The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk leaking heater core

I have the core at my local radiator shop. They say they cant fix it. Way back in my younger days, and I mean way back, I drove many $35/50 old furds that had radiators that leaked. Usually just dumped in some stop leak and kept going. Many of these old flathead V8s actually had tubes pinched off and in some cases had them cut off and bent back to stop the leaking. I am wondering if I can't do the same thing with my heater core. Also in googling heater cores I find a lot of places are selling "universal" heater cores. Anybody ever used one of these? Any suggestions out there because I think my radiator guys are tired of seeing me come through the door.

Weeds

Hi Weeds,

It's been a few years since I had to have any radiator or heater core work done, but I had to hunt around to find a shop that knew how to work on the older stuff. The first two or three I tried said they couldn't do the repairs. All they were set up to do was patch the leak, which wasn't viable in my case as the old core was too soft and rotten, or replace with an entirely new unit, which wasn't readily available for my heater.

I finally found an older shop that was able to order a new core cut to the right dimensions and they soldered it into place using the old top and bottom pans. That's been at least ten years ago and so far I've had no issues. As long as the top and bottom pans are still solid, the right shop should be able to have a core cut to the right dimensions. Finding the right shop is the tricky part, but there are still a few of the older radiator guys out there with the know how to get it done.

That's a nice looking suburban you have there. Bet it's going to be alot of fun to drive!

/Bobby

Bobby, thanks for the reply. I will keep looking for a shop that can do the job. I went to your link and read your story about the 58. It has served you well and still looks great. Stay safe in Kuwait.

Weeds

The radiator shop I used to work at here in spartanburg has recored heater cores.

Hey Weeds - If your heater core is the round type, forget about trying to get it fixed. I talked with Harrison Radiator Co. about those. They stopped making them in 1962. They were used in postal trucks after Chevy stopped using them. The radiator shop guys can't fix them because they can't get inside of the circle unless the leak is on an outside edge. Those "universal" heaters that you see are real close to the heaters that GM actually put in the AD trucks. Usually a dealer "add on" . They measure 6 3/4" wide x 6 3/4" tall x 7" deep. You can get it from "Southern Rods", cost is a little over a hundred bucks including the 2 speed switch. I got them in my '49 1/2 ton Chevy pickup and in my '51 BelAire.

Weeds, if nothing shows up try calling Obsolete Parts in Ga. I "think" they sell ONLY original NOS parts. They may happen to have one and its worth the call.
Good luck. Let us know how you make out.

http://www.obschevy.com/pages/Company.html

toll free order line 800-248-8785
reg. number 229-686-5812

I had my fresh air heater core re-cored by Indianapolis Radiator. They were very pleasant to deal with and did the job well for a reasonable price. I believe they ordered the replacement core from a supplier in Maine. Anyways, look them up in the on-line yellow pages and see if you can send your heater core to them... I recommend them highly.