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Technical Cooling an A-V8

Discussion in 'Traditional Hot Rods' started by olskool34, May 24, 2020.

  1. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    I have a ‘36 LB Flathead I installed in my ‘29 coupe over the winter. I had the engine torn down and there were no ubstructions in the block, nothing in the heads. Nice clean engine. I took my ‘29 radiator to a shop and had them look it over. They said it was a super nice radiator. I had them add a port to the top and bottom tanks. Today while driving them temp went up to 210. It did not get any hotter but it was only 82 degrees. I stopped at a gas station to get smokes and let it idle and when I got back in the temp was 220+. It calmed down immediately to 185 driving and began to go up. I am running no thermostats at the moment. Should I install thermostats? Is my A radiator to small? Any thoughts? I don’t want a boil over every time I drive it this summer.
     
  2. HotRod33
    Joined: Oct 5, 2008
    Posts: 2,570

    HotRod33
    Member

    Yes..... If you don't run a thermostat nothing is regulating the flow of coolant and the radiator can't act as a heat exchanger and cool the water.
     
    seb fontana and stillrunners like this.
  3. winduptoy
    Joined: Feb 19, 2013
    Posts: 3,316

    winduptoy
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    With my hopped up bangers a stock Model A, two row radiator isn't enough cooling on a hot day or at idle. I'm thinking you are going to need more radiator.

    Sent from my XT1585 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
    Binger and firstinsteele like this.
  4. HotRod33
    Joined: Oct 5, 2008
    Posts: 2,570

    HotRod33
    Member

    If you don't have a thermostat you don't know if the radiator is large enough.... Then if it runs warm it can be airflow .... I've seen cars with big radiators run hot without a proper fan or shroud.... Just putting in a bigger radiator doesn't always fix the problem
     
    studebaker46 likes this.

  5. 42merc
    Joined: Dec 19, 2010
    Posts: 894

    42merc
    Member

    Like I said on the Barn, a stock "A" radiator will not cool a V8 flathead.
    Buy a Walker.
     
  6. quickchangeV8
    Joined: Dec 7, 2010
    Posts: 533

    quickchangeV8
    Member

    You have two issues going on here. One is you need to run thermostats. Henry Ford was cheap, and his Ford flatheads ran thermostats. If thermostats weren't needed Henry Ford certainly wouldn't have put them in his flathead engines. Two is that a stock Model A radiator won't cool your 1936 flathead engine. The Model A radiator was designed for a 4 cylinder engine and just won't effectively cool a flathead V8.
     
    Truck64 and stillrunners like this.
  7. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    My problem with the New radiators is the bottom take is too tall and you can see it. A stock a bottom tank is about 1 inch if that.
     
  8. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    I will try termostats first. I am grimacing about a new radiator because they just don’t look right.
     
  9. Vimtage Iron
    Joined: Feb 28, 2010
    Posts: 561

    Vimtage Iron
    Member

    Ok, I'll bite, if the new radiator is the same size as the old one and the old one is clean and bitchen where is the difference gonna be, I had a couple radiators built for a 1947 Peterbilt, mind you it came out new with a Hallscott or a Cummins of small horse power, I had to make a second new radiator for it because of some assholes inattention to his driving and this one came from Radiator Supply house in Oregon and showed up with one less row of tubes, Vince told me that by the time air got to the last row of tubes it was too hot to do anything, he might just be right as I have a Cummins of larger horsepower in it now and can't get it hot.
     
    shawnsauto1 likes this.
  10. Same problem with my girlfriend - she's kinda petite - but has large projectiles that poke out........
     
    samdjr74, ramblin dan and MayDay like this.
  11. Well, crap, man, folks have told you the answer. Continue to "look right" or run right. Only you can decide.

    Ben
     
  12. ydopen
    Joined: Mar 14, 2010
    Posts: 230

    ydopen
    Member

    U S radiator makes good ones. You can get different heights and the lower tanks are compact. They moved the outlets in 1/2 inch to match water pumps for me.

    I have a 276 and the fan is not real close to the core but it never goes over the 170 thermostat temperature on hot days.
    ford-1928-1953-car-1928-29-v8-flathead-radiator.html

    John
     
  13. v8flat44
    Joined: Nov 13, 2017
    Posts: 1,211

    v8flat44

    You will need stats any way, so try a pair of 180s. I had 160s in a 52 Ford with 8BA & it ran hot. Switched to 180s & it ran cooler.Kept coolant in the rad longer. New rad or not you need stats. My .02 cents, or nonsense.............
     
  14. What's the "problem?"
    -chris
     
    samdjr74 likes this.
  15. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    Does anybody make a radiator with a stock cap? All the radiators I see have the cap under the hood.
     
