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Nice welding! You just saved yourself a ton of $$$ too. New mufflers and stacks ain't cheap. Just replaced mine a while back ($500 give or take) and I just have a one-stack Mack with a window in the back.

I used the old muffler clamp as a patch. Wasn't too tough welding around the bottom edge where the steel was still good, but the top where the muffler was rusty and the metal was thin...and the fact that all I had was a .35 gauge flux core wire...wasn't nearly as easy. Had to set it on a real slow wire feed rate to basically rapidly spot weld to build up material without burning holes through it...then once I had enough built up, I could run a decent bead on it. I really needed the shielding gas and a .24 gauge wire...would have made the job MUCH easier.

I've wanted to shorten the stacks since I bought the truck...always liked the low-profile look...especially on a work truck. The passenger side was dinged at the top when I bought it, and I made short work of making the driver's side match at a shipper...danged catwalk wasn't quite over far enough...:angry: Anyway, tried doing the job last fall, but couldn't get the stupid stacks out of the top of the muffler. This time, I just cut 'em off even with the top, then used a chisel and a BFH to get that last few inches removed. While they were off, I straightened out the dings, then I marked 'em and cut 'em to the size I wanted.

FWIW, the Mack dealer quoted me a price of around $150 just for one muffler. I don't even want to know what they'd want for the stacks.

The one thing I find confusing, though, is that the passenger side exhaust (muffler, heat shield, etc.) seems to be mounted 1" higher than the left side :blink: Found that out when I was measuring to make sure both sides were the same. I ended up mounting the stacks relative to the mufflers they are inserted into, rather than to the ground in case there was just a low spot in the driveway that I was measuring to. I need to double check one of these days on a concrete pad...seems odd they would mount one side higher than the other...

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!
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I got a brand new 9400 International when I drove for H.H.Moore and it was 13'3" to the top of the stacks. First thing I did was take 'em off and shorten them a foot.

I took about 2 feet off of these. I had been up around 12' for a clearance height. Now I'm a hair under 10'.

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!
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In my exhaust upgrade/replacement adventures, I've found that the mufflers were cheaper ($55) than the 2 foot turnouts I bought ($65). I bought the mufflers from the Kenworth dealer here and the turnouts from Mack, just cause I like the 'Mack' style.

If you think the mufflers are expensive, try buying what's under the cab, especially if you have dual exhaust.

I put 6" straights on mine a couple weeks ago....and it's LOUD!!!!! I think I regret doing it and might put the mufflers back on. So if anyone wants a set of 6 foot long, by 6 inch diameter chrome straights, let me know!!!

Ever wonder how a blind person knows when to stop wiping?

gallery_1977_876_21691.jpg

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In my exhaust upgrade/replacement adventures, I've found that the mufflers were cheaper ($55) than the 2 foot turnouts I bought ($65). I bought the mufflers from the Kenworth dealer here and the turnouts from Mack, just cause I like the 'Mack' style.

If you think the mufflers are expensive, try buying what's under the cab, especially if you have dual exhaust.

I put 6" straights on mine a couple weeks ago....and it's LOUD!!!!! I think I regret doing it and might put the mufflers back on. So if anyone wants a set of 6 foot long, by 6 inch diameter chrome straights, let me know!!!

I got a welder. As long as it's steel, I can patch it. Heck, my welder is a wire-feed one, so if I were to buy the shielding gas and play with it for a while to figure out what I was doing, I could do aluminum repairs too. Plastic can be epoxy'd...fiberglass can be patched....it's them danged electronics that break me :blink:

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!
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  • 1 month later...

I put mufflers back on my truck...I had to buy new ones (bashed the old ones up pretty good getting them off) and I couldn't get the original turnouts off. I used some my brother had on his truck for a friggin day then took off. I went from 2 feet to 3 feet.

post-1977-12515816999713_thumb.jpgpost-1977-12515816887694_thumb.jpg

Ever wonder how a blind person knows when to stop wiping?

gallery_1977_876_21691.jpg

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I put mufflers back on my truck...I had to buy new ones (bashed the old ones up pretty good getting them off) and I couldn't get the original turnouts off. I used some my brother had on his truck for a friggin day then took off. I went from 2 feet to 3 feet.

post-1977-12515816999713_thumb.jpgpost-1977-12515816887694_thumb.jpg

...must be nice having that kind of money to buy something like that, use it for a day, then box it up and store it in the garage until you get sick of looking at it or find someone else who has a use for it :tease:

I'd shorten 'em if I was you....'fore ya fergit and knock them things off.

FWIW, I was cutting across a blacktop road taking a shortcut to my next pickup the other day...running down a 20 ton weight limit road (I'm 15 tons empty :banana: ) and came upon a 12' underpass beneath a railroad. I'm 10' now on the truck, and the trailer I can see out the rear window...made it with room to spare (measured the trailer when I got home @ 10'11"...good info to have). If I still had my longer stacks, it would have been REAL tight, and I wouldn't have been able to watch them as I went under...could have been ugly. :o

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!
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The only thing I really have to worry about getting underneath is the asphalt plant (12ft) and the door on the shed I park in is 12ft also, so I knew it'd work. There aren't many low bridges that I know of in my area and I never run in Chicago with all their low underpasses.

My brother drives a Pete, so that should explain it... :lol:

Ever wonder how a blind person knows when to stop wiping?

gallery_1977_876_21691.jpg

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The only thing I really have to worry about getting underneath is the asphalt plant (12ft) and the door on the shed I park in is 12ft also, so I knew it'd work. There aren't many low bridges that I know of in my area and I never run in Chicago with all their low underpasses.

My brother drives a Pete, so that should explain it... :lol:

Mighta been embarrassin' if'n ya put the stacks on in the shed and bent 'em when ya pulled out :blush:

When approaching a 4-way stop, the vehicle with the biggest tires has the right of way!
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Mighta been embarrassin' if'n ya put the stacks on in the shed and bent 'em when ya pulled out :blush:

Haha. Might that fall under the "measure once, cut twice theory"..?

Ever wonder how a blind person knows when to stop wiping?

gallery_1977_876_21691.jpg

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