Bloo

It was done with "file fit" rings, and those may have been less than .010 over the bore size in practice. I think .010 may have been considered a bit much. If you file a ring too much to get it in a smaller bore, it gets less round. The ring gap would have to be set with the ring down at the bottom of ring travel to be sure it would not be too tight at the bottom and break. The gap at the top would be too loose because of the taper, but not as loose as standard rings. This is rarely if ever done today.

Firedome Special (Desoto)

How are you measuring the rim? Needs to be at the bottom of the bead (smallest diameter).

Yep, thats a bathtub Nash. I had a 51 Statesman. Great car!

Easily one of the best looking American cars of the post-2000 era. Collectible? I don't know.

It is going to get hot. I don't see any asbestos, I wouldn't want any today either. A resistance of the original value will dissipate the same amount of heat when used with the same bulbs, period. You could use a modern resistor, Something much larger would reduce the surface temperature, even though the total amount of heat released would be the same. Then you would probably have to support the resistor, and do so with something that would not catch fire. I just looked again and I still don't see asbestos. If this were a tube around the outside of the coil, perhaps you could use some of the fiberglass woven tubing used as high temperature insulation in appliances. If the bulbs were of a different candlepower (that would imply a different wattage), the resistance of the coil would have to change also to get similar dimming results. Assuming this resistor dims both bulbs, you need the correct wattage bulbs, both in the circuit, wired as they are in the car, for any sort of meaningful test.

Do you know what pantasote was made of? Wikipedia has this graphic that says "Will not burn! Imitations burn violently". I gather it wasn't nitrocellulose.....

The big Buick transmission is bigger, much heavier duty, and has a 6 bolt top cover. It also has a shift tower that sticks up high like most other transmissions of the period. Edit: found a picture.

Thats the biggest Boyco can I have ever seen.

It is late 30s Buick Special.... If it were Pontiac, it would have the speedo gears below the u-joint, a front bearing retainer (but no sleeve), and a Chevrolet-style torque tube ball. If it were Oldsmobile, it would be configured for an open driveline.

Six Cylinder: Eight Cylinder:

Six Cylinder: Eight Cylinder:

Turn signals in 1930? We are going to need to know more about what you have and how it is wired to really troubleshot this. Also, whether the signals come on but don't blink, or don't come on at all. My initial wild guess is that your taillights and signal lights aren't grounded.

Follow the current flow. Some cars run the battery negative cable to the frame (and or body), and then another one from the frame (and or body) to the starter (or engine or transmission). In this scenario all cables (positive too!) must be equally big and good. Some cars run the negative cable directly to the starter (or engine or transmission). In this scenario, the positive and negative must be big good cables because they carry starter current. The cable back to the frame (and or body) must exist, and be really good because almost all other electrical equipment uses it, but because the starter current does not go through it, it does not need to be as big. It can be as big as the others if you want and it wont hurt anything.

V means it has the optional right hand sun visor. D is for "duco" paint (lacquer) on the fenders. That implies they are the same color as the body (I think). Yes, theres a badge. IIRC it says "Pontiac 8". Hood ornaments are different between the 6 and the 8.

Don't worry about fatigue with age unless it is kicking off. If it is kicking off, temporarily put an ammeter in series with it to make sure excessive current draw isn't to blame. If it is bad, replace it.

Is Perugia Blue a dark navy blue? I read the tag as a 17. I can't seem to make 18 out of it.

Welcome from another 36 Pontiac owner! That looks like a Deluxe Eight four door touring sedan (sedan with trunk), with "Taupe Plush" (mohair velvet) upholstery, and Weynonah Maroon paint. There are 2 clubs for these early Pontiacs, Early Times Chapter http://www.earlytimeschapter.org , and Oakland Pontiac Worldwide https://www.oaklandpontiacworldwide.com/ . Early times chapter in particular used to have a bunch of good info online. They are apparently re-doing their website, but you can still get some of it from the Internet Archive: https://web.archive.org/web/20171124030007/http://www.earlytimeschapter.org:80/etclibrary.html Restoration guide by Bob Shafto and Andy Lee: https://web.archive.org/web/20170317134045/http://www.earlytimeschapter.org/documents/36_restoration_guidebook_feb_06.pdf Parts list (though I recommend you find a complete "master" parts book (avoid anything called a "wholesale parts manual"). It can and probably should be a few years newer as they cover several years. There were a whole bunch of mid year changes in 1936: https://web.archive.org/web/20170317194133/http://www.earlytimeschapter.org/documents/1935-36_parts_book.pdf Here is a list of style numbers. They are a big deal in Pontiac, because they tell you what you have. For instance, there were at least 3 different bodies in 1940.... https://web.archive.org/web/20170317151316/http://www.earlytimeschapter.org/vehicles1926-1954stylecodes.pdf Post a picture of your car sometime! Here's a picture of my 1936 Master Six:

The high spot in the middle goes toward the nut.

