A few questions

73 Dodge, there is a 4 blade cooling fan on their now, feels hot under the hood. Stock temp gauge so no way of telling really where it is at.

Would it be worth the time to install a later model 5 blade fan? Also there is no fan shroud there. I am sure that would help but how much. Would changing out these things be worth the effort?

Also the truck has no power brakes. Would it be just as easy as adding a booster to get the power brakes or would I have to change the master cylinder as well? There is of course a vacuum port on the intake right there so getting that is not an issue.

The carb has a real thin gasket at its base. It is a fairly new carb and now that I have re-tightened it and fixed some dry rotted vacuum lines it idles and drives very nice but when sitting in traffic it will all of a sudden start to idle rougher, I am wondering if the thin gasket is allowing the carb to get too hot.

Does the thickness of the gasket really make a difference on these carbs?

I would get a shroud or get a 7 blade fan.
For the carb it could be another issue but a spacer may fix the problem.

4spdragtop said:

I would get a shroud or get a 7 blade fan.
For the carb it could be another issue but a spacer may fix the problem.

Click to expand...

I have access to factory junkyard parts cheap to no cost so I try and stick with them. Ive never seen a 7 blade slant fan though.

Go with a 5 blade then and a shroud.

Looking at the rad this A.M I was surprised to see how narrow it was in comparison to my other mid eighties trucks.

I think Id benefit from using one of the wider units assuming the cut-out in the rad supt is large enough to take advantage.

I know I dont even have a shroud for that narrow rad nor do I remember seeing one.

How about the brake situation, ever convert to power. Im guessing the masters would interchange but I know a queery at Napa can confirm.

Id like to add the assist just for safety sake. Trucks stops fine but does take a bit more effort to keep it stopped if not careful in traffic.

A shroud is very important, as it directs the air THROUGH the radiator. You don't want air going AROUND the radiator...


You also want to pay attention to the depth of the fan and shroud. the shroud should overlap around 50% of the depth of the fan blades (half of the blades should be inside the shroud, and half on the outside) for best performance.


For brakes, contact the Ram Man. He's a brake expert and can tell you what will work and what won't. He also has most brake parts.


7200 Winters St
Fort Worth, TX 76120
Telephone: 817.691.5996

http://www.theramman.com/