I had a more modern, lots of rows and fins per inch, core put in my 31. It is a trade off and all depends on what you want and are going to do with the car. The 31 does have a stone shield in front of the rad so the lack of the honey comb is less obvious. I was not worried about point loss in a show.

Dave

Hello 29Red4,

My 1931 Chevy Coach had leaking honeycomb core. I also chose to change to the replacement non-honeycomb core. Took old rad and new core to rad shop. They swapped top and bottom tanks to the new core and painted like new. I will not subject rad to old (dirty/rusty) engine cooling system until flushed to my satisfaction. I also have a stone guard. 

Harry and David,

Thanks for the replies and the great ideas. I will go with the modern core and save a bunch of bucks.

Now....where do I source a stone guard? I see post on eBay for model A's.

Thanks to both of you.

I could be wrong but I don't think there was a factory accessory stone guard for 29, someone that knows should weigh in. You may be able to adapt something? I will try and attach

picture of mine.

Dave

@david-dunton 

I have ordered some 1/4" stainless wire mesh and will see if I can add my own stone guard.

I have seen pictures of modified '31 stone guards on a '30. All in all it looked pretty good. You will have to decide how to mount it on the '29/'30 front splash apron. It will be difficult to keep it from vibrating and rubbing through plating and paint.

The saga continues.

The radiator shop finally called and said my radiator and the heater core were done. I decided the tale the chrome shell with me to be sure the mounting tabs all lined up. They didn't. With the 2 top tabs in place the 4 side tabs were all about 1/2 off. I was assure they could be fixed and I left it there along with the shell. The following week I called and they said it was done. I paid the bill and should have looked more closely at what they had done. As I carried it out to my car the younger man working in the shop said it was a tough one because they had "used a core that was too big". I should have stopped in my tracks but I didn't.

At home I took a closer look. The core used was too wide for the tanks. On both sides the outer tubes were pinched off and were not attached to the tanks. They had forced the shell to fit. This means the shell was now shaped more like a teepee and was wider at the top than at the bottom. The bottom radiator mount was now too narrow, the radiator was too wide to fit in place, and that means the hood was not going to fit. I called the owner and told him I had stopped payment on the check and explained why. He said, "I stand by my work so bring it back." That night I did some more research and took pictures and measurements. The core is supposed to be 18" wide. The bill said he used an 18 1/2" core but the core measures 19 1/4". There are also 2 damaged areas on the front of the core which will look like crap when done.

My brother lives in the Sacramento area so I called him. He happens to be a good friend of the owner of a large radiator business who I called the next morning. I then made the 3 hour drive to have him look at the job. He was appalled and pointed out all the mistakes that were made. He will redo the job with the correct size core.

I sent the first shop a new check check to pay for the heater core which is fine and explained why I was not paying for the radiator. He had two attempts at getting it right and he blew it. Hopefully the chrome shell will fit the correct size core with no lasting damage.

Buyer beware is the key.

Hello 29Red4,

Holy crapinzee I say! It seems that the first business is not interested in halting a job to secure the correct parts just because the parts on hand don't fit. Just squish it, it'll fit. And so what if it won't fit the car anymore, it's just an old car anyway.

I have never seen such poor workmanship. I believe he would take it back and attempt to fix it but I can take the chance. If he screws up the tanks or has already made the frame that goes around the core unusable then I am screwed. I would then have to find a radiator somewhere that at least had good tanks and start over. I cant' believe he didn't understand why you cannot just widen the chrome shell because it forms the basis for the support and shape of the front of the hood.

@robert-loer,

I am in the same boat with a new modern fin and tube core in my 1929 Tudor. How did the 1/4 inch SS mesh work out for you? The core I have is really nice but as you know they are kind of delicate. I want to make a stone guard and was wondering how yours came out and if you have any advice.  

Thanks very much 

Rich

I replied and even attached pictures but I don't see my reply. I will check back later.

 I will try this again.

If you read the saga explaining the troubles I had getting my radiator fixed then you will be glad to know there is light at the end of the tunnel.

@robert-loer Well done!

@robert-loer 

Very nicely done!

I've been thinking that if I ever get my '29 out of the shed and running again I'd try something like that.

Don't know if I would have enough room front to back though as I still have the original honeycomb radiator in the shell (which is why I want to protect it).

Also wondering if it would be possible to buy a piece big enough to cut the guard out on the bias (tilted 45 degrees)?