Buicknutty

Very nice bit of engineering! Keith

So, I got a reconditoned steering wheel from Doug Seybold in Westlake, Ohio, plus a few other of the interior plastics. Expensive, but beautifull stuff. The steering wheel now feels like silk when driving it. I also got the turn signal lever and the gearshift lever re chromed, so that they too would look as nice as the new plastics. Well, the gearshift was in quite nice shape, the chrome was just dull, and it came back looking perfect, but the turn lever was rather rusty, and it didn't turn out so well. Kinda lumpy, and that was the best he said he could do. So, since I have a machine lathe in my basement, I got some brass stock, and made a new one, and then had it plated. I have dealt with the plating company for some time, and they didn't charge for the plating job, but its' only about 5" long, and I finished it to nearly a polished surface before I gave it to them. The original had a wide grove in it near the column, that held a rubber like compound, which of course is long gone, so I just contoured my repro in that area, which I think looks quite nice. My own humble opinion, of course. So, here's a few pictures. Those of you that know these cars will notice that the dash is not wood grained like it should be, but just painted. The wood grain will come along at a later date, but one of the few differences between the Canadian and US cars is that the "engine turning" finish was not used on the instrument panel and glove box door, it was all woodgrained. Perhaps to emulate the Bristish cars that had the real wood trim in the interior, but no one seems to know for sure. Again, there is no actual factory documentation for this, but myself and others have seen other original McLaughlin Buicks to confirm this. Now we're off on Friday afternoon with the car for weekend long tour of all pre WWII cars through the nice countryside East of Toronto. Lovely touring through there, nice roads with 50 MPH limits, and scenic rolling hills. Keith

Nice car, and very good pictures! The ones of the car on the street in front of the cafes and the Louvre especially. Keith

I came home in a 1951 Standard Vangard, a British car made by Standard Motors who also made the Triumph. My Dad shortly afterwards bought a 1953 Pontiac, which is the first car I remember us owning. Keith

Well, I have mine, but I'm still doing some other work on the car, so I haven't been able to drive my Roadmaster with the new sway bar yet! Keith

Tuner cars were mentioned by "Thriller", and I think about that when the issue of affordability comes up. Some of these young guys spend a lot on them, and if they wanted to they could likely buy a more "vintage" car, but its' their choice to buy and customize a '90's Honda, or whatever fits as a "tuner" car. Part of it is that's what they grew up with, so they have an attachment to them, more than likely. Also, they are available, like model T's were in days gone by. The other thing is that there are more and more cars getting old enough to be a "collector", so the potential for cars to collect is ever increasing, which I think is good, as there are only so many 40's and 50's, etc., cars out there. On a more personal note, I recently caught my kids (daughter 21, son 13) kind of arguing about who will get which car when I'm gone! Zowie! I didn't think I was that old yet! Keith

Looks like progress is being made! Keith

Looks like a nice car, and well optioned out, congrats! Keith

Folks; Has anyone replaced the wiring that runs from the turn signal switch under the steering wheel to where comes out near the base of the steering column? It feels as if there is something holding it in, but I cannot see, or feel anything. I replaced the rest of the harness, and now have a reconditioned steering wheel, so I'd like to change these 6 wires, if at all possible while its' off! The shop manual does not show much about this, and I couldn't find any info here on the site, so help would be appreciated. Thanks. Keith

Rich; Seriously thinking of making the drive from here in Toronto to take it in, if so, it would likely be in my '56 Roadmaster. Keith BCA 6722

Will do, when it happens, which might not be for a while. I've promised that since I'm now semi-retired, I'll get to work on her '68 Wildcat. Trouble is, I seem to be so busy doing other things! Keith

A local restoration shop did an admirable job of straightening the door, but the frame of the door was twisted. The hit bent the door skin in so much that the Window won't work. Just last weekend I finally got another door. Maybe that we be the push I need to do a fresh paint job. Don't mean to hijack your thread! Keith

Very nice, John. Glad that a latch adjustment was all it needed. My passenger door doesn't fit right, but it's because my door got hit badly about 30 years ago and hasn't ever been the same since. Keith

Nice to hear from you, Robert. Glad you and the Missus are settling in nicely. That's a nice looking garage you have, and the back door is an excellent thing to have. As for the roads, well, we here in Toronto like to think that we have the worst roads this side of the third world, but it's of course possible that Michigan has us beat. There's actually a contest run by an Auto Club as to which is the worst road in the city! Seriously though, between the frost and the snow plows they beat the roads up pretty good, and it was a bad winter. Nice morning here in Toronto, though cool. Enjoy! Keith

