Bloo

Here are some 50s trunk stuff displays from the 2021 Flathead Pontiac Reunion you guys might like: And then there is this thing. I couldn't stop looking at it. It is a metal can, and those things stuck in the foam rubber in top are bulbs. In the bottom is a spare sealed beam headlight, one of the old metal backed ones. What a great 50s accessory, and practical too.

We didn't typically have a rock salt problem out west. Dirt? Yes. It was mixed in with the sand they used instead of rock salt. I'm not entirely convinced the SoCal people ever got snow at all, but we sure got a lot of it up here in eastern WA in those days.

At the time the PB was made, torque wrenches were not yet common in the automotive world. On some cars, you can look at a later version of the same engine, but I don't think that helps with the PB. @ply33 do you know anything about this?

Some 30s Fords also have an ignition resistor. Also old Buicks with the "mailbox" coil (teens? 20s?). Some Dodge Brothers too. Maybe others. Two things I have NOT seen however, and would like to be proven wrong about: 1) A 6 volt coil of the round form factor we all know today that is made to be used with a resistor. 2) A 6 volt car with a "starting bypass" that shorts out the resistor, as commonly seen on 12 volt cars. Back on topic, I'm pretty sure there is no resistor or resistor wire in the 53 Buick this thread ia about.

That should work.

What tools are in there and what approximate year is that for?

I'm not sure i quite know enough to answer that. I don't have the right books to check, so some of this may be wild speculation. Still, I have some hints. There are 2 issues. 1 is a proper regulator for the 2 brush generator, the other is Buick Autostart. I'll tackle the generator first. A 2 brush generator will happily burn itself up trying to make more power than it is designed for. What limits it to its rating is the current regulator relay inside the voltage regulator assembly. A good possibility for a voltage regulator is one for a late 40s or early 50s Chevrolet. These were stamped "201" and "301", probably the last digits of a longer part number. They were 6 volt, negative ground, and had a fairly large generator, 40 amp I believe. If it matches, this will work as is. But, I don't know what generator you have. The good news is even if you have something smaller for a generator, the current can be set. The bad news is you need a generator test set to adjust it, and not everyone has that laying around. Delco had different part numbers for the regulators for smaller generators, and there might be several internal differences, but the big difference is the current setting. it is just a limit to keep the generator from burning up. It is adjustable. The other issue is Buick Autostart. 37 and 38 Buicks as you know came with a 5 terminal regulator. 3 of the terminals are the same as a 3 terminal regulator. Those are 1) "ARM" or "GEN' (goes to the generator brushes) 2) "FLD" (goes to the field terminal) and 3) "BAT" powers the car wiring and charges the battery. It probably goes to the ammeter or something in the dash. The other 2 consist of a) ignition which the 4-terminal replacement does not need and b) a ground for the autostart. The terminal is only grounded when the system is not charging. The starter relay gets it's power from the vacuum/throttle switch, and its ground from that terminal on the voltage regulator. The regulator terminal is a safety to make sure the starter cannot come on with the engine running. If the throttle is wide open, then there is theoretically no vacuum, so the vacuum switch might come on and try to engage the starter. But, if your foot is to the floor, the generator is probably charging. In that case the contact in the regulator would prevent the starter from engaging by removing the starter relay ground. Later when Buick only supplied 3-terminal replacement regulators, they had you ground the wire. The car still works but you lose that safety feature. I guess you could do that. There is a conversation going on in another thread where someone is possibly going to use a relay to get that safety feature back. I don't think he has tried it yet.

What did you keep spare bulbs in? A one owner 51 Nash I once acquired had a little drawstring pipe tobacco bag among the stuff in the glovebox. I am trying to recall what was in it. Not tobacco, and the former owner wasn't a smoker as far as I know. Maybe bulbs or fuses?

By process of elimination it almost has to be the armature. It's still a goofy failure. I suggest getting the armature tested if you can.

As Oldtech says, it is a separate deal. A properly regulated generator system will only supply current that is drawn by accessories, up to the limit of the generator and regulator. For instance, if you only have ignition on, and the ignition only draws 4 amps, then the generator only suppliers 4 amps, no matter how powerful the generator system is. If something draws more current than the generator can supply, then it should supply it's rated current and no more. It is held back from supplying more by the current regulator (on two brush systems) or by the third brush (on third brush systems). Now when a circuit breaker trips out, it is either defective, and tripping at lower current than it should, or something connected to the circuit breaker is drawing too much current. Usually something connected to the breaker is drawing too much current.

