Commander Coolant tank to radiator pipework

[Dave]

Hi sorry to ask what should be a basic question but has anyone got any tips on fitting the expansion tank on a Commander.I have been trying to fit my tank back on, after having the radiator re cored, but no matter which way i try there is no way i can fit it all back in place, I have tried all different combinations of fitting, basically the feed end on the tank fitting and the end of the fitting on the radiator are about an inch apart in height, and around an inch and a half apart in distance, and there is no way the 5/8 inner diameter hose will double bend in such a small distance.I have spoken to the firm who did the re core and they are adamant that they did not move the direction or angle of any fittings when they re cored the radiator, the only other way i can think of around the problem may be to run a lot longer length of pipe and loop it around to connect the two ends, but i think that would be at least 8 inches to a foot long to get a good bend. As a long shot has anyone a radiator off the bike that they maybe could send me a picture of, at the moment my thoughts are that the metal connections were moved somehow, Dave

[johnbirchjar]

Of course the rad;repair people are not going to admit they cocked up,but if someone sends you a picture of a Commander rad;you can then compare,(I'm sure Graham must have one lurking in his emporium somewhere )even so you may have to go the "Long way round"with the pipe work,good luck,J.B.

[Dave]

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I am hoping there is a picture attached here to try to show better what my problem is, as i hope can be seen the stub outlet from the radiator bends to the right away from the bottle outlet,{plastic on the bottom of bottle } but is to close to be able to bend a flexible pipe between the two. If the radiator metal connection is soldered or brazed in then i presume it could be re positioned, but this would probably be a big job because the radiator may need to be taken apart, and trying to re position it could cause more problems because it would have to be placed in the exact right place or i would be back in the same boat, I think i am going to have to try the dodge of using a lot longer piece of rubber pipe coming off the radiator stub and looping it down quite a way and back up onto the coolant bottle, unless some one thinks this won't work?
If someone with a water cooled could look at their bike and let me know if their radiator stub points to the right as shown, i would appreciate it just to satisfy my curiosity whether my pipe was re positioned during the recent re core?, thanks Dave

[johnbirchjar]

You may consider cutting the rad: pipe shorter,(about an inch should suffice) leaving just enough to clamp the rubber hose to,that may just give you enough "wriggle room" to join the two.Just an idea ,(you wouldn't believe the "plumbing" I've had to resort to fitting a Commander engine in the Classic frame )J.B.

[johnbirchjar]

I had a look at an old Commander rad I have and the pipe in question doesn't look as far to the right as yours,(perhaps about 1degree?) sorry I don't have a camera/phone to take pics,(and wouldn't know how to send them anyway )rgds,J.B.

[Dave]

Hi John, Thanks for taking the time to reply, a forum member has kindly said he may be able to send me some photos this weekend, which i hope will show that my pipe was moved during the re core and allow me to go back to the firm who did the work and see what they can do about it, obviously putting it back to it's exact position may be a problem, but close to it may be ok.
In an ideal world it would have been handy if i could have borrowed/ bought a worn one locally, but with so few bikes built that was never really going to be an option,
I appreciate you taking the time to try and help me with this matter, Dave

[johnbirchjar]

Hi Dave,I have an old Commander rad that is incomplete insomuch as the side water jackets have been removed and used on a purpose-built rad; that I had to have made for the Commander engine that I am installing in my Classic(long story )I live in Essex,where do you live?if not to far away perhaps we can meet and I can let you have the rad:(whether the rad company that did your re-core will except my rad as evidence is debatable)or, if you want, I can post it to you,your choice,J.B.

[Joe]

Hello Dave,

Photo’s emailed to you Saturday as promised. If you need any more or better pics, feel free to ask.
Many thanks, Joe

[Dave]

Just to update my post, and thanks to Joe and JB ,i took the radiator back to the company and they moved the inlet stub back to where it should be, [or as close as we could guess from Joe's pictures ] and after fitting to the bike it was still very tight to get a pipe to fit but i did manage it in the end, thanks to you both for your help, Dave

[johnbirchjar]

You are most welcome,only to pleased to have been some help ,ride safe,J.B.