Yeah cheap *******s buying China radiators. See them all the time in the car for sale section. Tells a lot about what kinda car you will be buying. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
Come on man, nothing looks better than the trifecta of shiny aluminium radiator, chrome plastic electric fan and chrome vacuum cleaner hose.
Y’all can both and moan about Al radiators, buying one off eBay from wherever the ****, but did you smart geniuses read the whole thread? Or trying to start some mob mentality thing? Let me recap for you, I’ll type S L O W...with me? Walker doesn’t want to sell. And that has what to do with buying a 30 dollar radiator off eBay?
All of that has nothing to do with how ****ty an unpainted aluminum radiator looks, and are you with me? I will type even slower, yes I read the entire thread, I guess maybe some have a tough time with that. 1. Walker sent out memos saying they are closing the doors Dec 11. 2. Other companies expressed interest in buying the company. 3. Walker did not want to sell their name.
I wish someone will pull through and buy the whole operation just to keep it going, the quality Walker had was unsurp***ed, yeah it was more money but built to last and worked great. I agree a unpainted alum. rad looks cheesy in most vehicles, but alot of folks are on a budget for sure, and I get the reasons for them, but a can of black paint would make it not look so cheesy. But some of the pro street fools still live it up with their alum rad showing off like a status symbol.....
Let me give the final whack to beating this dead horse. My takeaway isn't that they didn't want to sell the business, they didn't want the NAME to go with it. Is that a ploy by Walker to kill any potential buy by devaluing a purchase? Don't know, but while Walker is a quality product, there are others out there as well. If Walker won't sell the name to give a new owner the name recognition and value over a startup, why would anyone buy it?
Too bad they couldn't work out a deal like a number of sellers do to help the transition. Keep the sellers name but add the buyer's name to it for a period of time while a member of the family stays with the company. Something like Smith's Walker Radiator Works after a year becomes just Smith's Radiator Works and the seller family member leaves the company.
I must, honestly, take a contrarian stand. Without a doubt, Walker makes an ideal, quality product, didn't want to sell their name, is going out of business for undisclosed reasons and will be missed. And yes, they are the br*** standard. However, not everyone has the resources or desire to pay $800-1000+ for a radiator. If one follows your reasoning, then if we can't buy compete sets of Snap-On tools, work with an original Henry Deuce, put Ardun heads on a NOS flathead block, etc. then we shouldn't play the game. Sometimes compromises must be made. Sometimes, even if one knows better, a fellow has to settle for something less than ideal to get a hotrod on the road. And, isn't that the name of the game? Not to create a museum piece/trailer queen but to get something drivable? The hot rodders of yore wouldn't likely buy new top-shelf stuff, they found what works and could be used. And, isn't this a traditional site? So shouldn't we,ideally, emulate them? For all the reasons stated elsewhere on this thread, of course it would be great to have the best to put in your car. But, if you can't, aluminum radiators do work. And, for $15, Eastwood sells special radiator paint-gloss or satin- that can make your ride presentable.
I didn't say don't use an aluminum radiator, All I said was the silver radiator glaring thru the grill looks ****py. So if aluminum is what you want to use for crying out loud please paint it
You missed my point. I was referring to those insinuating that buying cheap radiators is why Walker was closing the doors. I agree that an Al radiator isn’t a good look on a hot rod
It’s next door to Sun Studio’s in Memphis for The Love of God! The sign alone is priceless! History? Not supporting this small company to cut corners is disgusting Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
I guess I got the only piece of **** Walker radiator they ever made when I bought one for my '33 in 92. Leaked the first time water was put in it and because I had painted the top and bottom tanks, Walker wouldn't warranty it. Had it fixed locally, and that was the last Walker radiator I bought. Sad to see them go, but they got no more of my money.
Yes, it’s THAT Vernon Walker. Being the owner of the NSRA has been a challenge for him but he manages it . Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
The problem to a buyer is the name, without the name your just buying used equipment and doing a startup business. That would be it would be very hard in today's market. To bad he don't sell to his employees and let them continue on. Also If anyone is in the market I would sell my name for enough money to buy a nice 32 5w Just my opinion.
Totally understand not wanting to sell the name. How is the new Maytag, Fridgidare, GE, Whirlpool products doing for anyone.
No one has established that the reason for closing is economic. That's just conjecture so far. Maybe after such a long time, they're just tired of making radiators? If Harry Walker died at 57 in 1966, the kids that took over have to be in their late 70's or 80's? It's also quite interesting that their website does not mention the closure.
I agree whole heartedly. I stretched my finances to pay the only radiator shop close to me, 40 miles away, $250 to put a core in the heater on my '46 Merc. The same shop wanted a minimum of $600 to re-core the radiator. The choice was very clear. I bought a Champion because that's what I could afford. In regard to @dsiddons comment about the parentage of those of us who buy foreign made aluminum radiators, my Mother and Father were married and to each other. I further take issue with his elitist comment on the make and country of origin of the vehicles that he incorrectly ***umes that I buy. With the exception of my OT Alfa Romeo roadster, everything else that I own has Ford or Mercury badging and the newer ones have foreign made parts in them from the factory. If my comments get me thrown out of the HAMB, so be it but, I won't apologize for anything I've said. Got that, @dsiddons
The market has changed over the years, our community of car builders is actually pretty small, less people building 30’s era cars which require a more custom radiator that later year cars. Then there is the cost, $900 for a br*** radiator or several hundred for an aluminum one. I want quality but others are more concerned with price. I think that’s a big factor on their closing, I can also see them having concerns with selling the name. When I first built my 31 pickup, I bought an old recored radiator and had a local radiator shop modify it. After 20 years it was starting to weep, that radiator shop was long gone. Ran across a deal on a Model A Walker radiator a guy got with his car, but he was channeling it so it wouldn’t work for him, got it for $200. My current project I checked around, and ordered one from Br***works. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Someone in the area needs to go into their sons bedroom today and jerk their teenage son off of the Xbox he is playing on, Then take him down to the Barber shop and get him a respectable haircut and put a torch and roll of solder in his hand and have him learn something real. The hot rod community is counting on you! lol
Sorry. Three of us in my family bought each bought '32 radiators, including the last ones Speedway had with outlets for Chevy and Flathead engines. You snooze, you lose! Wouldn't be worth much. Nobody can pronounce it correctly!
I bought one from Speedway for ‘32/SBC/AC last Saturday, but I didn’t go to SpeedwayMotors.com, instead I searched eBay and the selection was pretty good at that time. It shipped right away and I received it Wednesday. I just looked and the listing for the one I bought is still up, it shows 2 sold, 2 available.
If I only drove to local parking lot gatherings or for an ice cream cone I guess that might be OK, but I’ve often used my hot rods for road trips. At 72 I think I’ve earned the comfort, BITD a trip to OKC for the Nats was extremely hot in a channeled coupe with a leaded in cowl vent. And then there was Louisville when the temp was 105° one year. BTW, the tail pipe hangers on my coupe are billet. Oh the horror! But in my defense I did make them the traditional way, I machined them myself on a Bridgeport.
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