[QUOTE=Chromatic;10337639]Great help! lol.. yup there is one.. That's "down town" if you will.. I live about 20-30 mins from Downtown.. That store is about 45 mins away from me.. + traffic.. But if they have what I need I guess the gas is worth it lol.

So I guess the longest break bar I can get (that's reasonable) due to leverage.. I should go ahead and buy a solid 1/2" regular wratchet as I only have 1/4 and 3/8 ratchets.. and I'm always using adaptors for the Half inch stuff.. only my Impact stuff runs 1/2" .

If I need it anyways,.. hell why not right?

BTW: Man, you've been insanely helpful --
All I hear is talking! Hahaha i actually did the same. My buddy helped me install HU amp and subs which I NEVER thought I'd do. Put my cat back on myself with crap for tools. I'm thinking I'll collect tools here and there to do it myself when I get up the courage and cash ima spring for Berk or ARTs

 

I do have an off-topic question about a Camera below.. If you want to skip the rambling post.. Scroll down to where it says "Question Here"

Yeah.. they are sitting right here next to me actually.. I typically don't give parts any time to sit around but all the horror stories I've read have me thinking twice..

But man,.. after spending 100+ hours doing the install on my new Kenwood Headunit, 175ft of new Wiring (which I didn't bother to take pictures of... meh).. Stripping all the interior from hatchback to front out.. cutting out and rewiring the hack job whoever put in the old headunit and XM Satellite.. Fitting the SRQ Custom Box with the 10" JL Sub into that box (no easy task since the holes didn't line up).. re-fabbing the front door speaker mid spacers to fit my JBL 6.5"'s .. Cutting up the Door sail panels to fit the larger 1" component tweeters.. Making my MB Quart 6.5"'s fit in the rear.. Building an amp rack, carpeting it.. mounting the PPI amp to it.. wiring all that up and tuning/dialing it in.. -- Putting it all BACK together (that's a job too).. Then fabbing the glovebox for an intake fan after realizing our gloveboxes = Amp death boxes since no airflow is in there......

https://my350z.com/forum/audio-build...2008-350z.html

After all that.. honestly,.. Nothing short of rebuilding the engine or something equally as time consuming scares me to "try" that I haven't done before on this car.

The ONLY reason I'm a bit skeptical to just *try* to remove the factory Catalytic converters is that due to the "Demon Bolt stories" I don't want to round off/strip heads, or otherwise compromise the removal of the (12 bolts I think it is)..

If I got the bolts off the Header side.. I'd be home free.. Putting the new HFC's in should be a breeze. As my Cat-back was.. getting the old off surprisingly gave me zero trouble on the old rusty bolts,.. the hangers were tougher than the bolts.. And putting the new system in was a 15-20 minute ordeal by myself.

Hardest part of putting in the new Invidia Gemini system was getting my Tips at *just* the right position (having each tip be out the right length to my liking and both even with each other..) -- And the tips were separate from the rear muffler/diffuser (One bolt to clamp them on each).

No bs.. I got the old Exhaust off and New Invidia Gemini system in and done in 1 hour on Jack stands.. I was happily shocked at how easy it was,.. and the only reason I ended up doing that myself was because the mechanic who said he'd do it was late .. and they were busy for the day.. So I said, the hell with it.. I'm going to try it.

Now I don't want to "Jinx" myself.. The Cat removal is a different beast.. I guess due to the higher temps in that area and perhaps bolts being possibly torqued higher?

Question here:
Different topic -- but I know how people hate when I start topics,.. so I've been trying to find a relatively low cost Camcorder that will pick up audio (esp. low tones) better than my Iphone does for recording my exhaust, drive by's.. and as I see myself using my phone for Video work a few times a week now.

Also one that handles "low light" situations well (non grainy) -- I've done my research and Sony seems to be the recommendation with their CX line .. But reviews show despite "Lolux features" they are still grainy in indoor lighting or say garage lighting.. Primarily due to the lense size (and I think CMOS sensor size) But I think it's primarily the Lense size which makes sense as larger opening = more light just like your Pupils operate.

The cameras that people report work well in low light bump from the $100-$300 range I'm willing to spend,.. to the $700-$1500 range.

Shot in the dark here,.. but I don't suppose anyone knows of a good Camcorder (relatively small.. doesn't have to fit in my pocket though).. that works well in low lighting situations (like say a garage with the overhead light on.. ) that's $350 or less?

