Okey Dokey, I guess it’s my turn in the barrel! Been doing my home work for a couple of days just in case things turned out like they did and spent a couple of hours last night going thru over 50 pages back 5 years with the “search” function (what a joke that is). Came up empty handed so I gotta throw my self to the wolves and ask for opinions.

The 1954, 235 had a few pretty bad stains showing, but no antifreeze dripping. Since I had the front end off the engine to replace the seal and the rest of the gaskets I thought it would be a good time to have the radiator looked at. The only guys left within a 100-mile radius of me that were experienced with the V-core radiators looked at it to the tune of $600. Needs a new core he says and I can’t guarantee that the tanks are gonna pass muster either. So I told him to look away while played the tune "back to the trunk".

The five radiator shops that were close by (30-mile radius) have all closed the doors or turned into shops that only change out the plastic & alum radiators, they don’t really do any repair anymore. I was in and around the automobile business years ago and knew several of the shop owners, who are old timers like myself and they’ve all told me that when the tanks finely rotted out there just wasn’t enough repair work to justify replacing them. Besides the EPA was putting the kybosh on caustic tanks. The 100-mile guy told me that they just steam clean them now and I also got wind that he was in the process of switching over to doing more general mechanical work because the radiator repair was tapering off now days. Now this shop is the close-in Chicago suburbs mind you.

So that leaves me with the option of a repop radiator. I talked with Vernon Walker last night of Walker Radiators down in Tenn. They’ve been in business for over 70years and have found a niche in the Hot Rod arena. Their Cobra radiators are Copper and Brass, made right there in Memphis. Price is kind of high, about the same as the re-core would run but you know your gonna get a high quality radiator that will fit. The only down side is the upper tank is smooth cus that’s what the hot rodders want, they are not squared off and ribbed like the original. Their radiators come with a 10-year guarantee to top it off.

The radiators offered in the vendors catalogs run between $220 to $700, very cornfusing and you just don’t know what you’re getting or where they’re coming from. It doesn’t do any good to call and ask because lets face it, they are in the business of selling parts, not telling you how bad their product is. I’ve heard many people say when they got them they were still boxed from the source in the far-east and by now we all know what to expect from anything made over there. I know I’ve read dozens of horror story threads in the past describing how the tank material was ultra thin or the radiator was half the weight of the original or how the flanges didn’t fit or how they had to be sent back or how the neck or outlets were made wrong…………. And the closer is they only have a 1-year guarantee.

So I’d like to hear some new opinions and from anyone that has had some actual first hand experience replacing their Stovebolt radiator with a repop.
Boy, wouldn’t it be nice to find a truckload of NOS Harrison AD radiators in a barn somewhere, (just day dreaming a bit).
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL



Last edited by Denny Graham; 12/01/2010 2:04 PM.
Denny G
Sandwich, IL