"shield or flashing" above the radiatior

[toddabney]

Hey gang,.....on my 1973 brave just above the radiator is a rubber 1/8" inch thick shield, or as to separate the engine compartment from the outside. when I removed the radiator for repairs I never replaced it. I have it nicely rolled up and stashed away. so how important is that thing? if it were pouring down rain it would help or funneling all the air to a "ram air"system coming off the stock air cleaner with duel openings or to "funnel" more air to the radiator?. we plan on going south to California soon and am just  to lazy to install it. no i will probably install it soon but just thought i would ask..... thanks to all, this "place" is great, todd.  Oh, ps,the new Edelbrock is doing great thanks again for all the advice. The shifting is off some but thats another story.

[Aslan]

Driving in the rain, yes, not having that cowl over the radiator is going to let the water spray all over your engine.  Not in the rain, it will allow more air to flow over your motor, helping to keep it cooler.

[The_Handier_Man1]

Hey gang,.....on my 1973 brave just above the radiator is a rubber 1/8" inch thick shield, or as to separate the engine compartment from the outside. when I removed the radiator for repairs I never replaced it.  so how important is that thing?

That's my story too.  I have been playing with the cold air induction in place of this shield, but that was 6,000 miles ago and still running without the shield.  Must be the same story with starter heat shields.  Once you change the starter they never go back on.  I never have seen a factory starter heat shield yet,  Les

[toddabney]

Well I guess this flashing might be called P.r.n.(per required need). I thought more air would be good as it gets HOT under there. Well thank you for the input. Take care, todd

[Aslan]

One reason you may have never seen a factory heat shield, Les, is because it's a total PITA to put back on!  Yeah, easy off, knuckle busting, neck twisting, cramp-in-hands PITA.  Mine has one and I refused to give in to it... That took a half hour and a yard of skin to accomplish.

[DanielTBolger]

The Hot Roder has a heat bag which slides over the starter.  Makes life easy and works nice on big blocks. I get them when others leave them behind. I guess folks didn't want the pain of reinstalling them.

[75Travco]

Radiator curtains prevent air from bypassing the radiator; some applications had curtains at the top and both sides.  Air can bypass the radiator in both directions - normal cooling flow (cool air entering from outside, but flowing around the core), and recirculation (hot air from engine compartment flowing around and back thru radiator core).  Both situations reduce cooling efficiency.  Observed recirculation firsthand on the old Travco.  After reinstalling the dash AC hoses, I noticed that the air 1 foot in front of the right side of the radiator seemed extra warm - like 140 degrees on a 90 degree day.  Turned out that the right side of the curtain was pushed up and away, resulting 2" gap allowed air to flow in reverse direction.  Re-fitted the top curtain which really reduced the backflow.

[toddabney]

thanks .point taken, i'll keep an eye on the temp,,todd

[toddabney]

well speaking of shields...when i first got our winnie i made 2 heat shields that sat between the exhaust manifolds and the valve covers.i made them from a aluminum drain tray.the kind that you would use under a drain rack for your dishes to dry on.hope that makes sense. the tray had nice rounded edges looked as though they belong there and i held them in place with 4 springs on each deflector.it was a solid set up.now after i have this all in place....i worry.....what if.......what if the heat is deflected away from the valve cover on to the floor boards above the exhaust manifold and causes trouble?.am i sweating for no reason?i just thought its so hot under there these heat shields might help. any thoughts?i think this a classic"if it isn't broke don't fix it"right... right now i have them removed,while i concider there fate.  again thanks for all the advice.i still haven't figured the power to the coil problem,but i am faithful,todd

[ClydesdaleKevin]

As long as the heat sheilds aren't so big that they trap all the heat in there, it should be fine.  Usually you make a heat sheild that is a few inches wider on both sides than what it is that you are trying to protect.

Kev