So i'm thinking boost. i have been looking at some of the rigs and kits out there and i have been salivating over them all. i have had nitrous for a while now, but i want that full time kick in the pants. i was just thinkinig about trying to fab up my own single turbo system. i'm new to turbos but i can weld and i'm very patient and a perfectionist. i want to do a mid mounted torbo right after a custom Y pipe. just looking for some suggestions to get me going in the right direction. i dont want to buy a kit because they seem really overpriced and the gratification of doing it myself is well worth the effort. any input or suggestions would be great.

 

If you think the kits are over-priced, I wouldn't make your own -- typically, it's more expensive than people think, although it is easier to pay for it incrementally (unless you aren't going to coat the pipes or something like that).

If your hoe is 2wd, take a look at Trick's new mid mount.

 

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cough cough, Front mount.

 

Nah brother, when you go down low, they call it a mid mount (at least on tech hehe)

 

I've been calling mine a low mount.

 

Keep the turbos close and hot, thats all thats needed.

Rick

 

i dont see how it could be more expensive than buying a kit. i would think that buying all the necessary parts including the oil system the turbo and a bunch of pre-bent tubing could not possibly cost as much as it would if i bought through a company which has spent money on R&D and made a custom setup for my truck. i would be buying all the same parts they would be giving me, but without their markup so they can make a profit.

like i said i'm new to turbos but has anyone actually built their own and what did it cost?

 

i fabbed up a turbo kit on my bosses 87 gmc and we just used exhaust pipe and he had less than a grand in it..it was a rear mount style, right before the gas tanks

 

I've known several guys who did it and I built my own twin kit.

All of these kits were built to at least the level of quality you'd expect from a manufactured kit and included all necessary parts (oil systems, bovs, wg, silicon, etc.) All were coated.

My twin kit, counting the killer discounts I got on most of the big parts ended up costing around $7500-8000. That includes exhaust port to TB, complete and is a rear mount with dual exhaust and dual charge pipes into a custom IC. I did a lot of extra stuff (tucked everything, used t-bolt clamps everywhere, twin bovs, twin wg, etc.) that went beyond what was strictly necessary and represents an all out effort. There is no twin rear mount kit for these trucks, but I believe the twin C5 kit from STS is in the $5500-6000 range (but doesn't include the complete exhaust). Check out my build by clicking the Custom TT link in my sig.

Where shops make their money is in having a jig for the kit, knowing exactly where the cuts are, possibly having their own tubing bender or CNC for parts, and buying in bulk on parts and consumables.


Yeah, you can beat their price if you are willing to cut corners or *maybe* if you can get really really cheap materials. I got cheap turbos, custom IC, oil system, wg, and bovs (and I mean waaay cheap) and probably still spent more than the non-existent kit would cost.

It's the little stuff that adds up. Ceramic coating alone was over a grand. Hell, the fittings and braided line for the oil system cost more than the twin oil pumps...

 

i think the c5 kits are 7g's