Ali radiator opinions

Hi Shane,

These are Willow calcium batteries, but they are not sealed and don't have the magic foresight of death. Not many left in stock as of 2 years ago, apparently.

cheers, DL

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Originally Posted by DoubleChevron

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The "magic eye" is nothing other than a level gauge. When the battery level gets down you see "silver" as the level is now lower than the silver level plate.......................
seeya
Shane L.

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I'm interested in what black means with these things, because that is all I've seen with every single one within a couple of years.

cheers, DL

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Originally Posted by 350RRC

I'm interested in what black means with these things, because that is all I've seen with every single one within a couple of years.

cheers, DL

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Oh, yes .... They do that too. black is discharged... green means it has some charge. I'm assuming it's a voltage tester of some sort. I never bother with that as it's very obvious without needing a "magic eye" to tell if a battery is flat.

I'm off to google willow calcium battery :) I'm always keen to buy quality even if it's slightly more expensive. I have a bad habit of (accidentally ) deep cycling the batteries ... to a point where you need a transformer charger to re-charge them, and the delkors have somehow not been killed by this.

seeya,
Shane L

From memory they were $190 a pop. Distributor Godings in Whittlesea and they have a branch in Geelong now.

They are the ones that fill each battery tray in a RRC, if still available.

Had a look at the Willow site and it appears that now they only sell the sealed updated ones with the 'magic eye'. I'd call them to see if they have stock of the old ones, that's what I did a couple of years ago.

DL

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Originally Posted by 350RRC

The last radiator I put in my pos came from LRA, $460 ish from memory, came in a Britpart (don't laugh) box, copper and brass. Like 'original'.

One tank seam split a bit, got it fixed for $60 by a Geelong radiator legend on Christmas eve.

Been perfect ever since, 3 years on, keeping an old 350 cool. I spray my cores when new with Lanotec and get a loooong time out of them.

DL

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Hi - doesn't the Lanotec attract dust and other muck?
I like the idea though.
Cheers
MAtt

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Originally Posted by samat

Hi - doesn't the Lanotec attract dust and other muck?
I like the idea though.
Cheers
MAtt

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Dries firm with a little natural radiator heat. Rad still looks like new.

cheers, DL

It's a matter of personal preference, but there are a couple of factors that make a copper/brass radiator a better longterm solution.

1. if you travel remotely, you can perform roadside repairs with a fire and an old battery scrounged from the local dump/roadside wreck, or solder stick if you happen to carry one.
- I don't know anyone who travels remotely with an argon cylinder and a TIG welder... I suppose it's possible...

2. corrosion. if you live in a salt-environment, copper/brass is the better choice. Once the aluminium alloy gets a dose of salt spray on the fins, the thermal efficiency drops like a stone, due to the corrosion (the alloy fins are thin and will dull almost immediately)

Lanotec is a good idea, works well in the salt. I use it also, but it does need periodic reapplication. I do it every couple of years when I flush the cooling system. It's sensible periodic maintenance which keeps the core fit for purpose. (i.e. free of debris, and protected from corrosion as best it can be).

Choice of coolant, cooling system condition and water quality are equally as important as the choice of radiator core material.

Fumes from batteries eat aluminium rad fins too. Probably copper as well.

DL