I covered the mod for the 2-302 (aka '77 Bonnville with ac) in my last Dual 120mm Heatercore How-To thread with the hope that it would be easy enough for just about anyone to do and the mod would produce a heat exchanger that would outperform commercial rads that cost five times more money with no probs.
If you bought a new rad or heatercore without looking at that thread...shame on you for wasting money that could have been spent on beer.
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=304440
Anyway, I have been keeping track of all the questions that have popped up from the info posted on the '77 b'ville mod and the main concerns with the mod are as follows: having to break out the torch to remove the factory tubes, the potential problems that can arise during the torch part of the mod like screwing up the solder seam on the top tank, the cost of having to buy the torch/solder/flux, whether JB Weld can be used in place of the solder and torch method and, finally, the overall size of the core (yeah, it is a bit of a monster).
So, I decided to take a second run at the Dual 120 Heatercore Mod How-To but this time I slightly changed the goals I wanted for the mod.
The new list is:
- The heatercore will provide mega-performance - as close to that of the 2-302 as possible.
- The heatercore has to be able to support dual 120s.
- Absolute minimum number of tools required and no torch action whatsoever.
- The heatercore has to be readily available and dirt cheap.
- Final cost for the Heatercore, the tools required to build it, etc. as low as possible while still not cutting any corners that would lead to performance loss or any chance of leak issues, etc.
- A complete mod process that ANYONE can do (maybe even with their eyes closed) that will take the shortest amount of time possible.
not too bad of a list.
So, I went thru my usual stack of heatercore info, made a few calls to local auto parts stores, picked up a new heatercore, pulled out the Nikon and went to work. Less than 10 minutes later (which included the time to take the pics), the core was finished.
Total price tag for the core: under $20
If you have no tools whatsoever, you will have to buy one tool - that raises the total cost to $25-$27.
Dual 120s can be mounted on it and it almost matches the performance of the 2-302. No torch required, no JB weld required, it works perfectly with 1/2" ID tubing. It is about 10-3/4" tall so it should be a little easier to fit in most cases as that is about 1-3/4" shorter than the 2-302.
Now, before I put the latest Dual 120 Heatercore Mod How-To up with complete core info, instructions, etc., did I miss anything?
If you bought a new rad or heatercore without looking at that thread...shame on you for wasting money that could have been spent on beer.
http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=304440
Anyway, I have been keeping track of all the questions that have popped up from the info posted on the '77 b'ville mod and the main concerns with the mod are as follows: having to break out the torch to remove the factory tubes, the potential problems that can arise during the torch part of the mod like screwing up the solder seam on the top tank, the cost of having to buy the torch/solder/flux, whether JB Weld can be used in place of the solder and torch method and, finally, the overall size of the core (yeah, it is a bit of a monster).
So, I decided to take a second run at the Dual 120 Heatercore Mod How-To but this time I slightly changed the goals I wanted for the mod.
The new list is:
- The heatercore will provide mega-performance - as close to that of the 2-302 as possible.
- The heatercore has to be able to support dual 120s.
- Absolute minimum number of tools required and no torch action whatsoever.
- The heatercore has to be readily available and dirt cheap.
- Final cost for the Heatercore, the tools required to build it, etc. as low as possible while still not cutting any corners that would lead to performance loss or any chance of leak issues, etc.
- A complete mod process that ANYONE can do (maybe even with their eyes closed) that will take the shortest amount of time possible.
not too bad of a list.
So, I went thru my usual stack of heatercore info, made a few calls to local auto parts stores, picked up a new heatercore, pulled out the Nikon and went to work. Less than 10 minutes later (which included the time to take the pics), the core was finished.
Total price tag for the core: under $20
If you have no tools whatsoever, you will have to buy one tool - that raises the total cost to $25-$27.
Dual 120s can be mounted on it and it almost matches the performance of the 2-302. No torch required, no JB weld required, it works perfectly with 1/2" ID tubing. It is about 10-3/4" tall so it should be a little easier to fit in most cases as that is about 1-3/4" shorter than the 2-302.
Now, before I put the latest Dual 120 Heatercore Mod How-To up with complete core info, instructions, etc., did I miss anything?
