old-tank

Modern Speedometers, specifically 1992 Mercury Marquis analog.(there are only electrical connections, no speedometer cable) The odometer quit working although the the trip odometer and speedometer is OK. Installed a used one and both the odometer and the trip odometer did not work. The place where I bought it says there are other issues with my car. Maybe if someone can tell me how these things work I can understand enough to agree or argue. Willie

I had a dove tail trailer custom made with the wheels further to the back which gives the loading advantage of the dove tail and eliminates the trailer clearance problems. But you will need to use a load equalizing hitch since the tongue weight is increased. Willie

When we buy a used car we inspect it closely or have a shop inspect it and maybe even search the vehicle history for previous repairs. But a new car, well it is NEW right? Car dealers are the modern equivalent of old time horse traders...they generally will not lie to you if you ask a specific question, but will not volunteer information. In your case if you had asked if the car had been repaired they would have said yes and you probably would not have bought that unit. It is a sad state when you have to ask all the same questions and do all of the same inspections you do on a used car, but i'll do from now on. In 1976 I bought my first new car an Olds Delta Royale. It was a time if great excitement and I too was blinded by the glitter. I custom ordered this car and when I inquired on the anticipated delivery date, I was told it had arrived but had a 'little' transit damage. When I had it repainted a few years ago it showed extensive repairs to the roof. including plastic filler and welding with brass...sort of explains the leaks at the C-pillar. Then when I replaced the upholstry I found broken glass under the rear seat. Probably had another car fall on it! I would not have bought if I had known about the damage. A local Buick dealer sold a 99 LeSabre to my father (he bought with out my inspection). The car had poorly repaired front end damage and even though it showed only 30k miles it appeared to be beat to death...all of the struts were shot, the tires were chewed from driving on gravel roads and the newly changed oil was already dirty. I called the dealer and he said "well people trade these things in and don't tell us about accident repair"....I would bet that if I tried to trade in this vehicle on a new car they would spot the damage! Oh well, another day and another name to add to my list of people who [censored] me off. Willie

Recently I've recieved some emails asking for details on this rebuild. My respsonse to these inquiries was to post the questions on the forum so all could benefit or that I would address them on the forum. The pistons were bought from Kanter but had the Egge part number and looked identical to an example I have from Egge except that the ring grooves were closer to the top of the piston which might give slightly higher compression. The valve parts were all 1956: camshaft, lifters, pushrods and dist gear. Hardened exhaust valve seats were installed and all of the old valves were reused. This is a late producton engine and did not have a windage tray, but had the bolt holes in the block for attaching (attaches with 4-5/16 bolts). I have done other late engines and the windage tray was present. It is probably not necessary except in extreme applications. While the engine was still on the engine stand, oil was added (it took 7+ quarts to fill a dry engine), the oil pump was spun with a drill and it developed 30# pressure. Then a starter was attached and activated and it developed 20# at cranking speed with the plugs out. A compression check was done and showed 150# on all cylinders. A 2bbl carb was used because it was available and Mike wants to keep the stock look (for now). The "seat of the pants" performance is more than adequate. A neoprene seal for a Buick 455 was used in the timing cover. This IS NOT a direct and easy replacement: the 0.020" interference fit is too tight to just tap in; it was taken to a machine shop where the timing cover was chamfered and then pressed in. The rear seal was the usual "rope". The side seals (between the rear main bearing cap and the side of the block): I used cotton string with #2 permatex packed in tighly with a nail until flush with the top. Anaerobic sealer was used on the clamping surfaces between the block and the rear main bearing cap). Gaskets were always glued to the part with 3-M weatherstripping cement and then either assembled dry (cork) or brush on sealer was used. If you use rubber valve cover gaskets, glue these to the valve cover and use anaerobic sealer on the other side. You CAN build a dry nailhead. Willie

My guess would be 1955 the part number of which is: 1163478. Those casting numbers are not always accurate. Nice piece. Willie

