Ok so I have never ever had an electric push fan on any car and want to see if anyone knows if there is a difference. It will be going in the 51 Chevy Styleline Deluxe on a 350/350 combo. I kinda would like to have the extra space between the radiator and the motor but not sure at how well the push fan cools. I know I can get a fan that works both ways but would like a little input. Will be going with an aluminum Champion 3 core radiator. Thanks in advance.
Some say the pusher will do as good as the puller. If that was so the big three auto giants would use pushers. Get a good puller and be done with it. Better yet use an engine driven one and you won't hear the electric running. Just my opinions.
I have a pusher on my coupe. 471 blown 406 CID. Works great, has never over heated, even in 98 degree weather. However I also run a waker Z radiator, and a high flow water pump. No hood .
The general consensus is that pullers are more efficient, and most electric fan manufacturers say the same thing. All I know is that we run SPAL pullers and not only do they move a lot of air, they last for years. Prior to going with SPAL fans I was replacing one a year. The one on my 27 has been on there for 5 years and runs like the day I put it on. Like 325W said, the auto manufacturers mostly go with pullers, my daily has two of them mounted from the factory. But that is just my personal opinion and experience. Don
Pusher on my 35 Chevy (Davies Craig) with Desert Cooler radiator and puller on my 46 Olds (Spal) with Walker radiator. When driving the air being forced through the radiator does the work. My 35 electric fan only comes on when it gets hot as I don't run a mechanical engine fan with my 5lt & 700R combo. Works for me.
Appreciate the replies guys. I do believe from the input I will go with a pusher and see how it works. It will be one I can change to a puller if it does not work. I just really need the extra room. Makes it a bit easier to get my hands dirty.
Had a pusher on a previous 40 to help with the engine fan, still had a heating problem. This was back when Walker first came out with their shrouds, so I installed one. That helped but it still heated up. Then I removed the pusher, bingo, no more heating problems.
Can you not fit a mechanical fan? IMO, nothing ruins the look of a super nice build like a big chunk of electrified Tupperware on the radiator.
Can I ask you why the desire to run electric??? The only reason that I can think of is space limitations. When I see an electric fan on a 50s car, I think....lazy builder using his checkbook because he's not smart enough to do it right and just took the quick and dirty way out. It's not that hard You can do it! and it looks sooooo much better. I don't understand the desire for electric. They are cheaper too. We built durable hotrods long before electric fans became popular.
Nothing to do with lazy and damn sure dont have a fat wallet. Plainly put it is more asthetically pleasing and that is the way I got it. I also like to have room to get in there without taking the front end apart. When I see bashing of new or different ideas I tend to think he's just not smart enough to do it any other way. I am for what works most efficient and allows easier access to the motor.
If you have the frontal room, (and you must; in liner to V8 swap leaves 4"+) fit a water pump mounted fan and shroud. Access to the front of the engine should be necessary only in the event of water pump failure, timing cover seal leakage, or belt replacement. My brother has an electric push fan on his '29 Rdstr P/U. Hidden behind the grille of his Deuce shell. Gets a lot of 'guffaws' from the hot rod crown when he shuts off the engine and that fan keeps going....cooling it off between cruises...LOL
If you stop to think about the parts involved, and their placement, the puller has an easier time of doing it's job. The pusher fan motor, brackets and even the fan itself, partially block the incoming air at the front of the radiator. They are obstructing valuable square inches of radiator core surface area. If the radiator is big enough, or the fan volume great enough, the consequence can lessened or eliminated. The puller fan on the other hand, whether mechanical or electric, leaves all of the front of the radiator exposed to incoming air flow and the air p***es through the core unobstructed and offers the best cooling opportunity for any given size of radiator core. I doubt the puller fan and/or shroud, if properly designed, add any significant obstruction to the air as it leaves the radiator, but in any case, it has already absorbed heat from the core. I DO realize that if the air exiting is restricted, it will degrade cooling air flow. I just think that is less likely than the certainty that a pusher is always something of an obstruction. So, I tend to believe that a puller fan, if space is available, is the more efficient choice. Ray
I installed a 4 cyl street bike motor into a 4 wheeler. It was set up as a pusher at first and always overheated. I switched it over to a puller and it never overheats. Nothing else was changed. I ***ume it would work similar in a car.
