neil morse

Another great thread! As a newbie here, I am like a kid in a candy store reading through these wonderful threads on the "Me and My Buick" forum. It's like binge-watching a series on Netflix, but sometimes I'm disappointed when I get to the end and it's not finished yet. Paul, I am in awe of what you have taken on here. I hope to get another installment soon. I can't wait to read the next chapter of your novel.

Thank you. What a gorgeous machine!

Thank you so much, that is very helpful! That looks like the type that is offered by Bob's Automobilia, as shown in the second photo in my post, above. When I got my Super, there was a box from Bob's in the trunk with one strip like this. The rubber "rivets" lined up right on the holes, so I was pretty sure that's what it was, but I wasn't sure it was correct. Your Roadmaster is absolutely magnificent! Are there any other pictures of it posted anywhere else on this forum where I could see more of it? Thanks.

I'm haven't quite figured out how to post photos on here yet and position them in the text, but here are photos of the two different things that Steele and Bob's show for the cowl/hood seal.

Oh my, I can't get over what your under dash area looks like compared to mine! I had to wear sunglasses to look at the photo. This is helpful to me as well as I apparently am missing the duct and valve on the firewall side. My car has the interior linkage, but the rod just sticking out of a hole in the firewall. Grandpa, since your '41 appears to be in such top shape, could you respond to the thread I posted about the cowl/hood seal? I would really appreciate it. Thanks in advance!

Thanks. That was my confusion. Bob's seemed to offer a continuous strip with push in "rivets" attached. But the illustration from the Steele catalog seems to show a more generic weatherstrip material with a separate bag of "rivets" or "stoppers." A photo would be a big help. Also, I'm not sure I understand what you say about the water ending up at the base of the A pillars. Isn't the idea to keep the water out altogether? What am I missing?

The rubber seal between the hood and cowl on my Super is missing, leaving a series of holes through which a lot of water apparently poured over the years, judging by the condition of the front floor pans. I need to replace it, but I am confused because the pictures in various suppliers catalogs seem to show different things. Could someone post a picture of the correct rubber and an indication of how it is attached? Thanks!

Here's the email I got from Mr. Bill: Given a 6 volt system we install a small chip that works in conjunction with your working radio.You may visit tech-retro.com and reference the FMC-1 for more information. It does not alter appearance or fit. There is no dial face for the fm stations and your existing tuner is utilized allowing you to use your manual dial as well as push buttons to save desired favorites. The fm and aux modes are accessed by turning off the radio with the on/off switch and quickly turning it back on. The aux mode will allow you to play an Iphonre MP3 Satellite radio cd or any other device through your radio. The cord from the device plugs into the aux port and is switched like fm and may be left in all the time. It will only play when in that mode. This option costs $225.00 if the radio is working. With restoration of the radio the cost is $325.00 to $350.00 and a solid state vibrator as well as the aux jack is added gratis. I did not ask him about the antenna, but I assume it just works off of whatever antenna you have on your car. There is also a blue tooth option, but that involves converting to 12 volt or using a voltage booster. That option gives you 180 watt 4-speaker stereo capability. I was not interested in that. This is his YouTube channel where you can see him demonstrating some of the radios he has rebuilt on the bench. In some of them, you can see him switching to the fm mode with the "quick on/off" feature. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4p7hUT3ktvspDVPbPeTcBQ

Great story on the exchange. Ain't this hobby great?

Wow -- she sure cleaned up nice! The final photo of the steering wheel and dash had me shaking my head in disbelief. Bandit, indeed! Who cares if the motor doesn't free up. You're still way ahead! (Not to jinx anything -- obviously, I'm hoping for the best.)

Thank you for your gracious reply. I agree completely with what you say about giving confidence to those (like me, also) who love the old car hobby but don't have anything like the skills and expertise of the more experienced forum contributors. I like the concept of "bite-sized" goals. My philosophy, as well. I am now up to date with your thread. Speaking of goals, this is my favorite quote from you so far: "I just need to learn how to weld sheet metal." That's going to be a big "bite!"

Yeah, I want my car to remain as stock and correct as possible. But I don't mind a modification as long as it's invisible. This seemed like a perfect solution to the radio question.

Gotta love the Internet. A quick search led me to this discussion on an antique radio forum that explains the solenoid-operated "clutch" that disables the tuning knob when one of the push buttons is pushed. It also explains how to tune the push buttons. Good stuff. http://antiqueradios.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=59594

Thanks, but I'm already committed to Bill the Radio Guy. As I said, I will let everyone know how it works out.

Sure. Bill's quote for the restoration plus the FM/aux conversion was $325 to $350. The first guy I contacted wanted $900 just for the restoration! I talked to another guy in Southern California who said he was no longer doing restoration of pre-war radios, and he told me that Sonomatics are problematic (pun not intended) because the push buttons are activated by solenoid and he could never get them to work. Anyone have any information about that?

As a newbie, I am having a ball reading through these threads and getting up to date. It's like binge watching a new Netflix series! Kosage, I love this thread. I have only gotten as far as page 7, but I am enjoying every page. You had me hooked at the initial post about your father and grandfather. What a great background for a project! I also really enjoy your mantra, "Overall, easy task" at the end of many of your posts. I have a '41 and you have a '55, but it is amazing how much I am learning about my own car. I am really looking forward to catching up to the present and then following the rest of this thread!

After some emailing back and forth, I have decided to go with Bill the Radio Guy. I checked around and could find nothing but positive reports on him, and I looked at his YouTube channel where he shows various radios playing on the bench after he has restored them. I'm getting a full restoration plus the addition of FM and an aux jack so I can use an Ipod, etc., to play any music I want. The outward appearance of the radio is unchanged from stock. The price is about a third of what another shop quoted for the restoration alone, so we shall see. I will post the results when the job is finished, probably about two months from now.

Thanks. I will check Vince out.

As a newbie here, I am really enjoying reading through the various threads on people's projects. This is one of the most ambitious I have found yet! Kudos to you, Joe. I am blown away by the magnitude of what some of you guys have taken on. This forum is a fabulous resource, and I am learning something new with each click of my mouse. Thanks to all!

Thanks, Dave. When I first read your post, I thought it said that you had had 38 radios rebuilt! That would be a lot. What you say makes a lot of sense. I suppose there's a finite number of radio tubes in the world, and I assume no one is manufacturing them any longer. Since posting my question this morning, I have gotten another estimate, which was less than a third of the first. So it's a bit confusing. The lower bid was from Bill the Radio Guy in Washington state. http://www.billtheradioguy.com I was referred to Bill by another person I contacted who no longer does pre-war radios. Has anyone had experience with Bill? Any other suggestions? Thanks.

I am looking for someone to rebuild the Sonomatic radio from my '41. I am interested in a stock rebuild rather than a conversion, but I could be persuaded otherwise if the rebuild is too expensive. I have gotten one estimate so far, and was surprised at how high it was. I would be grateful for some suggestions for a good shop that won't charge me an arm and a leg. Thanks!

Thanks for the encouragement and advice!

Haha. Good one!

Hi Keith: Thanks for your advice. Harnesses Unlimited was actually the first place I found online, and I was wondering if they would be a good choice. The more I think about it, the more I am inclined to just go ahead and do it right. I am happy to hear that it is practical to put a new "front" harness in without removing the whole dashboard.

That's good news that it didn't turn out to be that big a job. I was already thinking it would be a good excuse to have the tank reconditioned and replace the rusty straps. As you said before, the 4 most expensive words for old car people: "While I'm in there..."