neil morse

And yes, that Focke Wulf 190 qualifies as an airplane -- it's just smaller than the kind that people ride in!

Very tempting -- but no place to put it (which is probably a good thing for the health of my marriage). 😄

That one seems a bit more ambiguous to me. I think it's intended to represent "speed," but it seems that it could be a train, a boat, or a plane. It's the tapering tail of the '41 ornament that really seems to say "train" to me.

My favorite part of the ad is this line: "This car is beautiful as is, but could really shine with some restoration." 😄

Which one would you take? With all due respect to the Buick, I think I'd have to go with the Impala convertible. But I have to admit that the "wide-track" Pontiac flat-top looks amazing, too.

Repainting the inlays is the easiest thing in the world and one of the quickest ways to give your car a sharper look. Just get some black paint (I used Rustoleum semi-gloss), apply a generous coat in the recess, and wipe off the excess with a clean rag and you're done. If you don't get all the excess, you can just wait until it dries and carefully get it with paint thinner. Trust me, you can do this -- you don't need a steady hand!

I was staring at the hood ornament on my '41 today and realized, for the first time, that it's not just a blob of chrome, but was clearly inspired by the streamline steam locomotives of the '30's. I thought this was interesting because it's an indication that, as of 1941, the locomotive was still regarded as the pinnacle of power. Remember, Superman was "more powerful than a locomotive!" After the war, of course, automotive design imagery shifted to the airplane and the rocket ship, with the P-38 inspired '48 Cadillac and the '49 Oldsmobile Rocket 88.

When a seller says, "Looking for 12500 or best offer," you know you can get it for a lot less. I've never quite understood the strategy behind using language like that. Why start out right off the bat telegraphing the fact that your asking price is artificial? Anyhow, looks like a clean, solid car.

John: Ouch! I somehow completely missed the red '53 Skylark. However, I agree that the "40 in the middle height wise and on the extreme right" is a Chevy. So I'm going to stick to 11 -- my final answer!

I can only find 10. I see a '41, not a '40, and I only see one '53. Otherwise, I agree with you. 1-41 1-50 1-53 1-55 2-56 1-57 1-59 2-60

Yeah, after I posted about your fan I looked at the photo again and realized that it's not too practical since it blocks the view of the gauges. I wonder if it could be mounted down on either side? Anyhow, I'm glad to hear that you cleaned it up since it's a great "funky" period accessory.

Hi Gary: I just tested the Bob's sending unit outside the tank to make sure it was working, and then installed it. I did not have to calibrate it since it was reasonably accurate the way it came out of the box. The needle reads "full" when the tank is full, and there are about three gallons in the tank when it reads "empty." I know I read in the manual that the gauge is designed so that there's a "reserve" when it reads "empty," but I think it's supposed to be less than three gallons. I figure having a bigger "reserve" is not a bad thing -- especially since my car gets about 10 miles to the gallon on a good day with a tail wind, so I just left it that way without fussing any more with it. Yes, the unit I got from Bob's has a metal float as opposed to a cork. On the connection, I know that it's better to have as little rubber as possible in your fuel lines, but I opted for the "rubber hose" connection because that's the way it was on the old one and I wasn't comfortable trying to convert the existing line to a flare fitting. Neil

If you click once on them, they will return to a normal aspect ratio.

Robby, if you end up dropping the oil pan, here's a good tutorial that Dave Stovall posted on a thread I started when I needed advice on dropping the pan. The front crossmember is in the way, but the front four bolts are accessible through holes in the crossmember. The next four bolts (two on each side) going back are the most difficult to reach, but you can get them with a swivel socket.

But aren't the blades made of flexible rubber? That's what it looks like.

I put in a new sending unit from Bob's on my '41 few years ago, and it's been working perfectly. (By the way, the photo you posted reminds me that I wonder what became of that period "air conditioning" fan that was on your car when you got it. I think I posted earlier that I was hoping that you would restore the fan as carefully as you restored everything else on your car. Did you retain the fan? I hope so since I think it's a great vintage touch!) Neil

Just curious -- what is it about this type of odometer that makes it easy to adjust?

Wow, just a few miles from my house. I will have to check this out.

A re-run, but a good one! Eddie Robinson and Kirk Douglas at Cannes. That's back when trousers were trousers!

You're welcome, Bill. My Royal Maroon '41 Super 4-door came from Ventura -- I wonder if you ever saw it around? It was owned by a fireman from about 2000 to 2015; I don't know what part of town he lived in. I agree about the '40 you describe. It seems odd to go to the expense of a paint job -- a very high ticket item if it's done right -- and leave everything else in such bad shape.

Very nice! This seems like a screaming deal considering the fresh, professional rebuild of the engine, nice correct interior, etc. I'm suspicious of the claim of 21,000 "original" miles given the wear on the pedal pads and the parking brake handle. I suspect it's 121,000 well cared-for miles, but I would still be sorely tempted if I were in the market for another collector car.

Wow, I've never heard of a Nash Ajax, but that looks like a fun little car.

And someone went to a lot of work to fashion an incorrect interior out of that mouse-fur! It seems a shame that the same amount of work wasn't spent putting it right. Otherwise looks like a nice car.

If I were you, I would forget about adding the butt connector. I think it just introduces another possible failure point. I would either cut the wire as you propose and directly solder it back together after sliding some heat shrink into the wire farther upstream that you can then slide into place. Or just cut the terminal off and solder on a new one, again using heat shrink. You can buy all the old school style terminals and wire you need from a place like Rhode Island Wire Services. https://www.riwire.com/

While we're looking at drive-ins ...