Can we get real for a moment and talk about...

[Deleted Member]

Fan Shrouds? As in making an aluminum one from scratch...



Seriously though, I am a bit out of my element on this one. I retrofitted a different radiator into my hobo camper van (down by the river), and I need to create a fan shroud to fit over the mechanical/ clutch driven fan... The radiator is a Griffin, and it's a tiny guy... 13 x 22.

I'm needing some advice from those who have made their own shroud. I can braze aluminum no prob, but am trying to decipher the size stock I need! .025 is available locally, but I can tell that is going to be a bit thin. Soooo. would I need .050 or .063 gauged aluminum? I have a brake to bend with, up to 30". Who has done it and where the hell are you sourcing metal for reasonable rates? Better ideas?

Heres a pic for reference:

 

[Provience]

.040 is what i'm using for my floor, it would be plenty thick for a fan shroud. are you actually using the clutch fan? Easiest think to do would be to bend it up with some flanges around the edge, make it somewhat square in style and trim out the center circle. mount it tight to the radiator, use some foam or something similar to go between the shroud and the rad to help seal it all up, leave an inch or so around the fan blades to account for the engine flopping around in the mounts.

 

[Deleted Member]

.040 is what i'm using for my floor, it would be plenty thick for a fan shroud. are you actually using the clutch fan? Easiest think to do would be to bend it up with some flanges around the edge, make it somewhat square in style and trim out the center circle. mount it tight to the radiator, use some foam or something similar to go between the shroud and the rad to help seal it all up, leave an inch or so around the fan blades to account for the engine flopping around in the mounts.

That's the plan... just wasn't sure on thickness of the aluminum plate. I have only ever brazed or tig welded thick aluminum (1/4", 3/16")… I would think that thinner plate wouldn't warp badly if I brazed instead of tried to tig it... The radiator actually has some great mounting point's on it for a shroud already threaded for 1/4-20 bolts, so that's easy enough. Think .025 would be to thin? I don't want it to crease or dent real bad first toll I drop on it.

 

[Provience]

i'd think .025 would be too thin, unless i already had some on hand and then it would magically be just the right size

.025 is a pain in the ass to weld, not super dumb, but you need to go quick and small sections and it will want to move around a bunch. Much easier would be to cut it out a 4 triangles, with a lip for a flange along the rad side, then fold a 1/2" lip or so where they meet up and either epoxy and rivet or just epoxy them together, then trim out the circlish part for the fan

 

[Provience]

you can get real fancy and make it a cone of appropriate size on the fan side and then allow it to open up to however big you can get to the rad, and then epoxy that to a flat/square flange that mounts to the rad. but honestly it is probably 6 vs 1/2 doz as for which design will flow air more efficiently.

i'd think the cone style would be more smooth overall, you'd just be losing a little bit of surface area in the corners.

the more square cone would get the full sq in of the rad surface, but wouldn't flow the air as well and be a bit more turbulant in the corners. i dunno, whichever is easier for you to hold, build and put into service will be significantly better than nothing or something that sits farther off.

 

[bigun]

You need to run it up in CAD first that is Cardboard Aided Drafting
I have never looked does Griffen offer a blank in that size?

 

[Deleted Member]

You need to run it up in CAD first that is Cardboard Aided Drafting
I have never looked does Griffen offer a blank in that size?

They do have an aftermarket shroud for electric fans, in fact the only way they sell it is with the fans. $300 bucks (does not include controller or temp sensor). That's about ffifty bucks more than I paid for the radiator.
I am gonna measure once and cut twice... or maybe 3 times, as per my usual style.

I am going to order a sheet of crapazon and hopefully it will be here "one day".

