TampaRiv
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Posts posted by TampaRiv
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Well, with a simple search on the interwebs, I found my own answer. It's an American tale of the rise and fall of the middle class. I was just a boy in those days. But I know every inch of that area, and I can tell you that to this day it hasn't recovered. This is the problem with capitalism in my opinion: the bottom line is money and how cheaply something can be produced without regard to the standard of living of the guys and gals on the line doing the work. Sure, in the 50s, it worked great as you can read in this excellent article from Columbus Monthly.
But eventually greed took over, production was exported to countries paying their workers very low wages, and us Americans were left holding the bag.
Now here we are, wondering where to go from here. Read this article, it's informative from a collector car standpoint and a historical Americana standpoint.
https://www.columbusmonthly.com/article/20141222/NEWS/312229435
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Hello again Riviera brothers,
As I continue the re-hab of my door panels, I removed the veneer section of the driver's side tonight, and discovered this stamp on the backside of the panel. Does anybody know what this stamp means?
I know there was a Fisher Guide plant in my hometown of Columbus, Ohio. It was located on the west side where I grew up. It's long closed now, many years shuttered then finally demolished to make way for a casino.
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Thanks fellas.
Ed, the laminate sheet (Wilsonart "Zanzibar") comes in a 4X8 sheet, so the grain runs the full 96 inches. The holes were easily cut with a 1.25" spade bit on the bench.
Re:the console piece, I peeled off the original black vinyl, and used it to create a jig in 3/4" plywood. Next, I used a couple of small dots of hot glue to adhere the laminate to the jig, then I was able to router-cut the piece using my laminate router with a piloted laminate bit. I separated the cut piece from the jig with a drywall knife. I then fastened a 1.5" wood dowel to the bench, indexed the location of the bend on the backside of the piece, and used a heat gun on the piece to bend it. After some very patient fitting/sanding/adjusting, I had that bent piece perfectly cut. I attached the upper portion first, clamping it securely at the bend. Once it set at the bend, I then glued the portion around the shifter in place using tiny spring clamps from Harbor Fake tool. It took 4 tries to do that center piece....the first one I broke while sanding on it; two of them I marred, and finally I got smart and covered it in blue tape.
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Hello Gents. Last week I posted about door veneers, and got a lot of valuable input on the subject. Mine had been long-replaced with laminate, but it wasn't done so well, so I decided to re-do them. I chose laminate again, figuring it would be easier to work with than real wood veneer. Here's how I did it....
I removed the old Formica from the panels and scraped off all the old contact cement from the substrate. I then wiped it down with acetone to completely clean the surface.
I templated some jigs to match the pieces, then router-cut them, and test fitted them to make sure they were accurate. I then took a sharpie marker and went around the inner perimeter to black out any gaps, which were minimal.
Once the substrate was ready, I assembled 10 really strong magnets, 10 laminate chip cards, and a tube of clear silicone caulk. I applied the silicone in fine beads, pressed the laminate into place, and applied the magnets to hold the veneers in place.
I even did the console, and it looks factory!
I had enough material to make 2 extra sets of door panels, which I can ship to your location for $100, shipping included. Let me know if you are interested. These look great, fit well, are easy to install. Rich
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Did the '63 Riv have quatersawn Oak, or quartersawn Walnut?
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I decided to go with laminate. I found a very nice Wilsonart Walnut-looking laminate, very close to the original wood color. I have about 3/4s of the pieces made and installed, they look fantastic. Unfortunately I'm having camera issues, but once the job is completed I will post photos of the finished product.
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Welcome JDJ5000,
I got in league with these guys about 18 months ago, and they've really helped me with my '63. They know their stuff.
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Thanks Ed. Sure, I'd like to see the set you've got, go ahead and post the photos here on this thread, I'm sure everyone would be interested in seeing them too.
Rich
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Good evening gents. I am looking for a source for the 4 veneer pieces for the door panels to my '63 Riv. My car is Teal Mist with Deluxe interior, in white. Some years back, some previous owner had the original pieces replaced with Formica laminate, and it really looked pretty good. But, time and heat have caused these pieces to delaminate, so now I'm looking to replace them.
My questions are as follows:
*Were there different colors of wood veneers available for the '63 Deluxe interior, and is there a color chart out there?
*I see on the interwebs that veneer kits are available for the console, but those kits don't seem to include the door panels. SO, did any Rivs '63-'65 actually come with veneered consoles, or just the black stick-on vinyl?
*Attachment method? I'm disinclined to use regular contact cement. Is there another glue out there I don't know about?
