dated post but thought I might mention a possible reason for the difference in design that makes the Hooker look worse is they could be equal length headers. Back in the day that wasn't much thought of but you know how technology has to always ruin a good thing.