Exhaust manifold studs pros and con questions....

[husker boxster]

Sorry I'm late to the party, but I wanted to add for historical reference. Sounds like you're going studs. I wanted to discuss bolts.

When I changed the driver's exhaust manifold on my CSS, I went to the hardware store and bought some M8 bolts. Turns out the heads were 12mm while the heads on the factory bolts were 13s. Thinking long term, I decided to order a set of factory bolts since I figured the 13mm head would be easier to loosen in the future vs the 12s. Plus the head on the factory bolt was meatier. Just made sense to go with factory.

Now back to stud discussion...