  16. ramblin dan
    Joined: Apr 16, 2018
    Posts: 3,609

    ramblin dan

    Quit bragging!
     
  17. 42merc
    Joined: Dec 19, 2010
    Posts: 894

    42merc
    Member

    Walker has one with a fake threaded hub that accepts a stock cap.
    The filler is under the hood.
     
  18. Tim
    Joined: Mar 2, 2001
    Posts: 17,086

    Tim
    Member
    from KCMO

    You never said it actually boiled over and 210/ 185 sound like perfectly normal temps?

    Some thermostats will help it regulate I think that’s all you need.

    If a stock model A radiator can cool a sbc it can cool a Flathead.

    worse case you could find an AA radiator they are twice as thick as an A but look the same other wise
     
    flatford39 likes this.
  19. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    I took it to the gas station and let it idle when I went in for smokes. When I came out it was at 230. I drove away and it went down quickly but when I got home and let it cool down I was about a gallon low on coolant. I went back to the gas station today and saw my trail of coolant. I bought some thermostats today and some water wetter. I’ll see if that makes a difference. 6C7B56EC-249F-4BBD-B7BD-E6883C5E894D.jpeg
     
  20. Tim
    Joined: Mar 2, 2001
    Posts: 17,086

    Tim
    Member
    from KCMO

    With a shot, if it wasn’t a whole gallon low I’d say maybe you just have more in it than it wants. Wouldn’t be the first car to do it.

    hopefully the thermostats do the trick, you’re close.
     
  21. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    03E6A730-A580-4857-A41B-D6B760FC9645.jpeg Had to figure out a way to make the thermostats stay. This is how I did it. Hope it works.
     
    48fordnut and Tim like this.
  22. jimmy six
    Joined: Mar 21, 2006
    Posts: 14,795

    jimmy six
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    If you don’t have an over flow tank, leave the water down 1” in the top tank. I run a 7 psi tank and have a US radiator and it only pucked coolant when I forgot to leave the tank low.... That’s the way they are meant to be run...
     
    Tim likes this.
  23. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    No overflow tank. I do leave the coolant low as I found out ten years ago when I first bought the car. It pucked because I had it filled right to the top but found its sweet spot and I never had to do a thing after that. But that was with the banger.
     
  24. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    Drove it around a bit and it got up to 200-205 so I brought it back home. Dang. I do not have the cash for a new radiator at the moment.
     
  25. olds vroom
    Joined: Jan 29, 2010
    Posts: 982

    olds vroom
    Member

    Are you running a fan shroud?


    Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
     
  26. 1-SHOT
    Joined: Sep 23, 2014
    Posts: 2,693

    1-SHOT
    Member
    from Denton

    Thats why A V8 ran 32 radiators and grill shells , they didn’t have to solder necks in by the radiator shop, just bolt on and go, and it cooled them.
     
  27. olskool34
    Joined: Jun 28, 2006
    Posts: 2,597

    olskool34
    Member

    My fan is from a ‘46. It is practically the same diameter as my radiator so a shroud would be almost impossible.
     
  28. Petejoe
    Joined: Nov 27, 2002
    Posts: 12,263

    Petejoe
    Member
    from Zoar, Ohio

    No don’t drop the water in your radiator.
    Along with a pressurized radiator cap install a brake residual valve onto your overflow hose. Yes I said (brake).
    It runs at 2 lb and will keep your radiator from losing your needed coolant and the pressurized system will keep it cooler.
    I run them on all my Flathead’s.


    https://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS/555/631030/10002/-1
     
    Scotty's Garage! likes this.
  29. T stats for sure.

    I knew some flathead racers that used washers that slowed the flow a long time ago. I don't remember what they are called now but you can still buy them in different sizes. Some drag racers use them. I probably would not use them in a street car.

    Last flathead I drove on a regular basis was in the very early '70s. It was a Merc hardtop. Someone who owned it before I did put dual temp gauges in it. I had a stat stick on the pass side once and pulled it out (to get home) and kept an eye on it. The driver side temp gauge maintained a better temp than the pass side.
     

  30. I run the same thing on my stock 34 radiator with Skips pumps and no thermostats on the 59AB in my 34. Never, ever gets hot. Has the stock cap too I made a thicker gasket for to help with puking.

    My Brother has a 29 roadster AV8 with a 1934 flathead V8, he used a stock 32 radiator cut down to 28-29 height (new core). Stock cap. Pressure valve. Runs a 33-34 fan with the blades shortened to clear. No thermostats. Skips Pumps. Never runs hot.
     
    sidevalve8ba likes this.

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