you already know my take on it and having used all of the options mentioned, here is a breakdown of the my thoughts on the pros and cons:

Heat wrap/turbo blankets-dei,thermotec, etc:
-Pros: less expensive due to cost of material and the fact that you can install it yourself, even if the parts are installed on your car, which is reason why I think it's attractive to most. can be taken off from one application and applied to another

-cons: Some companies void warranties for wrapping their products. said to trap moisture in, thus accelerating wear on metal components. potentially catching fire due to possibility of absorbing flammable materials (oil). adds a little bit of thickness, could be bad for tight tolerance areas. could come off due to fasteners loosening or whatever attaches the wrap breaks. Turbo exhaust blankets usually deteriorate the first time you remove them, incurring the cost of another.


Coatings-swaintech, jet hot:
-Pros: Thinner, doesn't add much thickness to component coated. Can be painted over by color of preference. Swaintech white lightning used for the pagani zonda

-Cons: Some companies void warranties for coating of their products. Downtime. Cannot do it on your own, would have to send it in which incur more costs due to shipping. Flaking of coating, leading to unattractive appearance ( my jet hot coating started flaking half a year after having it). Cannot be reused or transferred. Hard to modify metal component if an o2 bung needs to be installed or pipes need to be cut or welded to.


Metal shield/wrap
-Pros: Supposed to be best heat insulation and for convection heat management to adjacent components via an air barrier. member sarek here used the swaintech white lightning coating and was melting his driver's side motor mount bushings. used the inconel wrap to remedy this. Long-lasting. Will not deteriorate over time, should last the life of the car. Mainly the route that OEMs go for heat management of their exhaust components

-Cons: Cost, especially if using inconel. Custom made to application which incurs shipping costs and downtime. because of this, it can also not be transferred to another application unless it's the same/similar component. Adds a little thickness to parts. Isn't as aesthetically pleasing? (preference).

 

You have a lot of area to shield with that mani, hence the cost. Mine was much less than that for the Ptuning setup. I have never had anyone say the shielding does not look good. You can't see the turbo due to the low mount. I can tell you I have no issues with anything melting with this setup.

 

i think yours looks fine because it is a bottom mount like you said, and it's not much area. it is far more aesthetically pleasing vs a stock heat shield.


on a sidewinder setup that would completely change my opinion. because of the design of your manifold it looks good.

 

Here was my Mase Kit, didn't look that bad IMO

 

^ I see it the complete other way, maybe it's just because I know how effective and expensive the inconel is. Both of those setups look absolutely BALLER!

 

SwainTech specifically states that you can use spray ceramic over their coating and that the White Lightning coating makes a good base for the sprays to adhere to. My header is coated by SwainTech and I have also sprayed gray ceramic over it. I have not had any issues with the coating coming off and that's with nearly a year of use and 4 track days.

SwainTech:



Gray spray ceramic over SwainTech:






On my Subaru, I like the white color... The header isn't really seen, so I suppose it doesn't matter, but I haven't melted my under tray.

 

Agree a 100%.. doesn't look bad due to the fact that his setup is hidden.. on the other hand my twin scroll sidewinder with dump tube exiting out the hood is completely visible and very attractive with all the mandrel bent components etc.. This is the way I see it, if a true pro track driver looks under my hood, he would most likely smile and say dam that is nice, but if I'm at a Honda meet out here in CA to enter it in a show, I think ricers and people that aren't knowledgeable with inconel will probably think it looks like I got some tin foil from my kitchen to cover up my rusty mani, housing and dp lol.. I know I shouldn't care what non enthusiast think, but I'm about show and go.

 

SwainTech specifically states that you can use spray ceramic over their coating and that the White Lightning coating makes a good base for the sprays to adhere to. My header is coated by SwainTech and I have also sprayed gray ceramic over it. I have not had any issues with the coating coming off and that's with nearly a year of use and 4 track days.

SwainTech:



Gray spray ceramic over SwainTech:






On my Subaru, I like the white color... The header isn't really seen, so I suppose it doesn't matter, but I haven't melted my under tray.




[/quote]
Beautiful

 

In your opinion does the titanium dei look better then atp inconel? Will the dei titanium compliment my custom made full blown dump tubes that exit out hood? Lj is in the process of making my dump tubes.. I really love the bronze ish stainless steel look with the gorgeous raw welds so I am leaving my dump tubes raw.. will a fb sidewinder wrapped in dei go with the raw fb stainless steel dump tubes cosmetically? I'm thinking the dei titanium looks similar to the raw full blown/full race stainless steel color.

 

How many miles do you have on your turbo setup thus far?
[/quote]
Zero miles..bought it brand new from Rob! GTX3582R