That looks fine Ryan. Still, I have to wonder how many folks think "radiator paint" is a requirement? It isn't. Thin and black, done. Semi-flat black, better cooling. Special chemistry? Never. Too many out there still getting judged 100pts over a decade later with plain ol SS black urethane with a bit of reducer. Save your $$$ and time in the future, anyone reading this with interest for a project in the works.
Local rad shop who recored my rad told me after the fact about the latex paint,,they are compelled to use this type of paint due to environment issue but 3 years down the road still looks like new
Use "Fusion" satin or gloss black rattle can paint,its flexible ,will not peel off Aluminum even..... it is available at Wal Mart,$3.99
Why not go with a black radiator in the 1st place or have one made....Thinks to walker i dont need no paint....................
As with almost everything these days, companies farm out the production of most products and have very little to no control over what goes into it. Everybody is cutting corners and companies are being run by bean counters who want to make everything as cheap as possible. Products that once worked well are being replaces with inferior imitations
I know the OP is about the quality of a product,and I'm not trying to derail the thread, but this brings other questions to mind.. So let me ask this, How much does any paint affect the radiator cooling effiency? is it a significant amount ?? Has anyone ever tested painted radiators vs unpainted ? Or , Painted with housepaint vs generic spraybomb vs designated "radiator paint" ?? Seems to my old aging brain, that if a coat of paint makes the difference in overheating ,then the cooling system is marginal at best... Well , back to the Activity Room ... The orange Jello is here... Stan
I'll answer a couple of the questions posted. Aluminum radiators, buy a spray can of "Self Etching Primer". It contains a form of acid so ventilate accordingly. Spray it on, flash it for 30min, give or take depending on temp, apply a thin layer of black right to it. Done, and will last for decades. As to black or natural. Scientists contracted by OEMs have studied the effects of a thin coat of black with regard to cooling vs a natural finish, and 30yrs ago they concluded that a thin coat of black absorbed the heat from within, and when exposed to an airstream assisted in air cooling the object in question. Air cooled bikes got black cylinders for a purpose rather than for style. Radiators have been black since, well, the beginning right? A shiny bright surface stays hot, a flat dark surface cools faster. I didn't figure it out, I just followed along and so far so good. Add to that, nothing looks more incomplete to me than a core support in color or a fresh aluminum radiator showing through a grille. The best kustoms of the day always blacked out the area behind the grille. If from now on that look bothers you too, you're welcome...
Ive had real good luck on radiators with Dupli-Color engine enamel. The paint is made for high temperature applications, so I figured why not? The trick is to spray light coats so you don't get too much paint on the cooling fins. I'll spray 1 light coat and about 30 minutes later, I'll give it another light coat. This is usually all the paint needed to give my radiators a nice new black appearance. The radiators have never run hotter afterward. ...robber
After returning from Bonneville in 09, my aluminum radiator had the Bonneville salt etched look, so while I had the engine and tranny out for repainting I purchased some Eastwood Radiator Black paint for the radiator. I used self etching primer after cleaning and just sprayed the Eastwood radiator paint on with no real precautions. Used most of one can on the radiator as I recall and still have a can left over. It didn't wrinkle and is holding up well. We've all had prolems with rattle can paint lifting or wrinkling, but generally, in my case, it was from mixing products. I was happy with the Eastwood radiator paint. As easy as the product was to use, I suspect maybe a bad batch of paint, possibly to much solvent in the mixture. BOutlaw
While we all sympathize with Weasel - it's no fun to redo any job - I have used Eastwood products since the 80s and am very pleased. This includes their radiator paint which I recently used on a Model T with very good results and those radiators get HOT. Having read the other comments I would agree that the problem was an application and/or recoat issue. It's a cosmetic paint and a thin coat is all that's needed. If there were something wrong with the product itself we would see hundreds of complaints, not one, and Eastwood would have issued a recall/warning and taken it off the market. Instead, they offered to replace the product which in the real world is the limit of their liability. Weasel's hysterical ranting and raving, issuing a big bad "WARNING," writing the president of Eastwood, and trashing their products seems childish and over the top. Sometimes we just have to take responsibility for our own actions, painful as that might be. And no, I don't work for Eastwood and the president didn't pay me to write this.
Ask any radiator shop. Use the cheapest black weather flat etc. Available at any hardware store for $.99. Never a call back because of paint.
Only time I have had spray can paint wrinkle up like that is because the temperature was a bit too low when I went to apply the second coat.
Wow! Joins, resurrects a dead thread, and includes a personal attack on the OP; seems to be an agenda here. wtf.
I thought I read a black radiator will shed heat better than an unpainted radiator. Could be wrong. The paint itself has to be really thin, just a wash basically.
It's been a long time, but there's an S.A.E. write up about black and cooling, regardless of material. That said, I have been known to "cheat" when it comes to losing the aluminum-through-the-grille look. I'll paint the front of the core and only the front surfaces that show, then try to style the rest of the engine compartment so it "likes' the look of the aluminum radiator. Best of both worlds.
My first job was delivering radiators for a shop that recored them. They used a cheap flat black paint and thinned it with gasoline. I was really thin and they sprayed it so it just barely covered the copper core. They propped them up like they were installed and sprayed from above, never covering the bottom of the fins. I have always done the same.
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