Griffin Radiator Install - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

**TR65** · 02-09-2014, 07:54 PM

Hey Guys,

My Champion radiator developed a core leak. It was hard to find, I thought is was a hose leak for a long time. Anyway, I decided to upgrade to a better radiator. I chose a Griffin. It turns out that they are made here in SC, very close to where I work. They made the radiator to order and when I picked it up they gave me a tour of the factory. They make every piece of the radiator. Aluminum sheet comes in one end, radiators go out the other.

They have a very interesting museum of old radiators that they use for patterns. They even make radiators for Predator Drones.

Since I bought a high horsepower radiator the core was too wide for the stock brackets. I decided to post what I did to fabricate new brackets in case somebody has the same situation.

TR

http://www.griffinrad.com/index.cfm

**TR65** · 02-09-2014, 07:56 PM

Some More Pics.

**TR65** · 02-09-2014, 07:57 PM

Even more

**TR65** · 02-09-2014, 08:00 PM

More pics.

**TR65** · 02-09-2014, 08:02 PM

More

**TR65** · 02-09-2014, 08:03 PM

Last one

*Sharps40* · 02-09-2014, 08:10 PM

Dayum fine write up and if black that rad would fool most folks as a stocker. Very sexy.

bj383ss · 02-09-2014, 08:12 PM

That is awesome and great pics and write up.

Bret

**Chevy Fleetside** · 02-09-2014, 08:59 PM

My Chanpion Radiator also has a core leak. I didn't even get to drive the truck very far. Mine is located on the lower passenger side..
That radiator looks alot better.

gimmy 64 · 02-09-2014, 09:02 PM

nice wright up thank you

Reyals Bemus · 02-10-2014, 12:03 AM

That radiator is COOL!!

66LSx · 02-10-2014, 12:24 AM

TR-65..

First things first...great fabwork and implementation... OEM looks!

If you would though.... for reference.

Griffin Part Number?
Outside Tank Dimensions (in regards to brackets vs. rubber thickness for us)?
Cost?

EDIT: I dumb and didnt read the side of the box picture...

Griffin Part Number: 6-563AR-JXX

tincan1966 · 02-10-2014, 01:33 AM

Nice write up! Hard to beat good quality parts. I have had 1 Champion radiator, will never buy another.

**SparkyRnD** · 02-10-2014, 11:51 AM

nice write up and cool brackets. But, be cautious about epoxy, as that is a known failure item in a cooling system (which is why we don't use them in our radiators)

1963c-10 · 02-10-2014, 12:32 PM

what was the cost on the radiator?

**rideblue00** · 02-10-2014, 12:43 PM

nice install !!!

**TR65** · 02-10-2014, 10:20 PM

Thanks for the kind words men!

1963c-10 The cost was $400 FOB their dock. The radiator was fully packaged for shipping. Best bet is to call them, get the part number right and see what they can let you have one for. This was cheaper than I could find one from a dealer.

SparkyRnD The radiator core is furnace brazed. The epoxy is just to prevent tube leaks where they go into the header, I think the main source of leaks. The epoxy prevents the stress concentration at the header joint by forcing any bending to occur higher up where the tubes don't mind it. That is the way I understand it. I could be wrong.

66 LSx The radiator sides are 3-1/2" wide, the tanks are 3-1/8" wide. The radiator is 25-1/2" wide and 22-1/4" tall. As you can see the tanks are formed to look pretty much like our stock tanks. If I had gotten the lower horsepower version (1-1/4" tubes instead of 1-1/2" tubes) I think it would fit the stock brackets. In any case they make an exact fit for our trucks I believe.

By the way, I think Griffin has changed the part numbering system since I bought mine.

TR

**SparkyRnD** · 02-11-2014, 09:42 AM

We had researched this back in the day and there is a reason we don't use epoxy, and that is that it fails in a cooling system. May not happen on day one or year one, but it does eventually come apart and allow leaks where there isn't good quality control, and it also then goes through the cooling system and can eventually clog cores. I understand why they use it, which is to allow them to work faster with more loose tolerances, using the epoxy to seal up any areas they didn't do as good of a job on.

Epoxy is great when joining plastics together, but in our opinion should never be used as part of a cooling system.

luvbowties · 02-22-2014, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TR65

Thanks for the kind words men!

1963c-10 The cost was $400 FOB their dock. The radiator was fully packaged for shipping. Best bet is to call them, get the part number right and see what they can let you have one for. This was cheaper than I could find one from a dealer.

SparkyRnD The radiator core is furnace brazed. The epoxy is just to prevent tube leaks where they go into the header, I think the main source of leaks. The epoxy prevents the stress concentration at the header joint by forcing any bending to occur higher up where the tubes don't mind it. That is the way I understand it. I could be wrong.

66 LSx The radiator sides are 3-1/2" wide, the tanks are 3-1/8" wide. The radiator is 25-1/2" wide and 22-1/4" tall. As you can see the tanks are formed to look pretty much like our stock tanks. If I had gotten the lower horsepower version (1-1/4" tubes instead of 1-1/2" tubes) I think it would fit the stock brackets. In any case they make an exact fit for our trucks I believe.

