I have a Bud that had a 32 with side pipes and he beat on it quite a bit and never had any problems with crack's either. the engine did some rocking with the cam also. I never knew of any burns either but he was in his mid 70"s so I guess he had the experience not to touch things when they were HOT.
he has sold it now but here is a link for it with a video if you would like to check it out 1bad32
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http://www.streetsideclassics.com/showcar.php/atl/242/1932-Ford-5-Window-Coupe