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My shop consists of 3 buildings. The right section is for cars, center section for woodworking , and the left section is the newest (2019) and is my potting shed and gardening area. My Chevy Colorado sits outside these days. I do any welding or cutting outside but have enough room to work on both cars easily. 1965 Buick Electra 225. This was the first car I ever bought (1973) and I kept it all these years. It was 8 years ago today that I painted it and got it back on the road. I just purchased new tires for it in March and then the 'stay at home' orders came in. Can't wait to put some miles on it. I rebuilt the A/C system this past winter and waiting for it to warm up a bit to finally recharge the system with 134a. Always projects to complete. My retirement project - 1928 Willys Whippet. My woodworking area. Happy Easter to All and Stay Safe. Bill

I understand that we are just talking out loud and the real decision is and should be by the BOD and the local chapter. But I have to ask if anyone has considered canceling this year and bumping everything back by one year? That would make 2021 National Meet in Cleveland, 2022 in Charlotte, NC etc. I totally understand the logistics involved in making those changes for the 2021 and 2022 meets since they are already in the works. And the amount of work the 2020 Cleveland NEO BCA Chapter would have to complete would be monumental, but I would think the $$ losses would be minimal if deposits made can be maintained, trophies can be used, etc. ..... and having another year to finalize the details should make changes easier to be accomplished. Not to mention that the Charlotte committee would have tons of work to do also. I realize that to make this work, a lot of details would have to fall into place and luck would have to be on our side. The membership wouldn't miss out on the great meet that is planned by the NEO chapter and especially those planning to participate can still look forward to the meet....just a year later. So before you totally trash my idea, please think about it for a short time.

My Mom would buy a new car every 3 years as I was growing up. She needed a dependable car to get to work and drive her 5 kids to church and to visit relatives. I remember in the mid 60's, she and my uncle drove to Detroit to pickup their new car from the factory. She kept it for 3 years and then bought another station wagon.

Mac's Auto Parts sells this one: https://www.macsautoparts.com/ford_model_a/model-a-ford-turn-signal-beep-flasher-6-volt-3-prong-type-a-great-safety-item.html Good luck Bill

I'm late to the game again....in 2020 I just purchased my new tires and had them mounted last week.........and the Buick is safe to drive again. After working on the A/C this winter and checking and/or replacing all the hoses, belts, brakes, connections, bulbs, fluids etc. I took it on it's maiden voyage this year. Just around the block to blow off any dust. I put a bit over 50 miles on it and had no problems. Can't wait till I have a chance to drive it more. Even though I've never had to call for a tow for the Buick since getting it back on the road in 2008, My wife wants me to not take it too far until the lock down / stay at home policy is over. After all I'm not even sure if the tow trucks are up and running. Happy wife - Happy life Good luck to all. Bill

On Ebay now https://www.ebay.com/itm/1965-1972-Buick-Twilight-Sentinel-1-981467-NOS-May-fit-other-GM-models/153846633894?hash=item23d1f955a6:g:uooAAOSw5eReVvWL Good Luck Bill

I haven't noticed it at intersections with sensors but maybe I'm guilty of staying a car length or two behind at a stop sign or traffic light. I always leave myself an out in case of an angry or road rage driver in front of me. Bill

I found a reprint (1977) of an article written in 1929 that addresses some of these concerns. I thought everyone would enjoy reading and commenting on how wooden spokes were cared for. Page 3 even has the magic recipe. Enjoy Bill

How can you have a " a nearly one owner '31 Chevy Deluxe" Is that the same as an 'almost two owner'? Nice looking collection. Bill

I've got the same set of Tunemaster hand helds. I paid $85 for them back in the late 70's. But yours look a lot nicer than mine. Have come in handy over the years. Good Luck and let the adventure continue.......

I used ColdHose Products. Their info is below. They quoted me a price before beginning work and had a fast turnaround time. This is not the typical A/C repair weather so I didn't expect to wait weeks and weeks. I'm waiting for better temps and then I'll charge the system with R-134. Good Luck

I've got my glass ready to sample the "322 Crank Case Oil" I bottle condition my beer in the spare bathroom shower. That way in case it over carbonates the damage can be controlled. I did have a batch of Holiday Ale explode once. Not a happy site. An entire case blew and there was broken glass and beer in the shower, outside the shower, in the hallway, on the ceiling, on the bedroom carpet........everywhere I haven't made labels in a few years, but here's one of mine that I saved: If you are coming to the National Meet in Cleveland this July, we'll have to arrange a sampling evening. Also, you have to visit Great Lakes Brewing from Cleveland. I you need a 'DD' I could be talked into taking care of that for you. I like their Eliot Ness Amber Lager and Commodore Perry IPA the best. Let us know how it tastes when you get it bottled. I bet you start making 5 gallon batches soon. Thanks for sharing. Bill

