Radiator Positioning?

[gwstang]

After the rebuild of the engine, The radiator is sitting way too far back in the hole of the hood. If I loosen the top hose, will this allow it to go forward to where it should be? What about the fan positioning the shroud? Seems this tilting backwards would mess up where the fan sits in the shroud? I am using a regular radiator cap for now and it scrapes the hood, I would love to be able to put the wing cap on but it would really scrape as the radiator sits now. Thanks, just some small things to do to finish up and paint the rest of the tractor. I ran the 5' finishing mower today and it worked great on the fresh rebuild of the '52 side mount dist. Last year, I would have to run about wide open in 1st gear and it would still just about choke down at the slighted upgrade. Now, it pulls just fine in 2nd gear at about 2/3 throttle. Sure nice to have the right amount of power. I was down to about 65 lbs on all cylinders, now it's about 120 lbs.

 

[Dean]

Did you install the proper rubber pads between the radiator and the front axle support?

Dean

 

[POPGUN]

As Dean says and your radiator hood pad,green stringiee thing goes on top of radiator has a hole
for radiator fill neck. If you dont have the bottom pads it wont ever fit right.

 

[gwstang]

Yes, and I added and extra pad on both bottom sides. Still a little low.

 

[gwstang]

I used some longer carriage head bolts to add an extra pad on both sides. I have a new green top pad...but forgot to put it on when I set the hood back on I don't see how that green pad would help with the radiator being too low by a slight amount? It does go between the radiator and the hood?
I'll loosen the top hose tomorrow and slide the radiator forward to center it in the hole. Also, maybe use a piece of plywood on each side ( under the rubber pads) to raise it about 1/4" or so and maybe the cap won't scrape?

 

[Royse]

New radiator or putting the original back in?
New ones are a gamble as to fit. Neck of the radiator may be
shorter than the original, in which case you can't raise it from
the bottom far enough to clear without the shroud hitting the fan.

The green pad won't help if your neck is too short, but I do like
to get them back in there. Helps keep the vibration of the hood
from wearing a hole in the radiator.

Top hose will adjust to let the neck move fore and aft.

 

[Dean]

Agreed, Royse.

Every OEM radiator that I have ever worked with fits properly.

None of the aftermarket radiators that I have work with have fit properly, though nearly all could be made to work with patience and perseverance.

Dean

 

[gwstang]

I don't know about original or not. It leaked when I purchased the tractor many years ago so I removed and went to the radiator shop. The older fellow there fixed it right up and it looked and worked great! It use to fit....so it should fit now? :shock:

 

[gwstang]

I'm all out of love for this thing right now...lol. :?
I'll take a look in a little bit and see how it adjusts. I'll see if I can slip the hood up enough to slide the green pad where it belongs.

 

[fubar2]

I'd love to see an estimated thickness of the bottom pads. My radiator sat too low for the winged cap before I rebuilt the engine and I'm ready to put radiator back in. I was thinking of cutting a square piece out of and old worn motorcycle tire figuring it to be right around 1/4" thick. Opinions on that as a good idea or not are welcomed.

 

[Jock(OR)]

It is a good idea. Truck mud flap or conveyor belting are better because they are flat. Torn mud flaps that
have smaller usable areas are often available free from trucking firms or truck repair shops.

 

[Jim WI]

My son and I had the hood off as we were replacing all the wiring and a few other parts. Before we did this, the radiator fit fine and we were able to use the fancy cap. When we put the hood back on, the radiator neck was too short. After a bit of thought, I figured out that he had dropped the hood a bit early and it had pushed the neck in. I was able to pull the neck back out with out too much trouble and it's been working fine so far. I doubt that the neck is supposed to be adjustable, so I'm wondering if we broke a solder joint loose that is just tight enough to hold pressure. Any ideas?