14-10-2018, 09:43 AM
Hello PhilM
I believe the original radiator fixing was by two threaded studs soldered into the bottom tank. These passed through the mounting brackets in the chassis, via square felt pads to protect the tank from chafing. Each stud had a coil spring, washer and nut with split pin to give resilient mounting. Access is from underneath and is not the easiest. There is a not very detailed drawing on page 76 of the Austin Seven companion.
I have successfully repaired these studs in the past by making a pad of brass about an inch square and an eigthth of an inch thick. Drill a hole into the centre and tap it to take brass studding, which can be screwed in and then soldered (the solder will "wick" into the thread). The resulting "mushroom" can then be soldered to the bottom tank, but in my case I fought shy of the heat needed and used "JB weld" metal loaded epoxy instead. To help the bond, everything must be bright clean and roughened with coarse sandpaper. I also put a series of small holes in the plates for the epoxy to flow into and grip. When reassembling I used nyloc nuts, as split pins are too fiddly.
As noted above, it might be worth checking for any other leaks first, before putting in too much work.
I believe the original radiator fixing was by two threaded studs soldered into the bottom tank. These passed through the mounting brackets in the chassis, via square felt pads to protect the tank from chafing. Each stud had a coil spring, washer and nut with split pin to give resilient mounting. Access is from underneath and is not the easiest. There is a not very detailed drawing on page 76 of the Austin Seven companion.
I have successfully repaired these studs in the past by making a pad of brass about an inch square and an eigthth of an inch thick. Drill a hole into the centre and tap it to take brass studding, which can be screwed in and then soldered (the solder will "wick" into the thread). The resulting "mushroom" can then be soldered to the bottom tank, but in my case I fought shy of the heat needed and used "JB weld" metal loaded epoxy instead. To help the bond, everything must be bright clean and roughened with coarse sandpaper. I also put a series of small holes in the plates for the epoxy to flow into and grip. When reassembling I used nyloc nuts, as split pins are too fiddly.
As noted above, it might be worth checking for any other leaks first, before putting in too much work.