 

Go for the ART's! Price for good hfc's are close to them anyway; my crawford hfc's cost almost what I paid for the new art pipes. Good hfc's are nice to have, but there is a reason why so many of us MD/ART owners sing basically the same tune.

 

I feel the same way about starting a topic. I OVER provide information and not everyone cares so I always include a "too long; didn't read" option.

The only reason I'm considering Berk HFCs is my buddy won a 40% off coupon at a track day and he already had Test Pipes so he gave it to me. So I could really go ART used, or Berk HFC new for similar cost. And right now I'm on SUPER budget since I've gotten addicted to paying off debt and I owe on my Mazda that I've had for ~5 months so I want to pay that off stat. I have a cash rewards card that's up to $200 so I have been thinking about what I want to spend that on since it would take another year to get enough to buy ARTs new with that. I might pay bills and save all season while enjoying the car as is, then actually get a "winter build" next winter if I'm still in this winter state.

 

Yup.. Some people here are WAY too emotional and care way too much about whether someone types a "long" post,.. or god forbid asks a question that has been asked before. But,.. I tend to write a lot anyway, so I give a TLDR on some posts , esp. If there is a question I'd like specifically to get some attention.

Let's face it.. most people see a bunch of words and skip it.. it's just the way people are.. Most people don't like to read,.. some do, I'd say the majority of people don't. They especially don't want to read the ramblings of someone they have no connection to other than sharing the same website/forum. (Again I refer back to people caring too much about what someone posts in a forum.. but I digress..)

I didn't go for Berk HFC's over Art's for money -- cause as you say.. they are very similar in price. These Berk HFC's New and shipped were $440.. ART test pipes were within 50$ of that.

There were two other sides of the coin to consider for me..

1) (Most important for me) -- How loud. (I won't mention Rasp because that's debatable..) I already have a great Invidia Gemini exhaust that turned this single exhaust into a true dual.. and it sounds great.. and it's as loud as I want from 2k-3k RPM's (after 3k it's much quieter than I'd like).

2) Smell -- Again debatable.. but there is some possibility of some engine/exhaust smell from Testpipes -- I personally don't really see why this would occur when sitting still at a stop light or otherwise in idle.. because the system should be sealed -- but I guess maybe the fumes backtrack, or some people just have leaks in their system .. shrug.

So I looked at what testpipes and HFC's were actually made with quality -- The only two that met my criteria were Berk Technologies High Flow Cats,.. and MotorDyne's ART V3 Testpipes. Then settled on the Berk HFC's to keep the noise increase (that is going to happen either way) to a minimum..

It's really that simple.. Both Berk HFC's and ART Testpipes are just letting the exhaust gas go unfiltered straight to our lovely planet Earth -- Both reduce exhaust weight..

I don't know the specs on the ART pipes, but I do know the Berk's are 7lbs a piece,.. for a total of about 14lbs (give or take half a pound) -- Vs. stock cats are 46lbs.. 23lbs a piece obviously.. That's a nice "secondary" bonus to testpipes or HFC's..

32lb weight reduction is not bad when putting on a component I didn't even consider for weight reduction.

From what I've gathered from the reading I've done is that Berk HFC's will invariable add a tiny bit of rasp.. and So will ART testpipes.. But it's a small amount,.. not el cheapo $300 catback system exhausts, or $100-$200 testpipes from ABC brand that will put out all kinds of "Rasp" and sound awful. What really separates the ART pipes from the pack of other T-pipes.. is the Helmholtz Design,.. which not only makes them sound 10 times better than any other Test pipe out there,.. but also makes them the highest power producing Test pipes on the market. (Another two for one deal).

Tony Colette who is the brains behind the Helmholtz design on the ART pipes , before he started doing stuff like the perf. part designs, was literally a Rocket-Scientist.. lol. So, I guess you can't go wrong with either Berk HFC's or ART Test pipes.. I'd recommend either to anyone.

If you want to eek out more HP for you money.. Go with ART T-pipes.

If you are concerned with the dB noise volume of your system,.. Go with the Berk's.. You aren't going to get a quieter setup than a Cat-Back system designed specifically to not be overly loud like The Invidia Gemini, Or say the Nismo S-Tune, and a few others that are out there (i went invidia to get true dual instead of staying with the Y-pipe design that the Nismo S-Tune provides.. AND, I couldn't find the S-Tunes anywhere new or used.).

