jerthemost

not sure what radiator but is not stock. it measures 22' wide, is steel or brass not aluminum. must have come from some other car or truck but is at least slightly oversized. fins not perfect but not bad either. water on the front of it only brought temp down about 7 or 8 degs which makes me think a new monster rad would not solve the problem. before mods it always ran cool even in hot weather with a/c on. could the fan be on backwards?

jerthemost

a guy on another forum brought up interesting point. he said not to drill the holes because the water would then bypass the back of the engine and the back side would overheat. he showed a gasket showing the water holes at the rear of the heads and said the water went into heads at rear and flowed to front and into intake water ports. does bring up a good point. what do you guys think?

Derf00

Ehhh... this snipet was on their "about us" page...

"Bumbera's has received awards for exhibiting "Outstanding Christian Character" in their day to day business practices from notable Christian organizations.

"Bumbera's success is attributed to a high level of customer satisfaction which we believe is the result of honesty and a lot of hard work. We thank God and you, our customers, for our success and for making our jobs an adventure each and every day," says Kenny Bumbera.

Sorry but religion and business should not mix in the general public eye. I can show you as many dishonest christians as I can lay people. The above statement alone would make me look elsewhere.

I am Christian (catholic) but I don't advertise it. To sit there and imply "Trust me because I am Catholic" is simply stupid.

Anyways, personal views and opinions aside, they build race cars...okay, well race and DD cars are different beasts so what works in the race world may not work in the DD world and vice versa. A restrictor btw is useful in racing where the car is all go and no stop. In the DD world where the car can sit idle for a while, the restrictor will do just that...restrict the flow.

Not saying they don't know what they are doing, just saying they applied the wrong reasoning to your upgrade. Have the restrictor removed, put the t-stat in (180) and try that first.

Starfury

The holes are steam vents, to prevent steam pocket buildup in the block. They're not going to allow coolant to bypass the back of the engine, they're simply not big enough for any real flow.

Having drilled the holes in my block when I installed my Trick Flow heads, I can tell you that they do not cause any problems. And if every big aftermarket cylinder head mfg tells you to drill the holes, I'm willing to trust their judgement.

jerthemost

where does the released steam go?

jerthemost

any recommedations of a new radiator and or Fan?

Derf00

Steam in the coolant system should only be a problem if you have a lot of air in your system. Is there a bleeder in your T-stat housing? If not you can create your own by taking one of the heater hoses and routing to a point higher than the rest of hte cooling system, putting a T in there with a replaceable cap, running the motor, allowing the air to escape, and putting the cap back on.

2+2GT

If there is actual steam in "pockets" in the engine at 13-15 psi, then the engine has already overheated and you are screwed. "Steam" holes, or lack of them, is not the problem. Steam does not "build up" in a properly operating engine. At 13-15 psi, coolant should not boil until it hits about 250°F. Ford considered 220°F the overheating point.

The only use for holes other than at the rear of the engine would be to allow trapped air to escape when the engine is filled with coolant. Ford engines already have more than sufficient holes for this.

JMD

The idea is that localized pockets of steam are allowed to vent upward through the steam holes, rejoin the liquid coolant and condense back to liquid. (steam pockets in the engine will not allow heat transmission from the combustion chamber to the coolant causing "hot spots", but not usually general overheating)

Like others, I don't think that this is the issue.

Keep in mind that aluminum heads will conduct quite a bit more engine heat into the cooling system when compared to cast iron. A cooling system that was not noticeably marginal (but marginal none the less) with cast iron heads, can be more than just insufficient with aluminum heads. Check out DART'S comments regarding cast iron vs. aluminum heads.

jerthemost

thanks for all the comments. i think i will ask the mechanic to drill the holes since it is recommended by edelbrock and cannot do any harm anyway. i will also have him take out restrictor and put in thermostat. then will see what we have. but can someone reccomend a radiator size, type brand etc? i cannot go any wider than what i have now without moving the battery.