And you have continuity through the field coil?

Without trying taking a generator apart to try it, i think its normal. You should have continuity through the field, and open circuit from the field coil to the case (with it all apart). On the armature make sure its open circuit from all the segments to the shaft. Then run it. Spin the engine up to a fast idle, fast enough that it would have been charging when it worked, and ground the FIELD terminal. It should charge like crazy. If it does, look elsewhere for the trouble. If it doesn't, take the cover off the regulator, and do the same test again while pushing the cutout relay down manually. If it still won't charge then it is generator trouble for sure. More in-depth tests of the armature or field require a growler. It probably is an armature problem if the field passes and it still wont work, but I might have some more ideas for kludgey tests if it fails to work with the field grounded.

Dry-chem will destroy a running engine. I don't know what it does to paint. Of course if there is nothing else available you will use it, or sand, or whatever. Water will spread a fuel fire. My point was that other options are available that will put out the fire without causing more damage. Fire extinguishers are in my opinion not an area you should cheap out on. If a car backfires and starts the carburetor on fire while you are cranking it, keep cranking. It might suck the fire in and extinguish it, particularly if you can get the engine started. Also, many factory air filters are also flame arrestors, a point lost on a lot of guys who "prime" the carburetor with gas, and neglect to put the air filter back on before cranking. Never trust an old fuel hose, fuel injected or not. Yes FI cars can move a lot more fuel but they also had better hoses, not that it helps much 40 years later. The cheapo 35 pound hose used on carbureted cars from the 60s through the 80s is not lined. It shrinks and gets pinholes where the reinforcement threads cross. When I was working in gas stations as a kid, it was fairly common to lift the hood on a running car and see little streams of gas squirting in multiple directions from one of those hoses. The solution? A new section of that same crappy hose....

Maybe a whisk broom if the car has flat floors.

It probably is, but the first GMC motor was made with the old Buick Six tooling. I imagine they are not the same but pretty close! Poeple have swapped manifolds between the two I'm told. It appears to have overhead valves, so it cant be one of the engines GMC borrowed from Oldsmobile or Pontiac.

The regulators we have been discussing thus far are for a 3 brush generator, and to be more specific, a 3 brush generator with one field coli wired hot, and the other field coil wired to the third brush. That is a bit unusual, but was Buick practice from 37-39. The difference between a two core regulator and a three core regulator is the two core has 1) a cutout and 2) a voltage regulator. A 3 core adds 3) a current regulator. A third brush regulates current via the third brush, that's why the third brush exists. Two brush generators need a current regulator because they have no third brush. Running a 2 brush generator generator on a two core would theoretically work until one day something drew too much current (like a half-discharged battery). Then the generator would burn up. It might even literally catch fire. You could go back to a stock 37 Buick generator here (it's only a 25 amp system), or you could get an appropriate regulator for the 2 brush generator you have. It should be 3 core and negative ground, with the current matched to the generator size. If you are going to use your 2 brush generator, you need to figure out exactly what it is. If I remember correctly Delco 3 core regulators marked "201" or "301" were used on Chevrolets (and others) with 40 amp negative ground 2 brush generators. If you turn out to have a 40 amp generator, one of those might be the ticket.

One bolt is always worse than the other. It must be due to the direction of current flow. Those don't even look that bad. I have seen much worse erosion than that in many cases before they cease to work. Often most of the thickness is gone. You might want to make sure the solenoid is knocking that disc back the proper amount. The disc is spring loaded a tiny bit, or should be. The solenoid bottoms out but the spring loading allows the disc to touch slightly before the solenoid bottoms. As the bolts wear the spring ensures that the disc will still touch them. There is also an adjustment on the solenoid plunger (threads) that adjusts how far the drive gear pushes out. I would be sure to check that too. Nice looking work!

I don't know whether it explains all of your low vacuum or not, I suspect not, but 1/16" is an enormous leak.

