I may appear late to the party on this thread, and have little to offer in the way of expertise (so haven't posted previously), but i have been following it (and the previous discussion/group buy threads) with some interest as my name is on the list - i find it interesting to expand my own knowledge and understanding by reading up on stuff, even though the bottom line is, "I'm just the driver - let the engineers do their bit".
I was getting a tad concerned that this thread was spiralling downwards into a bit of a slanging match, and thought (think?) i may have to put my moderators hat on and start some editing......
...however, Monty lept in from the Red corner and expressed my thoughts pretty much as they were (are?), and since then we are back on topic.
From my point of view, having been here longer than some, but not as long as others, is that this thread is fairly specific, and started by Tom to ask for assitance to develop the best product possible for all of our benefit - it matters not (to me) who invented the wheel, but no-one has ever said that their wheel is better than mine - just maybe fit for a different purpose or use (or at a better price/availability).
As far as who to buy from, that is a personal decision by each purchaser - but my understanding thus far is that a number of people over the years have addressed this particular issue with some success (some more than others), and it appeared last year that a good, usable product had been developed in USA. However, it never went into production, and at that time numerous people enquired as to projected costs, eventually it seemed to peter out and nothing appeared on the market.
Now it appears that we have a motivated developer (with a proven background) who can take this on to a stage where it may well become as *necessary* to us all as the Everest Chip - obviously it depends on price, but there does appear to be a fair bit of support from the membership, and Piper are prepared to put time/effort into the project.
I would hope that Billy at Knox does not feel 'slighted' by this move, and i have no doubt that the product he has developed for Steve works well, but it appears that he is/was unable to provide further items, but i may well be wrong about that, and am open to correction.
Also, I don't see Stevo (or anyone who has one of his original 'stiffys') jumping up and down saying that he's already done it, so why bother - nearly everything can be improved as materials & production techniques evolve.
If this appears to show that LEC are offering support to Piper over Knox, all I can say is that the opinions i express are mine, not necessarily those of the management - but i have a Piper exhaust on my car (and pre-cat eliminator) with which i am very happy, and i support the company and use(d) their products (exhausts and camshafts) in 3 of my current fleet, and many others in the past.
That said, if Billy can provide his item at the right price, i could be persuaded - but it doesn't even appear to be an availlable item at this stage, just a 'one-off' which has worked very well.
As to the proposition that it has become an international war of UK vs US, one word sums that up - Bloody Ludicrous (okay, 2 words

)
We are all here for the same sort of reasons, and i have bits on my car which have been made in the USA (Thanks Marie - love your hoops!), as well as spending plenty of my own time over the years sending stuff to USA from UK - thats how it all works - we (as a community) get stuff where it is available, and ship it to wherever the end-user happens to live - and long may it continue.
Okay, that's my 2c / 2p worth done - so back to the techies to sort me a good product at the right price.........
.....and remember to play nice - you're being watched
