Technical 46 ford,SBC how much space between rad and water pump

Can someone tell me how much space there is between the short water pump and the radiator when a sbc is installed. Have a chance to pick up a spal 16"electric fan cheap, wondering if someone can help me with that approx. measurement. Thanks.

 

It depends on how far back you mounted the engine. If you have minimal clearance between the engine and firewall there should be enough room for the fan.

 

Time to get the tape measure out

 

1.5 inch. I made the mistake on my roadster and had to add a adator to get the blades closer to the radiator. Once I moved the blades closer it had more pull. I checked with a sheet in front of the radiator and it shucked it in .

 

I'm gathering parts for my car , haven't done the swap yet.

 

Nit to sound like a smart ass but it depends on where you mounted the motor. Did you make mounts or did you buy a pre fab set from. Distributor?

Also was this originally a v8 car or an inline 6 car?

 

This is a v8 car, haven't done the swap yet. Going to use my hurst front mount, 283 with stock distributor, original drive train.

 

Ok. That should help as we can use the bell housing as a measuring point if someone else has one bolted to a stock trans as well.

I used chassis engineering inc mounts and it's pretty tight with a short pump but you can still run a mechanical fan.

Are you thinking you want to run a mechanical fan and an electric?

 

Thanks, I would like to use a mechanical , unless I have to use electric.

 

What worked for me, I used a 6 cylinder radiator.
It's mounted 3" forward of where a V8 radiator sits.
It keeps my 400 sbc cool with a clutch fan

 

Yeah keep an eye on where things land and you should be fine. I have my radiator in the stock placement and while it's very tight I run a mech fan.

I'm pretty sure coops 46 with early sbc it attached to the stock trans and etc and runs a mech fan so it should be doable.

I'll see if I can find any photos of that area. It's in the latest issue of hopup, and Titus and bob bleed each owned it at one point so I'm sure ohotos exist.

 

If you do the inline 6 your going to need a lot more than a different radiator. That entire yoke is different and further forward I believe, the radiator cowl in front of the rad is totally different as is the rod that goes in front of it all from fender to fender.

I would image the pan under/behind the grill would also be different

 

Quick search shows @GARY? Owned it for a bit as well. This is a photo I found of it when he owned it showing the mech fan.

Not something you really take a photo of but you can see that it is there in the pic

 

Believe this is a shot of it bolted to a stock trans via cragar adapter

 

Thanks, for taking the time to look that up, now I have a idea what to expect.

 

SBC has a long and short water pump, difference being 1 5/8 " might help you if you end up close and need that much

 

^ you need the short one you won't have an extra 1 5/8

 

using the short one. thanks.

 

Our Sedan was a 6 cylinder car, SBC is mounted with a Hurst front mount. There was 5 1/2 in. between the fan and stock 6 cyl. rad. Got hot in traffic, was fine at hiway speed. We replaced the radiator with a Walker V8 mounted in the V8 position, installed a Walker shroud, she'll sit in traffic all day long and stay cool now!! ( Short Pump)

 

Hope this helps a bit...I eliminated the mechanical fan and installed a 2500 cfm pusher and it ran alot hotter.

So what I did was moved the radiator closer to the engine and reinstalled the mechanical fan with a shroud and it ran way cooler. The mechanical fan is now 1\2" from the rad and i rarely use the pusher...I also installed a trans cooler and a bypass on the water pump....things that might help you in case you run hot too...took me a while but now it runs cool.

Sent from my QMV7A using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Thanks for the info, how much space do you have now between the rad and water pump? What size fan?

 

You will have plenty of room to run a stock mechanical fan mounted solid without a fan clutch or spacer. Make a fan shroud or get a good sheet metal shop to make one for you. Make the shroud in two pieces so it can be taken out easily to change a fan belt or water pump. A fan shroud will help it run a lot cooler, since 100% of the air that the fan pulls in passes through the radiator. Without a shround, the fan pulls a lot of air that doesn't pass through the radiator to help with cooling.

 

Stock Chevy 16 in. fan is 1 1/2 in. from rad. The Walker shroud I used comes without a hole, I cut a 17 in. hole in it, there is just enough room between the fan and radiator to slide it into place. The Walker stuff is a little spendy but it now runs cool with no worries about gett'n HOT! Also, if you have the stock lower pans that came with your car, put them back on, they are there for a reason!!

 

Thanks Rick, all the info is helpful. I just got my 283 back from the machine shop, and just finished assembling it. all that is left now is to clean it good and paint it. Painting it the original 42-48 ford flathead dark blue. Then pull the flatty, and install the 283. Thanks, Mike.

 

Mike I hope to be doing just what you are doing this winter or early spring. I'm still driving my 46 for the time being

 

Just for the record, my SBC is hooked to the stock 46 trans and rear end. Plenty of room between the firewall and distributor. I did use 265 exhaust manifolds to clear the steering box. Hope that helps you out!!