Gary W

I am happy with my R.I Harness. It fit perfectly and looks authentic. All the wires are properly color-coded to the Buick book. You just have to build a couple of sockets and that three-pronged unit that connects front harness to trunk harness. BUT, in fairness, I didn't know enough to send them my 3-prong socket, so maybe they would have built it with the original parts. (The only problem is that it won't fit through the firewall grommet holes, unless you enlarge them as well.) Overall, a quality product.

Thursday November 23, 2017: H A P P Y T H A N K S G I V I N G !! From my Family to You and Yours Best wishes for a Blessed Thanksgiving! Enjoy the day Gary

Matt, Bloo, Dave...... I agree! I traced all the wiring, all the color codes are correct and run to the passengers side. Why that driver's headlight goes out MUST be an internal issue with the switch. I'll leave it for now, but it will eventually have to be right...... it'll bug me until it's correct. Thanks again! G

Wednesday November 22, 2017: Update at the paint shop, restoration of the dash light / map light switch: Quick review of the week so far at the paint shop: Bob hammer - and - dollied the wheel openings to get rid of any blemishes and dings around there. The rear fenders are completely covered with a "bondo" - type filler material. Every inch is covered. This is the stuff that cracked ("alligatored") and came right up through the paint. He ground off all the plastic and bought the fender down to bare metal because he found a little rust under some of the plastic. So to be safe it all came off. Bob told me he sees this a lot. Perfectly good metal fenders covered with plastic where it really isn't needed. The metal is in really good shape, and required a little filler in a few selected spots to get rid of some small surface imperfections. Sprayed in yellow self-etching primer. You can see here how little filler was used, and it is quite thin in spots. Then actual metal is in really good shape so there is no need for all that excess filler. Dash Lamp / Map Reader switch: This is what came out of the car. This wouldn't sit in the switch housing because the base material swelled up and dry-rotted and cracked. It was useless. (Although I did re-purpose the lugs as headlamp grounds) I purchased another one from Dave. It is in much better shape. I opened it up to expose it's guts. Then took all the metal parts to the wire wheel and used a fine paper to clean the contacts. Here it is all cleaned up and ready to be re-assembled. Toggle, spring, brass contact go in first. Then seat the base into the grooves / pins and turn them down nice and tight. Insert screws and its ready to be wired and installed. The clock also gets wired here as well so there are actually eight wires to this little switch. The one hanging loose grounds the clock by sliding it between the switch base and the dash before tightening up the mounting screws. Opening the glovebox door. Not fully opened yet, the lamp is not illuminated. When its fully opened, the glovebox lamp lights up just as it should. I just love this 1937 engineering! Great stuff! Have a great night out there Gary

That's a great manual. Lot of info. I got the car with sealed beams. I restored the headlamps back to original Guide Multibeams. I re-used the foot switch that I got with the car. Should I look for another foot switch for the original set-up? My foot switch only affects the drivers headlight in BOTH position 3 and 4, so maybe I have to reverse the wiring at the foot switch or find a switch for the Guide Multibeams. I've double and triple checked all my wiring..... everything is to the book as far as color codes and origin - to - insertion points. And the way the harness is made you can't get left and right headlamps mis-wired. the wiring won't reach or fit at all. I'll start with installing new light bulbs. Then move on to that floor switch. See what happens. ... At least it's not sparking anymore! Have a great day out there G