Peanut butter and traps or the roller has been working strong all winter for me. I have 3 dogs and they each love to root out mice and moles in the yard and eat them. They will hear the moles under the snow and dig till they find them. I won’t use poison cubes or d-con on my property because the dogs would eat the mice or moles and then they would die. Heck, 2 days ago they attacked an oppossum and left it by the back steps to die. Not worth the risk to me. Bill

Nice looking label for sure. I started making beer about 10 years ago and haven't stopped. I have an Irish ale and an IPA ready to bottle. Maybe that will happen today. My wife hates the smell of the hops so I had to put in another kitchen in the basement for brewing. The exhaust fan does a good job if venting, so everyone is happy now. Long live "Black Buick Brewing" Bill

The only new car I would consider is a newer turbo version of my 2013 Mini convertible. Overall the Mini is just a fun car to drive, great mileage, responsive handling and a good ride. My son is 6'4" and he fits in it without a problem. You do tend to rub elbows with the passenger though. I don't have to the turbo model, so that would be an upgrade for sure. I've got 110K miles on it and after warranty was over, it never went back to the dealer. I don't know how anyone could afford to have the dealer work on their Mini or BMW. I changed the thermostat last year and paid $75 for the part and spent about 2 or 3 hours doing the repair. The thermostat is built into a large plastic housing which has 4 hoses going to it. Not fun to change, but better than the $700 the dealer charges. Same with the timing chain, struts, hubs, trans fluid, brakes, water pump......all very expensive to have repaired at the dealer. I sold my 1995 Ranger 2 years ago because I needed a more dependable truck to haul furniture etc. I bought the truck new and had almost 200K miles on it. I bought a Colorado truck as a replacement but it's not the same. I miss having a smaller truck where I don't need a step ladder and I can reach into the bed easily. I have a 65 Electra convertible for real cruising along with the top down. It gets 10 mpg no matter how I drive. The don't make em that big anymore. No complicated electronics either. My wife drives a 2017 Outback. A lot of electronics but not as much as the newer models. I haven't had any computer issues with the Mini thus far. I did have to buy special tools and testers to do my own work, but like I mentioned before, It is just a fun car to drive. And a good car to drive in the snow too.

Road and Track had a great article on wood graining a few years ago. I have some of the tools for reproducing wood grain for furniture and would like to try my hand at automobile wood graining some time. I'll need different tools for sure. https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/classic-cars/a19506337/discovering-the-nearly-lost-art-of-hand-painted-faux-woodgrain/ Bill

Update, Sent the 4 old A/C hoses off to a vendor in Florida and in about a week I had them back with new hose installed with my old hose ends. They cut off the metal and brazed them to new crimpable ends. Very professional job. I had a bit of trouble with alignment of 1 hose connection to the expansion valve, but overall a good job. New compressor, dryer, POA valve, expansion valve, hoses, and a thorough flush of the entire system. It took 3 quarts of flush to be sure everything was clean. The condenser was replaced a year or so ago when I tried to fix the AC. It just needed a flush. I pulled a vacuum for 12 hours and let it stand for 24 hours. No leaks. The green orings and nylock seems to have done the trick. Just have to have a warmer day to add R134. I don’t have heat in the car half of my shop. A bit too cold for that job today, but Friday the temps may get to the mid 50’s. Here’s a photo with everything installed. Just some more cleanup needed. I’m also going back over some little things that need attention......door jamb switch, glass alignment between doors and convertible top, power seat switch, Maybe it’s time to look at getting some led lights for the courtesy lights too. thanks for all the help and suggestions Bill

I attended the show last May and had a great time. From the Baker Electric car - to the Cole's and the Stanley Steam cars, I thought it was an excellent show. I always love the Gilmore Car Museum. I took the model T Driving School class a few years ago too. Learned a lot. Hope to be there again this year. Bill

I'm in. Today I'm finishing the install of new AC hoses and new tires are on the list. I have a few more items to inspect, then I'll be ready to go. The BCA Nationals are only an hour or so from me. Planning to be there too. My Whippet is waiting on the engine rebuild to be completed. Hopefully before June it will be done. Hope to be driving the Buick soon. Bill

