35 Ford pickup radiator and support rods

[35Fordpickup]

I'm still working on my 35 pickup and ran across a thread from June 2020 regarding the radiator on 35 cars. How much of the information in that post is applicable to pickups? My radiator appears to be the new 48-8005-B style but the brackets for the support rods on the cab are the old style. The pickup had been totally dismantled when I purchased it so I do not have the support rods and do not know exactly how long they should be. Does anyone know?
There is an overflow tube on the drivers side of the radiator, can this be plugged up to run some pressure? Which rad cap could be used to run it at a low pressure?
Thanks
John

 

[Model51]

Your 1935 pickup should have a 50-8005 series radiator. The 48-8005 radiator is for cars. Later tonight I'll add some pictures of the 50-8005 radiator and the length of the rods.

 

[Brian]

Do not plug the overflow tube!!! It is there for a reason; as the coolant heats up, it expands. The overflow tube allows this excess coolant to escape from outta the top tank. If you plug it. the top tank will explode under the pressure build up. What I do is run the overflow tube into the bottom of a container, open to the atmosphere. This container will catch the excess as coolant heats/expands, and will allow the coolant to siphon back as radiator cools. ala recovery system. ...as long as your radiator cap seals

 

[TerryOH]

Just measure the distance from the firewall bracket to the radiator bracket for approximate length of the rods. Speedway sells the steel rods in black color and you can shorten them.

 

[Model51]

Here's what the original radiator for your truck looks like and a picture of the steady rods which were originally 29-1/8" long (Part No. 50-8133).
These are the stock original parts. Hope this helps.

 

[OhioRick]

Install a two pound brake residual valve on the end of your overflow tube. The radiator will easily handle two pounds of pressure. The valve allow you to pressurize the tank and more importantly keep the coolant in your radiator when running at high rpm. They work perfectly.

 

[35Fordpickup]

Thanks for the replies. The top tank on my radiator looks slightly different from the back than is shown in your picture. The fan clearance arc looks like it was stamped with a filleted radius rather than what appears to be more of a squared off corner. The only marks I can find on the radiator is a tag soldered onto the back of the top tank stamped: L 6 45 Based on the drawings in the other post, this radiator has the small tank which would require 3.25 inch longer stay rods. A rough measurement without currently knowing the hood length is that the rods should be about 32 inches in length, whether that is correct I don't know, I will have to check the dimensions of the hood to verify where the grill needs to be positioned relative to the cab. Also, both of the top hose connections appear to have been cut shorter because there are no beads on them to hold the hoses more securely. My thoughts on plugging the overflow pipe would be to use a more modern style of cap with the overflow line out of the side of the cap to run a slightly pressurized cooling system. Not having seen a residual valve before are there any steel components in it that could corrode and cause it not to function?
John

 

[petehoovie]

Here's what the original radiator for your truck looks like and a picture of the steady rods which were originally 29-1/8" long (Part No. 50-8133).
These are the stock original parts. Hope this helps.

 

[jeff47wl]

regarding 1935/36 truck radiators-
Are there not certain holes in thr frame certain radiators mount to?
some holes closer to firewall ans some further away (not by much but by some)

jeff

 

[Model51]

Jeff - There should be two brackets riveted to the frame on which the radiator is attached. Attached is an image of the bracket on a 1935 truck frame. The pickup looks something like this. These brackets are located about where the front edge of the hood is located.

 

[petehoovie]

Jeff - There should be two brackets riveted to the frame on which the radiator is attached. Attached is an image of the bracket on a 1935 truck frame. The pickup looks something like this. These brackets are located about where the front edge of the hood is located.

 

[35Fordpickup]

Yes, the 35 bracket has only one hole, but, the replacement brackets have holes for both 35 and 36. In that case, the rear hole is for the 35 and the forward hole is for 36.
John