1938 Buick Century Model 61 - Four Door Touring Sedan - Trunk Back

[r1lark]

Thanks Matt Hinson, I understand now. They kind of hide that 6v LED don't they? I did click on Matt Harwood's link, but didn't notice it said 6v, especially since it also said 1157 which to me is a 12v bulb.

 

Got a set of 6V on order for my '54, plus a set of fancy 1157 12v bulbs for my '64.

[MCHinson]

This morning, I removed the two rear vent windows. One of them has a broken handle which will require a replacement vent window assembly and the other will also need to be either replaced or replated. While in the area, I also removed the remains of the rear vent window drain tubes. The upper sections of those tubes came out easily. The bottom section that is hidden within the bottom of the body frame near the rear doors was a bit more difficult. They were both quite dry rotted and fragile which means that efforts to pull them out of the confined space resulted in most of the tubes simply crumbling and breaking. Attempting to grip that portion of the drain tube with needle nose pliers and pull it out resulted in the need for a bandaid when my finger hit a sharp section of the body under the vent window.

 

Recently my friend loaned me his plasma cutter. I have the required 240 voltage circuit in my garage but, of course, that circuit did not have the same style of plug as the plasma cutter. I was able to make up an extension cord for the plasma cutter with the required two different ends which enabled me to use the plasma cutter. This morning, I used the plasma cutter for the first time. I was able to cut out and bend the two pieces of steel required to patch the trunk tool tray. While my plasma cutting skills seem to be related to my welding skills, I think that with a bit more experience, I will develop the necessary skills to do that reasonably well. For today, my plasma cut lines were not quite as clean and straight as I would prefer, but I think that the patch panels that I cut should work fine.  

[MCHinson]

This morning, I treated the area of the trunk that needs to be repaired with ospho. I then welded one side of the trunk repair in place. I did not take my camera out to the garage, so there are no photos. I will have to do a bit of grinding to clean up the welds a bit before I will be done with the repair of that area.

[MCHinson]

I welded the other side today. I still need to do some more grinding before I am going to bother with any photos. 

[MCHinson]

While it is not the prettiest repair, the trunk tool tray is now solid again.  Last night, I finished the grinding the welds on the trunk tool tray repair. I then primed it and applied some seam sealer to the area where I welded the patch panels in to make sure that everything is completely watertight. This morning, I painted it semigloss black. 

[MCHinson]

This morning, I installed a starter button so that I have a backup method of starting the car when in those times when I would prefer to not press the accelerator pedal to start it. In some conditions with today's modern fuels this would be an easier way to start the car without being as likely to flood it while attempting to start it. I reused a starter button that was on the Buick Special body donor car and some cloth covered wire recently purchased on ebay. 

 

I have decided to farm out the door bottom and rocker panel repairs. A friend of a friend has a metal fabrication shop set up with all of the tools to do a better and quicker job on these repairs than I do, so this morning, I reinstalled the doors in preparation for driving the car to his shop. Unfortunately, in addition to today being a holiday, it is also very wet here today. We have already received 2 1/2 inches of rain this morning and I don't know if the weather will clear enough to make the trip today. My friend is also in need of some short term storage/work space for one of his cars, so I will have a Corvette in the garage instead of the 38 Buick while the door and rocker panel repairs are being completed. 

 

Before delivering the car to someone else, I really wanted to have a spare key available since I don't want to have to worry about someone else having the only key. Luckily, the original owner never knocked out the key code knockout on the original key. Using the key code, I was able to look up the key cut numbers and input it into my Curtis Model 15 key cutter and produce a perfect duplicate key. The reproduction key blanks are not totally correct, as they use the GM design on both sides of the key while the original has the GM design on one side and the Briggs and Stratton design on the other. The key cutter is a fun little tool to have. I don't use it much but I am set up and have blanks to cut GM and Ford keys from about 1935 to probably sometime in the 1980's. 

[keiser31]

Isn't the roundy one for the trunk and glove box?

Edited May 28, 2018 by keiser31 (see edit history)

[MCHinson]

Originally they used two different shaped key blanks. The keyway on both are identical. As far as I recall they only make the one reproduction blank, as they will work with all of the locks on the car. Over the years, most of these cars seem to have been rekeyed so that the ignition, doors, and glove compartment are keyed alike. It really makes it easier anyway.  

