Blown 440 Duster - Cooling System Results
So I've been sweating how I was going to cool this thing since there's zero room for a fan between the blower drive and the radiator (any radiator). So here's what I did and the results (so far) :thumbrig:
Started with a Summit 2 row, 27"x19" crossflow radiator ( SUM-381428 ) which fits the 22" core support opening perfectly. Had some brackets TIG'd onto the tanks and had to create new mounting points on the core support.
Dayco molded lower rad hose 70592 (one end trimmed). Dayco molded upper hose 71654 (one end trimmed) to clear the blower drive.
New engine has a Milodon water pump and high flow 180* stat.
Early Dusters have such a snub nose there's very little room between the core support and grille for a fan. Ordered the most powerful 16" Spal Pusher fan I could get. Motor takes up a lot of space. Cut a section out of the grill support and added hoop to go around the motor and add strength back to the support.
Mounted the fan using the old radiator mounting holes.
The design of the radiator creates a 1" gap between the bottom of the core support and the radiator core. Since air would follow the path of least resistance it would just flow around the core instead of through it. I added a rubber seal to the bottom of the radiator to fill the gap. It's a heavy rubber seal intended for the bottom of garage doors. It fills the space perfectly, and even provided a seal in two places. Aluminum trim fills the void at the top of the core support.
The fan is loud but it moves quite a bit of air. I currently have it wired to run continuously with the key on rather than thermostatic control.
:burnout: Took it for it's first road test this evening. Ran between 165-180* on the highway and cruising around town. Sitting for several minutes it would creep a little higher. Overall, I'm surprised and pleased. I was afraid it would run hot. :cheers:
So I've been sweating how I was going to cool this thing since there's zero room for a fan between the blower drive and the radiator (any radiator). So here's what I did and the results (so far) :thumbrig:
Started with a Summit 2 row, 27"x19" crossflow radiator ( SUM-381428 ) which fits the 22" core support opening perfectly. Had some brackets TIG'd onto the tanks and had to create new mounting points on the core support.
Dayco molded lower rad hose 70592 (one end trimmed). Dayco molded upper hose 71654 (one end trimmed) to clear the blower drive.
New engine has a Milodon water pump and high flow 180* stat.
Early Dusters have such a snub nose there's very little room between the core support and grille for a fan. Ordered the most powerful 16" Spal Pusher fan I could get. Motor takes up a lot of space. Cut a section out of the grill support and added hoop to go around the motor and add strength back to the support.
Mounted the fan using the old radiator mounting holes.
The design of the radiator creates a 1" gap between the bottom of the core support and the radiator core. Since air would follow the path of least resistance it would just flow around the core instead of through it. I added a rubber seal to the bottom of the radiator to fill the gap. It's a heavy rubber seal intended for the bottom of garage doors. It fills the space perfectly, and even provided a seal in two places. Aluminum trim fills the void at the top of the core support.
The fan is loud but it moves quite a bit of air. I currently have it wired to run continuously with the key on rather than thermostatic control.
:burnout: Took it for it's first road test this evening. Ran between 165-180* on the highway and cruising around town. Sitting for several minutes it would creep a little higher. Overall, I'm surprised and pleased. I was afraid it would run hot. :cheers:
