neil morse

Haha -- I'm sorry but I have to laugh when I think about the fact that you're concerned with the back sides of the wheels compared to the things I'm dealing with. But if you want to have a 100 point show car (and I'm sure your car is close), then i guess you have to be concerned about such things. However, I still don't understand your question about the type of paint that was originally used by Buick. If you want to paint the back sides of your wheels to match the front side, surely you will want to use the same kind of paint that was used on the front side, right? You say that they are not "bad enough to do a re-paint," but then you say that they are coming off and will be "done to match the rest." I'm confused, but either way, I would think you would want the back side of the wheels to match the front side, in other words, to be painted with the same paint as the front sides.

Since your paint isn't original, it seems irrelevant what Buick used originally. The question is what kind of paint was used when your car was repainted. The last time we discussed touch up paint, you seemed to agree with me that the seller must have information about the repaint, since it's apparent from the photos that your car has been repainted (and very beautifully, it would appear)! What happened when you tried to find out about the most recent repaint of your car?

Is it the weekend yet on Friday afternoon? What do I care -- I'm retired -- every day is Saturday now! 😜 Anyhow, went for a spin this afternoon and admired my beautiful city from a hilltop.

Thanks for posting this! It works great -- I found a lot of nice cars to look at.

I agree -- a great "time capsule" car, but the seller is a little optimistic on the price.

On my Buick, there's a valve where the hose exits the thermostat housing. Your car may also have been equipped with this. The idea was that it could be shut off during the spring and summer months and then opened for the fall and winter..

Two things: (1) He wants to trade for a boat. He already has a boat!! 😄 (2) All that green -- very 1973, for sure!

Great looking car! That curved windshield was trend-setting for the period for sure. A great project for someone -- unfortunately, too much for me right now. Good luck with the sale.

Matt (Hinson), I'm not sure you're familiar with what's involved in removing the gauges on a '41. I think on the '38 it's pretty easy to pull out the whole instrument cluster. On the '41 it's a major undertaking. I sounds like Matt (Harwood) will eventually want to replace the messed up wiring in his Limited with a new harness, and that will be the best time to deal with repairing/replacing the existing gauge. But in the meantime, getting a replacement dash unit will enable him to complete the diagnosis. That's my take, anyway.

Matt, I would buy another dash unit and continue. Since your test of the dash unit (until it got fried) showed that it was behaving exactly as the one in the car when it wasn't grounded, maybe there's a problem with the ground on the one that's in the car? That could be an easy fix (maybe that brass plate on the phenolic block is badly corroded or something). But getting the old unit out of the dash is not easy (trust me). NOS or used dash units come up pretty often on eBay, so I think it's worth getting another one so you can diagnose the problem and know where you stand. In fact, I just did a quick check and found this '41 Olds unit for $9.00 that I'm sure has the same guts as the Buick one and could probably be adapted fairly easily to fit the gauge face from your fried unit. https://www.ebay.com/itm/NOS-FUEL-GAUGE-FOR-1941-OLDSMOBILE-CARS-NEW-OEM-DASHBOARD-METER-OLDS-GAS/373019578574?epid=24014418199&hash=item56d9b310ce:g:xGEAAOSw4ApegSgt

Okay, I looked back at the wiring diagram and it indicates that Bloo is correct (no surprise) -- the gauge unit is grounded through the housing. (A little hard to see on this image.)

....

Okay, so my memory was wrong. The gauge housing needs to be grounded. That must be your problem.

Love the Rolls! -- probably being driven by Ramon Novarro or some other leading man of the silent era.

If I recall correctly, the gauge housing does not need to be grounded. My memory is that the contacts on the gauge are insulated from the housing. I agree with Ken -- this is all good stuff you are doing (although you may have chosen an awkward time to do it). 😜

Okay, I'll bite. What doesn't look original?

Um ... that's a Pontiac, not a Buick.

Don't despair, Matt. It's all pretty simple under there. I would be very surprised if you dislodged anything that's going to make your car not run. Let it sit for a while and then take a deep breath and try to see what's going on with the wires. I know it's hard to see under there -- if you have one of those LED flashlights with a magnetic swivel mount, that can make a big difference. And if you DO end up putting in a new harness and need any advice, I'm your man. Neil

1941 Buick Century Sedanette in Grass Valley, CA. If the seller's description of condition is accurate, this looks like a very good price. "Selling my 1941 Buick The very rare 2 door century areo sedan model. This car is in amazing condition. Car is 98% rust free. All original sheet metal. Only one repaint many years ago. Interior is original. Car has new breaks new rebuilt rear end with tall gears to keep up with modern cars. Recent tune up rebuilt carbs , adjusted valves. This car runs great and you can drive it anywhere with confidence. Tires are older and I would replace them if you planned on lots of summertime driving. Clean title. Located in grass valley." https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/525734798083707/

Thanks, Bob, that's very helpful. I have several 1 oz. bottles of touch up paint plus a spray can of the same paint that I got from the same supplier. It's lacquer. Would the Preval spray gun be a better way to go than just using the spray can? I made some progress today on step 1.

Bob's has the canvas strip material ("Fuel Tank Strap Cushion") for $1.75 a foot. https://bobsautomobilia.com/fuel-system/fuel-tank-strap-cushion-1-1-4.-fl-125/ As you no doubt noticed, the canvas strips on top are not glued, but held to the brackets by tabs that go through holes in the straps and then are bent. You can use a punch to make holes in the new material and use the same tabs to hold it in place. I used contact cement to glue the cushion material to the straps that go under the tank.

I've been as careful as I can, but for a different reason. I'm intent on not putting those dimples back in the pan that I so carefully hammered out when I had the pan off. I'm pretty sure that I haven't torn or crushed the gasket anywhere.

My car has an older repaint in what I think was the original color (Royal Maroon), but I can’t be sure because the data plate is missing. I was able to get the paint matched and have touch up paint in small bottles plus a spray can. I’m happy with the match, and have touched up a lot of little dings and chips successfully. However, I need advice about trying to repair several larger areas where the paint has chipped off. The only time I attempted an area larger than a small chip, I had trouble getting a smooth glossy surface that matched the paint around the chip area. This was undoubtedly because I have no experience with paint and no idea what I’m doing! I used a polishing compound that works well in restoring a shiny surface to areas with surface scuffs and light scratches, but with the newly painted area the compound would not produce a shine – i.e., the color match was good but the surface remained dull and didn’t match the shine of the paint around the area. In addition to my general lack of experience, I think the problem is two-fold: (1) I am timid about sanding because I don’t want to make things worse by putting scratches in the good paint around the chip that I can’t get out, and (2) I’m lazy and impatient and want the job to be done very fast which is probably unrealistic! Here’s a pic of the area I would like to repair. It’s on the trunk lid next to one of the hinges, and measures about an inch by an inch-and-a-half. I’m not looking for an “invisible” repair – I would just like it to look better. How should I approach this job? Thanks in advance for your help.