Radiator screen material?

[Dave Freitas DFR]

I'm planning on replacing the screens covering the radiators with something a little more substantial. My question is how tight of a weave can I go with the screen material without reducing airflow to the point of causing problems?
This is on a Lola T-342 with side radiators, which are minimal at best. Any suggestions?

[Ravemotorsports]

Pegasus has radiator screen material in 3 meshes. It's listed as Stainless Steel Wire Cloth. Go to [url="http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/"]http://www.pegasusautoracing.com/[/url] then bring up the online catalogue. The wire cloth is on page 41. I've used both the small and medium mesh. Medium mesh keeps tire rubber and rocks out but you will still accumulate a lot of little stuff in the radiator fins. Small mesh works for me and I didn't notice any heating problems. Remeber to check after every on track session.

[group7]

For the price of what you get from a racing supply house for enough to do two noses, you can go to a farm supply store and get a roll that will last you twenty years( some of us ten years).I got 8 squares per inch and it seems to work fine.

[DENIS]

Wire cloth is avaiable from HD and other local stores too. Nothing as high tech as the Stainless, but you don't feel so bad when it gets bent either.

I find the best way to use it is to have it IN FRONT of the radiator, not ON the radiator. For most rocks etc, on the rad is a bit late.

[Racer Bill]

Todd TCE wrote:

>Wire cloth is avaiable from HD

The snow must be getting to me; when I
first saw this I read it as Harley
Davidson and not Home Depot. I'm ready
for spring...

John

[Matt M.]

I think that when you go to a hardware store (probably most all real ones carry it), you will make yourself understood better if you ask for 1/4" hardware cloth. It is not stainless, but plenty shiny and very cheap! Of course it should be mounted at least a small distance ahead of the radiator to allow for sag when it catches a big rock. Pop rivets and washers are adequate.
- Frank C

[Scotty Segers]

Another thing to think about when mounting screen in front of the rad(s) is that if the screen gets mostly blocked (which could happen with one excursion through the grass), the rads won't get enough air. Try to mount the screen at such an angle that the crud will either fall off (screen angled up toward the front at a shallow angle) or pack up at the rear (screen angled outward toward the front at a shallow angle for side-pod rads) and not block the whole screen surface.
I use wire cloth with 1/4-in openings.

[size="1"][ 02-08-2003, 07:59 AM: Message edited by: DaveW ][/size]

[DENIS]

For us simple minded folks, I simply cut it the length of the rad, measure the height, add about three inches to it, cut and then fit it in a 'bowed out' manner in front of the rad with no fixtures. Just stick it in the top plate of most rads and wedge it up agains the bottom. (front mounted rads of course) Then when it gets full of crap, I pull it out, clean it off, blow out the junk and put it back.