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I haven't finished a project in a while, though I have several that are partially complete. I finally finished one a few days ago so I thought I'd share with the board.
The radiator fan on my '86 has been real noisy for the past few months. Not wanting to take the risk of having it die on its own, I decided to be proactive and get a replacement before it died. I also did not want to just drop in another factory fan and call it a day... that would be too easy. I wanted to get one that's slimmer and a little less unattractive. So I asked for advice and ended up buying a fan for a '95 Thunderbird off Ebay. Here's a comparison of the two.
[Image: FTcloJo.jpg]
It's an upgrade in every way, to say the least. But then the problem is how to mount it. I know people have just modified the factory brackets to make it work, but I wanted to go full custom and it gave me an opportunity for some welding practice. So off to Lowes I went! Got some flat steel as well as some angle stock.
I pretty much did the whole thing on the fly - there was absolutely zero planning involved... because that's how I roll. What I ended up with was a super simple design. Remove two bolts, bracket comes off, and I can remove both the radiator and fan without having to unbolt anything else.
The short version-
First I cut the steel to length and welded the flat and angle pieces together:
[Image: 8gvWDCa.jpg]
Then I welded more angle stock to the bottom of the flat piece. This is what holds the top of the radiator in place:
(this photo was taken after the whole thing was finished - forgot to take any earlier in the process)
[Image: JwuKuHA.jpg]
After that was done I cut up and welded in the "feet" where it bolts to the car, and welded in a couple of tabs which simply insert into slots I cut in the fan shroud:
[Image: dKdj9fv.jpg]
[Image: sdaWq6O.jpg]
Ground all the welds as smooth as I could. I got lazy and impatient so the top of the piece has some craters in it and is not super smooth, but I don't care all that much:
[Image: TetiLYg.jpg]
[Image: vr2n5ap.jpg]
Then I decided that instead of just painting it, I wanted to dress it up a bit. I painted the whole thing gloss black. Then I scanned the "Thunderbird" and "TurboCoupe" badges into the computer, traced them, and lasered them onto the top along with a large T-Bird logo. Afterwards I cleared the whole thing.:
[Image: pi1CZK9.jpg]
[Image: czHth40.jpg]
It gives a pretty neat effect where the metal shows through:
[Image: dzbVMc8.jpg]
Then I made a couple of "cradle" brackets to support the bottom of the fan:
[Image: f72eAaA.jpg]
[Image: Pb473kp.jpg]
Before putting it all back together, I hit the radiator support with rust converter, followed by low gloss black paint. And then the finished product:
[Image: yEoe8cI.jpg]
[Image: QgtTqET.jpg]
So there ya go - not perfect, but it looks much better than it did, and it's easier to take everything apart now as well. This is a two speed fan. The '86 TC uses a single speed fan so I am only using the high speed and it definitely draws a bunch more air through the radiator than the factor fan did. Very happy with it.
The radiator fan on my '86 has been real noisy for the past few months. Not wanting to take the risk of having it die on its own, I decided to be proactive and get a replacement before it died. I also did not want to just drop in another factory fan and call it a day... that would be too easy. I wanted to get one that's slimmer and a little less unattractive. So I asked for advice and ended up buying a fan for a '95 Thunderbird off Ebay. Here's a comparison of the two.
[Image: FTcloJo.jpg]
It's an upgrade in every way, to say the least. But then the problem is how to mount it. I know people have just modified the factory brackets to make it work, but I wanted to go full custom and it gave me an opportunity for some welding practice. So off to Lowes I went! Got some flat steel as well as some angle stock.
I pretty much did the whole thing on the fly - there was absolutely zero planning involved... because that's how I roll. What I ended up with was a super simple design. Remove two bolts, bracket comes off, and I can remove both the radiator and fan without having to unbolt anything else.
The short version-
First I cut the steel to length and welded the flat and angle pieces together:
[Image: 8gvWDCa.jpg]
Then I welded more angle stock to the bottom of the flat piece. This is what holds the top of the radiator in place:
(this photo was taken after the whole thing was finished - forgot to take any earlier in the process)
[Image: JwuKuHA.jpg]
After that was done I cut up and welded in the "feet" where it bolts to the car, and welded in a couple of tabs which simply insert into slots I cut in the fan shroud:
[Image: dKdj9fv.jpg]
[Image: sdaWq6O.jpg]
Ground all the welds as smooth as I could. I got lazy and impatient so the top of the piece has some craters in it and is not super smooth, but I don't care all that much:
[Image: TetiLYg.jpg]
[Image: vr2n5ap.jpg]
Then I decided that instead of just painting it, I wanted to dress it up a bit. I painted the whole thing gloss black. Then I scanned the "Thunderbird" and "TurboCoupe" badges into the computer, traced them, and lasered them onto the top along with a large T-Bird logo. Afterwards I cleared the whole thing.:
[Image: pi1CZK9.jpg]
[Image: czHth40.jpg]
It gives a pretty neat effect where the metal shows through:
[Image: dzbVMc8.jpg]
Then I made a couple of "cradle" brackets to support the bottom of the fan:
[Image: f72eAaA.jpg]
[Image: Pb473kp.jpg]
Before putting it all back together, I hit the radiator support with rust converter, followed by low gloss black paint. And then the finished product:
[Image: yEoe8cI.jpg]
[Image: QgtTqET.jpg]
So there ya go - not perfect, but it looks much better than it did, and it's easier to take everything apart now as well. This is a two speed fan. The '86 TC uses a single speed fan so I am only using the high speed and it definitely draws a bunch more air through the radiator than the factor fan did. Very happy with it.
Brian Leavitt
'86 TC 5-Speed -- MS2x w/COP | 83 lb. injectors | T3/T4 50 Trim Stage 3 .63AR | Full 3" Exhaust - No Cat | Motorsport FMIC | Ranger Roller | Ported E6 | Walbro 255HP | Kirban | 20psi | 120-amp 3G | 8.8" 3.55 rear | '03 Cobra Wheels
'86 TC 5-Speed -- MS2x w/COP | 83 lb. injectors | T3/T4 50 Trim Stage 3 .63AR | Full 3" Exhaust - No Cat | Motorsport FMIC | Ranger Roller | Ported E6 | Walbro 255HP | Kirban | 20psi | 120-amp 3G | 8.8" 3.55 rear | '03 Cobra Wheels
