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Hi Guys,
We are finally ready to try to tackle our cooling issues. Our thermostat is a 180 degree thermostat
& the truck runs at 210 degrees plus without the A/C in town. On the highway we run 180ish. There is a lot of traffic & heat in Austin
- Our truck needs to be rock solid on cooling - I'd also like to be able to run the A/C.
We've got a 1950 F1 with a mildly modified 351W engine (400hp) with an AOD transmission.
Our Current fan set up is a shrouded Derale 17 inch electric fan 1800 cfm low speed /2400 cfm high speed.
We've also got a high performance water pump & a 3 core radiator.
With our current set up - we are limited to a maximum 4 inch wide Fan. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
What do you guys run for cooling your trucks?
Any suggestions on Ben's Texas F1 Cooling Plan?
Thanks for everything. I'm tired of babying this truck - time to get it running right so I can use it whenever/wherever.
(I've looked at switching to a shorty waterpump to gain some space but it brings up all kinds of expensive belt/bracket issues.
I could also move the radiator up an inch or so.... I'll do it as a last resort to get a Mark VIII fan in but I'm hoping for less extensive re-working of the engine compartment).
I have a Cooling Components Inc. shrouded fan on my 53 with HO302 and AOD and it works great. Have the same on my 40 coupe. No cooling problems with either even with AC on. Idling in 100 degrees is no problem. The radiator in my 53 F100 is a stock 72 Ford f100. I know about the Austin heat, our two youngest Grandkids live there [son and daughter in law also] so we make the trip fairly often. just as hot here in OK, just doesn't last as long. Are you sure of the temps? My autometer gauge reads warmer than the actual temp. Found out with a Harbor freight temp sensor, cheap education.
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Thanks Joe,
We live out Northwest in Austin - look me up next time you come through.
We hit 94 degrees today with a lot of humidity - pushed me to get this old truck cooled properly before we really get into it.
I really appreciate it - I'll take a look at Cooling Components. You look at this stuff on the internet until you start seeing things.
I thought I'd just pop in here & see what everyone in hot places is doing. Texas will test your cooling processes - Austin traffic is getting
slower & slower. Feels like half the country relocated here during the last crunch.
Cooling problems can be extremely frustrating to solve. Just going to talk some basics here. First on your radiator installation, is it a radiator that is actually a copy of the O.E. model? If it's just a replacement style radiator, it may not fit exactly and you may have air by-passing the fan while the fan is trying to pull air through the radiator. An OE style radiator would actually fit and cover up any gaps that just a replacement unit might leave. Is the radiator fill cap higher than the intake manifold? If it's about the same height, consider trying to raise your radiator as you could have air trapped in your cooling system. Speaking of that, when filling your engine and radiator with coolant, you might try pulling the engine temp sensor and bleed the air out of the engine block while filling the radiator. When I fill a radiator, I also like to use an extremely large funnel. After I have the radiator and block filled and the temp sender installed again, I run the engine and wait til the thermostat opens. When it opens a big belch of air, will push coolant back up, but the large funnel will contain the mess. Next I would double check your timing. Retarded timing would make an engine run hot. With 400 HP your are probably good there. You may look into running manifold vacuum advance, as this would increase your timing at idle, helping your engine run cooler. Next you might want to think about carburetor jetting. If you are running a lean idle mixture, this would help heat the engine up. You could adjust the idle mixture screws to try to richen your idle, but with a 400 HP 351, you might need to have an idle feed restriction opened up slightly more in your carb, to gain you a richer idle mixture. Your idle screws may only control the amount of idle mixture that goes into the intake. The idle mixture itself is controlled by the idle feed restriction and the idle air bleeds. Going to a bigger faster fan could help, but can your alternator keep up with the current demand for the fan? You may need to look at an alternator upgrade to help keep the fan speed up where you want it. One other thing that is sometimes overlooked is the accuracy of the temp gauge. I like the mechanical ones, even test them out by putting them in a pan of boiling water after I buy them new, just to check the calibration. Anyway hopefully maybe some of this will help!
Hey Hooler,
I'm working the timing/carb tuning at the same time to make sure everything is good there before heading out to throw money at this one.
We are checking the temps with a Harbor Freight laser thermometer just to be sure. We are running an Edelbrock 650cfm carb. - it's been "tuned" by feel up to this point. I think this could be part of the issue - I think in the end it will be several things that I need to adjust to get this right.
We do not have any of the F1 front kit in place to block the air gaps. We are running an after market radiator not the original Huge F1 style radiator.
Ben in Austin
1950 F1
(My dad's family is from Burlington - been through Iowa many times.
would prefer to never detassel corn again).
Ben, I've never had a problem in H-town with my 383 stroker and I run it pretty hard on the hwy. I too have the same carb but NO a/c at the moment,after market radiator and electric fan. That was what was in it, now my new set up (pics to follow)I went out and got a fan shroud to add to it and help it along. Haven't started it up yet,so I don't know how this BAD BOY will act. Good luck with your issues,I know you'll figure it out.L8R ZFLASH Download
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Hey Ben,
I might look at the brushless fans. They are expensive but more efficient and pull incredible amounts of air and have very large footprint ones.
