The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts radiator

what radiator should i use for my AD 6400 with a big block? i don't want to spend too much but i want something that will cool the big block fine pulling a trailer.

I have talked to several folks who use the 2 ton radiator in the 1/2 ton trucks with a small block V8, supposedly it is plenty of radiator to keep it cool.

With that understanding I expect it to keep my diesel cool, as a radiator for a small block V8 is adequate for my 4-53T Diesel.

My backup plan is to buy an aluminum radiator from http://www.griffinrad.com/ They offer a direct fit/replacement/upgrade for an AD truck, and can custom build one if needed, I will only need the inlet and outlets to be bigger, and move the outlet over 1/2".

To make the best of what you have use a good fan with a shroud, if that is not enough go for the aluminum radiator.

Grigg

4-53's are not that hard to keep cool. We have one on our yard mule and the rad is not that overly large, but I would use an aluminum radiator. A shroud is equally if not more important. We used to build them out of a piece of 14 gauge and catch the mounting bolts of the radiator. We would then cut round hole for the fan and then bend a hoop out of 1" flat and weld it at the hole. We had our best results with about 1/3 of the fan in the shroud and 2/3 outside of the shroud. Equally as important is keeping the old 2 cycle Detroits warm in the winter. They were made to run around 180 degrees and were designed for shutters in front of the radiator. Shutters would be a challenge to adapt, but putting a tarp in front of the radiator would work. Some trucks still use a winter front.