Guest William Knopf Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 I am new to the group. This is my first Buick. I recently acquired a 1956 Buick roadmaster. I'm not sure when it was last running. The tank looks to be fair new. I drained the gas ( about 15 gallons) from the tank and put in fresh gas. It appears it is not getting gas to the carburetor. It seems to run when we manually put gas into the carburetor. It actually took me a bit to even realize that you press the accelerator to get it to turnover. Why does it appear to have 2 dimmer switches in the floor board. One clicks like a dimmer and I'm sure that's what it is. Please help. There also seems to be a starter push button under the dash that is wired to a really weird box under the hood with old type fuses in it. Like an old radio. I'll post pictures tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemon Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 The second dimmer switch is most likely the seek button for a selectronic radio. It's supposed to be hands free tuning with the touch of the foot. Verify that your fuel pump is working by attaching a rubber hose to the outlet and pointing it over the fender. If you're not getting a healthy stream when cranking the pump needs rebuilding. If you're getting fuel from the pump, pull the sight plugs on the carb and verify fuel is getting in. If the pump is pumping but the carb is dry, it could be a plugged fuel filter or stuck needle and seat. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpecialEducation Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 (edited) Wow, that's a nice looking Roady you've got there! For the 2 buttons on the floor, one is the dimmer as you suspected, the other is for the radio. Push the button with your foot, and it auto-seeks the next station. Visit Hometownbuick.com - there you will find things like the owners manual free for the reading. That will get you up to speed on all of the funny gizmos in your car. As far as fuel pumps go, where has the car been while in storage? If it was fed fuel with ethanol then left to sit, the soft bits may have been turned to goo. If you can buy ethanol free gas where you are, this car will be happier. There are kits out there to rebuild these pumps, some are even sold as ethanol resistant. It sounds like someone may have bypassed the pedal start at one time. Not all that uncommon. Our '56 came bypassed when we bought it in '95, and we've never bothered to return it to factory. It's on the to-do list, but it's down there a ways. Some pix of your underhood arrangement would be helpful; I'll be looking for your follow up. Welcome to the forum! Edited July 10, 2017 by SpecialEducation (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpecialEducation Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 OH, I'll throw this out there now instead of making you read the book. Remember that the radio is a tubeset. It takes a while to warm up, so if you turn it on and hear a buzz, that's just the vibrator converting DC into AC mechanically. As the owner's manual will tell you, the vibrator can be damaged if you try cranking the car with the radio on. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 (edited) I agree, a very nice looking Buick! By the time it's over, you might need to replace all of the rubber fuel lines for good measure. Ethanol dries out the rubber and it's not the same after that. It'll (the car) be fine in the end! Welcome aboard! NTX5467 Edited July 10, 2017 by NTX5467 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemon Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 If it's all stock, it should have zero rubber hoses and a pancake filter at the the back of the carb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 It will have one rubber hose between the metal fuel line and the fuel pump, but more likely, the carb needs a solid cleaning / minor rebuild. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 the weird box under the hood would likely be a automatic headlight dimmer. This option would be connected to a small housing on top of the dashboard which has what appears to be a lens which faces the front of the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 (edited) 14 hours ago, William Knopf said: I am new to the group. This is my first Buick. I recently acquired a 1956 Buick roadmaster. I'm not sure when it was last running. The tank looks to be fair new. I drained the gas ( about 15 gallons) from the tank and put in fresh gas. It appears it is not getting gas to the carburetor. It seems to run when we manually put gas into the carburetor. It actually took me a bit to even realize that you press the accelerator to get it to turnover. Why does it appear to have 2 dimmer switches in the floor board. One clicks like a dimmer and I'm sure that's what it is. Please help. There also seems to be a starter push button under the dash that is wired to a really weird box under the hood with old type fuses in it. Like an old radio. I'll post pictures tomorrow. 1. I appears the gas pedal pressed to turn it over is working as designed. Leave that be. 2. Starts and runs when gas is poured into the carb. Good sign the ignition is working Check to see if anyone installed an electric fuel pump. Usually these are installed on the frame rail near the tank. If not. Look to mechanical pump not up to the task any longer. Replace or rebuild. If there is an electric fuel pump follow the wires to the hidden switch. Edited July 10, 2017 by avgwarhawk (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D Yaros Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 A really nice looking Roady; especially taking into consideration that it is a Mor-door. You will get good advice from the folk here. I would advise that you look on ebay for the factory service manual for your ride. You will find yourself turning to it quite often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemon Posted July 10, 2017 Share Posted July 10, 2017 10 hours ago, buick5563 said: It will have one rubber hose between the metal fuel line and the fuel pump, but more likely, the carb needs a solid cleaning / minor rebuild. I thought the original were braided stainless steel internally coated with teflon? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 So why does this fuel pump look like two? It seems there's a vacuum hose coming out of one part. Any help. Also, this is the weird box that I mentioned that I'm not sure of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 6 hours ago, Beemon said: I thought the original were braided stainless steel internally coated with teflon? Teflon as OEM in 1956? Wouldn't that be pricey back then?? NTX5467 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 "Dual stage" fuel pump. Fuel pump , vacuum pump tin one section,to assist the vacuum wipers is on the top, fuel pump section in the other section. NTX5467 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpecialEducation Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 GM was an early adopter of teflon, but I've never seen such on a '56. Fuel on top, vacuum on the bottom. Usually when we have a pump fail, it's around the big disc on top that starts leaking fuel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpecialEducation Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 3 hours ago, William Knopf said: Is that a household cord on top? Looks like some sort of electric heat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dons56 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Fuel pump on top. I cut a disc of neoprene when mine leaks... I have found a source for ethanol free gas which is all I buy unless out of town. Ethanol and neoprene do not play nice together... