Thread: 34 going up on jack stands for a while

Tweet

Hello Jack (Never say "Hi Jack" in an airport!). I am just saying hello since you were helpful to me early in my roadster build. I have avoided the A/C problem with yes/no side curtains seasonally on my roadster. However I had to face this problem even for a trans cooler and solved it with an "angle mount" under a fender but you don't have fenders! One last resort might be a mount in the trunk with outside scoops and a louvered lid, just a last ditch possibility since you have no fenders to hide it. I only show this to indicate the oblique mount will work if you can get it into an air stream. Also if you have no choice but to place it in front of the radiator the next question is whether the additional heat will mess up the cooling of your big block? I am so sick of cooling problems with the tiny 1929 radiator for just a SBC 350 that I hope your radiator can cope with the added heat from the exchanger since the very time you will want to use the A/C will be in hot weather! Otherwise your new polished accessories are beautiful!

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Originally Posted by parkwood

Jack with the condenser so far from the radiator i would be afraid that the air might not make it thru the radiator good enough to keep the water cool.. could be wrong but i've always been told that the condenser needs to be as close to the radiator as possible with out touching to get the air to flow thru both and work right ...

You may be right. The dimensions of the condenser were not exactly as was specified by the manufacturer. I have found a different condenser and have sent the supplier an email asking for certain exact dimensions. I may have wasted $100, but that would be better than the A/C not working.

Don, I have some ideas for the trans cooler, but the condenser has to be solved first. My 350 cools just fine and holds a solid 165F in traffic at idle - even on hot Texas days. I really would like to put a small heat exchanger in the radiator tank because the trans should be warmed up, but I've had a couple of shops tell me it's not possible.

0 Radiator Tank.jpg

Hello Jack, I see you have a 350 but I thought you had a big block a while back? I still have a box in my garage with your address from when you sent me a stack-type trans cooler. Anyway I am surprised you say it is difficult to have a trans cooler in the radiator? I have a Walker (copper) radiator that came with a trans cooler in the bottom. I went through an argumentative experience with a transmission shop that repaired my first 700R4 after I left it dry for 5 years and the valves rusted up. That shop would not guarantee the replacement trans they installed unless I had extra trans cooling so they hooked up my under-fender cooler in series with the bottom part of the Walker radiator. I would guess the 1934 style radiator is bigger than the 1929 radiator so you might not have as much of a problem as I had. I now have dual 1650 cfm fans on the radiator with one on all the time and the second on controlled by a thermostat. This set up necessitated an electric water pump. I really did not want an electric water pump and that is where the situation developed that in order to get my car out of that shop I had to let them do it their way! Anyway I have run all summer since then without overheating so the complicated set up they installed does work. Maybe you could check with Walker Radiators about a trans cooler in the radiator but that still does not answer whether your single puller fan can cool both the radiator and the A/C exchanger. I am glad I was able to test my cooling setup in the hottest July days and now in cooler weather it runs fine. If your present fan set up runs at 165 F as you say that is a good sign but cross your fingers and you really won't know until next July whether you can run the A/C. I think my temp gauge reads high because an IR thermometer reads some 15 F lower at the top of the radiator and it gets up to 215 on my gauge in July with a 17 psi radiator cap but yesterday I took a 63 mile run up to Bowling Green (Va) and back and the gauge never went over 200F. The catch can seems to behave OK so I think my gauge just reads high using 50/50 Prestone. So other than to just renew conversation after almost five years all I am saying is that you should check out the Walker radiators although a new one may be in the $650 range.

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Don, I had a Model A with a slightly over-bored 454. As for the HX in the radiator, take a close look at the size/shape of that bottom tanke and th shape of the grille shell. The radiator was special built for this version of the Gibbon Viper II, it fits inside the grille shell like a glove. Your guess about the size of the radiator is unfortunatly more than a bit off.

Jack, Running at 165 F in Texas is very good! Maybe the built-in trans cooler in my Walker '29 radiator reduced the size of the engine cooling while your special radiator is optimized for your grill shell. Let's hope the A/C set up runs cool in Texas next summer but now I understand why you want the A/C.

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder

Originally Posted by Don Shillady

I really did not want an electric water pump and that is where the situation developed that in order to get my car out of that shop I had to let them do it their way!

Nobody can hold you or your vehicle hostage!

Next time this happens, call the Sherif and see how fast you get your car back! There are State agencies to prevent these type of business practices! Such behavior by professionals irritates the heck out of me! And, it is NOT too late to file a complaint against their business license. You should know and approve of what you are getting before anybody starts the work. Yes, sometimes there are hidden damages/additional repairs, but you always have the final say. The worst they can do is tell you no they can not do the work. THEY CAN NOT hold you hostage for extra work/expenses!!!!

Now, ask me how I really feel about it.

.

Don, based on who designed it, I doubt it was optimized for anything.

Jack, I know you've checked, but with the size of that bottom tank it sure seems like a good radiator guy could open up the front or back, TIG in some brackets and slide in a tranny heat exchanger coil, then TIG the front/back on to close it up. Might be cheaper to just get a new one from PRC, Griffin, Walker or..... that has the HX built in, then bracket your grill shell off of that.

Roger, a good radiator guy might be able to install some type of coil with a couple of outlets. However, the bottom tank has to fit into that pointly little nose at the bottom of the grille shell. Any other type of radiator would be way too short. The radiator doesn't sit on top of the frame per normal installation, it's all in front of the frame. I've looked at all of those suppliers, and nothing will work.

I appreciate the thoughts, though. I've picked up quite a few hints from the folks here.

Just reading the thread, and no pics, ( slow cell phone ), but has anyone ever done a remote location heat exchanger for the trans, maybe re- routing a heater hose?
I know you guys with your old rods have to be real imaginative to shoe horn everything in

I was thinking of that too. Also could make a collector to bring heated air off the exhaust pipe.

.

Originally Posted by firebird77clone

Just reading the thread, and no pics, ( slow cell phone ), but has anyone ever done a remote location heat exchanger for the trans, maybe re- routing a heater hose?

Originally Posted by 36 sedan

I was thinking of that too. Also could make a collector to bring heated air off the exhaust pipe.

And the tranny fluid temperature would be controlled how?

The heater core off the radiator would maintain engine temp, so no problem there. An air exchanger would require a door with thermostatic control. Both do-able.

Yeah, it might be conceptually do-able, but Jack's already told us he's struggling to even find a spot for his remote transmission "cooler" since the spot in front of the radiator isn't available any more, and he's working with a channeled lowboy coupe.

Jack, I'll be looking forward to seeing how you decide to solve your issues over the next couple of months, getting the coupe ready for those toasty Texas summer days. Thanks for keeping us in the loop on your project.