[Roger Zimmermann]

13 minutes ago, keiser31 said:

Isn't the roundy one for the trunk and glove box?

It's also my opinion. The other one is for doors and ignition.

[Roger Zimmermann]

2 minutes ago, MCHinson said:

 As far as I recall they only make the one reproduction blank, as they will work with all of the locks on the car.

I have both types. Years ago, there was indeed only the octogonal one available but now I have from both types.

[MCHinson]

Actually,

I just checked the owner's manual. While many years GM used different keys, it appears that in 1938 all of the locks were keyed alike. That would explain why they all seem to be keyed alike today. 

[r1lark]

Matt, noticed that you have a Curtis key clipper. I have a Curtis Model F key cutter, do you know what those are used for (year range, type of keys, etc)? Have not been able to find a whole lot online.

[MCHinson]

Sorry, but I don't know anything about the Model F. A few years ago, I read something here on the forum about a Curtis Model 15 and was intrigued. I had never heard of them before. I did a little bit of research, found one on ebay and purchased it. I bought a supply of blanks and have made a few keys for myself and a few fellow club members in the past few years. It is a neat tool.

[MCHinson]

I am back in Pennsylvania again. I am in Altoona tonight. I drove up today and will be headed back home in the morning. This is either a sidemounted fenders and runningboards donor car for the 1938 Model 61 project, or else it is my next project. I have not quite decided yet. Luckily, I was able to drive this one onto the trailer instead of having to winch it up.

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Good score, Matt!   Looks like you are trying to corner the market on  these Centuries.

 

  Ben

[38Buick 80C]

Someone's got the bug...

[MCHinson]

My friends and I have not had very good luck with trucks lately. In the past few weeks, three of us have had four breakdowns on out of state trips with 3 different trucks. The 2012 Dodge 3500 made it back to Richmond Virginia before I was stranded. After a few hours on the side of I95, I was able to get the truck (and trailer with the 38 Buick parts car) towed to a repair shop. Hopefully the truck will be fixed in the next few days and the truck owner and I can make a trip up to retrieve it. 

 

On each of those 4 recent breakdowns, everybody has managed to make it home with fairly minor delay and inconvenience. In this particular situation, I had some other local AACA Chapter members who were coming back from the Grand National Meet in Pennsylvania who picked me up and brought me home. Instead of arriving home at 5 pm on Saturday, I got home at 3 am Sunday morning.  

Edited October 5, 2019 by MCHinson (see edit history)

[MCHinson]

Nothing to report on the Buick project. We are still waiting for the truck to be repaired so we can go back to Richmond to pick up the truck, trailer and the recent Buick purchase. I have also been busy with engraving, which will at least help pay for the Buick project. After we get the other car here, I will do some cleaning and closer evaluation of it but I am currently thinking that I will use the Side Mount Fenders, Running Boards and any better wheels off of the Model 67 on the Model 61 and offer the Model 67 with the non-sidemounted fenders and worse running boards and remaining wheels to someone else in search of a project. The Model 67 does appear to have a good running engine, so it has that going for it. 

[MCHinson]

On the way to pick up the truck, trailer and 1938 Model 67 tomorrow. Assuming everything goes better this weekend than last, I should be able to get started on unloading, cleaning and assessment of the Model 67 on Monday morning.

[1939_Buick]

On 6/3/2018 at 8:40 AM, 38Buick 80C said:

On 6/2/2018 at 11:34 AM, MCHinson said:

I am back in Pennsylvania again. I am in Altoona tonight. I drove up today and will be headed back home in the morning. This is either a sidemounted fenders and running boards donor car for the 1938 Model 61 project, or else it is my next project. I have not quite decided yet. Luckily, I was able to drive this one onto the trailer instead of having to winch it up.

 

On 6/2/2018 at 12:35 PM, Ben Bruce aka First Born said:

Good score, Matt!   Looks like you are trying to corner the market on  these Centuries.  Ben

 

On 6/3/2018 at 8:40 AM, 38Buick 80C said:

Someone's got the bug...

