old-tank

You should not need oil if the system has oil..if unsure add 2-4 oz. You will need a service wrench like Klein Tools® U.S. Steel Ratcheting Refrigeration Wrench, 5 1/2 in (L) | Staples® . Otherwise use normal R-12 hoses, etc. You can figure out the can tap after you have the product, but a side puncture type should work. Willie

Envirosafe says not to pull a vacuum before installing and that did not work because it froze up internally. Discussion with their technical support said that for systems with a rear evaporator you should use their industrial product. The suggestion that they supply that product at no charge or reduced charge was declined, so it was not tried. Any of the substitutes for R-12 should use Ester oil (never Pag oil) since the original mineral oil will not circulate correctly. Some substitutes are mixtures that leak out at different rates; some are flammable (so is gasoline and there is much more of that); 1,1 Difluoroethane (R-152A) is just about as efficient as R-12 and has many of the same properties and has been used successfully by some. It is not widely available as a dedicated refrigerant, but is the ingredient in 3M Duster. I would consider it if I run out of R-12. I have seen R-134a used in a 55 with mediocre results. Willie

Joe It is the crappy switches. I have to replace the switch nearly every 2 years on my cars with glycol fluid...once in 12 years on the one with silicone fluid. On my long distance driver I have a mechanical switch since the hydraulic switch would be very hard to replace on the road. Willie

opera singer?

The K-75 should be all you need. That is an original Moog part number back when those car were contemporary. Just that bushing solved some really loose idlers. Willie

Dan The Carter WCFB is an extremely easy carb to rebuild and set up. Especially if it is original to your car and was previously working well and no one else has messed with it. The only ones that gave me fits were those melted from a fire, corroded from years of weather exposure, 'rebuilt' by others ( mixed up jets, mixed parts from other years ). Midtown Restorations Austin Tx (buick5563 on these forums) should be able to do it if you don't want to tackle it. Willie

Jim Change those good looking points and do all the other checks others have suggested and you had planned. Get some fresh gas from a high volume station, preferably ethanol free (sounds like the highly volatile gas is boiling over in the carb --- gas sold a few months ago was even more volatile than currently available). I recently had a set of good quality NAPA points just go dead while driving. They had less than 500 miles and filing and sanding would not revive them. I had flooding issues from volatile gas boil over a few times on my trip to and from the Nationals last year: once on B-P, the other on Valero. Install a cheap glass pack or a straight section of pipe until you get the backfiring sorted out: correct mufflers are expensive. Willie

Jerry Adjust the brakes after every run like that. I have found up to 20 clicks difference between wheels that I thought were precisely adjusted before seating the shoes. Willie

Paul I have not looked for R-12 in a while, still have some from long ago. Others have used Freeze12 as a substitute. I also recover the refrigerant before opening a system. Willie

Leak internally? His business motto must be: "if you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullsh!t". The only way to tell if the radiator can or cannot be rodded is to take the top tank off. If it has not been removed he is for sure standing by his motto. If the tank has been removed and an attempt made to rod it out and tubes were destroyed, then you need a new core. I would still take it to another place rather than reward this guy for bad behavior. Willie

Now that I know who is staying home I guess it is safe for me to go. (I owe some of them money or beers). Willie

Rick Are you sure it is the dynaflow and not the carb? The only surging I have experienced was carb related and specific to the Rochester 4GC.....that and and other driveablity problems cleared up when I installed a Carter WCFB. Willie

Robert Yours is normal...the other one has been restored. Willie

Paul Most 55's I have seen have the drier as part of the receiver behind the front bumper, and since that is not available anymore, I install a drier at the connection in the liquid line right side just in front of the rear wheel. That is not a fuse at the solenoid valve, just a connector. I disconnect the ground wire to disable the solenoid (liquid bypass) valve. The thermostat is too aggressive in raising the temperature on an already marginally efficient system. I just topped off the refrigerant on mine in preparation for the trip to Charlotte next week. With R-12 I fill until bubbles in the sight glass just disappear. At this point the low side pressure was 30psi and the temp at the discharge vents was 40*F (outside temp 85*). What are your pressures? Willie

Clothes pin, insulation, rerouting the line between the mechanical lift pump and the carb did nothing for my 55's. The vapor lock is between the tank and the pump. Only a 7-9# electric pump (which will give 5# at the carb) mounted at the tank will work. The vapor lock is between the tank and the pump. That's on the suction side of the mechanical lift pump...the pressure side will push fuel and vapor into the carb. Willie

What Bob says! His advice solved my problem. http://forums.aaca.org/f162/brakes-ii-227946.html Willie

...always a pleasure to share my lazy and frugal nature with others...

Check the fuel pressure at the carb. I have a 7-9# installed at the tank and and have a little over half that at the carb. The Rochester 4GC is junk! Our currently available ethanol laced fuel will dissolve the cement on the bowl plugs which can leak and catch fire. Also the ethanol fuel when it dries in a carb will leave a white powdery residue. That is what seems to clog the 4GC: rebuild it, install and it performs just fine; let it sit for a week and you will have poor idle, stumble, surging until you disassemble and clean again. The Carter WCFB seems to tolerate drying much better. Willie

What carb do you have: the carter wcfb or the rochester 4gc? What is the rated output of your electric fuel pump at the tank? Willie

I had mine matched locally: Perfect Circle 269-2018...NAPA uses that number for tie rod ends; take yours in to match. Willie

so where is the leak?

Maybe is your problem...Willie

For convertibles: only the rear axle near the wheel and the lower control arm near the wheel. Closed cars: those points and where the 'X' meets the side frame rails front and back. Or a drive-on lift. Willie

So, what's your point?:confused: Do you think you are special or better than the rest of us?:eek: Willie

Bill The following is my method: I have never had any good luck with changing the rope seal in the block with the crankshaft installed. But you can tighten the existing seal by installing a couple of strands of stiff wire like heater control wire in the groove between the block and the seal: take a 12" piece and grind a tapered point, start it into the groove and then slide a 6" section of brake line over the wire and with it tight against the block use vise grips shove the wire 1/4" at a time until it comes out the other side, then cut off flush. I was alway told not to cut a new rope seal...instead use your hands to bunch it to shorten it, then flatten it so that it fits in the groove of the cap or block. I use a large socket to form and press into the groove. The cap is trial installed and when removed only the stray fibers caught between the clamping surfaces are cut and removed. Then apply a light of coat anaerobic sealer to the clamping surface of the cap and install. For the grooves on the sided of the cap, I stuff cotton string coated with #2 Permatex into the side grooves by hammering with a suitable tool like a large nail with the tip ground flat. Also be sure the crankcase is not being pressurized from excess blowby or obstructed draft tube...even a good seal will leak. Many of the leaks are from the side grooves...the supplied seals have never worked for me. Also keep the oil just at the 'add' mark...I can keep leaks to a minimum on mine with bad seals (I can create a 10' puddle by driving uphill with a full crankcase). Willie