I am leaning toward laminate, and using a good quality polyurethane adhesive instead of contact cement. As I see so many Rivs with bad door panel veneers, I just don't think that real wood is the way to go. And I don't plan to take the car to Pebble Beach.
Let me know what you think, and thanks as always, Rich in Tampa
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OH man, that looks awesome Jan. Now some outside pics! I'll take some interior shots tomorrow and post them. Wow the black really works nice with the Teal Mist.
ALSO, thanks to everyone for your suggestions and opinions on the tail light issues. I plan to use those suggestions and others and get this problem solved ASAP. I have already been rear-ended twice now, with one freshly recommissioned 1969 Volvo 1800 totalled as a result. I loved that car.
Cheers from Tampa, and thanks again to all!
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OK, now I'm learning something. I went back out tonight after posting, and since it was dark I was able to do some tests. I used both my Riv and my 67 Newport. The results were the same....the LED bulbs were slightly brighter, and in both cars they would not blink.
With regards to the Riviera, both tail lights seemed just fine....I had good running lights, good turn signals, and good brake lights. Now, this could be that it was dark, and my friend was following me this afternoon in full sunshine. And, of course, the Riv's tail lights are small.
So Jan, does the turn signal flasher just plug into the same place as the stock signal flasher? And where is that?? On the fuse block northwest of my left foot? And Jan, I'd love to see some photos of your car in Teal Mist/Black int. Mine is Teal Mist/white.
Cheers from Tampa and thanks as always to all you guys.
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Hello gents, In the interest of doing my research (as some members seems to insist on), I'm here to research opinions on brake lights/tail lights. A car buddy of mine told me this afternoon that my brake lights were very dim.
Some time ago, I bought some cheapie LED 1157 bulbs from ebay in an effort to solve this problem, but as it turned out, the LEDs were dimmer than the incandescent ones! SO......if I got more expensive LEDs, would they be brighter? (The Auto Zone has LED 1157s for about $20 each....yikes! Or, is there a wiring issue, as in corroded wire or weak ground? OR, is the red lens obscuring the light, or is it just that tail lights weren't that bright in 1963? I appreciate any constructive input on this issue.
ALSO, if I didn't already mention, the brake booster/dual master cylinder from OPG is working great, and thanks to Jim Cannon for his help as I worked through the installation and re-plumbing.
Cheers from Tampa, Rich
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Hello Olds guys. What's the market like for a '74 Toronado? There is one here in Tampa for sale for 4500, and it needs some stuff. I'd be tempted to buy it and fix it up for something to do, but I'd want to get my money back if I decided that the car wasn't my cup of tea. I have a '63 Riviera and a '67 Newport, so I like the big cars. But it seems that the interest in the Toros is pretty flat, except for the 66 of course. Let me know what you think, and thanks, Rich in Tampa
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Thanks all who responded. The photos and advice will be most helpful.
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Thanks RivNut. Can you be more specific?
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Hello guys, I'm starting to plan for a Vintage Air system in my '63 Riviera.
I have a local guy here in Tampa who is a crack restorer, and has done a number of these installations, and his work looks top-notch. My question: did I read/hear somewhere that the dash pad can be easily removed on the Riv, allowing for full access to the dash from the top?
I thought I read this with regards to accessing the gauges, but I might have dreamed this. Let me know, and thanks as always for your helpful responses.
Rich in Tampa
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Hello again,
I'm converting my '63 Riv to a dual master cylinder setup. After some research (for the "facts"), it seems there are too many choices and too many opinions out there. My booster is inoperable, so when I saw the OPG setup with booster and dual master for $299 with free shipping, it seemed to be a good solution.
Having my booster re-built was looking pretty spendy, and the shops are swamped. Concours originality isn't necessary in my case. I don't love OPG, but their kit sure seems to fill the bill at the right price for booster and dual master. I realize there is some plumbing to do, but that's not a problem.
Has anyone used their booster/dual master combo?
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What did they charge? I need the same rebuild and the candy too.
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So Ed, if I were to convert to the Mobil 1 Synthetic, would it be a matter of simply changing the oil and filter? Thanks to all you guys for your input, I knew you'd have the answers.
By the way, it's miserably hot and humid here in Tampa (our "Polar Vortex", only in reverse!). I did take the Riv out for a drive today, but without the AC working, it was brutal. In another month's time, we'll be enjoying the nice weather all through the winter months until June. Everything's a trade-off I guess.
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Hello Gents,
My '63 Riv is running great, but some discussion with my car buddies has me wondering if I should use a different oil than the standard 10W-30 I use.
