S/H Nissen radiator MGTF.

I had occasion to purchase a S/H nissen rad for my TF,  so my question is can I test it for leaks by just filling it with water or would it be best to get it pressure tested?
  Its not fitted to the car.   Thanks Glyn.

If it is feasible to get it tested locally it is the sensible way.
But Brian and sensible are never mentioned in the same sentence..so I would just try it.
It's unlikely anyone would sell a radiator not disclosing it leaks..but there are people out there.

Only if there was a gaping hole would a static test show up a problem. The only way is to lift the pressure up above the working rating & for it to hold that pressure for a period of time.
Musing on the problem & please understand that these are musings; if you were to seal send & return & fill the radiator, after fitting a presta bike tyre valve into the bleed point & with a bike pump, equipped with a pressure gauge, slowly lift the pressure, any obvious leaks would show. Hold that pressure as shown on the pump for five minutes (??) & see if the pressure drops. Don’t over do this, you’re not pumping up a racing bike tyre!
Just a thought, others might want to comment on this idea.
M

Hang on lets just back the truck up for a bit!
You say you get 2nd hand Nissen Radiator for your TF, are you sure it's interchangable?
I would think it's most likely not, at least without some modification.
I s'pose  it is possible that MG and Nissan shared a design, but I would consider this most unlikely.
Probably more trouble than it's worth to buggerise about with it, but lets assume it fits without any great drama, you ask how to test it?
Well other the bolt it in to suck it and see.
You can do what radiator repairers do and seal up all the opening and submerge it in a tank of water to look for bubbles, but that won't tell you if it will hold under pressure.
You might pressure test it, you would need a cooling system pressure test kit that consists of a hand pump with a pressure gauge and various adapters, you would either have to fit the radiator to the car with all the cooling system in place and fit the suitable adapter to the filler neck and apply the required pressure to the system and by both looking for leaks and watching that the gauge indicates that the pressure is holding.
Or you can test it ot of the car but you will need to find a way to use one of the adapters in an old radiator hose, seal it up and block all the other hose spigots on the radiator, fill it with water and pump it up to the required pressure to see if there are any leaks and to monitor the gauge holds pressure........The trouble with radiators in modern cars is they aren't made like the used to be, they are now pretty well disposable, they are now considered a consumable item.
Or you can do as I would do and just get a new radiator that actually fits the car your putting it in, which will probably be the most cost effective way in the long run and avoiding all the fart arseing about!
 

If it helps any, Nissen is a Danish multinational, radiators is one aspect of a large conglomerate.
M

Never heard of them, obviously not sold herein Oz, I still stand by the fact that it's probably no worth wasting time with a 2nd hand radiator unless it looks new.
Once upon a time they were made out of brass  and soldered together and were worth fixing, these days they are made out of alloy and sometimes with plastic tanks and they are crimped together. they are a consumable throwaway item.
So if your snd hand replacement radiator looks anything less than pristine your probably going to have to deal with it again before very long.

Hi, NISSENS RADIATOR not a NISSAN Radiator from NISSAN CARS.

D4KGP wrote:

Hi, NISSENS RADIATOR not a NISSAN Radiator from NISSAN CARS.

Old eyes and ears my friend..not switched on like us young ones!
 

TA22GT wrote:

D4KGP wrote:

Hi, NISSENS RADIATOR not a NISSAN Radiator from NISSAN CARS.

Old eyes and ears my friend..not switched on like us young ones!
Well I'm not exactly young @ 75

When I've bought 2nd hand radiators I've always just reverse flushed them a few times and then put bungs in and left them to sit for a while full of water to check if the level drops. Assuming that is ok I've then loose fitted the rad in the car (but tightened hose clips) bled air from the system and run the engine, keeping an eye out for any leaks, steam or dropped coolant level before trusting it enough to fit properly and use on the road.

Notanumber wrote:

When I've bought 2nd hand radiators I've always just reverse flushed them a few times and then put bungs in and left them to sit for a while full of water to check if the level drops. Assuming that is ok I've then loose fitted the rad in the car (but tightened hose clips) bled air from the system and run the engine, keeping an eye out for any leaks, steam or dropped coolant level before trusting it enough to fit properly and use on the road.

My method too. Do the best to eliminate basic problems.
Same when building a rally/race engine..put the minimum of ancillaries on needed to fire it. No need for water or a rad. If it fires then fit the rest. If it doesn't fire work out why not!