That's really it. I don't think for a second my Berk HFC's are going to give me the same or more power than ART pipes..

That said, .. I DO think the Cat's on the 350Z are the most restrictive part of the already well designed 60mm exhaust system stock.. So this is why you generally get the biggest hp gain from the Cat replacement (despite what you choose).

TLDR: - Nothing important --

 

Very well written. I know what you mean on all aspects, and I feel my "problem" is unanswered still. I have a thread asking the question here:

https://my350z.com/forum/intake-exha...ddy-evoii.html

Notice my "Warning" at the beginning of the thread. (TLDR)

I have left the thread alone since I used the money elsewhere and wasn't in the market anymore. Big point is "rasp" mentioned while straight pipes are warming up. After they run for 5-10 mins they sound golden IMO. Care to share your thoughts further? Here or there?

 

Berk HFC's installed!

Wow, Demon Bolts are no understatement for some of these cars where the heat cycling has literally welded the bolts to the flange.

I took several videos of the install, and helped the guy after about an hour of no luck..

I was working when we got the Driver Side bolt loose (which took over 2 hours).. so didn't film it.. But after spending all that time trying this and that.. We sort of had a "formula" , if you will, for getting what we knew was probably going to be just as hard on the passenger side front facing "Demon Bolt". -- So this bolt in this recording we got off in 10minutes or so..


I won't bore you with details of the install.. it was patience trying even with all the tools in the world..

Now the Berk High flow cats on my Invidia Gemini true Dual catback sound absolutely amazing!

Man my exhaust is loud now.. but the tone has no rasp.. which surprised me,.. has a little bit of "gurgle" which seems to be lessening.. ? when you are in a bit higher rpm.. say 3K+ and then let off the gas.. I liked it, but it seems like it's going to just about go away as the carbon builds up in the HFC's.. quickly.

But the sound.. wow, it's sexy. Sounds exotic .. like an Italian race-car sort of.. And it made all ranges of the RPM louder.. but as I hoped.. it turned 3k-7500rpm from Quiet to screaming..

I spent all that time putting in my ridiculous sound system.. and it's not getting hardly any use because of this exhaust lol..

This is the first "mod" I've done that unquestionably has made the car faster. The catback, the intake mod,.. etc.. was a maybe sort of deal.. these High flow cats I think joined all those mods "together' if you will.. and the car is spitting out considerably more HP (at least enough to unquestionably feel)..

It's insanely quicker in the midrange to topend.. from about 2800-7500 (I don't ever push it past 6500 or so..) feels 50 hp quicker.. I'm not saying I just got 50hp lol.. But it feels that much of a difference driving.

The cats were supposed to throw on something like 15-20hp from manufacturer.. So I'll call them 10hp to be more realistic. THe cat-back exhaust was 12-20hp from manufacturer so I'll call that 10hp to be realistic.. and the intakes were 6-10hp.. I'll call that ZERO horsepower to be realistic

So I think this car is putting out about 18-20hp more now over stock after 1800-2grand in perf parts..

Even if all I received was this sound it was worth it. I highly recommend Berk HFC Cats (and also the Invidia Gemini dual cat-back system) -- and obviously the combo of the two.. they work very well together.

Where are the videos of the sound, right? They are coming -- it's dark out now.. but with my work if I'm going to get any sound videos out with this new system I think I'm going to have to do it at night.. So, in a while I think I'm going to go find a large parking lot that is lit up where I can make some passes with my new Camcorder and tripod to show you guys.. and I'll do the ubiquitous Camcorder at exhaust level car start, idle till oil gets around engine a bit.. then rev it a few times (that doesn't really make a diff. night or day) -- and to be perfectly honest for sound purposes neither do any of these videos.. It's all for sound not looks.

I'll see what I can get done tonight for the few people curious how the Berk HFC's changed my sound of just having the Invidia Catback system and Stock cats to Invidia Catback + Berk HFC's.

Take care,

Btw: If you are curious of how things were going 2'ish hours into the removal of stock cats.. I did a video where I gave a synopsis of where we were at that point (as time is money).. If you care to watch it go for it.. but it wasn't too terribly long after that , that we started to get a little more aggressive (but safe) with it and got the 2+ hour "demon bolt" on driver side off.. We knew after that we had the "formula, if you will" to remove the passenger "demon bolt" much quicker (10 mins or so is all it took).

