Input requested - MEP-802A/803A Radiators

[Light in the Dark]

All... now is your time to shine, and help the MEP community large with your input.

I have a source that will produce the 802/803 radiators for me in all aluminum, which should take away the issues of rust through deterioration!

1.) Is there anything you would change about the current design (fill neck angle is the most obvious to me)?

2.) Is there any benefit to adding an expansion tank off the side mounting of it, and delete the guard/bracket/overflow bottle in the current design? Or just leave as a drop in replacement with no other footprint changes?

2.) Would you be more likely to repair what you have, or replace with a new radiator, in the event of a failure?

Any other questions that come up through the course of discussion, please add them here. As much as these machines are a DIY affair after the leave the DRMO hands... seems more and more we have to bootstrap up parts too. The taps will run dry on things... and with the custom nature of some parts in these machines... gotta take matters into our own hands.

In my bones, I feel like this is one of those items that someone needs to step up and figure out (and it just so happens I need a radiator for an 802 thats leaking). Thanks for taking some time to put your two cents in, if you do.

 

[DieselAddict]

yes vote on neck redesign.

otherwise, a drop in replacement would be my preference.

 

[Light in the Dark]

Ideas on how you would redesign it? All I can figure is to have to cut a clearance hole in the roof near the radiator cap, similar to the AMMPS. Not sure folks would want to do that?

 

[Guyfang]

If I cant have a new filler neck, I would say a drop in replacement. There is nothing wrong with the way it was made, other then maybe better materials. It works as is. Don't fool with it.

This is a part I would have in my "Spares" Container for sure.

 

[Ray70]

I'd vote for a drop in replacement, assuming that would be the least expensive and easiest to swap out. ( especially in an emergency situation )
Expansion tank and a better filler neck design would be nice, but will no doubt add cost and complexity and I think many folks would prefer to keep everything original.

 

[2Pbfeet]

@Light in the Dark thanks for stepping up on this one!

+1 on a drop in.

• For me, plastic screw on filler neck funnels work well enough for adding coolant. I would rather not have new opening in the top to reduce the potential for leaks into the enclosure.
• I don't see much value in changing the existing overflow/expansion tank, (a one quart poly water bottle, a drill and some tubing and you have a working tank.) but I defer to experts here on that one.
• As @Ray70 wrote above, a drop in would be much easier in an emergency.

If a new radiator were available in all aluminum, I would probably replace the existing one with the all aluminum radiator and keep the old unit as a spare. Radiator repair seems to be a dying art, at least around here, and I'm not a fan of having more types of metals in a cooling system. It is just an invitation to corrosion.

I'm a little surprised that these radiators haven't turned up as a repurposed version off of some other engine, but I certainly couldn't find one.

All the best,

2Pbfeet

 

[Mep-803aDad]

I am also in on an aluminum drop in.

 

[Sidis8]

I’d be interested in some also.

 

[cbisson]

Drop in replacement.

 

[Triple Jim]

Anyone living at the coast probably won't like an all-aluminum radiator. They don't last long in salt air.

 

[Digger556]

I would vote for a drop-in replacement because I can't think of a better way to do the filler neck without a bunch of rework of the surrounding parts.

We have a vehicle at work with a similar space constraint and we just lowered the filler neck and added an air bleed port on the radiator.

I've found alum radiators to be more suseptable to vibration, so I would like to see a replacement that was bomb-proof with thicker walls and fins like a hydraulic cooler. This is how we get around that problem at work with our vehicle designs.

 

[2Pbfeet]

Anyone living at the coast probably won't like an all-aluminum radiator. They don't last long in salt air.

True. There is always sending the coastal radiators out for anodizing.

Having maintained equipment at a beach, I don't think radiator corrosion is a huge issue. Yes salt water gets to aluminum, but not quickly, and a little protection goes a long way. E.g. blocking direct wind from the ocean, and the occasional fresh water rinse. I would point out that the entire enclosure is aluminum, with steel fasteners, so some amount of attention to corrosion prevention is going to be part of a good SOP for near coast operation of these generators anyway.

All the best,

2Pbfeet

 

[Toolslinger]

Drop in. If/when the time comes that I need one, I'm quite sure it will be at the worst possible moment. I will not want to be making any modifications in that situation. Pull it open, swap it out, button it back up, and get it running.
If I was in a multi unit situation, I guess I might want improvements, but with just one (and a dead one at that currently) I'd want things as stock as possible so the TM's cover things since it isn't an every day kind of experience.

 

[flyfishtrailer]

Drop in and I would be interested as well.

 

[upstateguy]

I would say a drop in would be the best option. There are some protective coatings that can be applied to an aluminum radiator to offer some additional protection from external corosion. This is common now for HVAC equipment which will be exposed to high salt environments. There is also a few anodization processes available that may be desireable. Might be worth checking to see if that would be reasonable for them to apply at the end of the manufacturing process.

 

[jmenende]

We all want to do away with the filler neck, but a drop in is best imho. A little spilled coolant is not worth the extra hassle. I try to rebuild the ones that come up banged up.

 

[Light in the Dark]

Thanks for the input all. Sorry for the delay in response, the house has been sick for 2+ weeks now (myself included... what a nasty bug).

So I will be shooting for a drop in replacement. I will be discussing alternate coatings, or thickening of components, for better durability. The current targeted price is around $450 without freight from me to whomever wants one. I probably need to get at least 25 people on board to make this happen.

I have to undergo the print process with this company to take the next step, and they won't get it to print unless I provide them with a PO. So now that I am less sick, its probably going to be head counting time to see if we can make this happen.

 

[2Pbfeet]

@Light in the Dark count me in. PM me.

 

[93zupra]

I’m in for one as well. Pm me!

 

[Light in the Dark]

Any other takers? At the current interest level its a nonstarter sadly.