By the way, I think Griffin has changed the part numbering system since I bought mine.

TR

Griffin told a friend, who had them make one for his 57 T-bird, that they used epoxy only for a stress-relief--not for sealing.
S

**TR65** · 02-22-2014, 11:54 PM

Quote:

Griffin told a friend, who had them make one for his 57 T-bird, that they used epoxy only for a stress-relief--not for sealing.
S

That is what I was trying to get across to SparkyRnD but I gave up.

Thanks, TR

1964GMC · 02-24-2014, 05:32 PM

1st; Great write up on a quality and sanitary install of your new radiator.
2nd; Griffin can say what they want about their epoxy jobs. I for one wish you better luck than I had. I'm on my 3rd "warranty" unit in my Street Rod. It's a custom sized and built unit. all units will not cool at highway speeds. #1 & #2 were replaced under warranty. I'd send #3 back also if I hadn't wrecked the car and dented the tank. My conscience won't allow me to send it back again.
3rd; VERY glad that your's seems to have worked well on your recent trip. Hope you have many happy miles ahead of you.

61_FL_Apache · 02-24-2014, 08:32 PM

Great write up and very nice job!!

**SparkyRnD** · 03-03-2014, 10:09 AM

I got what you were saying, but the fact remains, using epoxy inside of a radiator for any purpose is a bad idea, as eventually there is a chance it can come apart and go through the system, and clog a tube.

**TR65** · 03-03-2014, 08:10 PM

Sparky, I agree. In this case there is no epoxy inside the radiator.

Thanks for the kind words 61 and 64.

I believe there are maybe 3 main reasons a radiator won't cool correctly:

Not enough air flow
Not enough water flow
Not enough cooling area

The radiator is usually not at fault for reasons 1 and 2.

TR

TopFuel1966 · 03-03-2014, 10:18 PM

My suspicions about those $250.00 Ebay radiators have just been confirmed. Like they say, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

02-09-2014, 08:00 PM	#4
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install More pics. Attached Images __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-09-2014, 08:02 PM	#5
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install More Attached Images __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-09-2014, 08:03 PM	#6
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Last one Attached Images __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-09-2014, 08:10 PM	#7
Sharps40 Account Suspended Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: here Posts: 2,408	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Dayum fine write up and if black that rad would fool most folks as a stocker. Very sexy.

02-09-2014, 08:12 PM	#8
bj383ss Registered User Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Leander, TX Posts: 969	Re: Griffin Radiator Install That is awesome and great pics and write up. Bret __________________ 64' Build Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=586955

02-09-2014, 07:54 PM	#1
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Griffin Radiator Install Hey Guys, My Champion radiator developed a core leak. It was hard to find, I thought is was a hose leak for a long time. Anyway, I decided to upgrade to a better radiator. I chose a Griffin. It turns out that they are made here in SC, very close to where I work. They made the radiator to order and when I picked it up they gave me a tour of the factory. They make every piece of the radiator. Aluminum sheet comes in one end, radiators go out the other. They have a very interesting museum of old radiators that they use for patterns. They even make radiators for Predator Drones. Since I bought a high horsepower radiator the core was too wide for the stock brackets. I decided to post what I did to fabricate new brackets in case somebody has the same situation. TR http://www.griffinrad.com/index.cfm Attached Images __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-09-2014, 07:56 PM	#2
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Some More Pics. Attached Images __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-09-2014, 07:57 PM	#3
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Even more Attached Images __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-09-2014, 08:59 PM	#9
Chevy Fleetside Registered User Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: San Francisco Posts: 4,779	Re: Griffin Radiator Install My Chanpion Radiator also has a core leak. I didn't even get to drive the truck very far. Mine is located on the lower passenger side.. That radiator looks alot better. __________________ "A man and his truck, what a beautiful thing" 65 Short Fleetside BBC 65 Long Fleetside 283 3 on the tree for now. my build thread http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=259536

02-09-2014, 09:02 PM	#10
gimmy 64 Registered User Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: menifee california Posts: 788	Re: Griffin Radiator Install nice wright up thank you

02-10-2014, 12:03 AM	#11
Reyals Bemus Registered User Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Billerica, MA Posts: 329	Re: Griffin Radiator Install That radiator is COOL!!

02-10-2014, 12:24 AM	#12
66LSx Registered User Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Green Bay, WI Posts: 435	Re: Griffin Radiator Install TR-65.. First things first...great fabwork and implementation... OEM looks! If you would though.... for reference. Griffin Part Number? Outside Tank Dimensions (in regards to brackets vs. rubber thickness for us)? Cost? EDIT: I dumb and didnt read the side of the box picture... Griffin Part Number: 6-563AR-JXX __________________ 1966 C10 SWB Fleet 5.3L LM7 Vortec / 4L60e Swap 1966 C10 w/ 5.3L/4L60e Build Thread 2012 GMC Sierra 5.3L 4x4 CCSB Last edited by 66LSx; 02-10-2014 at 12:29 AM.

