Thanks to the the Kent Kit Car Club for letting me talk to them about radiators on Friday 22nd Feb 2013. I also showed 2 new videos about their manufacture which I made especially (and will be on youtube soon!)
I enjoyed myself and you all made me feel very welcome.
Thanks again.
Gerald Stringer.
Nothing like a mention in your local paper to make you feel special!!
Here’s a copy of the article and a link to it :
Croydon Advertiser Article 04/05/12
WHEN William Stringer founded his car radiator firm in 1952 (edit – make that 1962) he dubbed it Aaron Radiators to ensure it a top spot in the phonebook, helping draw in the customers.
Now with the company, based in Whitehorse Lane, South Norwood, celebrating its 50th anniversary as a family firm, the Stringers are ensuring the company maintains its ranking in the industry.
SUCCESS: Gerald Stringer (centre) and staff and two classic Rolls Royce radiators they are working on
William Stringer himself died four years ago but the company’s eight staff still includes his wife, Jane, who is managing director and her son and daughter, Gerald and Laura.
While the family ethos of the company has not changed, it has had to adapt to changing times which have seen the small radiator manufacturing companies challenged by an influx of large motor parts concerns.
Gerald Stringer, the company’s sales director, said: “There is so much competition these days.”
Aaron’s has also had to face the fact that the quality of radiators has had to improve.
When the business started, the life-span of a radiator was around two to three years. Now they can last ten to 15 years, although the effects of that economic challenge are offset by the fact there are a lot more cars on the road.
The edge in the industry has not stopped Aaron’s from still being involved in the manufacture of radiators, for both cars and heavy plant machinery.
But for Mr Stringer one of the most radical decisions the company has made to cement its future is to move into what he describes as “the bespoke side of the industry.”
More effort is now being put into reconditioning radiators for classic cars. Combining this with making an increasing impression on manufacturing radiators for kit cars, Mr Stringer is driving towards a confident future.
Aaron Radiator Co is 50 years old in May, so here is a group photo of the whole team. Bring on the next 50 years! Our founder, Bill Stringer, would have been proud of us and we all miss him.
manufacturing car radiators since 1962.
Aaron Radiators 50th Anniversary (with names)
Also appearing in the photo are a pair of 1920’s Rolls Royce 20/25 radiators, one before a recore, the other after.
This is based on an article that was published in Jaguar World magazine 6 or 7 years ago, I wrote the article aimed towards Jaguars of the 60’s and 70’s but the information is relevant to all makes of car of that era.
Since the 60’s many models of Jaguar have had problems overheating, specifically certain E and S-types. The main problem was the efficiency of the radiator and fan system, which can usually be remedied by replacing the radiator core with an upgraded one with more tubes and a higher fin pitch (and usually a completely different system of manufacture.)
Aaron Radiator replaced and upgraded the radiators on these models (sometimes when they were still new!) and still offer this upgrade service today with even higher efficiency modern cores than previously available or the ultimate in cooling- complete replacements in Aluminium.
Up until the 70’s most Jaguar radiators used a ‘Cellular Film’ core (Pic A). This has the advantage of being very robust and durable (many cars still have the original film cores, even though they may be 30 years or older!) but it is not a particularly efficient design. This led radiator design to favour ‘Packed Construction’ (Pic B) or ‘Tube & Fin’ (Pic C) cores which were lighter, more efficient and cheaper to make.
Bad design in fans and cowlings (fan shields) meant that many vehicles still overheated. Sportier cars were pushing out higher power than ever before from engines packed into a much smaller space as vehicle aerodynamics came into play and bonnets got lower. Upgraded electric fans can help remedy this by forcing more air through the core and replacing the fixed fans can increase power lost through driving the fan.
A – ‘Cellular Film’ core
B – ‘Packed Construction’ core
C – ‘Tube & Fin’ core
Two types of upgraded core are available. An ‘X-type Packed Construction’ core (Pic D) has more tubes and a higher fin pitch to increase the surface area the cool air flows over. The X-type is the most efficient core available in copper and brass and is available in many different numbers of row (thickness.) An upgraded ‘Tube & Fin’ (Pic E) is also available which, though not quite as efficient as the X-type, is more durable and resistant to vibration.
If your car is having problems with overheating, the core might be corroded and a build up of deposits inside it can restrict water flow. Older types of anti-freeze were not as good at resisting corrosion and sometimes radiators have had an under spec core fitted in the past. The difference in cost between fitting a replacement core that has the same cooling capacity as the original and upgrading one is not considerable as the only extra cost is the higher price of the core.
A – ‘Cellular Film’ core
B – ‘Packed Construction’ core
C – ‘Tube & Fin’ core
We’ve added loads of new pages and information to our website, concentrating in 3 main areas :
Please take time read of some of the pages – I’m sure some people will find them very interesting, particularly as they describe some of the work we do ‘in-house’ that perhaps not many people know about!
One page I’m particularly proud of is the detailed guide to different core upgrades available for classic cars.
The new pages are :
 |
| Custom Aluminium |
| Aluminium Radiators |
| Aluminium Intercoolers |
| Motorcycle Radiators |
| Motorcycle Oil Coolers |
 |
| Industrial & Plant |
| Plant Radiators |
| Industrial Oil Coolers |
| Industrial Intercoolers and Charge Air Coolers |
| Truck Fuel Tanks |
| Header Tanks |
| Heater Cores |
| Heat Exchangers |
 |
| Classic and Vintage |
| Vintage Car Radiators |
| Classic Radiator Upgrades |
| Classic Heaters |
| Vintage Fuel tanks |
 |
| Filler Caps |
| Custom Coloured Filler Caps |
We had the opportunity this week to photograph 2 different Ferrari 308 radiators which came in to be re-cored from 2 different customers at the same time. One is is bare metal before painting, the other is finished and ready to go out. Oh my God, Magnum!!
Ferrari 308 radiator
We recently recored this Formula Ford radiator in copper & Brass.
Here are before and after shots.
Before:
The core was really choked up, so it was in dire need of replacing, and we managed to copy the core almost exactly.
After:
Approximate prices are :
£150 (+ vat) – copper & brass recore
£220 (+ vat) – new unit in copper & brass
£320 (+ vat) – new unit in aluminium.
We will need to check the dimensions of your unit before starting production.
Good luck to Tim Wilkinson who has entered the Peking to Paris Rally 2010 in number 24, a beautiful 1929 Buick 25x Phaeton. (for a link to his site / blog click here – Peking to Paris 2010 1929 Buick.
One part he won’t have to worry about is the upgraded radiator we supplied him before he left, we uprated the core with a 4 row high efficiency one more suitable for the climates he would be driving through.
You can track his progress here using the Skytag Vehicle Tracking system. (As long as they are in a country that supports this technology.)
1929 Buik 25X Phaeton Entered into the 2010 Peking Paris Rally
Good luck to Tim Wilkinson who has entered the Peking to Paris Rally 2010 in number 24, a beautiful 1929 Buick 25x Phaeton.
One part he won’t have to worry about is the upgraded radiator we supplied him before he left, we uprated the core with a 4 row high efficiency one more suitable for the climates he would be driving through.
You can track his progress here using the Skytag Vehicle Tracking system. (As long as they are in a country that supports this technology.)
1929 Buik 25X Phaeton Entered into the 2010 Peking Paris Rally