Some of this response should be under the heading 'Those pesky young people'. Anyhow you should have seen the smile on Mike's face after his first drive...PRICELESS!! It all started about a year ago when I invited Mike to my house to drive my 55 Centurys to see if he liked the power and response of a 322 compared to the anemic 264 in the Special. He was hooked! It also helped that I offered to give him a 322 from one of my parts cars (that was his last good deal). Then in February the work started (and money spending...his money!). I figured it would take about 2-3 months and would be ready to drive to Flint for the big party. We (the word 'we' is to indicate that I was present and watching Mike do all of the dirty grunt work) started by pulling the engine out of the parts car complete with a 2 inch cover of rodent turds. Then disassembly which revealed a very sludged up and abused mess, but it did look promising. So off to the machine shop for cleaning and further inspection. That it turned out was our first mistake even though this shop has a good reputation building race engines (chebbie???) and rescued me from a previous machine shop disaster. It took the machine shop a month to clean and inspect: crank is ok, just needed polishing, block needed one sleeve and bored 0.040", heads ok just needed hardened seats and valve guides. Now to order the needed parts, and that was the second mistake (ordering or "attempting to order parts" from Buick World...Mike can give better details of that fiasco). Two more months go by before parts are delivered to the machine shop which by now has put the 322 on the back burner. So another month before anything is done. Now it is June and getting HOT in South Texas, and the Flint trip for that car is scrubbed. (Actually Mike did not go to Flint either...stayed home with his wife...something about birth of 1st son...) Finally the machine shop called and said everything was ready, so 2 days later we go to pick it up and it was not ready...waited 2 hours for them to 'tie up loose ends'. After we got it back to my shop and unwrapped the parts we found the bad news: even though they said everything would be "assembly clean", everything was filthy with machine oil and grindings; the crank also had rusty finger prints on the polished journals; the oil galleys in the block were still full of sludge since the plugs had not been removed for cleaning; the heads were a mess. Ah, the heads. First thing I noticed was the valve stem height varied more than 1/8", second after removing some valves we noticed that the valve guide seals that were paid for were not installed, an intake valve seat had a rust pit that you could catch a finger nail on, and no valve spring shims were present even though the old springs were used. So back to the machine shop and a formal ass-chewing with the owner who agreed that this was not acceptable. Back home everything looked fine except the heads: when I removed a valve I found that the generic shims for the outer valve spring covered the recess for the inner valve spring. This the exact same thing that happened on a previous rebuild, except it was not discovered until after the engine was started: that little old spring bind resulted in bent push rods, broken rockers, bent and broken rocker shafts and a bent camshaft! Back to the machine shop and 3 weeks for them to find and install the correct shims for both the inner and outer springs. Assembly went slowly since EVERYTHING was checked and rechecked...we were sorta gun-shy at this point (everything was on the money). When torqueing the main bearing cap bolts one would not tighten (it stretched 1/4" but did not break...off to the parts store for trip number 79). The rebuilt water pump would not turn after installation...had to grind the shaft off flush with the impeller. I asked Mike after he installed the heads if he put thread sealer on the head bolts..."uh no, why?" Anyhow you need to put thread sealer on every bolt or stud that goes into the block or head of a 322! That includes the engine mounts and studs for the sparkplug covers...even if you are sure that it does not communicate with an oil or water cavity, put it on anyway! Painting the engine should be a no-brainer except the paint in the quart container did not match the paint in a rattle can purchased at the same time from "Cars". The paint was Acrylic enamel which may bubble and lift if repainted...engine enamel used to be Synthetic enamel, which was more forgiving...just another aggravation. On the Saturday morning that we 'stabbed' the engine back in I had arranged for another friend to stop by to pick up a tool that he needed...you know the rest: audience participates! Mike worked until late that day and another but still lacked the plug wires and a few other details, but I waited for his return before firing it up for the first time. I wanted to show him how a properly built nail would start right away...NOT! The #$%&@*%$#@# distributor was installed 180* off! I still think Mike turned the engine while I was not looking. Another mystery for awhile: after starting to drive it the engine would die on right turns...a few days of tinkering found a battery cable touching the starter splash shield. One reason it took so long is that Mike lives 60 miles from my shop and the machine shop is 30 miles further and we both have 'day jobs'. OK so it runs, what is the verdict? It could not have turned out better: Very quiet and smooth owing to the excellent balancing and very good power, throttle response. Part of this is due to the 3.6 rear gears from the Special vs 3.4 gears in the Century and the 2 bbl carb that flows better in the low and mid range than the primaries of a 4 bbl (I thought I heard that some where, but I just got back from measuring the bores at the throttle plate on a 2 bbl and a 4 bbl and the 2bbl is larger). It does run out of steam at higher rpm's where the secondaries of a 4bbl would come into play. I'm still trying to talk Mike into a 3 deuce setup...ok to dream with someone else's money! He will need his money for tires if he keeps burning rubber! 'Those pesky young people'. Anyhow you should have seen the smile on Mike?s face after his first drive...PRICELESS!! Willie