Pushers don't work near as well as puller fans and neither work as well as a mechanical fan. If the build didnt include space for a fan, there's no sense in talking to the builder about the benefits or drawbacks. Might as well leave the gas tank out too because there's no sense in running an engine you can't cool.
Hnstray you explained very well. I totally agree that the puller works much better.....it is simple physics. Mechanical fan is definately the best like 31Vicky says. Thinking I am gonna trash the electric fan altogether and use the wires for the electric seats with **** warmers I got a hold of. Some of you are really p***ionate about the absence of electric fans and I am totally with you on that. Plastic ****s but aluminum looks really good. Hopefully I have the space for a mechanical fan. I really want those seats to work about now once I get them installed this weekend. Gotta go junkin for brackets.....best part of the build. Pulling those wires out of the engine compartment will also clean it up a bit as well. Thanks guys for the input.....even you old grumpy guys (I am almost there myself). Enjoy your weekend.
Does anyone have info on a custom aluminum fan shroud that I can purchase or would I have to fabricate one? Ecklers does not have one to match the radiator. I do not like the plastic shrouds....they are hideous. Again thanks.
Does anyone have info on a custom aluminum fan shroud that I can purchase or would I have to fabricate one? Ecklers does not have one to match the radiator. I do not like the plastic shrouds....they are hideous. Again thanks.
I cry ******** on the "pusher verses puller verses stock" fan debate. What works for you works. All I can say is here in North Florida summer time 95 degrees, 95 percent humidity, stuck in traffic means bad news for my cars. I run swap meet pushers ONLY, on mine. I run a stock fan, back from the radiator, for appearance only. Stop and go traffic all day, less than 195 degrees, no issues. It's all about air flow through the radiator, no matter how you get it, pushing or pulling. On the open road they dont do jack. Good luck with finding the right combination. Elpaso can't be much hotter in traffic than J-Ville, 95 degrees is 95 degrees.
I'm calling bull **** on this I run a stock fan, back from the radiator, for appearance only. Take the stock fan off and run just the pusher then, since it's for just for looks. pushers are good for parade duty to supplement a stock fan.
I use both set ups. Put a puller on our 32 roadster - don't like the looks but I can live with it. Have a toggle on the dash - and watch that temp gauge! We put a pusher in front of the radiator on our 49. It's pretty much hidden by the grill. Also installed an auto temp switch to run the thing. We are using electric fans from the salvage and they can be mounted to push or pull. Come in a variety of sizes. They work great for us and are minimal cost. You can get creative and build a shroud if so inclined.
My solution: no fan, drive fast. Seriously. Probably not going to have room to run a fan on my T with a cut-down Model B radiator. Wish me luck!
/\ /\ This! Any hardware you put in front of the core impedes air flow. I couldn't put a puller in my 40 so I put in a pusher. It sits in front of the AC condenser and just behind the ****** oil cooler. Somehow it works like a charm, but your best bet is a puller.
If you are determined to use a pusher fan in front of the radiator, get a fan that is specifically designed to push rather than pull. You just can't reverse polarity on a puller fan to make it effectively push. There is a difference in blade dynamics, at least in the case of SPAL. I learned that years ago on a 56 Chevy pickup with a Be-Cool radiator. I mounted a SPAL puller fan in front and reversed the polarity; it did not cool well. I spoke with SPAL, which advised me to use its pusher fan. I did, and cooling problem resolved.
Looking around at fans I see a lot of companies advertising that their fans can be configured as pushers or pullers. From what I see here that is considered to be pure BS. El Paso is hot to be sure. Hell even today we are at 81 degrees in November.....crazy. Will wait til I get the radiator in first. I guess the fan that was installed is a little deep. Almost sitting on the water pump shaft. Asked the question and wow some spirited opinions here. Maybe I just put the 3 options on a dart board for determination then cuss myself when it doesn't work and I end up with the last one. Woohoo cant wait to get the parts.
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