It says insufficient clearance, not touching. Factory gauges are notoriously inaccurate. Just fired up my rebuilt 312 in my T Bird today. I went to the trouble of installing a second temperature gauge in addition to the stock gauge. Stewart Warner electric gauge with the sending unit installed in the passenger side head. It read 190-200 degrees while the stock gauge was on the low end of cool.

Well looks like I might hold off on a new radiator. Are there any ways to do an at-home do it yourself sort of radiator clean with the radiator out and face down on the ground? Like maybe fill it with some kind of cleaning break-down solution and letting it sit in there for a day or so then flush it out?


I was also looking at the service manual last night and saw this in the overheating section, under note: in the book. I have it marked. I'm not exactly sure what it's meaning though, that if you have a sender that's too long and touching the bottom of the coolant passage it'll read hotter then it should be?

Griffin Radiators was recommended.

http://www.griffinrad.com/exact_fit.php

The gaskets that were on the engine when I took the head off (I'm assuming it's the same on the other head) are metal gaskets, they were completely metal I wouldn't be surprised if they were the originals from the 50s. There is no tab for those.

That gasket is installed correctly.  What about the driver's side?  The corner should be in a similar position, front, intake side.

Tool rental places often rent engine hoists and stands.  Could be a cheaper option than paying someone to do it.


Lawrenceville, GA

??
http://www.usradiator.com/radiators/ford/fairlane.html

The little tab, if we're talking about the same tab, is sticking out of the top front corner on the passenger-side head. I took quite a while looking at and comparing the old and the new gasket to see if the holes matched up and if any holes in the old gasket were covered in the new gasket. I put some pictures up of the bare block with no gasket, and it with the gasket put on. Something kind of that stands out to me looking at it now, there are two channels on the bottom corners near the bolt holes that look like water passages. But on ever gasket I can find online and on mine I have installed, they're covered up. Man I really wish I had the old gasket still or a picture of it to double check. But surely that can't be a design flaw in the gasket!






Unfortunately I don't have the equipment to lift the engine out of the car at home. : /

They don't appear to make stock-appearing radiators for '55 full size cars.  Only T-Bird and trucks.

It does sound like you have checked most items.

RE the passenger side head gasket, where is the square corner of the gasket positioned?  Even though you didn't change the other, how is it positioned?

You could take the radiator to a radiator shop for assessment before spending money on a new radiator.

If it comes to having the block cleaned, you can probably take care of that at home.  With the block upside down, on an engine stand, use a coat hanger wire, poke around, flush with a hose, and repeat until no more debris comes out.  This is something you would probably need to do even if you sent the block out for cleaning.  Hot tanking won't remove all of that and you probably don't want to pay a shop hourly to do it.


Lawrenceville, GA

I'll check the fluid level again, but I don't think I've lost a lot of fluid. The original cap was busted and wasn't pressurizing, but we've since put a 7lb cap on there.