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I had a source to re-core the rad for my '39 Six and when I contacted him today, was advised he'd had major back surgery and wasn't going to be anywhere near a radiator in several months. Apparently radiator shops are on the serious decline (at least here, in this area of Canada) and I am now searching farther afield to find a source who can do the job. One question that was posed to me was: 'what kind of shape are the tanks in?' to which I had to reply I really had no idea. The guy said with 'really old rads' there are issues with the old tanks not standing up to the heat of brazing in the new cores. Has anyone come up against this issue before?? I was also asked for a picture of the rad out of the car and as mine is still IN the car, wanted to know if there is there a 'Packard picture' of the that rad around that I could email them???
Also, one of the shops I talked to today said there is a company out there (he thought it was called Brassworks) that is reproducing old Ford rads and he said they looked very authentic. Maybe they could reproduce the tanks for my rad?
I will scour the net and see what I can come up with, but would love to hear from someone who has 'crossed this bridge' already and possibly save a couple of steps. Many thanks for any replies.

I did track down Brassworks and I see a 1940 Packard rad in their offering for $999, and a 'coming soon' 1939 version as well, which I hope will be similarly priced. If I can't come up with a solution on my re-coring endeavor, I am at least buoyed by the fact that a replacement is available. Notwithstanding, I would really appreciate any info or guidance as to what 'everybody else does'with these old rads.
Thanks, Chris.

The guy said with 'really old rads' there are issues with the old tanks not standing up to the heat of brazing in the new cores.

Did you perhaps misquote him? Otherwise I'd wonder about his knowledge because in my experience tanks are soldered to the cores, not brazed; soldering is a much lower temperature process.

I concur with Dave's comments on brazing vs. soldering on a brass radiator. I've also heard good reports about Brassworks and have been meaning to stop by and look at their operation when the wife & I have been wine tasting in the area.

Good Morning all...I have had a Brass Works Radiator in my 1931 Model A Ford since 2005 and it is a very good Radiator. They do have a quite good reputation. Ernie

Thanks very much for the responses. I may have been remiss in using the term 'braze', as I thought that is what they did. Regardless, the 2 other rad shops that I talked to both said there can be issues with the tanks not taking the heat of reattaching new cores and developing cracks. One guy said he could get it so the rad would pass the initial pressure leak-test, and then once it is reinstalled in the car, it would start dripping antifreeze from a crack that developed in one of the tanks, and that is just the reality of trying to repair a rad of that age. Needless to say, this doesn't give me the 'warm fuzzies'! I presume he means from road vibration. I have never heard of this before and have had 2 or 3 rads overhauled in my day, but never anything in the 80 year range, so I am kind of having to take these guys at their word. There WERE about 15 rad shops in a couple hundred mile radius of where I live, 5 years ago, and now there are 4, and the ones left frankly don't seem that interested in doing this - not dissimilar to trying to get a mechanic to work on a classic car - most of them can't be bothered. I've emailed Brassworks for a quote on a new repro and I'll keep plugging with these rad guys to see if I can get the fork under one of them, but I'm certainly not holding my breath!! Rather disappointing.

Another option might be a new aluminum radiator. Some feel that aluminum cools better than copper but that is probably up for debate. Cli55er had one custom made for his 37 limo with some specific features he wanted incorporated. I believe his was done by this company.tcpperformance.com/custom-aluminum-radiators

No idea how much difference there is between a 37 and 39 radiator but this placecgj.com already has 37 radiators which may be cheaper than copper these days. Getting one made for your 39 might be as simple as changing a dimension or outlet location and with a proper finish the difference is probably not readily noticeable.

Most radiator shops that recored auto radiators have closed up as most replace radiators now. I found a shop that does truck radiators-that recored my 47-it seems the going price is around $1000

I had mine done for a lot less! My 36 120 was done for less than half of that.

Thanks Howard, and others who weighed in. I have emailed CG&J and TCP Performance and will see what they say. At least it doesn't seem like a problem that can't be solved by throwing enough money at it. I had a quote here of $600 Canadian $$'s to have it recored, which is about $440 US and it is now starting to look like a grand US, which is about $1350, so a bit more than double the cost I had budgeted for, but that is just the way it goes sometimes. Hopefully these new sources your have suggested that do aluminum units might come in a little cheaper. I see their '37 unit is $765 with free shipping, so that is quite a bit better. BTW, does anyone know what the differences between '37 & '39 Rads are????