Monday November 20, 2017: The Light Switch ... swapping out the "rebuilt" switch for my original one Tonight I disassembled my light switch that came out of the car, cleaned it up and re-wired it and re-installed it. I took some photos of the lights. Photos are tough, but the high beams are definitely brighter than the lows. From the manual. They consider "off" a position so there are four positions. When I installed the "rebuilt" switch, the lights were never off. When depressed fully, all the lights came on. I had to find the "dead spot" between detents to actually turn off the lights. I'm assuming this was the source of the battery spark I was getting. Close up of the switch. My car has no connection to the #6 post. Where is #8? Here's my switch that I removed from the car in January. I replaced it because the lights didn't work (although the wiring was completely ruined) and it looked pretty nasty and rusted. It looks SO MUCH BETTER in the drawing in the Buick Manual above! This is the thermo circuit breaker. This is where the feed wire comes in and the dome light, charge indicator and cigar lighter come directly off this tree. So I removed every screw, the two fixed bars and the thermo circuit unit. Off to the shed to get shined up. I bought a brand new wire wheel with softer wires and very lightly buffed out the surface, all the screws, washers and bars. Looking a little better now. Re-assembled and ready to be re-installed. First, depress the internal spring clip to release the pull knob. Then, use a 3/16" Allen wrench to remove the threaded sleeve (and washer) This sleeve is temporary, came with the rebuilt switch. My threaded sleeve and washer are getting re-chromed. For the next neck-twisting hour, I marked the wires as I removed them and released the light switch from the car. You have a lot of room to work. Right between the cowl vent operating handle and the radio! Here it is, back where it came from, looking a lot prettier. So I hooked up the battery........ NO SPARK! Lights are off in the off position so ...... Here you go! These are standard bulbs, UVIRA treated reflectors with a dedicated ground wire soldered directly to the socket. I didn't get the dedicated fender ground wire up there yet. Are the fender lamps usually this dull? First time I've ever seen them lit. It's hard getting decent photos in the dark. But that just looks cool! LOW BEAM Position 3 ( "CITY" ) HIGH BEAM Position 4 ( "COUNTRY" ) The driver's lamp goes out when I step on the high beam pedal in the car. Dash Panel: One year comparison: November 20, 2016. Compared to: November 20, 2017 When I step on the foot switch, the red indicator lamp illuminates on the dash panel and the driver's headlight goes out. One more! Thanks to all the "electricians" out there that sent in a lot of great advice helping me find the short. I will attack the fuel gauge tomorrow. I'm beat! Have a great night! Gary

I ran a dedicated ground from the battery to the sending unit flange before the body drop. I will run your tests because I know I have about 14 gallons in the tank, and it's reading only 1/4. Should be closer to 3/4 I would imagine. I had my sending unit and the gauge restored so I hope they did a good job. I wish there were small o-rings or something like that to keep the posts right in the middle of their holes so the gauge can't move a little and ground out / short out against the metal instrument cluster. Between the headlamp switch and the fuel gauge, I think I'm back in business! Frustrating day, for sure. Thanks for all the help ! Really appreciate it Gary

OK. After spending another couple hours, this is what I found: 1. I placed a thin piece of rubber between the points to eliminate that. 2. My fuel gauge will work only if the posts stay perfectly stable. If I touch the wires, which tends to move the posts, it'll spark and short. But if it stays where it is now, it's OK 3. My light switch. I purchased a "rebuilt" switch. Problem is the headlamps are lit when fully depressed. So they were drawing current, contributing to the spark but I couldn't see them in the daytime. I have to find the "dead spot" between the pull knob positions to make the lights turn off. So I think I'll replace my original switch tomorrow and check it again. Aside..... The headlamps look beautiful lit up! nice and bright with the UVIRA reflectors. Thanks for the help. I need to think about the fuel gauge. I may have to replace it if it becomes a hazard.

I notice the master cylinder bolts to your transmission, and has a flexible hose outlet. My '37 has the master cylinder bolted to the frame and steel tubing outlet. Is that a '37 to '38 change or a Special vs. Century difference? Really looks great! They do nice work Great progress! Gary

I did not think of that, and I just checked. The points were closed............. is that why the coil was lighting my lamp on both sides? Would that cause the spark when I hooked the battery up? Feeling better, and a little stupid.... Thanks for the heads up G

I traced it out and found out the coil lit my test lamp on both sides. So I disconnected the yellow wire (Not the one that goes to the distributor), and now both ignition wires are not lighting the lamp.

Should the gas gauge be completely insulated also? Or is it OK that it touches the panel?

