old-tank
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Posts posted by old-tank
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I hate flare fittings! Even new stuff is hard to connect without cross threading...that brings me to my first point. If they are cross threaded they will not tighten to be leak free. Next point use the correct tools; for this you need flare nut wrenchs, sometimes called line wrenches. The wrenches look like a six point box end with and open front. If you use the correct tool just tighten until your knuckles turn white, then try for another 1/4 turn.
I hate flare fittings!
Willie
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???
If this car has the original nailhead, I see no reason for shims. The starter bolts on horizontally, unlike later models that bolted on vertically and may have needed shims.
???
Willie
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Hey Lamar
Here are 2 opposing arguments: You cannot restore one for twice the price. Convertibles are useless as a 3rd row on a boar hog.
Willie
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Rick
The pressures noted on p 22 are for a transmission at normal operating temperature (hot), and of course the 'hand crank' pressures are cold. Also the pressures on p 22 are minimal accepible pressures.
I have never done the hand crank routine, but it seems that 180 is optimistic at only ~100 rpm.
If the transmission had no function problems before you freshened it up, it should be ok
While troubleshooting one of mine I checked the pressure on a known good 55 tranny and the front pump and accumulator pressures were over 200 hot or cold and at 500 rpm.
Willie
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Jan, you are right that forces are directed through the bearings, and although I have never had a problem does not mean that there never will be a problem.
The big nut on the pinion is described as a lock nut and although it preloads the bearings it is not an adjusting nut. Torque from 1955 manual calls for 150 ft lbs minimum. The pinion sleeve lock screws are torqued at 35-40 ft lbs and the nuts on the screws are at 12-15 ft lbs. I recheck the torque on the pinion sleeve lock screws after installing the driveshaft on the pinion shaft.
Willie
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These pictures will only be meaningful if you have your parts exposed like Jan.
These are 1955 parts, but others should be the same. The puller was made from a spare torque tube. I cut off the flanges at both ends and then cut the front flange in half. The pieces of the front flange fit in the groove at the end of the driveshaft. The puller is set up in the pictures to install the driveshaft, but can be easily set up to pull.
As you can see all that is needed in addition to the flanges is is some threaded rod, nuts and washers.
I will loan the puller to BCA members on this board.
Willie
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Hit the other end of the pin real hard a few times and that should reveal the pin on the other end. Use heat only as a last resort on these parts.
Willlie
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After filing or grinding the peened end of the 1/4 inch pin use a hardened flat nose punch with a BIG hammer. Be sure everything is supported so you don't bend the pinion shaft or driveshaft. There is probably a way to do this with a press also.
After you get the pin out you will find that the driveshaft is pressed onto the pinion shaft. I made a tool to remove and replace and can post pictures if needed.
Good Luck
Willie
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Yesterday I swapped the valve body with a known good unit and there is no change...still locked in R until you give it lots of gas, then it jerks and shudders before moving normally; and then when coasting to a stop in R it jerks and shudders again before stopping abruptly.
Anyhow I took to the rebuilder the transmission that I removed from the car to rebuild completely using none of the parts from the troublesome unit. I have had all of the fun that I can stand.
Willie
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> old-tank, please fill me in on what "burned a rotor " means. what happened to these parts? </div></div>
The rotor actually caught fire in the distributor and all of the tip was obliterated; the replacement rotor had lots of arcing and chips of plastic at the tip missing after only 3000 miles. I tried to contact Pertronix for some guidance on what might have caused this and like said, there is no technical support available. I too have driven all over the country with Pertronix; this unit had been installed for about 15,000 miles with no trouble. I have also driven many hundred thousand miles with points with no trouble. I had never had rotor problems before with points. After I installed Pertronix (I am a sucker for gadgets), it worked well but I saw no advantage in power, driveability, or gas mileage. Stick with points/condensor, check the dwell every 5,000 miles and replace every 25,000 miles.
Willie
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My Pertronix equipped 55 Century burned a rotor on the way to Batavia this last summer. When I got back home the replacement rotor was starting to destruct also. Pertonix has NO TECHNICAL SUPPORT so I changed back to points/condenser.
Willie
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Birdie birdie in the sky
Dropped some whitewash in my eye.
I won't fuss and I won't cry--
I'm just glad that bulls can't fly.
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All of these tools are efficient blood-letting devices.
Remember: "People who use tools bleed a lot"
Willie
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Some states, Texas for one used the engine number as the VIN to register the vehicle. The engine number is located on the block deck on the left side of the engine just the below the middle of the head...very hard to see and find especially if dirty.
Willie
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Lamar
Your filter is plugged; change to an inline with the insides visible so that you can see when to change again.
If you disconnect the wires on the vacuum switch tape the wire ends. Those wires are NOT protected by a fuse and if you turn on the ignition with one of the wires grounded you will instantly fry that circuit and all of the others in the same bundle of wires.
Willie
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Lamar the jack works great. The car had to be that high so that there will be room to slide the tranny and jack under. You even have to tilt the bell housing down as depicted in the picture to clear the frame rails. And yes it does lift that high. I think the range is 6-32".
Willie
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Got it installed and...no joy. Problem with reverse and the pressures are still not good. Trying to drive in reverse is like driving with the brake applied. I will call the rebuilder tomorrow and start crying.
Following is a shot of the transmission on the jack and the back of the engine...looks like I will see this view again...
