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408 & Vintage Air/BCB AC install

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lars

lars

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nvrstuk

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Looking like progress! Bet you had B it working now in your June HEAT wave. Sounds like kinda miserable temps!
 
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lars

lars

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coolant system air bleed

Something that always bugged me with my previous 5.0 engine got worse with the 351W/408/what ever. The upper radiator hose, what with an OEM style radiator and Explorer 5.0 front dress, is the high point in the system. Air in the coolant system is not your friend, unless you like corrosion. Some cars with similar systems have an air bleed expressly to remove air from said high point. Simple. Warm up engine. Open bleed port, expel air.

I bought a 1.5" x 45 degree stainless mandrel bend. Already had some 1/8" NPT stainless weld bungs. Drilled/welded bung into tube. Substituted it into the upper radiator hose. I happened to have some stainless high temp/high pressure Schrader valves. I'd prefer a 1/8 NPT x -3AN fitting with a -3AN cap but I don't have one. Schrader valve does the job, at least for now. Worked as hoped for.

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And, thanks to the "Highlander" hood, it clears.
 

71 CA Bronco

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761
Something that always bugged me with my previous 5.0 engine got worse with the 351W/408/what ever. The upper radiator hose, what with an OEM style radiator and Explorer 5.0 front dress, is the high point in the system. Air in the coolant system is not your friend, unless you like corrosion. Some cars with similar systems have an air bleed expressly to remove air from said high point. Simple. Warm up engine. Open bleed port, expel air.

I bought a 1.5" x 45 degree stainless mandrel bend. Already had some 1/8" NPT stainless weld bungs. Drilled/welded bung into tube. Substituted it into the upper radiator hose. I happened to have some stainless high temp/high pressure Schrader valves. I'd prefer a 1/8 NPT x -3AN fitting with a -3AN cap but I don't have one. Schrader valve does the job, at least for now. Worked as hoped for.

i-TBPD9tw-X3.jpg


i-D6KVcNR-X2.jpg


i-sXNVmM8-X2.jpg


And, thanks to the "Highlander" hood, it clears.

Great idea Lars. I was just thinking there has to be a better way when I had to burp mine on my inclined driveway and jacking up the front end with a floor jack. I have heard horror stories from not getting the air pockets out and super heating isolated sections of the motor. I imagine this is even a bigger deal on a newly built/tight setup.

Looks like you're getting close.
 

nvrstuk

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Hahahahahaha... hey there Mr. TC buddy, I "might" have said that but I didn't (did I)? so don't get me in trouble if I'm not there to defend myself!! :)

Like I need you to help get me in more hot water... ;)
 
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lars

lars

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Tell me more about the rad over flow bottle? Store bought or hand made?

Canton. Embarrassingly expensive but I wanted the bling. It's designed to take pressure so it has a regular radiator cap. Overflow tube on the radiator filler neck is plumbed to the bottom of the can so it will push coolant back into the radiator when it cools off.

This:
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ctr-80-200r
 

904Bronco

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Canton. Embarrassingly expensive but I wanted the bling. It's designed to take pressure so it has a regular radiator cap. Overflow tube on the radiator filler neck is plumbed to the bottom of the can so it will push coolant back into the radiator when it cools off.

This:
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/ctr-80-200r

Yes Canton is very proud of their Overflow tank... But, if it works...
Thank you for the info...
 
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lars

lars

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Yes Canton is very proud of their Overflow tank... But, if it works...
Thank you for the info...

It was an easy step beyond the Canton pan. Yup, got one of those too. 7 quart capacity with filter- probably not necessary in principle but I'm glad to have the extra contents. It occurred to me to track down an original Bronco 289/302 pan and a 351W pan and graft them together as Duff's used to do. But I sat still until the feeling went away. Would've delayed the project even longer.
 

nvrstuk

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Lars- is there specifics on mounting height of the Canton overflow in relation to the radiator cap?
 
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lars

lars

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Lars- is there specifics on mounting height of the Canton overflow in relation to the radiator cap?

Mine is set up as a recovery/surge tank, rather than overflow. I capped the port on the side, and it has a 13 pound cap on it. So as the system cools off, in theory coolant will be sucked back into the radiator.

There is probably some optimum height for it, and someone on here probably has that answer. Mine is "I don't know." But my hand was forced by the brackets on the tank I bought and the height of the core support. A cylindrical tank with clamp-on brackets that can be moved relative to the tank would be more flexible as far as mounting.

I previously had a cheap aluminum tank that was just set up as an overflow tank, so this is an experiment for me.
 

nvrstuk

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I will follow along and see how it works as I just have a funky burp "tank". Thx
 

ntsqd

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Upper SoKA
As Lars knows I'm about to venture into the land of coolant surge tanks with an LQ4 swap into my (grandfather's, gave it to me) '73 Chevy SB-SS.
Downside to surge tanks is that you can't add coolant when the system is hot.
Upside is that I never did need to do that with the old ribbit diesel's surge tank system.
Both of these systems have little hoses that make them supposedly self-purging of air. I think that's the feature of this design that I like the most.
 

904Bronco

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I took the plunge and joined the Canton over priced bling club.

Couldn't wait any longer on my other builder, who got Covid and hasn't recovered well...
 

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lars

lars

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I took the plunge and joined the Canton over priced bling club.

Couldn't wait any longer on my other builder, who got Covid and hasn't recovered well...

Purty.

I'm still fighting coolant leak issues, the latest being because my 23 year old much-abused Modine radiator finally gave up. Did a little drive, parked it in my hangar, returned the next morning to find yet another puddle being fed by a steady drip out of the bottom drivers side tank where it is splitting. That was a week ago. I don't feel bad, it served me well and survived a lot longer than I expected, despite having had sticks and stones and more smashed into it.

Broke the piggy bank again (more like, smashed to smithereens) and ordered a replacement from US Radiator the same day. According to their website they are 2-4 weeks out so I have some time to obsess about other stuff.
 

nvrstuk

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2-4 weeks? You just got moving!! :(

Oh well, much better in the hangar than out in the desert somewhere...
 

reynard101

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Broke the piggy bank again (more like, smashed to smithereens) and ordered a replacement from US Radiator the same day. According to their website they are 2-4 weeks out so I have some time to obsess about other stuff.

Did you get the full tilt boogie Copper/Brass Optima Tripleflow w/4 core? That's some $$$.
 
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