Got a 61 chevy pickup, no heater core installed, flex style fan no shroud 190 thermostat, what would be the best route to take to fix this?? Brand new water pump had the radiator flushed, steam cleaned new coolant. PLEASE HELP!!
Basic Cooling Several things here : First is ; be sure to check and adjust the ignition timing with the vacuum hoses connected properly and ensure there's _no_ vacuum signal to the dizzy @ idle , it should idle below 1,000RPM and set the timing to no more than 10 degrees BTDC , 4 ~ 6 is prolly better . Then there's the water pump : when Chevy went to the serpentine bent drive , it reversed the turning direction of the water pump and for the next few years we often had over heating problems on Customer's cars after they'd installed the wrong pump . If it's not boiling over , it isn't really overheating ~ your engine will run it's best and last longest when operated as close to 212* F as possible . For now , get a 165* F thermostat and drill a tiny 3/16" or so hole in the flat flange part of it , this prevents air locking . Harbor Freight sells nifty laser thermometers ~ I have the DeLuxe version ($19.95 on sale) and it's been *VERY* helpful in diagnosing weird hot running issues .
Cooling Fans Your choice ~ In my view , electric fans are the way to go , provided you install them and set them up properly . You need to BIGGEST one that'll fit , and plumb in a temperature switch running through a relay , wired live ~ this last is really important as the engine " heat soaks " when you turn it off : the metal super heats the now stationary coolant so having an E - Fan that'll come on automatically as you're almost in the door of the cold Beer place will make your engine and thereby you and your wallet , very happy in the long run . If you run an E-Fan , delete the old mechanical fan as it rubs power (about 3 HP typically) and is noisy , fights air flow through the radiator with the E-Fan and so on . $aving a few pennies (O.K. Dollars) when setting up and E-Fan always , ALWAYS bite your butt in the end . I use Junk Yard fans , relays and temp switches but I make dang sure it's all well mounted and wired properly ~ no using old taillight harness here , an E-Fan needs lots of battery current / voltage to work properly ~ nothing is connected to the underdash fuse box ~ you run new , fused hot wire to the relay . Maybe a tattle tale light in the cab to let you know when the fan comes on (handly if you're rnning AC and climbing hills) . Lastly , don't be afraid to run a pusher typ fan ~ so many don't understand 7th grade Physics and will insist pusher fans don't flow as much air as puller fans , they're clueless . I hope this helps .
Does it have the original radiator. I wasted many dollars trying to save my original. Finally I gave up and got a new radiator that looks much like the original. Things got much better with the new cooler.
Heat problem I have a '59 1/2 ton Chevy. Installed a rebuilt 350. Put a desert cooler radiator in it, it looks like the original and bolts in the same as the original. Used an electric fan almost as big as the radiator. The thermostat is 160 degree. It runs at the 160 degree mark except sometimes in heavy traffic here in Florida summers. Even then it only climbs 10 more degrees. My experience with flex fans is I will not ever use one after a bad experience with one. With my big fan I don't need a shroud. Tranny is a 350 turbo so I use a rail cooler for it so the radiator doesn't have to cool it. Hope this helps you. Gerald in Florida