I'm quoting myself here. I'm still getting a pretty good spark when I connect the battery so I'm convinced I have a short... I'm going crazy disconnecting all my wiring trying to nail it down. Tell me if this makes any sense: I disconnected the 10 gauge yellow wire from the starter where the battery cable attaches. I figured this will completely isolate the short. Using a test light attached to the battery's "+" terminal, (the "-" terminal is grounding the car), I touched the test light to wire ends, terminals......My thought is if the test light lights up, I've found something that is grounding out and causing the spark. The only way the light can illuminate is if it touches something that is grounded. After disconnecting the light switch, cigar lighter, charge meter, ignition switch, gasoline gauge, dome lamp, clock, dash lights.... I'm still getting a spark! It's not a little spark, it's like a short circuit. So.... Is the gasoline gauge supposed to be insulated from the metal instrument panel? In other words, when all the wires are removed, should I be able to touch the screw posts in the back without my test light illuminating? When I touch the posts of the ammeter the light does not come on, so I believe that gauge is insulated from the panel. Should the gas gauge be the same and how, exactly is that done? Should there be rubber grommets at the base of the posts to keep them from brushing up against the metal? I wasted an entire day with this, and I've solved nothing. If anyone has any ideas on how to isolate a short, I'm all ears. I have a feeling its in the instrument panel. Something is pulling ground current and causing the short. (Is this normal.... both wires to the ignition switch are disconnected from the switch and just hanging down. If I touch one, the test light illuminates, not the other. If the main wire is disconnected.....) Thanks for any advice. I don't want to hook up the battery for fear of burning something up somewhere. Thanks guys!

I think if I was going to use just the black jute-backed mat as the finished floor covering, I would cut the hole larger for the gearshift. When I cut it to exactly fit over the rubber boot stem, the mat actually moves every time you shift gears. So I had to cut the mat larger to allow the lever to move unfettered. I was wondering how it would look if you cut the hole in the mat larger, and placed the gearshift boot OVER the mat to make a nice finish. This way the gearshift lever can move through the gears without stretching, moving or distorting the rubber mat. The mat doesn't go back far enough to cover the battery cover plate, which is actually located under the seat. You would have to peel it back to get at the round removable master cylinder access hole in the floor. Being I used my mat basically as a carpet pad / sound deadener, it was more important to get the carpet holes correct, as the carpet is the finished product. I may try to attach the door sill plates over the rubber mat to keep it tight, but allow the carpet to lay on top of the sills. The carpet has a nice leather binding that lends a very nice, finished professional look to the job. i don't think I want to hide the binding. The mat from Bob's is the same thickness throughout. It is not any thicker in the middle. It was kind of "molded" over the transmission tunnel so it fit pretty good out of the box. (MUCH better than the carpet would have fit if I cut along the lines that are marked on it!) So, if you are placing carpet, do yourself a huge favor and create a template first. Use cardboard, plastic, .... whatever. Don't cut without thoroughly measuring, measuring and then measuring your floor first. I think I'll polish up the sills tomorrow and do a test fit. See what I like! Have a good night! G