 

Too many (pre war) Buick's is never enough

 

Hope the truck does not break down for you.

 

Edited June 9, 2018 by 1939_Buick (see edit history)

[MCHinson]

The truck performed flawlessly and traffic was not too bad. I had another driver ride up with me today to drive my modern Buick home. I picked up the truck, hitched up the trailer and we came home. After I got home, I unloaded some loose parts, unstrapped the Buick and backed it off of the trailer. I drove it into the back yard until I can play musical chairs with some cars in the near future. 

[MCHinson]

I have been driving the Model 67 around a bit in the back yard so I could mow this morning. We have had a few rainy days lately which prevented me from doing too much to the Model 67 unitl today. Today, I cleaned up as much of the rat residue in the the rear seat upholstery and hosed down the seats and put them out in the sun to dry for a few days. I probably will have to take the front seat out for a similar treatment. I cleaned out the car's interior a bit and am leaving the windows open to air it out for a while. 

 

While, my initial thoughts were that I was going to use the running boards and sidemount fenders off of the Model 67 on my Model 61, I have changed my mind. This car is one of 1,516 Model 67's manufactured by Buick in 1938. The Model 67 comprised less than 1% of the 168,689 Buicks produced in the 1938 Model year. Somewhere, one of the sidemount covers has been lost. Other than that, it is complete all the way down to an original sidemount tire lock which opens with the original key. It has been owned by the previous owner for most of that time. He died while working to restore the car to enjoy at local car shows. I am assuming that he died while repairing the trunk tool tray with fiberglass since that is about the only obviously partially completed project on the car. 

 

With the smaller trunk, a Model 67 really needs the sidemount fenders. The trunk is really too small to be practical if you also include a spare tire there. I just can't seem to bring myself to pull the original fenders off of it. I am going to try to use the running boards as a pattern to have a new set created for the Model 61. The Model 67, while sort of an unncessary temporary diversion from the Model 61 restoration, really deserves to be restored as it was when new. I am either going to get the car interior cleaned out enough for local driving and drive it a bit locally basically as is until I can restore it after finishing the Model 61, or else I am going to sell it to someone else to restore as soon as I have duplicated the running boards for the Model 61. It has some extra parts that came with it. I also have a lot of notes from the work that the previous owner did to the car and some photos of his work. The only unfortunate thing about his work on the car was that he had decided to fix it up mechanically while leaving the outside rough with a sort of "rat rod" type of look with primer rather than paint. The photos show that, he even pulled the front end totally apart and rebuilt it totally and pulled the engine out of it, but with all of this work, he did not repaint anything.

 

If anybody wants to save me from restoring another car, please send me a message. It would really be smarter for me to sell this one as soon as I duplicate the running boards.   

 

 

[38Buick 80C]

what color is it per the firewall tag?

[MCHinson]

Currently it is mostly primer after having been sandblasted. When new, it was Rembrandt Black.

[38Buick 80C]

9 hours ago, MCHinson said:

Currently it is mostly primer after having been sandblasted. When new, it was Rembrandt Black.

 

A Linden, NJ built car...

 

You can have any color as long as it is black....

[MCHinson]

I currently own this 1938 Model 61 built in Linden with a black paint code that I am restoring, a 1938 Model 67 built in Linden with a black paint code, a 1938 Model 41 body donor car built in Linden with a black paint code, and a 1937 Model 61 which I don't think was built in Linden, but was also produced with a black paint code. I think I see a pattern here. I like to see cars restored as they were originally built and luckily I happen to like black cars. I do find it interesting that I managed to find two 1938 Centurys, one near Boston MA and one near Altoona PA, that were both produced at the same plant with the same Paint Code 515 black paint and with the same trim code 409 Tan Bedford Cord.

 

[MCHinson]

I have been spending more time on the Model 67 lately than the Model 61. I have been cleaning it up a bit. I have washed out the interior a few times with a garden hose. I removed most of the upholstery materials from the rear seats and washed the remaining upholstery pieces a couple of times. I have left the car in the back yard with the back seat out of it, and attempted to get all of the upholstery still in the car to air out and dry out in the sun, driving the car around to maximize sun exposure on different areas over the past several days. Unfortunately, every time it gets almost dry, we seem to get an afternoon thunder storm which gets it all wet and we start the process over again. Hopefully I will get the Model 67 to a point that I can leave it alone for a while soon.

