Does anyone know what the LARGEST radiator thickness available was?

 

The largest thickness of core was 1 3/8 in a Delco oem radiator. However, there were aftermarket brass radiators with 3 rows of 3/8" tubes that were also 1 3/8" thick part number industry part #750. Industry plastic tank/aluminum number was #951. Many of the aftermarket companies that built replacement radiators for our cars used an 1 1/4" thick core but added more fins per inch so cooling is very comparable. The brass radiators were supposed to be an upgrade in cooling but if you do the math, 3 rows of 3/8" tubing has 1 1/8" tube to fin surface, the oem plastic tank/aluminum has 1 3/8" tube to fin surface and the aftermarket plastic has 1 1/4" tube to fin surface. It's actually kind of hard to figure which is best because there are also aftermarket radiators in aluminum and plastic that are only 7/8" thick ( cheap replacements ) and there were some oem plastic tank/aluminum radiators only 7/8" thick as well for 4spd or no a.c. applications with 305's. All of this is assuming you are dealing with a v-8. Clear as mud??? Here are some things that people need to learn when trying to upgrade radiators. (1) a radiator typically only has one core, not 2 or three. (2) the core is comprised of rows of tubes so when talking about a core, it's a 1 row, 2 row, 3 row, 4 row etc...... but one core. (3) you cannot compare one to the other without knowing the tube size. A 2 row Griffin, Becool, Racepro, Afco, Ron Davis, etc... are typically 2 rows of 1" tubes or bigger with special order ( 1 1/4", 1 3/8", 1 1/2", etc... ) so...... a 2 row radiator like this will far out cool a 3 row Champion with 3/8" tubes, because tube/fin surface is much higher with 2 rows of a 1"+ tube (2 inches) than a 3 row 3/8" tube ( 1 1/8"). Coolant passes heat into the tube surface which is radiated into the fin material so air passing through the core can remove heat. Therefore, do not be mesmerized by the "3core" bs you read about that is supposed to be so much better than stock because it really isn't if you own a calculator. There is also the matter of tube spacing. Our cores are approx. 17" of core material top to bottom as it sits in the car. If one company has tube spacing on 3/8" centers that's about 43 tubes. If the next has them on 1/2" centers well that's only about 33 tubes ( much less ). Many things to take into consideration when trying to upgrade for real. As for fit, the original rubber insulators in our cars are molded to accept a 2 3/8" header plate( about 2 1/2" outside diameter ) . This is where the tanks are attached to the core. So.... if you buy an aftermarket radiator with 2 rows of 1" tubes and count the space between them the core thickness is about 2 1/4". Because you have to have room for a turn up lip to set an all aluminum tank into the header to be welded, the header ends up being 2 3/4" to 3" thick. This is where "direct fit" problems come from on the hd all aluminum radiators. If they are truly heavy duty, they typically do not just fit right in because they are thicker than oem. Now, if you buy an all aluminum radiator and it fits right in, you can just about guarantee yourself that it is not much of an upgrade if at all, because of the rubber insulator size of 2 3/8" (2 1/2" ). Capishe????? LOL. I know that's probably way more than you wanted to know but if you read and digest this, you will have more radiator education than probably 80% of anyone on here. PS..... I'm just about ready to buy a Champion radiator and cut it open compared to a Racepro and post pics on here to put this aftermarket aluminum radiator subject to bed once and for all. Terrible waste of money but might be worth it as a sticky thread or something so everyone can quit calling it a "3 core" if nothing else. It's a 3 row dangit!! LOL

 

Here's some GM AC Delco proof on sizing.

 

There are some things which will always be pronounced or described wrong. It's not "The Ukraine.".....It's "Ukraine." Likewise, everybody says their air conditioning is "ice cold." But I only refer to ice cold as being air coming out the ducts that is the temperature of ice (32°F or colder air......not 40-50°F!)

Getting back to radiators. From what I gather, the Champion is still an upgrade over stock.

Stock being 1.375" x 1 row = 1.375 inches
Champion 2 row is 0.75" x 2 row = 1.50 inches
Champion 3 row is 0.63" x 3 row = 1.89 inches

I'm guessing there are some air gaps or spacing issues which may reduce the Champion's perceived benefit. On the other hand, the all aluminum aspect probably balances that out.

 

I tried a Champion 3-core, we couldn't even come close to making it fit. So I went back to the drawing board. I'm trying to cool a built 355 in some ridiculous summer heat... I thought the Champion 3 core would be the way to do that, but since it didn't work, I came up with an alternative. Since the 1 3/8 radiators are about as rare as a unicorn, I went and found a 1 1/4 inch rad at the junkyard, which I will have refurbished by a local shop. I also found a LS1 fan shround, complete with fans. I'll also be installing a Stewart Stage 2 pump and thermostat. Hopefully this will keep my temps manageable.

 

[quote=Reid Fleming;5629601]There are some things which will always be pronounced or described wrong. It's not "The Ukraine.".....It's "Ukraine." Likewise, everybody says their air conditioning is "ice cold." But I only refer to ice cold as being air coming out the ducts that is the temperature of ice (32°F or colder air......not 40-50°F!)

Ok, I thought these forums were for information, fact finding and problem solving. I see information being corrected all the time on here. Did something change???

 

im no rad expert, but when i switched from my 2.8/auto/a/c to my 355 i took the rad to a rad shop. the 6 ones seem about the same thickness but seem wider than the 305 cars i checked out. but the tanks are on opposite side, so i just had the guy make me one as wide as possible with the v-8 tank orientation. it fits in my brackets and i can use the stock fan. it always keeps my 355 cool in the summer here. my trans runs though it then to an aftermarket cooler and i got rid of the a/c

 

I agree with you. I'm just saying that even though you are correct in terms of 3 row and not 3 core, people will still make the mistake forever. Just like when people spell it Camero.

 

LOL.............. gottcha!