Warning I purchased two Pro radiators at the same time and they both had a solder failure. Within a couple weeks of installing them they both leaked at the radiator fan switch collars (2). I was hoping it was just the plug or the switch but I tried and after a pressure test it was the soldering. Warranty returns by mail is time consuming and you end up paying shipping twice. So I went to my local Rad Shop and had them fix them. They told me they didn't use the correct solder. When the first one leaked I was hoping the Chinese have QTC problems on Mondays & Fridays but it sucked when the other went on my other car also. I recommend paying $10 more and getting the Spectra Radiator and they are used by Rad Shops.

If it makes you feel any better, the Murray single row cheapie from O'r's was a Terrible fit! -and I was replacing the exact same model -aluminium w/plastic tanks. Had to swap top And bottom rails from the old one, and crush the bottom post mounts flat to get any of it to line up. Turned a simple job into a real pain. No question the chinese have QC issues.

+1 about the cheap solder in radiators! Even the electronics solder you can buy now is REALLY bad. Where can you still order some that actually works?

^^I wish I knew, estate sales? lol.

I still got my large roll of quality electronics solder from years ago. And they all laughed at me when I bought so much back then

My dad was real big into building electronics out of kits, like "Heathkit" and a couple others. Because of that, he had a whole lot of good solder. Some people think solder is solder...there is a difference!

 

A while back i'd asked about "pro" heater core quality. I ordered one, but didnt even get to use it, as it was for the wrong application. Good thing too, after hearing this. The core i got from o'reilly (murray) was crap as well. Pipes were kindof right, but angled wrong by a few degrees.

What happened to quality workmanship? It must be in hiding along with "self reliance" and "common sense"

One word.... NAPA. I just had to put a new one in yesterday. Yeah, it was $172 my cost, but it's brass and copper. No frickin' aluminum or plastic. I may be a bit biased since I have a business account with them, but out of the hundreds of parts I get each year, there may be one or two that may be wrong or go bad.

 

Oh, and you're supposed to use silver solder for radiators that are not aluminum.

Edited November 30, 201411 yr by skishop69

That's what they told me! They didn't use Silver solder. With the R&R I ended up buying the rads twice for the sake of peace of mind.

Back when the whole lead free solder for electronics BS started, I went and bought what should be a lifetime supply from people on eBay.

 

For plumbing, I use the lead free.  The secret is to get tinning flux.  It has solder mixed in, and tins before the copper gets a chance to oxidize.