39Cdan

Hi Pete, I know of a good home for your lens if interested. R, Kevin

Hello, Shopping for a mechanic in the Virginia region to rebuild my '39 248. Good experience anyone? Thank you, 39Cdan

Hi, Here's the engine I bought in Florida. I'm hoping that out of all the folks out there in the world who rebuilt a 248, someone recorded their experience and is willing to share same. R, Kevin

Hello Friends. Found and bought a complete 1939 Buick 248 from a gentleman in Florida. While I've done basic engine maintenance over the years I've never attempted an engine rebuild. I would like to believe that someone at sometime has composed a comprehensive how-to guide for such a quest. Anyone reading this aware of a source for or can provide a step-by-step guide for rebuilding a 248? Thank you! Kevin

Thanks Gents. Follow-up opinion please - My engine has exhibited a miss for several years, sometimes barely noticeable and sometimes jerks the car. I have replaced all ignition parts. Also, starting the car has always left a black spot on the garage floor. The miss lead me to pull the manifolds and make preps for pulling the head. Can the absence of the heat riser flapper cause an engine miss? Can the miss result from a combination of conditions: missing flapper, Carb needs rebuilt, poor valve seals? Is one of these conditions far more likely than the others to cause a miss? Thank you!

Hello from 39Cdan, Thank you all for the info and links. Haven't pulled the head yet, a wee bit too chilly this weekend. R, Kevin

Hi. Bought the shop manual; couldn't find the torque values for the head bolts. Recommendations? Thank you!

Thanks Dave_B!

Hi. Removed exhaust and intake manifolds to blast and paint. The heat riser valve is missing. Can anyone out there suggest a source for heat riser valve replacement parts? Thank you! Kevin

Good Afternoon, Talked myself into removing the manifolds to sandblast and paint. Yep, there's a non-trivial crack in the exhaust manifold - found and bought a replacement from ebay. I'm certain the head and its components haven't been removed and cleaned in several decades, if ever. Question - may I trouble one of you who have been down that road to provide or refer me to the corresponding step-by-step? Not afraid to turn some wrenches but I'd like to get a tested plan for going in, and coming out alive. Thank you! Kevin

Good Evening, Fixed. Loooooooooong story short. I finally talked myself into hiring a hauler to bring my car down from PA (he did a great job and I'll gladly pass along his number to anyone thinking of having a car hauled). So, now that I had a chance to work on the car I did the obvious and logical things first - replaced the cap, button, and wires. Took the car for a spin yesterday - no miss. Wish I had a more interesting story for you gentlemen but I'm quite happy the fix was inexpensive. I have another question for which I'll start a separate thread. Thank you very much for your suggestions and patience. Regards, Kevin

Mornin' John, Lemme know if you happen to find yourself in central PA headed south pulling an empty trailer - we can show the stately lady a little TLC. Your coupe is gorgeous. My sedan was actually part of a coupe/sedan pair owned by my Aunt and Uncle years ago. A fella came along back in the 90's and made an offer on the coupe that my Uncle couldn't refuse. Anyway, same old story here, lots of irons in the fire at the moment and I'm trying to reach for the one that says '39 Sedan R, Kevin

Hi Mike, Thanks for keeping me honest Long story short - I live in Norfolk VA and my car is still in Pennsylvania; been trying (without success) to match up schedules with some family members to get'r moved down here. The answer to your question is, it's still missing and I haven't found the cause yet Lots of lessons learned above that I will step through once I get the darn thing down here, but, any additional ideas are more than welcome. Regards, Kevin

Excellent, thank you! I was gonna send you a check R, Kevin

Hi Billy, Sorry if you've already answered this elsewhere - but, I will pay you cash money for a photo record of your tear-down and re-assembly process. (I hope to copy you some day with my '39.) If you can burn your photos to a CD or thumb drive I'll mail you a check for your trouble. Thanks, Kevin

Hi Mike, You read my mind - don't do that I've received above the benefit of many many hours of labor on the part of fellow 39ers - I otta be "counciled" sternly if after solving this issue I don't post it. I definitely will. I plan to bring the car down to Virginia in April and work through the suggestions above - it seems like a sure bet that the cause is related to the possibilities mentioned above. R, Kevin

Grant - Thank you for recalling some of your discoveries from the evolution of the 248. Sounds like the jump from '37 to '38 was a big one. I'm curious if most 248 owners have an opinion regarding the most significant change to the 248. Mike - Thank you for your recent post. My Special sat in waiting for several years before she was "roll-backed" to the mechanic. He replaced the plugs and wires early in the salon treatment. Later he mentioned the miss but said the cap and rotor looked good (that's when the little thought cloud appeared above my head with the text about old style and new style plug wires). The comments above concerning vacuum leaks are also very much appreciated and I'm look forward to trying the one-at-a-time technique that you mentioned above. R, Kevin

Hello Mr. Hanning, Thank you for this fault isolation technique. It will be a few weeks before I have a chance to try it but what I do know is the cause of this miss doesn't stand a chance at staying hidden with the help I'm getting here. Here's a question - who knows what the differences are between the first and last generations of Buick 248? Just curious. Thank you again, Kevin

Hello Mike, That's great advice. I came to the right grapevine for help! My biggest problem at the moment is my car is still in PA and I'm in VA - however, I'll trailer it down in April and get started on trying the great suggestions above. Thank you again and I'm sure I'll be looking for another $.02 from you in the near future. Regards, Kevin

Hello Tom, Ab-so-lutely, I can stand another observation! Thank you for relaying your cross-talk experience. There seems to be quite a bit of supporting evidence out there on the web regarding this issue. Based on your photo, I'd say you and your aching back have done well for yourselves I've recently taken ownership of the sedan and I'm looking forward to joining up with the AACA folks here in VA for events and shows. Thank you again for your lesson learned and please don't hesitate to pass back any other hard-won knowledge. Regards, Kevin

Thank you Mr. Straight Eight, When I think about the care given to this car by my Uncle, I was hoping that the solution would turn out to be something simple and not "internal" as Ben mentioned above. However, I haven't fixed it yet so I'm very grateful for all the experience that's been offered. Thank you again, Kevin

Hi Jeff, Thank you for the suggestion. Even though the wires are brand spankin' new, I've seen some folks write about the merits of old style vs new style wires. Your help and other's has produced numerous possibilities for me to check and I'm willing to bet the culprit lies within this list. Thank you very much, Kevin

Hello Ben and Bob, A pleasure making your acquaintance as well. Thank you very much for the ideas. I somehow knew jumping in to this forum would help me meet some nice folks and get some good tips. My Buick is still parked up in PA but I live in VA - if my plans come together I'll trailer it down sometime in April. Then I'll start down the great list of suggestions provided by my fellow '39ers. Thank you again, Kevin

Hi Danny, Thank you for the warm welcome. The miss occurred consistently from idle up to 40 mph. My mechanic is quite experienced I think but not necessarily with antique autos - hence my following up on the "google produced findings" about old style vs new style plug wires. I'll gladly and unabashedly take any knowledge and experience you have to offer. Thank you, Kevin

Hello Grant, Thank you very much for the suggestions. Attached (should be) is a photo I took yesterday - gorgeous day in Pennsylvania for a spin. I'll do the checks you've mentioned and look forward to seeing your other Buick related posts. Regards, Kevin