Solid Axle Swap BS Thread

I'm going through the same thing rn lol. Idle and driving around is fine but when it's getting it in low gear with the ac on its getting hoooooot. So far I put another fan pushing through the condenser hoping that'll be enough. Don't want to do an oil cooler but may have too.

 

x2 on how many amps does the current fan pull. Also, does that have a shroud just around the fan itself or does it cover the majority of the radiator?

 

18.5 amps

Did the fan on the front help? That’s my best thought is a pusher fan in front

18.5 amps in the new 3000cfm. 18.8 on old 2000 cfm
Full shroud around the radiator. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/FLX-105390

 

You could measure the actual amperage it's pulling versus what it's rated for to see if it's performing to spec.

 

I’m not an expert but Bebop on Irate is. He’s always preaching to run near 30 amp rated fans.

Link to his preferred fan

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/spu-ix-30102803

Link to a good tech thread on cooling

https://irate4x4.com/threads/ramrunner-refresh.397228/page-3#post-1779419

 

That spal fan is the one that I had put on and is on the ground not on the shroud in the picture.
I’ll go read that thread and see if I find anything to help. Thanks

 

I'm going with an air pocket somewhere in the system.


Do a vacuum fill.

 

This was my first assumption as well. The radiator cap ended up below the upper hose inlet on the engine so it’s a hard system to bleed. Using the funnel thing it seems to fill fine. I’ll ask to him to see if he knows anyone with a vacuum fill serip

I’m more thinking it’s either a weak water pump or the radiator is to close to the engine

 

My buddy's viper was doing the same, everyone said raise the front to fill, well we had it almost 3ft up & it was still doing it.

Then we talked to a mechanic friend & he came over with the vacuum thingy & filled that way, no more problems.

 

Was finally able to do a proper flex test today. 38" to the bottom of the tire before I started rubbing on the rear bumper. Still lots of rear uptravel to be had but I might have to move my rear shocks further inboard to clear the tires.

 

On the cooling topic

on my personal truck I finally swapped the shroud with electric fan. It’s the same 1900 or 2000 cfm spal fan linked above. I drove about half way down the hill I live on and back up. So about 8 ish miles and it’s a steady climb with temps being 95-100 degrees. Truck took longer than the red one to get hot but it still got up to 238 before I pulled over (needles was 3/4). I almost made it to the top. Maybe a mile short and when I pulled over it hit 240 and cooled back to 215 within 3-4 minutes. It puked a little fluid.

to further help figure out how to fix this overheating problem, I’m going to swap the mechanical fan back on tomorrow and do the exact same drive and see what it hits.

my new assumption is the radiators are to small as both of them are identical. Will a 2 in wider radiator make a difference? What about a 4 inch wider? Current specs are 22 inches wide by 19 tall and 3 inches thick. Pretty sure I can fit a 24 in radiator with no issues and maybe a 26 in wide one but want to make sure it’s worth it.

 

Try to go thicker too. You'll be able to cool more than if it were larger in x and y

 

3 in is the thickest I normally see. What’s the next common thickness? That would be easier to package

 

are you talking about core thickness or overall thickness? core thickness is typically measured in mm

 

That Spal fan I linked is a curved blade fan and pulls 28 amps, you sure you have the same one?

 

Guess I misread and just saw the 1900 cfm. I have the straight blade one which is only 18 amps

 

Well to follow up with my “test”. I swapped the mechanical fan back in. No shroud and went for the same drive. It was a little warmer today and I had the ac blasting the entire time. Not only did I complete the drive without having to stop, the hottest the truck got was 220. When I got to the street I live on, it hit 222 and when I parked it it hit 224. I let it idle for 2-3 minutes based off time stamps of videos and it dropped to 215.

luckily. The electric fan and shroud is actually taller than the mechanical setup so the red truck should be able to run one.

overall I think the biggest issue is the radiators are to small. These are 22x19x3. I think a 24 or 26 in wide radiator would be the ticket.

just for good measures I added a pusher small spal fan on the front which pushes about 350cfm to help cool the truck a little faster when coming to a stop.


So overall the mechanical fan is better.

some pictures of the mechanical vs electric fan in height. I figure the mechanical is about 1/4-3/8 shorter and you could trim the blade some if needed. Plus the clutch sits inside pulley a 1/8-1/4



And the small pusher fan I added.



I posted a ton of videos on my Instagram of the scan gauge while driving if anyone wants to see more.

@hambone_fab_works

 

isn’t the mini truck axle way narrow?

 

How are you liking the stainless snorkel? With the cage I'm working on, my ARB is in the way and has to go, so I'm going to have to build on from stainless or aluminum tubing. Routing will be pretty straight forward, but I'm undecided o. What to do at the end. Leave it straight back like yours, or make an intake scoop with or without a precleaner.