Fan shroud for my 56

[samdjr74]

Hi All,

I finally found a couple of fans that will fit and move enough air to keep my engine cool. But I need to build a shroud to make sure everything stays cool. I have a couple questions and maybe someone can help me out.

1. The shroud will be flat, how far off of the core should it be?
2. What’s the best material to use for the shroud, steel or aluminum?
3. Should I put a seal on the shroud where it meets the radiator, if so what should it be made out of?
4. I have a probe temp sensor, should I run that through the shroud then fins or just the fins?

Thanks,
Sam

[Dan in Pasadena]

Not sure how custom your truck is or if its a daily driver? Mine is a daily and I bought the plastic universal 55-59 fan shroud sold by The Truck Shop. Here's a link and a shot of my installed piece. For $79 its hard to beat. You'll have hours into fabricating something - which is fine if a custom, you're broke or just like fabbing your own, but for a DD I'm happy with mine and paintede you can't tell what its made of.


Link:
http://www.truckandcarshop.com/trucks47_59/t47_071.html

Photos of my installation (Apologies for the cell phone pic's):


Spacer that was necessary to get it to mount right. We also installed a shorter spacer behind the fan as my mechanic said the fan should only be "in" the shroud 1/4 to 1/2 the width of the fan blades. My fan now will suck a rag right out of your hand if you hold it in front of the radiator.


Hope this was of some help/interest, Dan

[OrrieG]

Here is mine. I put it on in 1985. Just took some radiator measurements and fan location relative to the radiator and headed for the junk yard. All I can remember is it came off a mid 70's GM. I may have the exact model in my first build notes. It doesn't quite cover the top and bottom and I had to make side pieces to cover that gap. But it works well, never had over heating problems even when crawling up grades off road in the mountains.

[LDO]

Originally Posted by Dan in Pasadena

Not sure how custom your truck is or if its a daily driver? Mine is a daily and I bought the plastic universal 55-59 fan shroud sold by The Truck Shop. Here's a link and a shot of my installed piece. For $79 its hard to beat. You'll have hours into fabricating something - which is fine if a custom, you're broke or just like fabbing your own, but for a DD I'm happy with mine and paintede you can't tell what its made of.


Link:
http://www.truckandcarshop.com/trucks47_59/t47_071.html

Photos of my installation (Apologies for the cell phone pic's):


Spacer that was necessary to get it to mount right. We also installed a shorter spacer behind the fan as my mechanic said the fan should only be "in" the shroud 1/4 to 1/2 the width of the fan blades. My fan now will suck a rag right out of your hand if you hold it in front of the radiator.


Hope this was of some help/interest, Dan

Dan,
How come I cant see any of your pics?
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[Dan in Pasadena]

Orrie, I just realized he said he's found "...a couple of fans"...I think that means he's using electric fans, not mechanical.

[samdjr74]

Exactly, I'm running 2 electric fans so the shroud needs to be custom, not because it's a show piece but I don't have any other choice.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Got it. In that case my opinion would be to fab it out of aluminum since it's easier to use...unless you think welding will be required, but maybe you're a competent welder? Best of luck and of course post pictures of what you come up with.
Posted via Mobile Device

[samdjr74]

I'd prefer aluminum but it's not easy to cut, we'll see what I find at the store this weekend to make it out of.

[OrrieG]

Some guys here have made ones for electric fans. Do a site search for "electric fan shroud" quite a few hits show up. It doesn't have to be welded since I was dealing with plastic and metal I used stainless pop rivets to hold mine together. Make sure the material you use is heavy enough to not deflect and pull the fans into the radiator, they do have quite a bit of force.