[weq92f]

Spoke with the Manufacturer support folk. They appear to be a fairly generous lot.

What they have given me is that the threads are intentionally loose like this for reasons associated with the fact that the material is aluminum and the seal is meant to be carried out with the inverted flair and so the threads don't need to be so tight.

I was given advise to attempt to use thread tape and if that didn't work, they'd swap the unit with a custom one that has something welded in that I can use.

Ultimately this comes down to time and cost for me. Throwing money at a problem I shouldn't have isn't something I'm willing to do right now. I'd rather find something that will thread in and just seal so I can be on my way. I've asked that they suggest an online URL to an adapter that will do exactly what I need, given all the detail required to get it right. That is, they know what should work on their radiator they know what I need on my end: standard 37 degree male hydraulic fitting with 1/2" 20 tpi thread.

If that doesn't work, then I'll just return the radiator and use my original brass/copper unit.

Fortunately I've found that the dual fan shroud will bolt right up to my original radiator so I have an out there while maintaining the new cooling system!

-klb