Just beautiful! Keith

Great looking working work! Keith

Sounds like that would be an awesome trip! Keith

When I had the core done for my '41, it cost me $500. and that was 5 years ago, but sometimes prices are higher here in Canada, as a lot of this stuff comes from the US, so there's extra shipping and sometimes another middle man. Also, I went with the modern high density core, for better cooling, as I intended mine to be a driver, and not a show car. Io of got my core done in honeycomb, it was going to be quite a bit more, can't remember how much though. Keith

How much to ship one to Canada? I live in the Toronto area. Keith

Dale; It's hard to say without being there to hear it run, but off hand, if it was running well before, I wouldn't think a carb is going to go out of adjustment that quickly. Not that couldn't be out of whack, but it would be wise to check the distributor points for adjustment and condition, also the engine timing too, but that's also something that doesn't change quickly, unless the bolt on the base of the distributor is not tight enough. Checking and setting the points is a bit of a tricky thing, so if your friend can help, that would be good. Really, what I'm suggesting, is go through all of the basic stuff, plugs, points, condenser, and such. This is what's covered in a minor tune up, and basics will do you in every time. As to the windshield vacuum pump, is this the fuel pump? As these are a dual pump, one part for the windshield wiper, the other for suppling fuel to the carb. Those gaskets are not too tough to make, but carb gaskets as generally too hard for a regular guy like me to do, and you'd need a kit. If you place a wanted ad on the forum here, you might be able to have some success. Making gaskets takes some careful cutting, and yes, an exacto, or similar is what I've used. I don't know if you or a friend or family member could post a short video of it running, and/or stalling in the driveway, might help us "armchair mechanics" to diagnose the problem. Anyway, I hope that this helps. Keith

I like that heavy duty gen that old tank has, it would be an interesting period solution to the issue. The Powermaster looks like a nice modern one. I have a switched electric fan on the front of the rad in my '56 Roadmaster for hot days in slow traffic, and it helps cool the rad well. I also have a modern type heavy duty core on the original tanks, and with this set up I never have had it overheat. Even here in Toronto we get many 90+ days in the summer, though 100 is uncommon, so mine is not as stressed as some folks in the South would be. Keith

Dale; Take the air cleaner off, hold the choke valve open, and then pump the gas, you should be able to see, and smell gas when it squirts out of the jets. If there's no gas, the problem is likely the fuel pump. If you are running the original, not rebuilt fuel pump you will need to get it done. The likely culprit is the modern fuel most of us have to use, ie the ethanol content, it attacks the rubber in pump diaphrams but it takes a while to happen. The final test would be to give it a small bit of gas down the carb and try to start it, it should fire briefly. I always put the air cleaner back on when I do this for safety, in case of a backfire. You can get the fuel pump rebuilt using materials designed to resist the ethanol in most modern gas, also many people use an additional electric pump mounted on the frame back towards the gas tank to reduce vapour lock, and in case the other fails, usually wired so that you can switch it on by demand. I was let down in the very same manner in my '41 the first day I had it licensed on the road. Personally, I don't use an electric on my old cars, just the original pump, rebuilt, but many people feel that an electric is a useful upgrade. Hope this helps. Keith

Here are some pictures of the back of it. The chrome bezel measures 4 3/4" across, from outside edge to outside edge. It's definitely not a '41, as that one is much smaller than this. I got this in a box of parts that was all supposed to be for '41, but this clock isn't. There is the date stamp, which certainly looks like Oct '48 on the side. Keith

In 1953 the Super, with the new 322 had a 2 bbl, but the Roadmaster's 322 had a 4bbl. According to "70 years of Buick" the 1952 Roadmaster Riviera sedan (4 door) used 130.25" wheelbase, and the '53 Roadmaster 4 door used a 125.5", the same as the Super 4 door. I had a '53 Roadmaster 4 door about 30 years ago, and it seemed very spacious, so I don't know what a '52 model would be like! I wonder where the nearly 5" extra went, backseat or trunk, or a bit of both. Keith

I concur with Pete, I like them for the same reasons, plus the 130"(I think) wheelbase, anyway it was longer than the other models. Never had one though, still on my "someday list"! A tough sell without a title, I'd think. Keith