Stainless Radiator Covers

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These were some covers that had to be made real quick. So quick that the only stainless steel at my friends shop was too short. So I redesigned them on the fly, and instead of 45 degree joints I made butt joints. They came out nicely though. These units are usually made with out a hem. That leaves a really sharp edge that gets me nervous. So I designed mine with a hem. It leaves a really smooth edge. The side panel just gets set in past the radius of the hem. I thought they came out really nice. I have noticed that the other covers that are similar to these, are all loose and just laid in place. The reason is that they were made with a complex bolting system, to attach them to the floor and wall. The problem is that it can take a half hour to just get one of them back in place. So the engineers just do not bother, when they service the radiators. I had the idea to mount something on the metal window sills or wall and hang them. So far so good.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Nice job.......zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Thanks, how is everything with you? You seem like you are still working away there.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:I kept the back leg of the hem a bit short, so I could just tack the perforated metal in without discoloring the face. And also so I had a place to put stainless steel angle I bent up, and welded to the back for stiffeners, and mounting. The only flaw was I could not get all the pieces I needed, from the partial sheet I had. We all thought there was more material there. I hate that. I had to cut little pieces to fill in on the back of the hem behind the butt weld.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Brilliant solution and good looking outcome.
Reply:Nice looking covers.
Reply:If anyone uses this hem method make sure you put a piece of filler material at least as thick as the material you plan to put into the hem, in the hem, before you press down the hem. If you hem it first without a temporary filler, you will not get your final material in the hem later. Over the years while talking to someone or daydreaming I have forgotten the filler and you can pretty much just throw that piece away. Ha-ha.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:If anyone noticed there is a welding bench in one of those pictures in the first post. A friend of mine Jeff makes leather biker jackets and chaps, that guys have fallen in at rather high speeds, and they have gotten up without a scratch on them. Jeff made covers for all of our welding benches almost 20 years ago and they are still hanging in there. No more burning smells from the foam or fabric. No more hot balls of metal rolling and dancing under your butt checks and nut sack on metal benches. If anyone is interested I can have him make you up one for your bench. They tie underneath with a draw string. He makes them out of some trick leather. This man knows leather. I would guess he would charge $100 to $200 bucks a bench. It is worth it. And as you can see after twenty years they are still working lovely. That comes out to about $5 to $10 bucks a year so far.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Those leather benches are height adjustable so we also use them to hold up hot parts while we clamp and weld the other end to the welding table. They are super handy. And they do not mar the work.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Thank you for all the compliments.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Looking good that curved feature is far better than a  90 degree corner, nice job
Reply:Originally Posted by William McCormickThanks, how is everything with you? You seem like you are still working away there.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:You can use a three foot piece of perforated metal instead of a four foot wide piece using a radius. And the actual loss of clearance is minimal. The radiators get a coat of flat black, so you cannot see the radiator. You can also roll the stainless perforated material around a smaller diameter piece of pipe by hand nicely. And then just open it up to match the actual radius. Just put start and stop marks for the bends. Roll it all between the marks and then open it up afterwards. The side styles were rolled into a six inch radius on a hand roller. Good exercise. They were the guides when I took some of the bend out of the perforated material.                      Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:You have to put a filler into the styles as well when you roll them.                       Sincerely,                            William McCormick
Reply:Really nice job. Super clean look.
Reply:Thanks for all the compliments.     Sincerely,              William McCormick