Not being a vintage car buff, or from the west coast/desert states, I had not heard of or seen these until yesterday.... but radiator water bags were soaked then filled with water (surprise) and hung over the radiator cap or emblem as cars travelled during hot times of the day or year... by evaporation the bag would cool, cooling the radiator, bonus, you then had extra water to top up the radiator if needed. If there is more to it, someone please share. Anyway, some cool western imagery and text. (Bit of a softball post to all the vintage canvas freaks out there... you know who you are. In point of fact these bags were often made from flax, imported from Scotland.)
Above photo from
maureenbond via flickr, all others for sale on ebay, in the $20's.
Not being a vintage car buff, or from the west coast/desert states, I had not heard of or seen these until yesterday.... but radiator water bags were soaked then filled with water (surprise) and hung over the radiator cap or emblem as cars travelled during hot times of the day or year... by evaporation the bag would cool, cooling the radiator, bonus, you then had extra water to top up the radiator if needed. If there is more to it, someone please share. Anyway, some cool western imagery and text. (Bit of a softball post to all the vintage canvas freaks out there... you know who you are. In point of fact these bags were often made from flax, imported from Scotland.)
Above photo from maureenbond via flickr, all others for sale on ebay, in the $20's.