 

[Provience]

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-...3241048&rt=rud

permanent epoxy for any seams in the tunnel part

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-...3013851&rt=rud

bit better gap filling/sealing stuff that will actually give you a chance to remove it (or just cut it cleanly with a razor) for sealing around the shroud to rad flange....or just use nothing but something to fill the gap, even just wahtever foam you have handy, will help

 

[Deleted Member]

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-...3241048&rt=rud

permanent epoxy for any seams in the tunnel part

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-...3013851&rt=rud

bit better gap filling/sealing stuff that will actually give you a chance to remove it (or just cut it cleanly with a razor) for sealing around the shroud to rad flange....or just use nothing but something to fill the gap, even just wahtever foam you have handy, will help

I am going to make a cookie sheet basically, then expand on that... it's going to have to be a 2 piece shroud (much like the old plastic one for the old radiator). Has a bottom shroud piece that wiggles in after the main part of the shroud is bolted on... Like so:

 

[Deleted Member]

I know, it's a fawked up kind of project, but without the shroud in place the little 4 banger gets pretty toasty. More than I would like it too... and the clutch NEEDS the direct air flow off the rad to sense the temp so it engages. Dam radiator sits in a place with hardly any direct flow of air, so the fan pulls in all the air... I hate the design/ engineering of it.

 

[Provience]

dopety. how far off is the old from the new? Would it be easier to just adapt the old to the new?

 

[Provience]

that design, while i'm sure it will work well, looks rather difficult to recreate with just a brake and some .025" AL

 

[Deleted Member]

dopety. how far off is the old from the new? Would it be easier to just adapt the old to the new?

Spent about 45 minutes trying to figure a way for the old plastic one to work... but because of the radiator design it's a no go. Recore of the old rad is a no go too... tanks have run their course.

So, it's make a shroud time. I considered electric fan/s, but it just doesn't get enough air flow at speeds. The poor things would run constantly. Plus my little 70 amp alternator wouldn't like them much.

 

[Provience]

oh look, the like button is back

i like your post 💟

 

[Deleted Member]

oh look, the like button is back

i like your post 💟

Thanks. Will I get a trophy?

 

[Deleted Member]

I am definitely open to other cooling ideas!

 

[Provience]

shroud should do it and make a huge difference.

 

[D Nelly]

Any decent roofing supply house will carry 040 aluminum and more than likely 050. If they don't they'll be able to tell you who does

 

[Deleted Member]

Will definitely check a couple today.... good tip! Never even considered that.

 

[Dethmachinefab]

Look up square to round transition layout calculators. Then bend in two halves and bolt together. If you cant tig it id bolt it. Also use something closer to .065 or more. Its great fun when your should cracks off and falls into the fan wrecking everything.

 

[Byro]

Any decent roofing supply house will carry 040 aluminum and more than likely 050. If they don't they'll be able to tell you who does

I have a local heating/cooling place that I get 0.040 ally from. Works great for dash/center consoles. Should be more than adequate for a shroud.

 

[Thefishguy77]

Can you pull the hood and go OG RoadKill style?

 

[Deleted Member]

Can you pull the hood and go OG RoadKill style?

I would be the roadkill though... my seat sits on the hood.

 

[Sceep]

I dunno how thick it is. @Brian1 on the old site cooked this one up for me.

 

[CenCon]

You need to run it up in CAD first that is Cardboard Aided Drafting
I have never looked does Griffen offer a blank in that size?

You use that too?

 

[Deleted Member]

I dunno how thick it is. @Brian1 on the old site cooked this one up for me.

I would be ecstatic if mine were squared like that! I am gonna try one last time to see if I can't make the old plastic shroud fit in a meaningful way again... I was tired yesterday after dickin with it for a while. Fresh eyes today, so we shall see... plus I can't source any aluminum sheet anywhere. Tried both roofing places around town, even the metal place says they would have to order a sheet and it would be in in like a week and a half. Ain't nobody got time for dat!

I need to be out exploring this weekend and fishing!

 

[Donk]

Knock one up outta 16 gauge steel sheet and call it a day

 

[Lbhsbz]

Is this supposed to pretty and professional looking or ugly and functional?

 

[Deleted Member]

Do you even know who I am bro?































Ugly and functional of course...

 

[Lbhsbz]

As I'd hoped. Bend yourself up a box and use some door edge molding from pepboys or whatever where it contacts the radiator....I'd hold it on using those electric fan ziptie things in all 4 corners through the radiator. Cut your round hole in it and roll up a piece of a aluminum for the piece that goes around the fan...then attach it like an HVAC start collar:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Master-F...-203992706-_-N

Every other tab gets bent out, set the remaining tabs through the hole, then bend those over the backside. Add some pop-rivets and brush on some duct sealer. done.