I'll have to look up the 734z when I can get to some books, but this car should NOT have a 2 brush generator. All the regulators we have been discussing are for a 3 brush generator. If it has been updated to a 2 brush generator, then it needs a newer type voltage regulator with 3 cores. EDIT: 734z is a 1937 Buick starter, not a generator. EDIT 2: The correct generators for 1937 Buick are 918-B or 918-G (for Special), 918-A or 918H (for big Buicks). The only difference between the Special's generator and a big car generator is the pulley, but I can tell you from experience getting the Special's pulley separately can be a real pain. The difference between the early generators (918-B, 918-A) and the later ones (918-H, 918-G) is the size of the rear bushing. It is bigger in the early generators. The armature and rear end bell are different to make that happen. The later generator with the smaller bushing is more desirable in my opinion because that bushing is a standard Delco part used in a zillion generators and available from any auto electric store. The early rear bushing will have to be sourced by size from a bushing manufacturer, as auto electric sources do not have it. You will most likely have to buy several, and it will probably will need to be machined.

Drychem typically totals the car. If it is running, the engine will be destroyed. If it isn't the chances are better, but the hours of deep disassembly and cleaning involved still usually mean the car is totaled. You have no idea unless you have tried to fix one. Someone will fix this replica no doubt, as the Auburn ones are still worth more than you would expect. If it still had the Ford truck body on it, the party would be over.

One more thing actually.... The pilot bearing (or bushing if it is a bushing) comes into play with the clutch disengaged but the transmission in gear. Technically it could make noise in neutral too, but if it is dragging, it could spin the input shaft up instead of making a noise. No matter really, if you have the transmission out to service a throw out bearing, you should pull the clutch and scrutinize the pilot bearing (or bushing) while you are at it. If it is indeed a bearing instead of a bushing, there is no way to lubricate it without pulling the transmission and clutch out, so it probably hasn't had a drop of grease since new.

Real Auburn/Lycoming engines are almost unique among flathead straight eights, in that the intake and exhaust ports are on the left side. To be fair, some Graham and Continental flathead straight eights are like that too, but they are also uncommon. I don't believe we should be seeing exhaust pipes on the right side. Good advice about the fire extinguisher though. Even better if you have your own and it is something more appropriate for a car fire, like Halon, Halotron, CO2, or Element. Most likely the bystanders had dry chemical extinguishers because almost everyone does. They do a rather shocking amount of damage, and this is probably a lot worse than it looks. Still, it saved the car.

I don't have enough books handy to figure out what is what. Off the top of my head, I don't believe 1118213 is the original regulator for 1937. The original had 5 terminals, and Buick did not make them for very long. The first replacements had 4 terminals. That might be the 1118213, not sure. Later Buick suggested you replace it with a 3 terminal regulator. It is possible @MCHinson or @Gary W might know something about which regulators can be used. The original Buick update documents are floating around somewhere. I may be able to turn up some information later. I would prefer an original 5-terminal regulator. It will be only be available used, and will probably need a little work. Some things that would be useful for us to know in order to give you any advice: What is the number on the Delco tag on your generator? How many terminals did your old regulator have? How many wires are there at the regulator? Is there a wire at the regulator that has been cut off, taped, or is unused?

12 is in my opinion too low and not normal. As for the vacuum switch, when the car is floored, there is theoretically no vacuum because the throttle plate is open. In practice there is a little due to the restriction of the carb and intake system, but depending on it to keep the starter disengaged is shaky at best. That's why the safety contact in the regulator was put there. I understand that Buick recommended bypassing the safety when changing to a later style regulator. I have seen those instructions. However, on some later models, Buick found a way for the relay to "find" a ground through the generator and sort of have a safety again. It might be worth looking at the diagrams for some later models (1939 seems like a good choice), and compare to the diagram for the 37. There might be a way to get that safety function back. I don't have the proper manuals here to look it up.

The simplest way is probably going to be making them manual. One possible approach would be to figure out what the master cylinder bore size was on the C4, Maybe drop the bore size about 1/16". The master cylinder you get should have no residual pressure valves, or if it does, ones that are intended for four wheel disc. Many cylinders had an internal residual pressure valve for rear DRUM brakes, and you don't want that. Hope that the rear brakes are more powerful than they need to be, because if not, you may need different calipers back there. Set it up with a default manual brake pedal ratio. Get an adjustable proportioning valve for the rear brakes. Adjust down until the rears just don't lock. If you still cant reasonably lock the fronts, consider downsizing the master cylinder bore a tiny bit more.