do i need a heat shield on my new exhaust manifold

[methmonster420]

i just replaced my old cracked exhaust manifold with a new one that didnt come with the heat shield and that sucker is getiing red hot can i leave it the way it is or should i put a new heat shield on i cant use the old one because it just fell apart when i took the manifold off so i rigged the hose that runs out the front of the truck too cool it off to blow the air right onto it but it deosnt help any suggestions?

[TireIron]

if your manifold is getting glowing hot then chances are you are either running very rich or you have a plugged up exhaust. A manifold will normally get quite hot, but the only time I've seen properly running engines make the manifolds glow are turbod engines being run very hard. Mostly I see it on VWs.

[Dave R]

If your truck is EFI then you don't need the heat shield for the engine to run well in winter.

But, I agree with TireIron, and I'd suggest looking at your ignition timing. The manifolds aren't supposed to glow. That could help to explain why your old one cracked.