Beemon

The price is not bad at all, about a hundred shy of a rebuild. Do you have a part number for the rag joint coupler?

You should book mark Hometown Buick on your phone, specifically the shop manual for the 56. It has the full list. That way if you get stuck like this, you have that back up plan just in case the good ol boys of post war aren't quick enough to back you up. I got all my bulbs from napa no problem off that sheet. They all fit.

I noticed that as well, but the rag joint should give some type of flex similar to a U-joint. Hopefully won't be too much of an issue. I'm more worried about the drag link being squared in a conversion like this. There's a few 55's near me that this wouldn't be such an impossible task - I've noticed most people don't go for suspension parts at the salvage yards, mostly just the heads and block near hear. Looking forward to the road test and final cost!

Will the front license plate bracket work on a 56? Mine is in pretty poor shape. I don't need it for Washington but would like to have one for a front vanity plate or a match set of 56 plates.

I like your custom seat covers.

Not engine torque, rather the torque multiplication on the axle shaft and drive shaft in regards to a ring and pinion. It's like blowing you third member by over revving if it's under sized or not strong enough to take the torque on a drag take off. Even though the Dynaflow is a serious hog when it comes to power, going down to a 3.03 or 2.67 or whatever lower end gears they used in later years could be problematic for the current setup. The 1956 was engineered to take 3.36 gears with high compression and 3.23 with low compression. The transmissions are also different, as well, and could be that those gear ratios are best suited for the 56 Dynaflow since 3.36 gears never show up again in a Nailhead buick after 56. Plus we also know the spline connection at the pinion is also weak. So if lower gears are used, and more energy is required to take off from a red light, then there's just more shear force added to the pinion and possibly the ring gear, or both. I'm probably over thinking it, so I defer to KISS and want to stick around 3.36-3.23 range.

Thanks for the offer! I'll definitely PM you about that rear end if the one I habe doesn't work out for me. Do you know what the gears are by chance? I know highway gears are always preferred but the differential also absorbs a lot of moment forces and if you go too light, you run risk of mechanical failure.

Even though differentials interchange between 56-60, the 57-60 differentials are different. I tried locating a 58 3.23 differential but was unsuccessful. I still have a lot of time, but the time these cars are around seem to be diminishing rapidly with all the yard closures in the last couple years.

Now I understand why my dad loved the 60s in high school, one of his best friends is still a painter and they're still "painting" to get high. Thanks for the suggestions everyone. As always, greatly appreciated! Painting weather won't come for another 5 months or so, so whatever Mr. Obama decides to give me on my school W2 will go into a hopefully $2000 paint job.

I was just always told that used rears prefer 140 and new rears like 90. Something about thicker oil taking up slop until the gears find their happy place warmed up. Probably the same reason why people stuffed wood chips and banana peels in the diff. Also merry Christmas everyone!

So this box won't fit, either? The bolt holes don't match up on both units by your measurements. Are you going to be doing some custom drill work?

Wasnt it whale oil? My grandfather did the rear end job in the sixties so I was not blessed with the experience.

1956 peak horsepower is at roughly 4500 RPM. The tach on the column barely exceeds 3500 under normal driving, just like Bernie's. Maybe 4000 in Low... You'd probably be better off converting to a 3-speed than dual exhaust if you're looking for HP gains.

I think 85W140 would be more appropriate? Even though I have all the bearings and seals right now, I think I will pay for the straight swap. I'll disassemble my old unit and put that one back together, and then when the new unit starts to fuss or leak or whatever, then I'll know how to do it without experimenting.

The ball bearing is the plug. Once the engine is running, vacuum pulls the ball bearing into the top of the chamber, sealing the switch.

I'm not entirely sure what the big difference between the 55 and 56 rear diff is except for spline count, but the seal is behind the retaining nut. I'm not sure I'll be able to replace just the seals without removing the retaining nut. Won't I have to do a rebuild at that point since the pre-load will be different with the old bearings? Willis, as always, your knowledge is greatly appreciated! There isn't a crush sleeve on this diff. I found that out when they tore into the original one and we found the tin foil teeth. If a press is involved, then I'm at the mercy of the shop. This is one piece I don't want to bang on. I know they made them "bullet proof" but even the best bullet proof vests can't stop blunt force trauma. I just checked the unit before writing this reply, and it all turns freely (no scraping or scoring noises). The pre-load retaining nut has a huge slot punched into it, though. I'm guess it cannot be re-used?