 

I had the best of intentions to do some work on the Model 61 today. I planned to disassemble the engine side panels for some minor repair this morning. Just before I got started on that, I received a large engraving order from one of my regular customers. That bumped the Model 61 job back another day. I can't justify putting off work that I get paid for just because I want to work on my car project. Hopefully tomorrow will go better.

 

This afternoon, UPS dropped off my interior kit from LeBaron Bonney in two large boxes. I need to go through it to make sure there are no problems and nothing missing, but that will have to wait for another day. Today, I did open up the two boxes and pull a few things out to get a quick peek at them. The nice new upholstery materials certainly look and smell better than those I took out of the car a while back.

[rodneybeauchamp]

Hi Matthew,

a great story so far. Can relate to many of the issues. Seems that restoring or repairing antique cars is like a dance, two steps forward, one step backwards, three to the right, one to the left. Working your way through the different tasks, some you get  right, some so so and then the others. ..... ?????

 

Often the key is to keep at it and don’t stress about what goes wrong, it’s a hobby, great past time and a great way to meet like minded people. 

 

Have  we been able to gain a lot of information through your pictures and posts, just waiting for the next lot!

cheers

Rodney ????????

[MCHinson]

Thanks Rodney,

 

When I look back at the past few weeks, I feel like I really need to get moving forward but I also realize that the project has still come a long way in less than a year. I just finished the next issue of the Torque Tube II. I am also covering this story in the magazine. The magazine version is so far behind that when I write each installment for the magazine, it is odd looking back and rediscovering my own story through old posts that seem so far back that I have often almost forgotten what I have done.

[MCHinson]

It has been an odd week. Between the time spent on the recent Model 67 and how unusually busy my business has been for the past couple of weeks, I have not had any time to work on the Buick until today. While I hate the delay, it is a good problem to have, since the increased business will help pay for the restoration.  I have really been wanting to get back on the Buick project but I have decided that it would be better to pay an experienced metal worker to repair the rusted out sections on the door skins and the small rusty sections of the rocker panel. This should speed up these repairs. I am waiting for the metal worker to be able to get my project onto his schedule, but it should happen soon.

 

I previously purchased a set of engine side panels on ebay. They are in much better condition than the originals. They had been painted a really odd light green color. The bright trim on the louver section had quite a bit of the light green paint overspray on them. This morning, I started doing some initial buffing on one of the louver panels. I forgot to take a "before" photo until I had done a bit of initial buffing on the panel. It soon became apparent that I needed to remove the lover panel from the engine side panel to effectively buff it. 

 

The louver panel is held into the engine side  panel with steel split rivets. I started to grind them off, but decided that I did not want to take a chance of the small air grinder slipping and causing unnecessary damage. I figured out that I could use a small screwdriver to slide under one of the bent legs of the rivet and pry up one of the legs, then grab it with some small angle cutters to bend it upward almost straight. This would release enough tension to allow me to grab the other leg with the angle cutters and bend it up enough so that I could use a pair of needle nose pliers to bend the legs in enough to remove the rivets. I also removed and buffed the hood release handle.  

 

After removing the rivets, the louver panel slid out of the engine side panel so that I could easily buff the panels bright trim. I wanted to buff the thin chrome trim while still attached to the louver panel so that I did not take a chance of mangling the thin trim with the buffing wheel. I still need to decide if I want to carefully tape off the chrome trim and paint the louver panels or if I want to disassemble, paint, and reassemble the louver panels. The painting would be easier if they are disassembled but the disassembly and reassembly looks like it will not be much fun. I have seen a lot of stalled projects recently. They all seem to have the louvers totally disassembled. I have not seen a louver panel on a stalled project where the owner actually go to the point of reassembly of the louver panel. 

 

The initial buffing cleaned up the panel well. It looks as good or better in person than it does in the photos. I never seem to be able to take good photos of chrome, due to odd reflections in the chrome.