Saturday November 18, 2017: Installation of the front carpet (.....and a couple other things first!) Where is the rest of the car? Throughout the restoration, I've kept parts going in and out of the front room of the house where set up our Christmas tree. Now that my kids are coming home from college, it's time to put the tree up! (Which means I HAD TO get that room cleaned out today!) This is where parts were kept from February. Things keep rotating in and out of the piles as parts are sent out, restored, received...... My wife was great about letting me take over the room this year. But, today it's time to clear out. Obviously, most of this stuff from this summer is already installed so the cleanup wasn't so bad. Ready for the tree! PAINT SHOP UPDATE: Not a whole lot to report as Bob is just beginning the rear fenders. This is why you have to completely remove all the old bondo or plastic.... There was rust UNDER the old bondo. Bob had to finish the Chevy fenders you see by the door. Now that they are done, he'll start on my fenders Monday morning. INSTALLATION OF THE FRONT CARPET: Flashback to January: The front carpet was pretty ratty. A lot of water damage through the cowl vent really deteriorated the floor coverings. Under the carpet is a jute matting and then these "particle board" panels that were glued down to the floor. So, I've already installed the Dynamat sound deadener to the floor, but it is only about 1/8" thick. Before installing the rear carpet, I'm going to install the DYNAPAD that I used on the trunk floor. I think it will be great back here to reproduce the thickness of those panels and the jute. But up front, I went a different route. First, I want to place a padding under the carpet because it's just not comfortable without it. It simply doesn't look finished laying directly on the floor. So, what I ended up doing up front is purchasing a jute-backed black mat from Bob's. I used it as a base under the rug, BUT more importantly, a TEMPLATE before cutting the carpet! I was so hesitant cutting into the carpet blindly so I used the "pre-punched" mat, customized it for a perfect fit, then used all my customized holes to cut the carpet. So here is what I did today: The jute-backed mat is "pre-punched" except the gear shift lever. So, I cut it pizza style just so I can place the mat in the car and start finalizing my measurements. Pushing the mat down around the rubber boot, I marked it with a sharpie. I then marked the pedals, accelerator pedal, high beam..... Everything was off a little. This was the first time in the car. You can see the marks I made to allow the mat to sit without any pull on it. Also, knowing this will serve only as a carpet pad, I made sure the cuts were open enough so nothing rubbed. Using a piece of wood as a cutting board, I cut into my marks. Here I'm opening up the brake pedal hole to the left to eliminate pulling on the mat. Last time fitting the mat in the car. I went in and out three times, each time trimming a touch here and there to allow the mat to effortlessly drop in without any creases or pulls. At this last fitting, I used duct tape around the gearshift lever to get the final measurement just right. I moved the shift through all the gears and taped about 1/8" outside the rubber boot in each position. I laid the carpet down first, then placed the jute-backed mat with my holes cut out on top of it. Being very careful to get the edges lined up to be sure its centered left-right, I used the steering column hole drawn on the back of the carpet as my guide to the front-back position. Pushing the jute out of the way, you can see the duct tape I placed in the car around the gear shift lever. I traced out all my cutouts in the rubber mat on to the back side of the carpet. I started carefully cutting into the new carpet, now with holes marked out that I know will fit my car. Looking at the marks I made compared to the marks that were in the carpet, I'm SO GLAD I didn't start cutting the carpet first! It would have been 3/4" off just from the first cut! Accelerator pedal hole. All I did was cut from corner to corner before committing to removing all the carpet here. Same for the gear shift lever. So, now that the carpet is cut to this "template", I reinstalled the jute-backed mat first. You can see how nice it sits . I did tuck it under the firewall pad. Then slide the carpet over the gear shift lever and start getting things aligned and installed. Here I installed the accelerator pedal back into the floor. ** I had to remove the rubber mat under the carpet where the linkage comes through to allow the pedal to fully depress ** I've restored an entire car, and this, by far, was the toughest cotter pin to install!! The emergency brake cable. I decided to cut a slit through the side so the carpet can be easily removed without having to disconnect the emergency brake cable every time. Look how nice the high/low beam switch lines up. And here is the front carpet installed, Am I supposed to tuck it under the firewall pad? I can loosen up the lower bolts, tuck it in and tighten it back down. It will help hold it from scooting around. And... do the sill plates go OVER the carpet or does the carpet lay on top of the sill plates? I'm going to use a little headliner adhesive to tack the rug to the mat underneath so it all stays stable and flat. B E F O R E A N D A F T E R : Have a great weekend! Gary

Wednesday November 15, 2017: Front Fenders, Fender Lamps, Running Boards..... Here's the latest update!

Wednesday November 15, 2017: Installation of Front Fenders, Fender Lamps, Running Boards...... Here's The Latest Update!

