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  • #1

    Cool/Heat: Current Radiator Technology & Pricing

    This morning I was standing at a radiator shop in Louisville at 7AM when they opened the doors. Their ad said, "We fool with stuff nobody else wants to..." so I was attracted. Carried in the old, trashed OEM 3-core and asked for a quality, efficient re-core. Later the guy called to explain what the radiator now has, and to offer several options. Currently, it has three rows of 42 tubes for a total of 126 tubes, 1/2" thick, with 9/16" spacing between tubes. Option 'A': three rows of 56 tubes for a total of 168, 1/2" thick, with 7/16" spacing, for $550. Option 'B': three rows of 65 tubes for a total of 195, 5/8" thick, with 3/8" spacing, for $640. Option 'C': I told him to save his breath.

    I am happy to know there are still radiator shops that are willing to work on old stuff and offer several options, based on the latest technology.

    Guess which option I chose ?
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  • #2
    I think my option would be to find another radiator shop for a second opinion. That seems like a lot for a re-core.
    Pat Dilling
    Olivehurst, CA
    Custom '53 Starlight aka STU COOL


    LS1 Engine Swap Journal: http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/jour...ournalid=33611

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    • #3
      With the price of copper there will be no radiator for a caso. Thats why so many are going to aluminium and losing originality.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by Pat Dilling View Post
        I think my option would be to find another radiator shop for a second opinion. That seems like a lot for a re-core.
        I was quoted $499 for a 4-row re-core by the guy in Alabama, "if there's enough room for a 4-row". I'd prefer to deal with someone face to face, so tried to stay local. Besides, any saving would have been lost in shipping. It seems the price of metal (all except aluminum) has gone sky high.

        I am not concerned with originality so much as with efficiency. When it comes to price, to me, it's a matter of priority. I'd prefer to invest heavily with cooling than with a paint job, but that's just me. To each their own. To me, nothing worse than a hot running Stude, i.e. in the middle of the desert when you really need AC, having to turn it off to help the engine run cooler.

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        • #5
          I was quoted around $600 to rebuild my one Lark radiator and add an AT cooler bottom tank. This was in Mesa, Az late last year.
          --------------------------------------

          Sold my 1962; Studeless at the moment

          Borrowed Bams50's sigline here:

          "Do they all not, by mere virtue of having survived as relics of a bygone era, amass a level of respect perhaps not accorded to them when they were new?"

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          • #6
            See a radiator shop that can order a new core with increased fins per inch. That's more efficient than an additional row. Cores are ordered by dimensions, not application.
            Poet...Mystic...Soldier of Fortune. As always...self-absorbed, adversarial, cocky and in general a malcontent.

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            • #7
              Didn't notice what it goes in. The following worked great for my Champ..... If it is a Lark, it is possible my solution would work as well.

              http://forum.studebakerdriversclub.c...-in-1960-Champ.

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              • #8
                Originally posted by Gunslinger View Post
                See a radiator shop that can order a new core with increased fins per inch. That's more efficient than an additional row. Cores are ordered by dimensions, not application.
                Per the guy at the shop today, tubes and fins per inch are to be considered, including the avoidance of too many fins and tubes, to the point that air can not pas through sufficiently. According to this guy, all options he offered today are compatible with my fan setup (7 blade, Corvette, thermal clutch). We shall see.

                Considering the 3-core I took him today, it seems radiator technology has came a long way since it was last re-cored (I can't even recall when if ever).

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by JoeHall View Post
                  Per the guy at the shop today, tubes and fins per inch are to be considered, including the avoidance of too many fins and tubes, to the point that air can not pas through sufficiently. According to this guy, all options he offered today are compatible with my fan setup (7 blade, Corvette, thermal clutch). We shall see.

                  Considering the 3-core I took him today, it seems radiator technology has came a long way since it was last re-cored (I can't even recall when if ever).
                  i was quoted 500.00 to recore a lark radiator friday i bought one for a nova fits good and looks good half the money

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                  • #10
                    cutitup:
                    What year and model Nova was the radiator for ?
                    South Lompoc Studebaker

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                    • #11
                      I picked up the re-cored radiator today, for $645. Granted, that is more than I wanted to spend, but I couldn't see installing a $200 radiator on a $3000 engine. With a calculator, it looks like the current capacity is slightly over twice what it was before (195 tubes, 18 5/8" long and 5/8" thick versus 126, 18" long and 1/2" thick). The extra 5/8" length is due to removal of the bottom half of the top tank and building a new, wider floor onto the remaining, upper half.
                      Driving Studes requires vigilance re: engine temp, and this radiator will hopefully make that pretty much a non-issue.

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