1956 traveller 'special'

[ignatzcatz]

Ah the joys of running a street rod which really should be kept just for the strip. I can recall when I rigged up my nitrous, just a 150hp NOS set up. I ran a seperate fuel pump from an additional Moon tank and did all the wiring stuff right. I was living in Brighton at the time so I cruised down to the seafront, found my way to the front position at a traffic light, loaded up the trans, armed the nitrous, lights went green, floored the pedal and blew the headgaskets out to sea. B##locks. And then there was the time when heading London bound on the M4 just after the Heathrow ramp I hit the mother of a jam-up. And I made the tea on the hard shoulder and I did'nt need a kettle. Plod took a very dim view of this but somehow I did'nt get a fine just a tow off charge which was in three figures. Ouch. It was only a Pop with a 302 Ford but I really did have a lot of fun with this car. I traded it for a Cobra kit car, yeah bit sad I know. Anyway keep going with yer trav, it's a very, very cool ride.

[motherofgod]

Well I don't intend on running it like that chris! far too ugly!

Ignatzcatz- I value stories like yours as it makes me make sure I sort my car!

I've order a themostat, as it wasn't running one(had a restrictor ring put in when gasket was done) but this hasn't helped, so thought I try thermostat, and a fan removal(it has four!) and rewire,then hopefully I'll keep it cool!



James

[ignatzcatz]

Just wanted to add my 5 cents worth re your cooling probs. In my very first Pop I ran a 2.5 litre Daimler lump with a WO34 blower and a re cored Pop rad and had no cooling problems. My next Pop was 302 small block Ford powered with medium cam, Holley, headers - usual stuff and it always got hot. I ran a big custom rad I got from the States which I ducted in, an Edelbrock hiflo water pump and a pair of mega Citroen CX electric fans (recommended by Nick Butler actually). All this stuff I put on over a matter of time but the old beast still got hot. Well I was at a US NSRA street rod Nats East in York Pensylvannia and there was a Pop, actually an Anglia, running a 468 big block with a tunnel ram and this guy was just cruising the fairgrounds, no problem. So I got up to this guy and said I had such and such back home, always runs hot and how come you can pootle about like you are just going down to the shops. Now this guy levelled with me and said you can run all sorts of hi po stuff on the street without problems if you just back your timing down a bit. Simples huh. Anyway when I got home I found I was running about 35 degrees advance so I tweeked it back to about 28 if I remember without any noticeable loss of power and guess what? yup no more cooling problems. I could sit in traffic all day long if I wanted. So the man was right and he was'nt specifically referring to Fords as he was running a Chevvy of course. I'm not saying this will deffo cure your problems but it just may be worth a try. Have fun.

[motherofgod]

Cheers ignat' valuable info, could be my answer I'll keep you posted

James

[Ian46]

I'm not an expert particulary on cooling matters but having owned a number of different makes and models of cars over the years I have experienced the odd case of overheating. A Lowlight Minor with thermo syphon set up (blocked radiator core) and Triumph Spifire with the cardboard ducting boards removed from under the bonnet in front of the radiator. The Spitfire overheating was cured by replacing the boards which were there to channel the cold air through the radiator.

What this taught me was that air flow is a key element in the whole installation. Air will take the least resistant route and if the radiator is not 'ducted' cool air will spill out around it and not go through it. Secondly to further help the air flow the air has to 'escape' easily from the engine bay so as not build up atmospheric pressure behind the radiator.

I have just looked at the photos of the car with the bodywork back on and there appears to be no inner wings so ignore the comment above and concentrate on the ducting to the front of the radiator.

Yes, I am one of those sad people building a Cobra replica. A Crendon 427SC with a bored and stroked Ford FE motor to 452 cu in which is approximately 7.4L so cooling is a major concern for me and I haven't finished it yet.

I have installed the largest radiator I could fit behind the Cobra's large air intake and have made up a full shroud in aluminium to direct all the cold air coming into the car through it. The radiator is laid back a little further than the one shown in the photos (the idea being that the air flow slows down passing through the radiator at this lower angle and picks up more heat from the core on the way through) but the plus point is that a Cobra has two side openings to the engine bay (gills) where the hot air can be released easily from the hot engine bay and not all forced down the trasmission tunnel. I intend to fit twin 'desk fans' in front of the radiator as per the original cars but will have the largest electric fan that I can fit behind the rad to suck air through it.

I am using radiator hoses that are all 54mm in diameter, a high capacity water pump. There is no thermostat fitted, just a restrictor in its place and I am using the original style header tank which sits just under the bonnet with mm's to spare. I couldn't see where your header tank is in the photos and noticed that the head of the radiator is sitting at about the same level as the cylinder heads. Do you have a header tank?

Just love the Traveller but what is the handling like?

Regards Ian

[motherofgod]

Posted this in another part of the forum........Well having stipped the front end off my traveller, I've straightened and rewelded bumper mounts, straightened front valance mounting panel, as it was buckled, also bought a new bumper valance as old one has had it. So got to get that painted, replaced water hoses with wire reinforced silicone ones, had rad flushed and flow checked, removed 2 of the 4 fans that were on it. rewired the fans with a switch in cockpit fitted a thermostat. couple of other jobs to do when front end is back on, then will have the timing retarded to help with cooling and hopefully make it more of a pleasure to drive
Thanks Ian, I did buy a big ally rad with twin fans but it fouls the bonnet! so can't use it so it's going on ebay! then as above I has the original one checked out, I am going to duct the front, for flow. The header tank was on the side of the rad, I may move this up where the inner wing was but i'm a little tight on space! so I'll see how it cools when everything is back in place.

Drive wise it's ok, i mean it's a straight line car so corners fast are never going to be good. but it's quite sedate,until you boot it then it's like holding on to a bunch of bolting horses! but again that's what it's for

thanks
James

[motherofgod]

Well I'd thought i'll do a update. I have fitted new valance and bumper,moved alternator up front instead of over the propshaft, fitted new water pump, did a test run and it didn't over heat however the rad had a leak! so thats being sent back as it was pressure tested. So i found a company to make me a bespoke ali rad. As the old one was at 60 degree angle and the air didn't flow through more round and over it! So the new one will be upright and the full grill width. it will be made in 10days which i was quite pleased about so I can get it to it's first local show.

james

[ignatzcatz]

Switch the motor off next time you take a pic, that way the ground will stop shakin'. By the way, you going to NSRA's Billing do? It's the 40th anniversary and I know they've got some good fun lined up. I'll be there fer shur.

[motherofgod]

hi I hope to get to billing, but may trailer it as it's not sorted yet!
I've replaced radiator, water pump, thermostat, pipework, expansion chamber,alternator also moved to the front. I'm going to have new leads made and then sort timing and see if it's running lean, and hopefully see the light at the end of the tunnel!



also did a local show which went down well



james

[irmscher]

Looks lovely bet it sounds like thunder

[Dr Schnauzerton]

I also have a new car Jamie, looks like you are not the only one in this area with a V8 traveler.

ha ha...