The Dreaded Chrysler Auburn Style Diamond Radiator Requiring Service

[leomara]

While in the restoration of my 1928 Chrysler Model 72 roadster I've managed to acquire 2 radiators of the above type, neither worth a farthing.  Both have leaks in the center core, one was able to be serviced with stop leak, the other I was told is clogged and if we could get by that roadblock it still has leaks in the center core.  Now I'm well aware of the outrageous cost of re-coring these buggers so I cannot even consider that option.  Does anyone have a radiator technician they could recommend to possibly work some magic or there also was a post about doing a re-core with a conventional type core and then using a faux honeycomb front to disguise the repair.  

[DFeeney]

My 1928 Plymouth radiator finally let go.  We have to realize these radiators were never meant to last 100 yrs.  Plus in the early years they did not have modern  coolant to inhibit rust.   The honey comb estimate was $4200.  I went with a modern core at $1800 which included a newly made lower tank an my old one ( brass) was full of holes.    The car runs cooler now than it ever did.

[Mikefit]

Ace Radiator in Fort Wayne Indiana 1 800 288 7964  Steve   Great workmanship abit pricey but you will forget the price when you see the completed work.  Mike

[EmTee]

Had my '38 Buick radiator re-cored by Classic Radiator in Farmingdale, NY.

 

https://www.classicradiator.com/

[Durant Mike]

I had my 1928 Durant radiator restored at "The Brass Works" in California and was 100% satisfied with their work. Yes it is pricey but not that many are restoring these old radiators. Mine was $2,800 when it was done.  If you intend to show the car at the AACA events, the modern core will not work and you will get points taken off by the judges for being incorrect.

 

[leomara]

Hey Durant Mike, no show, just go.  Thanks for the tip.

[F&J]

It still won't sound very affordable if you get a shop that is willing to use modern core material, because they have to order a custom shaped core with curved upper and lower "header plates" soldered to the core material.  The headers need to be curved like the opening in the front of the radiator shell, so that you can't see the headers from the front.  

 

A typical local old time radiator shop does not have the tooling to make those curved header plates, and they can't even make straight headers either.  These shops send the curved upper and lower tanks to a place like Maine Radiator. That company makes new curved header plates and then they solder these headers to the modern core material after trimming the top and bottom of the core material to the correct curves.

 

Then Maine Radiator ships the core and tanks back to the first shop to have the tanks soldered back on.  

 

3 years ago I found an 80 year old shop owner to do this to my 32 Ford.  32 Fords never used honeycomb, it was straight horizontal fins with vertical tubes.  I took 3 original radiators to him as two had a bad top tank and other had a bad bottom tank. 

Here he taking the tanks off the bad cores to see if they could be saved. 

 

It was $904.00 back then.  Yours would cost more due to having a crank hole in the core.  They have to "box that area in" around the crank hole.  That price was using straight fin core material instead of modern "ribbon-candy shaped" fins.  He said ribbon fins will cool better but straight fin is stronger for radiators that also support the weight and stresses of the heavy hood.  

 

.

 

[leomara]

I've contacted Classic Radiator in Farmingdale NY.  After speaking with them I got the impression they have the experience and willingness to try and repair my radiator rather than just saying it needs a re-core.  Perhaps since I have 2 they can make a decent one out of both.  We shall see what develops..

[TTR]

On 10/31/2022 at 1:47 PM, leomara said:

While in the restoration of my 1928 Chrysler Model 72 roadster I've managed to acquire 2 radiators of the above type, neither worth a farthing.  Both have leaks in the center core, one was able to be serviced with stop leak, the other I was told is clogged and if we could get by that roadblock it still has leaks in the center core.  Now I'm well aware of the outrageous cost of re-coring these buggers so I cannot even consider that option.  Does anyone have a radiator technician they could recommend to possibly work some magic or there also was a post about doing a re-core with a conventional type core and then using a faux honeycomb front to disguise the repair.  

??? (see additional quotes below)

 

39 minutes ago, leomara said:

... I got the impression they have the experience and willingness to try and repair my radiator rather than just saying it needs a re-core.  Perhaps since I have 2 they can make a decent one out of both.  We shall see what develops..

2 hours ago, leomara said:

... no show, just go.  

Rhetorical question (no answer required):

If this ^ actually is the objective, why even waste time and money patching up 94 year old radiator, which more than likely will fail sooner rather than later ?

 

 

 

 

[TTR]

58 minutes ago, F&J said:

 ...ribbon fins will cool better ... than ...straight fin.  

This is not necessarily accurate or true in all cases.

Straight fin cores are still commonly used in heavy equipment, industrial and truck applications and I believe, based on comments from several radiator shops I've used in the past, including "The Brass Works", which made a new custom radiator (w/straight fin core) for my PB Roadster with a 276" De Soto about 10 years and tens of thousands of miles ago.

To my understanding, the "ribbon fin" core is more commonly used in automotive applications mainly due to being cheaper to produce.

[leomara]

TTR, definitely something to ruminate on.......

[edinmass]

You need to know the correct flow rate, and be sure the new core has the same rate. Just because someone recores a radiator, doesn’t mean it will function correctly. Lots of shortcuts taken by shops that don’t know any better.

[Larry Schramm]

From my experience, if a radiator is questionable, just re-core it.  Bite the bullet now as a re-core will be cheaper today than in the future.  Especially if you plan on driving the vehicle. 

 

If you are going to drive it minimally and let it mostly sit, put a radiator in it that looks good and does not leak. 

 

IMO and experience.

Edited November 3, 2022 by Larry Schramm (see edit history)

[edinmass]

Whenever I see a big classic car with a modern radiator in it, the first question I ask is where else did they cheap out on the repairs. And the answer always is everywhere!  More often than not, I pass on them.

[leomara]

edinmass, this is an expensive hobby and not all of us have unlimited resources.  It's hard to determine why owners choose to pursue the restoration of their vehicles the way they do but at lease some manage to accomplish the task even if the end result is not up to other restorers standards.

[$um Fun]

Make sure they clock the cap neck correctly or the wings on the cap will be off and also test fit it with grill shell. There is enough adjustment that if the neck is off front to back the shell will fit crooked and non of the side bolts that hold the shell to the radiator wont line up.  I got mine from the radiator shop and it was off by 1/2". Luckily I was test fitting everything and checked the cap and noticed the wings were 1/2" twisted and back to the radiator shop for  a redo. Even with the alignment marks they got it off the first go around.

[leomara]

Thank you $um Fun, something I never thought about. 

[edinmass]

On 11/4/2022 at 9:32 AM, leomara said:

edinmass, this is an expensive hobby and not all of us have unlimited resources.  It's hard to determine why owners choose to pursue the restoration of their vehicles the way they do but at lease some manage to accomplish the task even if the end result is not up to other restorers standards.

Im not a restorer, just a used car mechanic. Obvious short cuts are an alarm at resale. I perfectly understand the expense issue. On big jobs I suggest that a poor repair and a correct repair are not that much different in cost. What good is a half price new core if it doesn’t flow right or fit the shell correctly. Hood alignment issues, cap and tank issues, ect. Some radiators run 75 thousand plus for a 540k. So a radiator needs to both function and fit well. Add in the obvious looks difference and I’m making an argument that a good car that you want to enjoy is worth investment.  The expense versus value of the car today is now going in the opposite direction it has been for the last 40 years. Middle of the road cars are either stagnant or going down in value. Personally I look at this as a plus because I can afford more cars. Downside is a major repair and it’s almost worth walking away sometimes. 

[leomara]

edinmass, very practical and food for thought......