Just make sure you or your neighbor's cat or dog don't eat the dead mice or the bait. They'll be joining the mice in the cemetery. Bill

I've tried dryer sheets, Irish Spring soap, moth balls, ultra sonic plug in's and so far I like mouse traps with peanut butter. I place the traps in the car and in the corners of my shop behind the floor jack.....etc. I bought new plastic traps this year that have a small removable reservoir for the peanut butter. It installs from the bottom and is easy to load and reset. No touching the carcass to discard. I also have a roller setup that is suspended over a 5 gallon bucket. I bait that with peanut butter and give the little critters an easy pathway to get access to the roller. The roller is setup in my potting shed that has a sliding door and it doesn't seal perfectly. It has caught 9 mice so far. Almost forgot to say, you have to put a few inches of water in the bucket. Otherwise they can jump out. Mouse traps have caught 3. So far none in the traps that are in the cars. Good Luck Bill

Your write up looks very detailed and concise. I read through it last night Thanks Don and everyone else. I did call 4 Seasons and I need to add 8 oz. of PAG 150 oil to the reservoir to get a total of 11 oz. before pulling a vacuum. I guess I won't lose all the oil when I evacuate and pull a vacuum. I guess there's lots more to do before I can wrap it up. I'd like to do a good rebuild and not half a##, so a lot more time....and $$ of course. Found a new defroster door vacuum and got it ordered. I also ordered a partial wire harness for the blower motor. The old one was melted. 4 weeks delivery time. After removing the AC hoses I'm going to look at replacing them. A few options but will probably have to send them to the vendor and have new hoses put on. The ends and metal tubing are unique and not readily available. Like Don (TexRiv_63) said in his rebuild post is so true..... " It never fails, I started thinking I would just replace the parts.. then I decided to do a little cleanup and maybe some touchup paint.. then I removed the grille to get more room to work.. then I took off everything on the front of the motor.. now I will be taking off everything loose, cleaning most everything under the hood and detail painting the engine before installing the new a/c stuff. Never fails... I'll be working on a lot of the under the hood details and cleaning things up. The inner fender and firewall are at the top of the list. This repair job started when I was checking the manufacture date on my tires. After finding they were 9 years old, I kept looking at the hoses, belts etc. and here I am. I'm not buying the tires till spring, so I have lots of time to find other things to replace. Bill

Sometimes things just aren't simple, especially if you overthink the problem. I think that's what I do at times. My new compressor is an A6 style exactly like the original but compatible with 134A. It came precharged with 3oz of PAG oil.....but the instructions say to check to be sure to add the recommended amount and type to the compressor. I tried to scan the QR code but the pdf would not load so I went directly to the 4 seasons resource page and still did not get an exact answer. A phone call to 4 seasons will happen tomorrow. 4 seasons show a chart online that has quantity and type of oil for lots of cars, but not my Buick. My confusion is how much oil and which type of PAG oil to add. 4 seasons says to refer to your original manual if needed. My original service manual states that 10.5 oz are needed. If I add the oil to the compressor before I evacuate the system, won't I lose all the oil when I pull a vacuum on the system? In the past I've always added a can of precharged oil and the required refrigerant and used my gauges. And was good to go. I've worked on AC systems that would not work properly when the ambient temp is low. If my system is similar, then I can't get a proper reading? Correct? I will call 4 Seasons this week and hopefully get a better answer. And update the post. thanks for all the replies and help. It's truly appreciated. Bill

So NEW HOSES would be the best way to go. Since they are 50+ years old, it makes sense since I've got a fair amount of $$ already invested. Who sells AC hoses for a 50+ year old car? I see kits available on the internet but the fittings aren't anything like mine. Can I reuse my ends and just get new hose? I checked with Carid, but said they did not have the hose. I did find on their webpage an adapter for the compressor plate that could work if I could find the proper hoses and ends. the plate had 1"-14 threads. I remember making hydraulic hoses when I worked in a machine shop 40 years ago, We had Weatherhead hose and a huge supply of different fittings that we'd crimp onto the hose. But we could never reuse the old fittings. Robert, thanks for the info on Nylog Blue. I've never used it before, but will use now. Thanks Bill

Definitely a Willys Knight. I've been fascinated with the Sleeve Valve Engine for many years and still want to purchase one. ........Maybe one like this !