02-10-2014, 01:33 AM	#13
tincan1966 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Independence,KS Posts: 1,477	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Nice write up! Hard to beat good quality parts. I have had 1 Champion radiator, will never buy another.

02-10-2014, 11:51 AM	#14
SparkyRnD Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: acworth georgia Posts: 888	Re: Griffin Radiator Install nice write up and cool brackets. But, be cautious about epoxy, as that is a known failure item in a cooling system (which is why we don't use them in our radiators) __________________ www.RnDFabrication.com Custom Radiators, Valve Covers and Overflow Tanks

02-10-2014, 12:32 PM	#15
1963c-10 Registered User Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: fayetteville nc Posts: 10,338	Re: Griffin Radiator Install what was the cost on the radiator? __________________ 1963 Short bed step side SBW 427 big block and borg warner T-16 HD 3 speed manual http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=519869 1963 Short bed fleetside BBW 348 1st gen big block w/Powerglide http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=619024 1964 Short bed trailer



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02-10-2014, 12:43 PM	#16
rideblue00 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Lambertville, MI Posts: 1,860	Re: Griffin Radiator Install nice install !!!

02-10-2014, 10:20 PM	#17
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Thanks for the kind words men! 1963c-10 The cost was $400 FOB their dock. The radiator was fully packaged for shipping. Best bet is to call them, get the part number right and see what they can let you have one for. This was cheaper than I could find one from a dealer. SparkyRnD The radiator core is furnace brazed. The epoxy is just to prevent tube leaks where they go into the header, I think the main source of leaks. The epoxy prevents the stress concentration at the header joint by forcing any bending to occur higher up where the tubes don't mind it. That is the way I understand it. I could be wrong. 66 LSx The radiator sides are 3-1/2" wide, the tanks are 3-1/8" wide. The radiator is 25-1/2" wide and 22-1/4" tall. As you can see the tanks are formed to look pretty much like our stock tanks. If I had gotten the lower horsepower version (1-1/4" tubes instead of 1-1/2" tubes) I think it would fit the stock brackets. In any case they make an exact fit for our trucks I believe. By the way, I think Griffin has changed the part numbering system since I bought mine. TR __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

02-11-2014, 09:42 AM	#18
SparkyRnD Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: acworth georgia Posts: 888	Re: Griffin Radiator Install We had researched this back in the day and there is a reason we don't use epoxy, and that is that it fails in a cooling system. May not happen on day one or year one, but it does eventually come apart and allow leaks where there isn't good quality control, and it also then goes through the cooling system and can eventually clog cores. I understand why they use it, which is to allow them to work faster with more loose tolerances, using the epoxy to seal up any areas they didn't do as good of a job on. Epoxy is great when joining plastics together, but in our opinion should never be used as part of a cooling system. __________________ www.RnDFabrication.com Custom Radiators, Valve Covers and Overflow Tanks

02-24-2014, 05:32 PM	#21
1964GMC Registered User Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Port Isabel, TX Posts: 15	Re: Griffin Radiator Install 1st; Great write up on a quality and sanitary install of your new radiator. 2nd; Griffin can say what they want about their epoxy jobs. I for one wish you better luck than I had. I'm on my 3rd "warranty" unit in my Street Rod. It's a custom sized and built unit. all units will not cool at highway speeds. #1 & #2 were replaced under warranty. I'd send #3 back also if I hadn't wrecked the car and dented the tank. My conscience won't allow me to send it back again. 3rd; VERY glad that your's seems to have worked well on your recent trip. Hope you have many happy miles ahead of you.

02-24-2014, 08:32 PM	#22
61_FL_Apache Who Me? Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Royal Palm Beach, FL Posts: 4,067	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Great write up and very nice job!! __________________ Steve 1997 Tahoe LT 4D 2WD (DD) 2001 Blazer 4D 2WD 1961 Apache 10 (sold) 1965 C10 Stepper (sold)

03-03-2014, 10:09 AM	#23
SparkyRnD Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: acworth georgia Posts: 888	Re: Griffin Radiator Install I got what you were saying, but the fact remains, using epoxy inside of a radiator for any purpose is a bad idea, as eventually there is a chance it can come apart and go through the system, and clog a tube. __________________ www.RnDFabrication.com Custom Radiators, Valve Covers and Overflow Tanks

03-03-2014, 08:10 PM	#24
TR65 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Greenville, SC Posts: 873	Re: Griffin Radiator Install Sparky, I agree. In this case there is no epoxy inside the radiator. Thanks for the kind words 61 and 64. I believe there are maybe 3 main reasons a radiator won't cool correctly: Not enough air flow Not enough water flow Not enough cooling area The radiator is usually not at fault for reasons 1 and 2. TR __________________ 1965 C10 SWB Fleet Two owner LS2 Swap Thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=413880

03-03-2014, 10:18 PM	#25
TopFuel1966 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Menifee, CA Posts: 471	Re: Griffin Radiator Install My suspicions about those $250.00 Ebay radiators have just been confirmed. Like they say, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

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