Does anyone make a correct reproduction a/c condenser for a midyear?

[Jim P.]

I'm starting to reassemble the car for judging and am looking for a source for the correct a/c condenser. The car is a 64 coupe. Since I don't have the original condenser I'm not sure of the exact appearance. I know a slight change took place over the years. I spoke with Classic Auto Air in Tampa. They said they could even restore an original core if I could find one. "Thepartsladi" advertises a "correct" condenser on ebay. LI corvette also advertises one for significantly more money. I don't mind spending the money for the right part but I want to make sure it is correct. Anybody had any judging experience with a 63/64 condenser from these or other vendors? Thanks. JIm

[Larry M.]

Re: Does anyone make a correct reproduction a/c condenser for a midyear?

Jim:

My experience has been that when LICS states that their part is a "correct reproduction" that it is normally right on or very close. It has only been recently that LICS has made that claim for their AC condenser.

Agree that the best thing is to find someone who has purchased one, installed it, and had their car judged. Hopefully someone will respond.

Trying to locate a used condenser core for rebuilding will not be easy. You could try Paragon Vintage, David Crane (Calif), or ThePartGuy.com (Florida). I have frequently dealt with Paragon, but not the other two. However, I have heard that they can often find difficult Corvette parts.

Larry

[Dino L.]

Photos of an original part

Jim, I hope these pictures help you....this condensor is off of an early 64.

[Curtis M.]

Re: Does anyone make a correct reproduction a/c condenser for a midyear?

Jim,

I too have a '64 air coupe and was in a much similar predicament as you. I purchased my a/c condensor from Paragon and although from an appearance perspective it looks very much like the original shown, it appears it is designed to be a universal fit. By this I mean there are several pre-drilled holes in the mounting flange which were "extras" so to speak. It could be the original for the '64 was designed this way but I do not know.

[Jim P.]

Re: Does anyone make a correct reproduction a/c condenser for a midyear?

Thanks Dino. The pics do help. At least I've got something to go on now.

[Joe R.]

Re: Does anyone make a correct reproduction a/c condenser for a midyear?

I purchased the LIC reproduction for my 67, and compared it to the one that was on my car, which I believe to be original. The LIC part was VERY close in appearance an configuration, with only minor differences. One interesting difference was that there were more fins-per-inch on the LIC reproduction. While not completely "correct," I suspect this might be helpful for situations where the car has been converted to R134, since that refrigerent reportedly requires more condenser capacity than R12.

[Jim P.]

Re: Does anyone make a correct reproduction a/c condenser for a midyear?

Thanks Joe. I was hoping someone would chime in who had actually made the purchase.