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 The first thing you need to do is purchase a shop manual from eBay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 12 hours ago, William Knopf said: So why does this fuel pump look like two? It seems there's a vacuum hose coming out of one part. Any help. Also, this is the weird box that I mentioned that I'm not sure of. As other mentioned, top portion of the pump is fuel. Bottom half is vacuum for the wiper motor. Your pump looks to have been rebuilt at one time. Just very clean looking to me. The other box thing...not sure what that is. Looks like a engine compartment heater perhaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 The box has old style tubes in it like radio and television. Someone said it had something to do with dimming the lights Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 First of all let me thank everyone for the quick responses. This is my first Buick and I'm sure that I'm going to have lots of questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 19 minutes ago, William Knopf said: The box has old style tubes in it like radio and television. Someone said it had something to do with dimming the lights this is not the light dimmer I thought it could be. I concur on the heater idea. but even that seems odd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Two wires go to a button under the dash like an old starter button. I believe the other one is connected to a screw on the fuse box. I will have to look closer and investigate tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 45 minutes ago, William Knopf said: Two wires go to a button under the dash like an old starter button. I believe the other one is connected to a screw on the fuse box. I will have to look closer and investigate tomorrow. May have been a old bypass to the gas pedal start. You stated the engine turns when the gas pedal is depressed. Not sure what else that button could be. Maybe horn? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemon Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 11 hours ago, NTX5467 said: Teflon as OEM in 1956? Wouldn't that be pricey back then?? NTX5467 Maybe not Teflon then, I concede. The original was braided stainless on the outside, though, as was obviously replaced with rubber hose in William's photos. William, how does the filter at the carb look? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, Beemon said: Maybe not Teflon then, I concede. The original was braided stainless on the outside, though, as was obviously replaced with rubber hose in William's photos. William, how does the filter at the carb look? I gotta disagree on the braided steel, B. I've never seen an original with anything other than rubber. Edited July 11, 2017 by buick5563 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 ...and zero snark intended, William. If you don't know what the second half of the fuel pump does, please put the tools down until you buy a shop manual. In my opinion, that box is a fire waiting to happen and I would remove it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 It had dried white powder and I cleaned it out. Suggestions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Buick5563, it was just a unique pump. We saw that the line went to the wipers but was caught off guard. My 40 LaSalle, 37 DeSoto, 49 Chevrolet, 55 Studebaker, and 33 Plymouth didn't have anything like it. Of course some of these are not stock. Very thankful for the support from everyone on this forum. I will be getting a shop manual as all my cars are different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 12 minutes ago, William Knopf said: It had dried white powder and I cleaned it out. Suggestions It being the fuel pump? The white powder is old dried up gas and it byproducts. Put it back together and install on block. Disconnect the the hose from the pump to the carb. Connect the fuel tank hose to the newly cleaned pump. Turn of the engine and see if she will start to pump fuel. If so, connect to carb. If not replace or rebuild pump. Personally, I would purchase a pump that is ready to go and install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Where do you purchase one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Rockauto shows only electric pump for the replacement. Is this the way to go. Would the vacuum for the wipers still function if I took this route? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 21 minutes ago, William Knopf said: Where do you purchase one? http://nailheadbuick.com There are other places to get this fuel pump as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 11 minutes ago, William Knopf said: Rockauto shows only electric pump for the replacement. Is this the way to go. Would the vacuum for the wipers still function if I took this route? The electric pump should pump through the original mechanical pump and run the car. Pump should be 5-6 pounds of pressure if I'm not mistaken. The vacuum portion on the mechanical pump should run the wipers if the portion of the pump is internally ok and...the wiper motor is internally ok. I do not run electrical pumps on mine. Never had a need to install one. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carbking Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 3 hours ago, William Knopf said: Where do you purchase one? Try "Then and Now Automotive" in the Boston area. They should have new original type pumps, rebuilding kits for yours, or possibly offer a service to rebuild yours. Good people Jon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest William Knopf Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpecialEducation Posted July 11, 2017 Share Posted July 11, 2017 Dad just spent an hour waiting on the vapor locked '56 to cool down & start again. He's over 3 hours from home at the rainbow arch bridges on Route 66 in SE Kansas. A few weeks ago I told him he should install an electric pump. He claimed he'd never had a vapor lock issue in the '56. I told him he's smoking crack. When your fuel filter suddenly turns bone dry, it's pretty obvious. Any guesses how hot it was under that big, black hood? On a side note, he just noticed this clap trap south of the fuel pump. Anyone think that mess is factory? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NTX5467 Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 Bad thing about stainless braided hose, for any application, is that it's still got rubber inside and that rubber will deteriorate as if the stainless braid was not there. Stainless braided brake lines can give a firmer pedal feel in race applications, though. Otherwise, it's main benefit might be increased abrasion resistance, plus neat cosmetics. NTX5467 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemon Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 11 hours ago, buick5563 said: I gotta disagree on the braided steel, B. I've never seen an original with anything other than rubber. I may be a bit jaded here, mine came with one. I just assumed all Buicks were like mine. Matt, I think someone added that drain petcock. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old-tank Posted July 12, 2017 Share Posted July 12, 2017 10 hours ago, Beemon said: I may be a bit jaded here, mine came with one. Or that was the replacement sometime in the last 61 years. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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