response to the baster cooling modification in newsletter

My 2 cents.
At first you have to remember that these cars, have a no pressure system. So water collects the heat fast enough. but it needs a clean radiator with plenty of fins for the air to pass to keep the water cool. I have found that even with the L-29 as long as you have a clean system you have no problem with over heating.
But you must have everything tuned correctly. spark plugs ,points condenser, timing, carburetor settings. Even with all this done. You need to drive the car with a little common sense. Not to fast, a little less accelerator going up hills. You have to slow down and drive like you were not in as much of a hurry as most are in todays world of HIGH SPEED
These cars are eighty years old and so are most of the parts that are keeping them rolling
K Clark

Tom, it's the same theory as you are talking about, just put a different way. The gist of it is that the coolant is moving too fast to absorb heat or disipate heat.

[i:23aw2akl] "What myth am I referring too? Have you ever heard that your car needs to have a thermostat, or a flow restrictor in its place? Otherwise the coolant will move too fast and won?t have time to absorb the heat and will cause overheating? Yup, that?s the one."[/i:23aw2akl]

The "explanation" given to me many times about this is not that the coolant didn't absorb the heat from the block, but that it couldn't LOSE the heat through the radiator because it went too quickly through the tubes.

I have to admit: I am on the fence on this question... Any thermodynamics mavens out there?

--Tom

Edit: I just added the above poll. Please read the text below before answering the poll.

I just received the most recent ACD newsletter, and read with great interest the article by Josh Malks about the Baster cooling system modification.
Josh concluded the article by asking how the modification improves cooling. Well, I think I can answer that question, as well as put another nail in the coffin of an old automotive myth that has been repeated way too many times.

What myth am I referring too? Have you ever heard that your car needs to have a thermostat, or a flow restrictor in its place? Otherwise the coolant will move too fast and won?t have time to absorb the heat and will cause overheating? Yup, that?s the one.

Here is the truth, which has been proven by scientific testing: The faster the coolant flows, the better it cools. Think of it like this ? is an ice cube going to melt faster under a rapidly flowing water faucet, or under a trickle of water? Well, it should melt quicker under the trickle because the rapid flow of water is moving too quick for the ice to absorb the heat from the water, right? Of course not. Same thing applies in your cars cooling system. More flow absorbs and dissipates more heat, and also prevents steam pockets in the heads. (steam pockets transfer very little heat)

The reason so many people have bought into the myth is that they have real world practical experience that tells them that cars without thermostats boil over, and putting in a thermostat solved the problem. How can that be, if the myth is false?

Here is what is really happening: The water pump, besides creating flow, is building pressure. This pump pressure (3-10 psi) is in addition to the pressure caused by heat expansion of the coolant, and it builds against the point of highest resistance, downstream from the pump. In most cases, this is the thermostat. (or a restrictor, such as a washer) But if you remove the ?stat, the next point of resistance is the top of the radiator tubes. So pump pressure builds in the top tank of the radiator, where it acts against the pressure cap. Then you have the pressure cap, which is selected to handle the pressure from heat expansion only, trying to contain the additional pressure from the pump. As you drive happily down the highway, with your temp gauge reading normal, coolant quietly seeps past the cap and out onto the ground. But as coolant is lost, the system becomes less effective, the temp goes up, the pressure goes up, more coolant escapes past the cap, until eventually the car overheats. This same scenario can happen even if you have a thermostat, but usually to a lesser degree.

In the Baster modification, an internal compartment is constructed inside the top tank of the radiator. This internal compartment is sealed except for: the radiator cap; a pair of 1/8? holes leading to the inside of the radiators top tank; and a tube that runs through a check valve and into the water pump inlet. (you really need to see the diagram in the newsletter to understand it) Now the radiator cap is isolated from the pressure built against it by the water pump. Only the pair of 1/8 holes allow pressure into this little tank, and that is drawn off by the bypass back to the water pump inlet. The radiator cap only has to deal with the pressure caused by temperature increases, so it contains the coolant, and prevents overheating.

In modern cars, the cross-flow radiators are built with the cap on the low pressure side. That solves this problem. In your old car, you can still construct the Baster system, or often you can solve the problem with a higher pressure cap and a coolant recovery tank.

I hope this helps, Joel