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Dumb Question
Hey I don't know if I am doing this right but I have a quick question. I drive a 65 F-250 as a daily driver (for now) and I am having some clearence issues with my fan on a new radiator I installed. Can I drive the truck with out a fan when its cold out. Atleast untill i can afford an electric fan to fix my clearence problem. Just wanna make sure im not going to do damage to anything. I am only driving less than 10 miles a day and never at a stop for very long. I am well aware that this is a stupid question but I figured I'd ask anyhow. I know enough to get me into trouble when it comes down to it. Thanks for the Help!
Fatty
Fatty
Cargo Master
Joined: Jul 2006
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From: Concord, CA
Clearance issues. How long is your fan spacer? I don't think Ford has longer than a 3 1/2" spacer that I have seen. Mine was 3" before installing a shroud and there was still about 2" left in front of it.
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Joined: Jul 2014
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From: Northern California
Hey I don't know if I am doing this right but I have a quick question. I drive a 65 F-250 as a daily driver (for now) and I am having some clearence issues with my fan on a new radiator I installed. Can I drive the truck with out a fan when its cold out. Atleast untill i can afford an electric fan to fix my clearence problem. Just wanna make sure im not going to do damage to anything. I am only driving less than 10 miles a day and never at a stop for very long. I am well aware that this is a stupid question but I figured I'd ask anyhow. I know enough to get me into trouble when it comes down to it. Thanks for the Help!
Fatty
Fatty
If you notice in the winter you see a lot of semi's with their radiators zipped up part way to help them warm. Some have shutters that close also.
Just depends on how cold it is when you drive around. That's what the TEMP gauge is for, keep your eye on it.
If you have icicles hanging on your grill you need to worry if your antifreeze mixture is good enough.
Good luck.....
Fleet Owner
Joined: Jun 1999
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From: Creedmoor, North Carolina
65F-250FATTYLEEN Welcome to 
and the Slicks Forum 
These old trucks have a huge frontal opening, unless you are sitting and idling for extended periods you really don't need a fan at all this time of year. 100 degree summer heat is a different day.
New vehicles are designed much differently and have different requirements with fans. As long as the truck is moving forward about 20mph there is more air flow there than any fan can deliver.
John
and the Slicks Forum These old trucks have a huge frontal opening, unless you are sitting and idling for extended periods you really don't need a fan at all this time of year. 100 degree summer heat is a different day.
New vehicles are designed much differently and have different requirements with fans. As long as the truck is moving forward about 20mph there is more air flow there than any fan can deliver.
John
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My radiator was bad when I bought the truck about 3 years ago. It finally blew up. I bought a aluminum core but messed up on my measurements when I sent it out to get brackets welded on. (Im an idiot with a learning curve?) Now the fan is WAY to close. About 1/4 of an inch. Motor mounts are new but I worry about damaging the fan. I just want to take the fan off for now till I can buy a electric fan.
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My radiator was bad when I bought the truck about 3 years ago. It finally blew up. I bought a aluminum core but messed up on my measurements when I sent it out to get brackets welded on. (Im an idiot with a learning curve?) Now the fan is WAY to close. About 1/4 of an inch. Motor mounts are new but I worry about damaging the fan. I just want to take the fan off for now till I can buy a electric fan.
1965 F100/250 240/300 I-6: There are 4 different spacers, shortest is 1.07" long, longest is 1.93" long.
1965/66 F100/250 & F350 (with SRW) 352 spacer is 3.10" long.
In 1981, I had a local radiator shop make up a custom 4 row radiator for my 1965 F100 352.
The original spacer was too long, so I used one from a 1979 Econoline 302 that was 2 1/8" long.
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I had to chuckle at this. Sorry. The fan is probably $30 to replace whereas the radiator is closer to $300. I'd be more worried about damaging the radiator.
But now that I have that out of my system...
...you'll need to be sure when shortening the fan spacer that you verify rearward clearances too. You may hit the front of the alternator or power steering or crank pulley if you shorten it too much. Figure your rearward clearance first and add about 1/2" to that and subtract that from the current spacer length. That's your safe range.
The fan is ideally about 3/4" away from the radiator with no shroud, but can be further away with one.
And yes, going with an electric fan is a good idea, though maybe overkill (cost to benefit ratio) but it is thermostatically controlled and may, in cold-brrr weather, never come on. And depending on summer temps may be undersized. You need to choose a CFM rating great enough to match the need.
But now that I have that out of my system...
...you'll need to be sure when shortening the fan spacer that you verify rearward clearances too. You may hit the front of the alternator or power steering or crank pulley if you shorten it too much. Figure your rearward clearance first and add about 1/2" to that and subtract that from the current spacer length. That's your safe range.
The fan is ideally about 3/4" away from the radiator with no shroud, but can be further away with one.
And yes, going with an electric fan is a good idea, though maybe overkill (cost to benefit ratio) but it is thermostatically controlled and may, in cold-brrr weather, never come on. And depending on summer temps may be undersized. You need to choose a CFM rating great enough to match the need.
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