Willie
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I got the trannsmission back late yesterday and spent the day installing which is about 2/3 finished.
The car needs to be Wa-a-a-y up in the air so that the tranny can be removed and replaced. This is higher than my jack stands and the upper limits of my floor jack so it had to be lifted and lowered in stages, the result of which made me nervous.
Here is a shot of a pile of tires under the rear 'just in case...'
and shots of the jackstands on top of 6x6's
and a shot of the bumper jack used to crank the torque tube and rear end back
I did just enough assembly to be able to roll the car over my service pit where I can finally stand up.
I hope to finish tomorrow and give you folks a favorable report and post some pictures of my favorite tools.
Willie
(don't be discouraged if the pictures don't load...this is another experiment: I set up a web server on an old Compaq 486 and so far it works, but let's see what happens if it gets lots of 'hits'.)
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Well it is going back together with a
used pump and plate from a '61. The tolerances check
out and it has been tested in service. Never could
find an obvious reason for the failure. Maybe it is
that TRW rebuilt unit was rebuilt from a bad core or
may have something to do with the way they modified
the bushing on the driven gear.
These really are simple transmissions and I have
learned a lot and I think I could dissasemble and
reassemble another one now, but hopefully not mine!
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Ok, let's keep it simple and check and do one thing at a time: You need 3 things to make an engine run. fuel, compression, and ignition. Previous posts have given good info on ignition. Do a compression check to be sure it is adequate and even, then report back with the numbers.
Willie
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These are all GM cartoons....are there any union cartoons? If so I could not find them.
The following is from a UAW union web site:
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Union workers earn more
Wages and benefits for the average union worker in the private sector totaled $31.94 per hour in 2004, compared to $22.28 an hour for the typical non-union worker. The advantage to the union worker is $9.66 per hour or $20,092 per year for a full-time, full-year worker.
Wages and salaries
In March 2004, the average union worker in the private sector earned $20.32 per hour while the average non-union worker earned $16.21 per hour. Therefore, the typical union worker enjoys $4.11 per hour more than their non-union counterpart does, which is $8,548 per year for a full-time, full-year worker.
... But benefits are the biggest union advantage
Benefits though are where the biggest union advantage lies. The average union worker in the private sector receives $11.61 per hour toward their benefits package while their non-union counterpart receives only $6.06 per hour.
Retirement benefits
After years of service, workers deserve a secure retirement. Unfortunately, only 45 percent of non-union workers receive retirement benefits; either defined benefit, defined contribution or both. Just 15 percent have a defined benefit plan that pays out a set amount every month, regardless of fluctuations in the stock market. Forty percent have riskier defined contribution plans like 401(k)s whose payouts rise and fall with the investments that make up the plan. As employees at Enron and WorldCom have discovered, defined contribution retirement funds may not be there when it's time to retire. In stark contrast, 83 percent of union workers have retirement benefits and nearly 72 percent have the safer, defined benefit plans.
Nearly 50 percent of all workers have no medical care through their employer, and far fewer have dental and vision coverage. For union workers that is not the case. Seventy-five percent of all private sector union workers have medical benefits, 53 percent have dental care and 41 percent have vision care.
More vacation, holidays and sick leave
Union workers are more likely to receive vacation, holiday and sick leave than non-union workers do. Ninety percent of union workers receive paid vacations, versus 78 percent of non-union workers. Similarly, union workers are more likely to receive paid holidays ? 91 percent compared to 78 percent.
Union advantage holds across occupations and industries
Blue-collar workers in manufacturing enjoy a substantial advantage from union representation ? but so do workers in non-manufacturing settings. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics? report, ?Union Members in 2003,? shows that the union advantage holds across occupations and industries.
For example, union workers in protective service jobs (such as security guards and corrections officers) earn $857 per week, compared with $510 for non-union workers. The union premium also exists in office and administrative support occupations where union workers earn $632 per week compared to $510 per week for non-union workers. Unionized production workers earned $665 per week, compared with $495 for non-union workers.
Unions also help close the gender gap in earnings. In 2003, non-union women earned 65 percent as union men and 78 percent as much as non-union men. In contrast, union women earned 86 percent as much as union men and 4 percent more than non-union men.
</div></div>
This is all great for the union worker, but who pays for all this? The company?....not really, it is you and me.
This all balances if you are a union worker buying union made products.
I avoid higher priced union made products if I have a choice.
Willie
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Pete
The $1500 was not an estimate, but a statement of what it is worth to me
...and anyone else with half a brain.Willie
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No duals were available on any 55 Buick. If this one has the left side mounting similar to the stock right side the frame is butchered to pass the pipes thru the X member.
This car looks like one I looked at 20 years ago that was really a Special with an extra porthole, changed fender script, and 4V carb and silencer from a Century. The data plate indicated it was a Special as did the plate on the dash between the speedometer and guage cluster.
I have always wanted a 3 speed Century but will not check this one out even though is only 300 miles away...it is only worth $1500 with a non running engine. I emailed the seller and he will not get it running and would not let me try to get it running if I checked it out.
Willie
King Pin Bushings
in Buick - Post War
Posted
If you haven't already, check with the supplier...it doesn't hurt to ask. Also check with other suppliers. A few years ago I got a bushing from Buick Specialists (now Buick World). They sent it free (along with another substantial order).
Willie