Monday November 13, 2017 to Wednesday November 15, 2017: Front Fenders, Running Boards, Fender Lamps and Bumper Irons The past three days was all about getting the front fenders from the paint shop, transporting them home, prepping them and finally today installing them onto the car. Monday morning. At this point, I already picked up the passenger's side fender, and the driver's side is getting sanded in preparation for the machine polish. Tuesday morning, the fender was ready and I bought it home. You need two people to transport these things around. Especially after they are painted! Once back in my garage, I first measured the welting for the rear section. I used this really great double backed tape to affix the welt to the fender. This stuff is easily molded around the bends and curves and holds tight. I started the welting at the bottom, and slowly carried it around the bends. Here it is installed with the tape holding it firm. I think I went too far with it, but I'll custom trim it to fit the hood once I get to that point. Using this Copper-Eze, I ran a fender bolt into every hole to be sure they were all tapped, clean and wouldn't fight me. I did the five rear bolts that go into the body, the front five into the clip and the three that run through the chassis rail. This morning, all set up. I was waiting for John to come over to help me lift the fenders into position. First, we laid out all the fasteners so they were easily reached when holding the fender. Team lift. My car has three studs up front where the front fender support bolts to the chassis. I aimed for the studs and allowed the fender to rest there while I started running some bolts in. While John held the rear, I was able to start the front clip bolts. Only finger tight. Then got the five rear body bolts inserted, everything finger tight only. Repeat for the other side, then install the fender support iron loosely at the frame, while inserting the nut and bolt that secure it to the outer fender edge. Before tightening the fender support iron, we went to the other side and installed the same outer fender edge bolt. So, at this point, the only tight bolts are the outer fender bolt under the front lip of the fenders. Everything else is still finger tight. Then it was back and forth: Front support iron L and R, rear support iron L and R, front clip L side, then front clip R side, all 5 rear bolts L, then R and finally the three chassis bolts. (We had the entire front clip only "finger tight" before we started this fender installation so everything could move and line up as needed.) All told, there are 20 bolts that affix the fenders to the body: 5 into the body cage nuts at the rear of the fender 5 into the front clip 3 into the chassis 3 hold the front fender support iron to the frame (radiator frame) 1 into the outer edge fender support (that same front fender support iron) 2 hold the rear support iron to the firewall brackets 1 holds the front clip to the top of the fender where the hood drops down. Once the fenders were installed and tight, we moved on to the running boards. In a previous post, I went through the running board restoration and all the hardware used. We determined it was much easier to mount the chassis support irons first. So, we removed them from the underside of the running boards and secured the irons to the frame. Keeping everything loose under there, it was easy to get the running boards aligned to the car. Again, we installed the running boards, but kept the bolts only finger tight so I can make all final adjustments when I install the rear fenders. The restored running boards look great. They add so much to the car! I restored the fender lamps previously, so installation was a breeze. New rubber grommet and run the wire through the fender iron and into the engine compartment. It's really starting to look Buick! Classic And finally.... Starting with the original bumper support iron nuts and bolts, I was once again at the wire wheel..... And again, scrubbed in acetone, primed and painted gloss black. Slide the bumper rubber seals into position and align the iron to the chassis holes. Get everything aligned and bolted tight. Then I installed the Trippe Lights onto the bumper irons. I looked at them from every angle to be sure the lenses were at the same forward position, the same angle, the same distance from center..... And so, the day ends. Nice day. It's nice to be back! Have a great night out there! Gary

Hi Guys Busy attending College Tours with my family. Hopefully I’ll be back in the garage Sunday / Monday.... Stay Tuned G

Boy does this all look so familiar!! Great Job Matt!

sent you PM

Monday November 6, 2017: Paint Update I arrived at the paint shop this morning before work just in time to help Bob turn the fenders over for paint. Everything with these large fenders is easier with two guys. 7:45 am. Bob and I just flipped them over on to the horses. Here's how I left the shop on my way to the office. I stopped by after work and they are shining like jewels! The many compound curves of these fenders really look terrific! I won't be able to get them until the weekend as they need to completely cure before Bob starts the wet sanding, buffing and hand rubbing. But I'm ready!!! Have a great night! Gary

That is an AWESOME vehicle!! Good Luck with it!! Congrats

Sunday November 5, 2017: One Year Ago Today! One year ago today, November 5, 2016, I purchased my Buick. Drove it home and immediately joined this Forum, the BCA and the '36 - '38 clubs. Been a busy year so far! Here she sits, all windows down trying to air it out! Bullet holes and all! Quick Video of the homecoming! CLICK THE BLUE LINK HERE ------------------> Buick Coming Home 11:5:2016.mov <-------------------- CLICK THE BLUE LINK HERE Thanks for all the constant advice, encouragement and the many followers of my thread! Gary

I didn't know that the rims were painted. If so, I can do them right on the car. Thanks for the heads up! G