Hey guys!

Having a few problems running down a replacement radiator for my Truck. It's a 77.5 F250 (low-boy) that had a factory 4wd 400/four speed combo in it. The LMC catalog suggests that the appropriate radiators are 19" tall between the tanks, and depending on whether it's a 77 or 78 style, whether or not the mounting tabs are located more rearwards or forwards on the sides, which changes the distance between the fan and the radiator.

However, the truck was swapped over to a 460/c6/NP205 by the previous owner (total hack job ) and it now has a 24" tall radiator installed. I was planning on running this truck mostly as a weekend driver/camper with some mild off-roading (trails/small rocks/etc) maybe two or three times a year. Do you guys think I should go back to a stock-sized radiator (19") or stick with a big 24" unit?

I found all four potential variants (19 & 24", both in forward and rear bracket styles) at a local radiator specialty shop, but wanted to see if it was worth it to spend the extra money on a huge radiator or attempt to figure out what "stock" was and go back to that.

~Brad

EDIT: After considering the factors, I'm not going to worry as much about the forward/reverse mounting location, as I think I might go with an electric fan while I'm replacing and working on the cooling system - but the big question (literally) stands - do I need the 24" tall radiator, or would the 19" smaller unit be fine?

 

If it were me.........Id go for the bigger one. Ive got a 460 rad in front of my 351M I didnt even price the smaller one.........the extra capacity wont hurt a thing. Truck comes up to temperature ............every thing works well...........Unless there is a BIG difference in price and the extra $ will ruin your budget.......I'd get the bigger one.

 

I figured as much, so I'll just go ahead and get the big one (plus leaves more room if I want to make a custom shroud/E-fan setup)

Rock Auto lists one part number for 77, and a different one for 78...so I checked against the LMC catalog (again) and I think I'm going to ask for the 77 w/ 460, if I can find one locally. The place I normally go to says the closest one is in Indiana

~Brad

 

Go with the Super cooler:

1967-79 Full Size Truck/bronco - Heating & Cooling Systems - Truck Radiators & Shrouds


It's well worth th money...I've always been of the belief to purchase the biggest radiator you can afford.

 

Performance radiator Inc has any factory style radiator you would want.

 

I've seen ones on ebay that are all aluminum and a pretty good price. I can't vouch for the quality, but aluminum will cool much better than stock.

 

After you get your new rad. in, the best efan you could put in it would be the Mark V111 two speed. There is nothing in the aftermarket that can touch it, 4500 cfm on high, and you can find them all day long at major city j.yards for about $30! Off roaders and racers all go for 'em.

Google it and it find tons to keep you busy reading.

<a href="http://s659.photobucket.com/albums/uu316/bobbyrogue/?action=view&amp;current=P1010327.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i659.photobucket.com/albums/uu316/bobbyrogue/P1010327.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>


http://www.fordmuscle.com/archives/2006/10/Mark8Fan/

If you want to see that fan in action, just go to that link above, scroll down and click on the vid. on the right. When you run out of gas, just let the fan pull you forward!!

 

Thanks for the info guys!

For the moment I think I'm going to stick with the stock fan, and then spend the time outside doing an electric conversion when the weather gets a little warmer!

Gonna go get the radiator today, found one locally that should fit!

~Brad