BTW - I installed a generic aluminum radiator (19"w X 26"h) from speedway and built my own shroud for a 16" SPAL fan. I think it is rated at 2400 cfm. They are OEM grade.
I've seen 190F on the gauge at idle with the AC on after running down the highway for a while at 85F to 90F ambient. The temp does not creep up. I'd expect to see a bit higher with higher ambients. Still, I'd have no hesitation about driving in 100F+ days.
Thanks Doug!
I envy your engine compartment - a thing of beauty - plus you have a huge amount of space between your water pump & fan. I've never heard of brushless fans - I'll have to investigate further. I think the fans I was looking at are rated for 6,000 hours max. I'll have to see how much air the brushless fans move. (I'll shoot a pic of my engine bay - but I can promise it doesn't look as nice as your's).
The brushless term refers to the type of electric motor used in the fan. They have become much more popular with a variety of appliance/HVAC/automotive applications due to their efficiency and flexibility. Good units that can have great useful lives.
Hey Hooler,
I'm working the timing/carb tuning at the same time to make sure everything is good there before heading out to throw money at this one.
We are checking the temps with a Harbor Freight laser thermometer just to be sure. We are running an Edelbrock 650cfm carb. - it's been "tuned" by feel up to this point. I think this could be part of the issue - I think in the end it will be several things that I need to adjust to get this right.
We do not have any of the F1 front kit in place to block the air gaps. We are running an after market radiator not the original Huge F1 style radiator.
Ben in Austin
1950 F1
(My dad's family is from Burlington - been through Iowa many times.
would prefer to never detassel corn again).
Thanks Ben, Sorry I probably gave you a lot of information you already knew. It's just that it seems like I always seem to buy cars or truck's with over heating issues. So I hate it when someone else is fighting it too. I think you are right. Its probably a combination of things. Timing and jetting will help some and the correct largest electric fan along with a good 195 on/175 off fan switch screwed into the thermostat housing will help a lot. I got a deal for you. You keep up the good fight with the cooling system and I'll detassel the next rows of corn.
Ben, let us see how you have that radiator sealed on the sides and bottom. Also, look at how the blocking plate from the hood down to the radiator is fitting at the radiator. If you can run at road speeds with no problems, I would think your problem is somewhere in not getting enough air through the radiator by fan.
Their biggest, baddest SPAL fan is this one @ $220. Rated @ 3000 cfm. http://www.the-fan-man.com/shop/size....html?cPath=33
I would believe their rating system. I did not buy that fan opting for a cheaper one. I am 95% certain I have 2049 which is rated @ 2070.
I've used many SPAL fans and found them of higher quality than other aftermarket. this is truly an OEM - grade fan.
They sell another one called side winder, which a lot of hot-rod guys use. It looks cool, but is $450.
In thinking about it, and as someone else commented, it seems the low-speed cooling is your big issue given the data provided. The fan, a good shroud will solve that issue.
Also, wire the fan properly with a relay. I'd run FAT gauge wire from the lug on your alternator (8 gauge) to a heavy duty relay (I could provide a link) and mount it down near the front crossmember and close to the fan. Give the fan its own ground, too, nearby the radiator and I'm pretty confident your issue will go away. I always use a voltage drop calculator before making those decisions. You input current flow, wire size, wire distance (both ground and 12V+ added) and it will tell you about how much voltage loss you will have. I would aim for less than 5% loss. Probably 2%.
I also would suggest a threaded in switch to trigger your fan relay - this might install in your intake manifold or head. Those are incredibly simple and OEM-grade, too. Something like this:
You'd have to check the temp at which the switch activates, of course and want it 5 or 10 degrees above where the thermostat opens (so the fan would actually turn off when temps are reduced). This switch would activate the ground-side trigger of the fan relay. This works better than the hokey radiator probes some relay kits use to trigger the fan relay.
Also, bear in mind with coolant and a properly pressurized system, you won't boil over until WELL above 212F. I'm not saying don't solve the problem, but keep in mind the physics. And note too much coolant content reduces cooling capacity (water cools better than coolant mix). so don't go overboard on the coolant. If you haven't tried it, maybe 25% coolant / 75% water is your best bet.
Hey Ray,
I'm circling back through our truck fixing things that bother me as they aren't working "right". The cooling system is at the top of the list.
What I have is a radiator that's 24 inches wide by 19 inches long. There is a 3 inch gap to the passenger side with the A/C condenser plumbing but otherwise nothing. We also have a gap of say 2 inches on the driver's side containing the steel overflow tank.
I don't have any other sealing around the radiator. What should the F1 have? (When I bought this truck originally & it was not in great shape & had been modified in the 70's so I have no reference to what was supposed to be in there).
05-20-2015, 08:03 PM
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