Those guys were talking about various additives (zinc is one I recall them mentioning), so it got me wondering if there is a reason to use a different oil than just a plain old 10W-30, which I figured was what was recommended by Buick back in '63. As usual, I only have questions and no answers.
Thanks for any advice,
Rich in Tampa
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Wow, thanks for the support Ed. I was absolutely convinced some joker would chime in and tell me I'm an idiot who doesn't know what I'm doing, and tell me how to do it!
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Hello lads, greetings from balmy Tampa,
I ordered an 8-piece set of window weatherstrips for my '63 Riv from our friends in NJ, about 92 bucks. They look OK, but came with no usable instructions. But I've done them on my '65 Skylark, so I thought it would be relatively easy and possibly enjoyable. NOT!
I started with the front RH outer piece, which, is NOT a piece of rubber that would seal against the glass and keep rain out. No, it's a fuzzy strip, more like what you'd expect to be on the inside of the glass. Long story short, only 2 of the 3 holes lined up, and only the aft-most screw was possible to attach....the glass was in the way, and it was impossible to insert the supplied screws and drive them with a screwdriver. AND, it was a bitch to get the old piece of weatherstrip out, as it was stapled to the trim piece. Maddening.
Next, I studied the inner front piece (which has rubber weatherstrip, ironically), and concluded that the only way to replace this piece was to have the inner door card (panel) removed. I think that removing the inner door cars requires removing the outer door skin....am I right? Plus, the weatherstrip piece is riveted to the door card bolster, and tucks in under the vent window assembly, so man-o-man, it just seems impossible short of a full-on dismantling of the doors.
The rear windows seem easier, as the glass gets out of the way. My question: suppose you disassemble the doors completely, fit the new weatherstripping, put it all back together, and damn! the windows aren't lined up correctly to as to make exact contact with the weatherstripping?? Then you are again disassembling the outer door panel, messing with the window tracks to achieve proper alignment, and re-assembling again to check your work. It's insane.
My conclusions are as follows:
*Buick's weatherstripping engineering from the era was not too good.
*Aftermarket weatherstripping is currently not that good either.
*Unless you are doing a full-blown restoration, don't bother trying to replace the window weatherstripping.....even if you get it installed without hanging yourself in the garage, it isn't likely to keep water out of the doors. I have gotten into the habit of blue-taping the window openings before I wash the car to keep excess water out, and so even after I get the new pieces installed, I will still need to do that.
Cheers gents,
Rich in Tampa
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Hello guys from steamy Tampa.
I re-painted my door jambs on the '63 Riv this weekend, and then today I got the passenger side door seal (weatherstrip) installed. I bought it from the guys over in NJ, and the piece seemed like first-quality, everything lined up great. Before I installed the weatherstrip, and with the jamb keeper removed, and the old crusty weatherstrip gone, the door fit great...not binding anywhere, all panel lines and margins were very good.
BUT, with the new weatherstrip installed (a very nice and accurate job I might add), the door really has a hard time closing. I mean, it's like the old VWs from the 60s, which would allow the car to float! With an overly-firm close, the door will shut, and and the door fits nice with the body. MY QUESTIONS: *Can I expect the weatherstrip to ease up and settle in/compress, allowing the door to close more easily? *Has anyone done this to their cars, and did you experience the same issue? *I could adjust the striker/keeper to allow for an easier close, but then the door wouldn't sit as flush with the body as it does now.
Any advice would be appreciated. It makes me wonder how tight the weatherstrip was when the cars left the factory.
Cheers, Rich in Tampa
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Hello Gents, it's Rich here in sweltering Tampa. I was up in Columbus for a couple of months working over the summer, and now I'm back in FL, resuming work on the '63 Teal Mist. One sidetrack that occurred up in Ohio is that I "rescued" another car, a '67 Chrysler Newport Custom. I'd seen the car last year on the street, but didn't think to inquire about it. Then, this year, I saw it again, so I ended up putting a note on the car, and ultimately bought the car for just $1250. I then proceeded to recommission the old Mopar in much the same way as I did the Riviera...lots of new engine bolt-on parts, new brakes and tires etc. etc. So here are a couple of photos of the old barge. I like big boats and I cannot lie!
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Door Veneers, I did it!
in Buick Riviera
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Thanks XFRAMEFX, The contact cement that the previous Formica inserts had been applied with failed, probably due to heat inside the car. That's why I went with the silicone. My ash tray assembly is gone, so I just cut a piece of 1/4" PVC and covered it with the laminate, and found that tri shield on ebay out of St. Petersburg. The guy sells them in pairs, brand new.