The fan shroud is a must. Your photos look like your fan is direct driven by the water pump. That thing must be pretty loud. If you put a clutch on it, and do not use a shroud, you might notice it running a little warmer come summertime. The shroud itself will block some noise, but more importantly dramatically increase the airflow through the radiator at slow/no speed.
------------
I started using synthetic with about 18k miles on my rebuilt engine. I just tried it at first because Mobil 1 was on special at wally world, And I knew the I needed an extended drain oil for that certain oil change interval. My lifters always had ticked on startup. Never again since I put in the synthetic. I now use it every time. For me not to hear that ticking on start up is worth the extra 10$ for 5 quarts.
Todays non synthetic oils have become so good, the line has really narrowed between the 2. I believe the biggest benefits with synthetics are in super cold weather, and on cars that run extremely high oil temps, like turbos, or race engines.
------------
I have a new all aluminum 1 row radiator. The one row is 1 1/4 inches wide, The single tube is 1 1/4 inches wide.
This replaced my copper/brass 2 row radiator, which was also 1 1/4 wide, but it had two rows, 5/8 inch wide each. Copper transfers heat better than aluminum, but the copper fins are soldered to the brass tubes with lead. Lead does not transfer heat as well as either copper/ brass or aluminum. The aluminum is stronger, so the tubes can be wider, and have more surface area between the tubes and the fins to transfer heat. There is a process called cuprobrazing which the copper brass radiator makers employed to put a dent in the ever growing aluminum radiator share. Cuprobrazing removes the Lead, increases the heat transfer rate, but makes the copper brass as difficult to repair as aluminum, and further increases the price of copper brass over aluminum.
Arguments abound which will cool better. I never ran hot with the copper brass, and I do not run hot now with All Aluminum, but that is hardly scientific. I don't hear my clutch Fan spinning any faster, again hardly scientific. I changed too many things along with the radiator for any comparison to really be valid.
I went with aluminum because I went through 3 copper brass ones in 9 years in my Ocean Air environment. The fins on all of them would disintegrate if sneezed upon after 3.5 years. My Aluminum tranny cooler is showing little sign of corrosion/oxidation after 9 years. That was the deciding factor for me.
I hope this aluminum radiator does as well.
------------
While 5w 30 oil is thinner than 10w 30 when the oil is cold, when at full temperature, when new, both have viscosities nearly identical.
Source: Motor oil 101 I would not switch to synthetic If I were you. If you are looking for more Anti wear additives for your oil, look for an Oil high in ZDDP. Lots of diesel engine oils have more of this, but they also have more detergents which might possibly clean the crud off your seals and start them leaking.
Supposedly this ingredient has really been reduced in oils, because it is bad for Catalyic Converters, but it is very important for flat tappett engines.
The Link Above has a lot of interesting Information. On it's public forums, some people really claim a product called LubroMoly really quietened their engine down, or Lubegard's oil additive gave them another 3 mpg highway. But some others also swear that Zmax 'penetrates' metal despite it being proven it is nothing more than tinted mineral oil.
A lot of people on that forum also swear by Marvel Mystery oil, and put some in each and every Gas tank. Some others say that the synthetic making the engine leak is pure myth.
Good information and myths and old wives tales abound these days. Hard for one to sort it all out.
I don't have the answers. I just use Seafoam through the intake once in a while to help blow out the carbon, Synthetic oil to keep my lifters from ticking on startup, and the biggest damn oil filter with the proper pressure relief valve PSI rating and Anti drainback valve I can find. Oh yeah, I also put magnets all over my oil filter's case, and see ferrous material where the magnets were, in every filter I open up, and I open each one.
