Farm Equipment - Allis B pressurized radiator

Print Page | Close Window

Allis B pressurized radiator

Printed From: Unofficial Allis
Category: Allis Chalmers
Forum Name: Farm Equipment
Forum Description: everything about Allis-Chalmers farm equipment
URL: https://www.allischalmers.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=178884
Printed Date: 11 Oct 2025 at 12:26pm
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 11.10 - http://www.webwizforums.com

Topic: Allis B pressurized radiator

Posted By: Jcone1025
Subject: Allis B pressurized radiator
Date Posted: 07 Mar 2021 at 5:04pm

Bought a new pressurized style radiator for my B. I’d like to run it non pressurized. Anybody done this? Just remove the rubber seal on the cap and run a 160 degree stat? My B is a 1940 and originally came with a non pressure style radiator. Thank you for feedback.

Replies:

Posted By: Jcone1025
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 9:20am

Anybody??

Posted By: Luke114
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 10:11am

I'll say first that I really hate when somebody responds to a question with "Why do you want to do that??"

Anyhow....

Why do you want to do that??

What you are saying is correct. Drill a hole, leave the cap loose, unpressurizing is sort of the natural state of decay of a pressurized system. If you had a bad radiator and were trying to limp it along, its a bandaid. But who wants to deal with adding coolant all the time?

Posted By: Ed (Ont)
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 10:35am

Just buy a new cap. 0 psi or maybe 3psi would work great. You can run no pressure or a bit of pressure or whatever you want.

Posted By: Jcone1025
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 10:43am

I just thought it was smart with a new radiator and existing old engine seals that staying unpressurized would be smart. I was thinking it may purge a little coolant at first but once it finds a level I was thinking it should stay.

Posted By: Stan R
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 10:48am

I would think that as water evaporates and new water is added, minerals would be left behind, accumulate, and cause issues (like a teapot on a stove that isn't flushed occasionally).

Posted By: Jcone1025
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 11:47am

That’s a good point but I think as long as you add distilled you’re good. I guess my original thought process was if the tractor was originally designed for a no pressure cooling system, you should stick with it. No need to put pressure anywhere that wasn’t designed for it. If I had just rebuilt the entire engine I probably wouldn’t mind running pressure I just don’t see any real reason to now. Feel free to argue my point. I enjoy hearing opinions and facts from everyone. Is it worth the risk of running pressure to save an occasional top off?

Posted By: Luke114
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 12:02pm

A couple things...coolant (antifreeze) has anti-rust and other goodies in it that are nice to have in your block and water pump. Plus you don't get those cold sweats when you wake up on a sub zero February morning and try to remember if you winterized the B.

I'm not aware that there were any differences in the block, head or water pump on a pressurized system or not, so I wouldn't worry about pressurizing something that didn't have it before. You've already got the head off, right? So you'll have a new head gasket. Are you changing sleeves also?

Any motor is happier if it gets up to temperature. With 18 hp inside of 300 lbs of cast iron, these tractors just don't heat up if they aren't worked, and at proper temperature you will be losing more water to steam. I like the 180 degree thermostat. You can certainly run it unpressurized, but I think you will be happier with a sealed system full of antifreeze mix.

Posted By: Jcone1025
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 12:13pm

Yea I had the head off and it got a new gasket when it went back on. I did not do sleeves and that is a concern if those old orings can hold up with pressure. I understand the antifreeze mix and that was what I meant when I mentioned distilled water. Would be caught dead in CT without 50/50 antifreeze in all my stuff. I would forget to winterize if I didn’t haha. I’ve got a fresh 180 stat in it. Thanks for your input.

Posted By: Joe(TX)
Date Posted: 10 Mar 2021 at 9:30pm

Why not run it pressurized? The engine seals should pose no problem unless you have a bad gasket. Late engines have 7 to 14 psi. You would only have problems if yo have other issues.

-------------
1970 190XT, 1973 200, 1962 D-19 Diesel, 1979 7010, 1957 WD45, 1950 WD, 1961 D17, Speed Patrol, D14, All crop 66 big bin, 180 diesel, 1970 170 diesel, FP80 forklift. Gleaner A

Posted By: Stan IL&TN
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2021 at 8:39pm

With those old o-rings on the liners I would not tempt fate. Leave it unpressurized.

-------------
1957 WD45 dad's first AC

1968 one-seventy

1956 F40 Ferguson

Posted By: WF owner
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2021 at 8:54pm

Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the older tractors (with radiator shutters) were unpressurized.

In later years, thermostats were added, the shutters went away and the radiators were pressurized.

Posted By: Wispitfiremike
Date Posted: 11 Mar 2021 at 9:54pm

Parts manual says after serial number BE-23815 there was a thermostat, and it appears there was curtain assy to B-22260, different curtain assy to B-43301 when shutters appear until the end of production. Anybody have any idea what the curtain assy was made of? Seems hard to imagine a system without pressure but still sealed? Or is some loss accepted as normal?

Posted By: WF owner
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2021 at 8:21am

Again, someone can correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the WC, early WD, and early WF took the same cap for either the radiator or gas tank, which tells me they were not pressurized cooling systems.

Posted By: Jcone1025
Date Posted: 12 Mar 2021 at 3:54pm

My B is serial is around 40000 and I’ve got original shutter assembly, non pressure radiator, and a thermostat. At this point, I think I will run it with no pressure and a 180 stat.