I have been looking for a suitable switch for my 36 Pontiac for a while now. To be perfectly clear, I don't believe in disconnect switches at all, as I have seen so much trouble. Every connection matters, and so does every piece of wire between the battery and the starter. To make a car crank with authority, you remove as many connections as possible, and improve the ones you can't get rid of. Here is a typical situation with a lever switch, you are adding: 1) a crimp connection from the connector where your new cable bolts to the frame, to the cable itself (solder would be better), 2) a crimp connection from the wire back to another connector at the switch (solder would be better here too), 3) a pressure connection from the connector to the nuts on the switch, 4) a connection from the nuts, through the threads, to the copper bolt that forms the switch contact, 5) a connection from the copper bolt to the copper disc that does the switching, 6) a connection from the disc to the other copper bolt 7) a connection from the copper bolt to the nuts and finally 8.) a connection from those nuts back to the battery cable that was originally bolted to the frame. Adding all that causes voltage drop, maybe a little or maybe a lot, and generally gets worse over time. Nevertheless, my Pontiac has it's original wiring harness, and though it is in fairly good shape, I would prefer to shut things off when I am not using the car. An ounce of prevention, etc.. I looked into those "green knob" switches because they appear to add less connections than some of the other options, and being made of brass, there would be no dissimilar metal connection between it and my negative cable terminal. The thing was, I didn't quite have room for it. I bought a couple of versions and set about modifying them to fit in the available space. I broke the first one. Guess what I found out? You really have to take one apart to see what the issues are. First of all, there is an area where the current is not flowing through much metal at all, that is where it broke. Secondly, it is not made of brass, it is a cheap zinc casting dyed gold. I looked around thinking I could find a better quality version. Nope. There are several versions but the suppliers all say "color: brass" or some such nonsense to cover up the fact it isn't, or they don't say at all. I contacted a bunch of sources, and I do not believe a brass version, or any sort of a high quality version of this part exists. Prove me wrong, and I'll buy one. Still looking for the best option for a switch..... I would be game to try the Australian one if it weren't so expensive to ship. It looks like it would actually fit under my battery cover.

I too would go for 6.70-15, the stock size. It just looks better IMHO. Especially with the narrower wide whites as shown in the 1953 print ads. However, if you want the big tires, I think it will work. I ran 235-70-15 (huge) radials on my 53 Bel-Air for a while when I was a teenager. It worked fine, and I'm sure they were way out of spec for the rims. They probably touched at full steering lock, I don't recall. If you have a stickshift like I did, you might welcome the taller gearing. It was 3.73 or so, and just fine on 6.70-15 tires, but the speed limit was 55 MPH then. The stickshift engine still has cast iron pistons and squirt gun oiling like a 216, and too much RPM is always a concern. If you have a Powerglide, I have no idea whether taller tires would be a good thing or not.

On most cars, the spring sets the start position (and the fast idle), and the piston pulls the choke to the run position, not all the way open. Carter DID make something that pulls the choke all the way open on start, my 36 Pontiac does that. I am not sure how that even works, but it runs good. That setup is NOT normal.... I'll bet by 41, the piston works like normal more modern cars, and just pulls the choke to a good run position. That would be closer to open than you would expect! Then the choke opens slowly the rest of the way as the car warms up. If it were me, I would want both chokes doing the same thing on a car with a synchronized linkage like yours. If it floods on start, set the thermostatic coils looser. When it starts, both should snap to the same place, because the little pistons take care of that. There is probably an adjustment for the piston position vs choke position, usually called "choke pull off".

600W is steam cylinder oil. 600W is not the viscosity, it is a brand. The "600" probably referred to the flash point in degrees Fahrenheit. The brand is owned by Mobil today, and they make two different viscosities of steam cylinder oil under that name. Back when your Buick was new, I suspect steam cylinder oil was mostly not petroleum, it was vegetable or animal or something (so I've heard). When the auto industry started to replace it with petroleum gear oil in the mid 30s, they called the new stuff SAE 160. 160 did refer to the viscosity, but that standard no longer exists.

What happens when you floor it to hit the unloader? It seems (without being there to see it), that if one carb doesn't have a choke, then that one carb would be wide open at WOT, and the other carb open whatever amount the choke unloader kicks it open. The choke unloader probably doesn't need to do much if there is another carb wide open. Add a choke to the other carb, and wouldn't you need both of the choke unloaders to be set a lot more aggressive? Jon- What is the purpose of an unloader if not to clear out a cold engine that the owner accidentally flooded? That is the only thing I have ever used them for. It has worked for me getting screwed up cars driven into the shop more times than I can count. (I agree completely that something was probably set too rich to flood it in the first place).