 

 

[Gary W]

Looking great Matt!  I taped my chrome off and sprayed the louvers.  I didn't feel comfortable disassembling the entire hood vent and it turned out very nice.  Keep up the great work!

[38Buick 80C]

24 minutes ago, Gary W said:

Looking great Matt!  I taped my chrome off and sprayed the louvers.  I didn't feel comfortable disassembling the entire hood vent and it turned out very nice.  Keep up the great work!

 

 

I disassembled mine, next time I try the tape off method.

[MCHinson]

I really think that the paint coverage on the panel would be better if it were disassembled, but I am sort of thinking that it might be smarter to tape them off and paint them without disassembly. I guess it just depends on how much time I have when it gets to that job. I guess I could do a practice assembly on the disassembled one from the Model 67 that I just picked up and then make a decision on which way to go.

[MCHinson]

This morning, I removed the louver panel from the other engine side panel. I buffed it like I did the other one. 

[MCHinson]

This morning, I spent a bit of time taping off the chrome strips on the engine side louver panels. I then sprayed them with a silver paint that appears to be a good match for the original color. I left them in the sun to day for several hours. I then took a look at them and decided to do a bit of additional sanding before applying another coat. This afternoon, I sanded them and applied another coat of paint and put them back out to dry some more. 

[MCHinson]

I have spent some more time applying additional coats of paint on the louvers. I am about 95% happy with the color, but not quite 100%. I think it is a little too metallic. I also am not happy with the quality of the finish. I could call it well enough and move on, but this area is just too visible for me to be happy with it like it is now. I have always been a terrible painter. Not wanting to damage the chrome trim, I don't think I sanded it as well as I should have before I started. It would probably be better to disassemble it and sand the metal backing down and paint it with one nice smooth coat and reassemble it but I still want to try to avoide taking all of those chrome fins off if I can. First I am going to make an effort to try resanding it back down carefully and try painting it again with a slightly different paint. 

[MCHinson]

I have been busy over the past two days on the louvered engine side panels. I found a narrow razor blade knife at my local Lowes Home Improvement store. I found that I could use it to scrape the multiple coats of paint and primer off of the louvered panels. Between scraping with the razor blade knife, sanding with sandpaper using the rectangular handle of a small engraver's chip brush, and using a small bronze wire brush, I got the panels back down to fairly clean metal. I then did another light buffing with a bench top rotary buffing wheel. I then re-applied masking tape to the chrome strips and the Century emblem. I then applied a coat of gray primer this afternoon. This evening, I was able to apply the first coat of the top coat gray paint that I also picked up at Lowes today. Tomorrow, we will see how it looks. I will take some photos of how they look with the gray paint tomorrow after I decide if they need additional coats. 

[MCHinson]

These louvered engine side panels have been an interesting experience. They were almost perfect this morning but I was not quite satisfied with the paint coverage so I decided to add another coat of paint. I apparently should have checked today's weather before respraying them.  It was apparently too hot and or too humid as the second coat of paint managed to crack almost immediately. I quickly took some brake clean and sprayed them down and scrubbed them to remove the paint. After I removed the paint and started the painting process over, inside the air conditioned garage. I think I will be happy with them now. I will give them a few days for the paint to dry fully and peel the masking tape off of the chrome ribs and see how they look. Hopefully, I am going to be happy with the final result after all of the work that I have put into this fairly small detail. 

[MCHinson]

Today, I uncovered the Century emblems and painted them. I then gave them a short time to dry and carefully wiped the paint off of the raised portion of the letters. I am going to let them dry overnight and might do another coat of paint on the emblems to make sure that I have all of the lower portions of the emblems between the raised letters coated a little bit better. 

[MCHinson]

This morning I applied another coat of paint to the Century emblems. After allowing it to dry a bit, I was able to use a paint remover wipes to remove the paint from the raised portion of the letters on the emblem. I then removed the tape from the chrome strips. While they are not perfect and I am sure a high dollar restoration shop could do a better job by total disassembly, rechroming everything rather than buffing it, I am happy with them. They look good to me. A few photos give an idea of the final look.