I'm looking for a radiator for a '56 Chevy, (was original in-line 6, but now V-8) the radiator in front of the support. I see Jegs has an inexpensive direct fit aluminum radiator, http://www.jegs.com/i/JEGS-Performance-Products/555/52051/10002/-1 has anyone purchase/installed one? I'd like to know how well the direct fit is and a general review if anyone has. Thanks
Beware of radiators that do not say "mig welded" they are usually glued or epoxied together and guy have had probs with this style. On welded types repairs and alterations/modifications can be made with no problems. Pat
I don't know about the aluminum radiators, but I got a br*** one from them and it has turned out to be a great deal. Jegs is only a distributer and the radiator originally came from U.S. Radiators. When I was in search of a quality radiator I came across an aluminum Griffin that seemed great but the tubes are epoxied and I had to decline. Maybe you should give Jegs a call and ask them who the manufacturer of the radiator and then contact that company to find out how the radiator is made.
i have a friend that bought 1 for a 56 w/ a hot motor about 3 years ago - fit right in & no problems to date - motor runs cool in traffic too
What's wrong with the radiator you have? I had a 55, way back when, it came with a I6 and PG. I put in a 396 with TH400 and ran it for years with the original I6 radiator. Drove it all over Texas and out to Georgia with no problems. Guess I'm trying to say, try what you have before you buy. It's really not that hard to switch out. May save you $400 bucks or so. If you decide to buy, you can try Eckler's Cl***ic Chevy parts. You can request a free catalog and check them out. I think they carry the US radiator stuff also. Good luck. Aman
Thanks for the responce! The original had a bad leak where the top tank and fins meet, it was repaired, but appears that their may be another leak or the repair is leaking. There is some corrosion near the repair, which was fairly large. Other than the numbers leak repairs there is nothing wrong with it, but I'd perfer something with less holes patched. I'll check out Eckler's. Another option is to recore the radiator, which would cost about the same as a new aluminum.
I just went through this same thing with my 56 with a sbc. I finally decided to have my original 2 row rebuilt to a 3 row high efficiency. The original parts to the radiator were higher quality metal than the new stuff. Good luck
Try this site for info about your options both aluminum and copper/br*** Hope this helps www.coolcraft.com
for that price why not buy proven parts for Chevys from CCI? http://www.cl***icchevy.com/catalogsearch/result/?search_year=1956&q=aluminum+radiator&x=39&y=4
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