danketchpel
Husqvarna
AA Class
I finally got my custom aluminum radiator project finished up. I had decided to replace the original radiator with an aluminum one for 3 reasons.
1. The plastic endcaps on mine were bubbling from heat which scared me to be quite honest
2. The plastic mounting brackets are very flimsy and I could see them breaking out in the wild at the worst possible time in the event of a bad nap.
3. I really don't like the integrated thermostat and wanted some thing easier to service and tune.
So.... I contacted Fontana Radiator here in SoCal and they were up for building me a custom one as they build similar custom radiators for race bikes. I already knew I was going to use a thermostat housing from Thermo Bob and had contacted him about the application.
The radiator build turned out to be more work than either of us had planned on and required some rework on the mounting tabs to get things right. In retrospect I should have built them a bench fixture to work against so the mounting points etc. came out dead nuts. Anything custom is a process you work though. In the end it came out as I expected.
Here's a comparison of the OEM radiator and the aluminum one.
And finished up on the bike
This shot shows the new T-stat housing and extra connector to create a return loop. In this design the coolant still circulates in the engine even when the thermostat is closed which prevents severe hot spots from forming while the coolant warms up. To access the T-stat I only have to drain the coolant and remove the 4 bolts on the top of the T-stat housing and I can R/R the T-stat.
The total cooling capacity has been increased by about 25% or so and at anything from about 20 mph above it will sit right on the thermostat temp. I have a choice of thermostat temps and I chose a 80C. I have a 85C also and can get a 90C. As most of my riding is in hotter temperatures I'll probably leave the 80C T-stat in. The indicated temp in the dash is almost exactly halfway across the total bars.
It was a big project and not cheap, but I really like my Husky and intend to keep it for quite a long time. The radiator setup was the only part of the bike (except the original air filter) that I really wasn't comfortable with. Now that's done..... and I can ride without worrying about my T-stat going out and not being able to fix it or any other aspects of the cooling system.
1. The plastic endcaps on mine were bubbling from heat which scared me to be quite honest
2. The plastic mounting brackets are very flimsy and I could see them breaking out in the wild at the worst possible time in the event of a bad nap.
3. I really don't like the integrated thermostat and wanted some thing easier to service and tune.
So.... I contacted Fontana Radiator here in SoCal and they were up for building me a custom one as they build similar custom radiators for race bikes. I already knew I was going to use a thermostat housing from Thermo Bob and had contacted him about the application.
The radiator build turned out to be more work than either of us had planned on and required some rework on the mounting tabs to get things right. In retrospect I should have built them a bench fixture to work against so the mounting points etc. came out dead nuts. Anything custom is a process you work though. In the end it came out as I expected.
Here's a comparison of the OEM radiator and the aluminum one.
And finished up on the bike
This shot shows the new T-stat housing and extra connector to create a return loop. In this design the coolant still circulates in the engine even when the thermostat is closed which prevents severe hot spots from forming while the coolant warms up. To access the T-stat I only have to drain the coolant and remove the 4 bolts on the top of the T-stat housing and I can R/R the T-stat.
The total cooling capacity has been increased by about 25% or so and at anything from about 20 mph above it will sit right on the thermostat temp. I have a choice of thermostat temps and I chose a 80C. I have a 85C also and can get a 90C. As most of my riding is in hotter temperatures I'll probably leave the 80C T-stat in. The indicated temp in the dash is almost exactly halfway across the total bars.
It was a big project and not cheap, but I really like my Husky and intend to keep it for quite a long time. The radiator setup was the only part of the bike (except the original air filter) that I really wasn't comfortable with. Now that's done..... and I can ride without worrying about my T-stat going out and not being able to fix it or any other aspects of the cooling system.
