The Ford Barn

petehoovie · 08-25-2016, 05:57 PM

Last Fall I replaced the aluminum heads on my '34 due to excessive electrolysis. While the heads were off I decided to clean out the scale, rust and debris from inside the water jacket. I spent three days doing this using a stiff wire scraper, very high pressure air and a vacuum. I was amazed at how much stuff came out of that block. When I finished cleaning the block I replace the heads with new Kearney Pattern Works reproduction heads. I also had the radiator re-cored and installed water pumps rebuilt by 'Skip'. I was really pleased with the results of all of this but could never get the operating temperature over 130 degrees after several months of driving. I never ran stats in this car. Too cold I thought, so I ordered a pair of 160 degree stats from Bob Shewman. I installed them as directed in the upper part of the radiator hoses close the radiator inlet. The affects these stats had on my flathead were remarkable - it warms up much faster and it seems to run noticeably smoother. The temp seldom goes above 160 even on hot days. My cooling system is not pressurized. I'm impressed....

P.S. - I think what impresses me the most about these Shewmans'd stats of mine is how steady the operating temperature holds at 160 degrees....

08-25-2016, 05:57 PM	#19
petehoovie Senior Member Join Date: May 2015 Posts: 10,139	Re: Installing Bob Shewmans thermostats Last Fall I replaced the aluminum heads on my '34 due to excessive electrolysis. While the heads were off I decided to clean out the scale, rust and debris from inside the water jacket. I spent three days doing this using a stiff wire scraper, very high pressure air and a vacuum. I was amazed at how much stuff came out of that block. When I finished cleaning the block I replace the heads with new Kearney Pattern Works reproduction heads. I also had the radiator re-cored and installed water pumps rebuilt by 'Skip'. I was really pleased with the results of all of this but could never get the operating temperature over 130 degrees after several months of driving. I never ran stats in this car. Too cold I thought, so I ordered a pair of 160 degree stats from Bob Shewman. I installed them as directed in the upper part of the radiator hoses close the radiator inlet. The affects these stats had on my flathead were remarkable - it warms up much faster and it seems to run noticeably smoother. The temp seldom goes above 160 even on hot days. My cooling system is not pressurized. I'm impressed.... P.S. - I think what impresses me the most about these Shewmans'd stats of mine is how steady the operating temperature holds at 160 degrees.... Last edited by petehoovie; 08-27-2016 at 03:46 PM.