Thanks, Ben. I would love to meet all of the guys on this board that has answered all my annoying questions and threads thus far. I'm actually going to try and make the great pilgrimage this year if the stars align with my pocket book lol. Back to the diff, I guess my biggest question is will I need more shims or will I be able to get away with putting the exact same shims back from where they came and still get the same depth? How hard is it to set the pre-load? I understand the preload chart, we had done similar in Mechanics of Materials. Is it difficult to pull the bearing races off of the pinion shaft with a punch and hammer? Lastly, should I bother dismantling the spider gears if there aren't replacement differential carrier bearings available?

Is the pulley loose on the shaft? What you're describing reminds me of the untimely demise of my original pump.

OLD: NEW: The only difference is that they are 3.23 instead of 3.36 - 3.36 gears are apparently rare even though the 3.23 gears were only in the Special. A hang out would be pretty cool, it's just hard finding like minded individuals my age that are into classics. Nothing wrong with the old boys, except relateability. By that I mean a lot of guys my dad's age drove these cars as kids, grew up around them, and I didn't... so it's a little big different. Especially when you walk into every conversation with them assuming you know nothing and then listening to a 20 minute lecture because you're being nice on how to research, maintain and repair a car. Can't argue with dependability. My Buick has maybe broke down once, but I can't fault the car - the pertronix fried from a voltage spike that stranded me at school (should have listened to Willie!). Oh, and the starter fiasco. I just want to get rid of the howling banshee with this one! My many projects are my way of catching up to the old guys. I need to experience everything in a span of a few years that took others decades of enjoyment just to fit in!

I'll have to take a picture of my driveway when everyone is home to show why doing work that requires lots of room in my driveway is impossible lol. The replacement carrier is technically already out of the car, so I can start it tonight but have zero idea what to do other than follow the shop manual. If it just requires basic hand tools, then great. If I need some sort of press or puller, then I don't have either. I don't even know where you can find dial gauges anymore, there are never any at the auto parts store, hardware store, and I would rather skip on a Harbor Freight dial gauge (was gifted a HF caliper one year for my birthday, tossed it in the trash).

Must be a sign of the times. The last book I read that wasn't a text book was back in 2010 when we were forced to read in high school.

I've been looking over the shop manual on this procedure as it's something I want to tackle this winter. I found a replacement for my old gears that doesn't have the hardening on the teeth worn off. I also talked to the shop that did it last (also the Dynaflow) and they'll do the swap for me for less than $300 (Not something I want to do nor have room to do in the driveway). I can save myself $400 in labor if I rebuild it myself, but the question is - how hard is this task? Consider that all I have is hand tools and a vise. I know the actual carrier bearings are a no-go on replacement, but I can get all the rest. Do the bearings generally need replacing (I would guess yes)? Or is it just a "make sure the seals are good" type of thing? Tips on setting depth? Point out I'm clueless? Fire away, please!

I was digging around and found this on TeamBuick: https://www.teambuick.com/forums/showthread.php?15423-1956-Buick-Special-rack-and-pinion-conversion Someone removed the entire drag link assembly and dropped a "bolt-in" rack and pinion for a 55 Chevy after minor adjustments to the mounting bracket. Seems very interesting. Not sure the price, but probably very expensive. Would just need two U-joints with a connection at the rag joint. Another alternative is maybe finding a junked gear box? Or see if Leif still has the dimensions for his brackets.

I got my kit from Jon and when compared to a virgin gasket, they were the same. The shop manual explains how to set the idle speed screw in such a way that it blocks the idle transition circuits until the butterflies are open. Something about checking the gap with a feeler gauge or drill bit, and then adjusting idle bleed screws. These cars were made to idle at 450, but that's not really possible on ethanol, and I've read a lot of people open the idle speed up to 600. Maybe the butterflies are not sealing the gap at this higher RPM and should be adjusted to do so? I know the butterflies have an enlarged hole and the screws only seat in the shaft.

I don't have $20,000 to spend, it was a metaphor. This is my first car, my first classic car and the only property I own on top of being a family heirloom. If I had $20,000 to throw around, I wouldn't have spent the last 5 years working on a 3 year AS degree. The car is just a personal reward that I saved up for from 2010 to get on the road. The whole point of this thread was to confirm for myself whether or not I was being taken advantage of because I literally have no idea. Turns out I was given a fair price, I can't afford it so now I'm going with the inexpensive alternative. Buick man, thanks for the run down. I don't think it's impossible, but at this time I don't have the space to do it where the car currently sits. Technically I'm not supposed to do my own oil changes in the driveway, but I break that rule when the overseer is gone.