You have to remember at this point,.. it was questionable whether these stock cats were even going to come off period.. but we weren't giving up regardless of time.. this stuff becomes a "challenge" in and of itself.. lol.

 

This write up is SERIOUSLY making me doubt I could do this with jack stands and limited help on my 08. Looking through the DIY I knew it would be tough, but I didn't think it would be bad after I had the correct# of extensions. Maybe that money can go towards something else since I do enjoy the sound now.....

Opinions?

 

Honestly.. it's just a matter of luck. I had plenty of people tell me I couldn't do my Catback with hand tools by myself without major major headaches (then plenty here who said I could.)

I had a local mechanic lined up to do it.. He was late,.. when I arrived, and they were booked all day. So I said, the heck with it.. I'm going to give it a go.

I LUCKED out.. and my whole catback stock system came off in 30 minutes,.. No issues at all (PB Blaster about 30 mins prior to starting). The Invidia Gemini Catback system went on beautifully,.. about 15 minutes to get it all bolted up. So less than an hour for me to do my Catback.

The Cats are a bit different, and ONLY because of that moronic bolt on each side turned towards the front. Which is hard to get any torque on (I still have no idea why it's the one bolt on each side flippped around).. With all the intense heat cycles in that high heat area.. my Cats were super "welded" on the flange on that location.. and as you saw in the video(s).. required considerable acetylene torch time to expand the surrounding flange to get the bolt to move.

Now,.. many others can put a breaker bar on those things and if moves! You WANT it to move a bit.. get a little tough in the middle coming out.. and just snap. Once that bolt snaps you are home free.

I took off the two bolts on the driver side of the Stock cats and they came off by hand and a standard ratchet.. Took a little muscle, but nothing extraordinary. Just shows the difference in what no parasitic loss from 3 foot of extensions will do

I'd say it's worth a try.. It doesn't take but 10 minutes to get it setup to try a breaker bar on those front two bolts.. Give it some PB blaster the night before.. and during it... if it doesn't break in a few attempts, then you know to stop and let someone with a torch, or other such methods to do it. But, what if it does move for you? You are home free my man.. no expense.

Just don't strip that head doing it too much.. but a few 1-2 or 3 tries won't strip it with the proper fitting socket firmly ON the head.

Best I can give you.. It's impossible to predict really. Some people get under there with jackstands and they come right off with the breaker bar up top.. and the bottom will break with Pb Blaster and your hands.. -- Stock cats are super easy to get out at that point, just be careful with the O2 sensors,.. and installation of Test pipes or HFC's are super duper easy to put on (Just be sure to turn all those bolts the same way (toward the bottom of car) lol.. This is natural anyways as you don't want to tighten any of those bolts from the top again with extensions anyways.

I say PB it.. and give it a shot.

Unless, perhaps, you were in my shoes without the extensions, without the breaker bar.. etc.. Which would cost oh.. $75-$100 for decent tools.. tools you will need in the future at some point (Extensions maybe not so much.. but breaker bar, sure.) Nice thing about most box stores is you can get the tools and if they don't do the job, take them back same day.

Another piece of advice,.. the guy I used mentioned he brought some of the stuff he can't get off himself to the "Sportstrucks" exhaust shop 100 yards from his place.. So consider using a place that does exhaust work on big trucks like that,.. they probably are used to ridiculously torqued and tough bolts. He said he would work a few hours on a bolt.. take it to them and like magic they would have it off in 5-10 minutes.

I doubt you'll find an exhaust specialist like I found that charges $60 an hour (that's super low compared to everyone else around here.) -- Had he charged the $90-$100 that is typical for "performance installs" around here.. I would have been looking at a $500-$600 bill.. (As much as the HFC's were.. )

Good luck,

 

I got A better Camera, with an external Microphone -- and the exhaust sound is much truer (closer) to real life (not quite.. but better than anything so far.) -- So here's a 5 min clip of exhaust I put together with it.

 

Awesome write up! Appreciate you sharing such a detailed process.

I currently have z1 HFCs and I've had issues with only the driver side HFC cracking. I'm definitely not a happy camper. I'm thinking I'm going to replace them with Berks HFCs. I should of went w/ the Berks from the beginning. They were only $50-70 more.

Question: Did you restore the bracket between the HFCs? I had mine installed at Z1 and they didn't put it back on. My mechanic thinks this is the reason for the cracking. Thoughts? Anybody? Is that bracket necessary for aftermarket HFCs?

Thanks in advance.