I think the air cleaner says 'Wildcat 445' which would make it a 401 and the breathers on the valve covers are at an angle not straight up like a 322. Different engine would need a different transmission since the 401 will not bolt up the the transmissions used with the 322. I once used a torque ball from a 57 in a 55 and even that pushed the rear back. Who knows what other modifications were done. Looks like it was done a long time ago and is probably a good runner...but why do that to a Skylark?? Willie

not only the wrong air cleaner but the wrong engine....that is not a 322...probably 364 or 401.

Hey Bill I thought you had a restorer doing all that. Anyhow check out this link: http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=4630

You will never stop the chatter with the disc you have...gotta have the buffer and shim springs. All you can do is change your your clutching technique: more revving and slipping when starting off. There is the possiblity than a different friction material will help, but how many times do you want to pull that tranny? Willie

Brad link Best to take all of the rotating parts you want to use to the machine shop and see if it can be balanced. Willie

Mr. Earl I live just south of Austin and still have a rebuilt 3rd member from a 1955. There is also a recycler close by(John's Salvage: 830-379-2092) that specializes in OLD OLD parts and there are some 54's and 55's small and large series. He may still have the drivetrain from a 55 Super that was running before it was rolled. Let me know if I can help. Willie

In general I have observed that the size of the trophy is inversely proportional to the quality of the show. Willie

Will When you removed the engine and transmission the rear end probably moved forward a few inches, so you only need to move it back but should not need to disconnect anything. Be sure the transmission is in park to lock the output, jack up and rotate a rear wheel which will rotate your driveshaft, and be sure the torque ball is loose so that the angle of mating can be correct. Sometimes it goes together right away and other times it seems like you have the wrong parts. Willie

Actually it was Ken's idea to use the plumbing part. I paid a machine shop to make one for me and that works well too, but Ken's is considerably cheaper. All of mine seep some oil...I don't think it is possible to make a Buick leak free unless there is no oil in it! Willie

A local uphostery supply had tack strips that were plastic and worked well. In the past I have glued together strips of card board to get the desired thickness and that worded well. Good luck on your project. Willie

Maybe this is what you are looking for: http://transmissionadapters.com/53-66_nailhead.htm

For those who can't decide here are three more reasons to attend this show. Buick is sending 3 cars for display: a 1939, a 1936, and the BLACKHAWK!! There are also some neat and unique trophies, door prizes, goodie bag items and of course great fellowship! And the weather will be great. Willie

The replacement pins for my 55 were short also. As long as you can get a few turns with the shake-proof washer installed it should be OK. Willie

http://www.hollander-auto-parts.com/

Sorry to say the only way to fix this will require lots of disassembly both under the hood and under the dash to get the steering jacket off. You need to be down to the steel rod that the steering turns. When you get that far check back for tips on fixing the contact. Willie

Factory replacement engines of that era did not have the "V" in the serial number.

If your Rochester is like the one on one of my 55's it has a provision for exhaust to go into the base that a Carter does not have. So you would need a different manifold for the Carter. That Rochester IS a lousy carb!

Justin You are right about NAPA and other real parts stores (not Autozone)...always try that first. Please share your list with the rest of us. Willie

I put AC R43 plugs in my 55 322 and they were fouled in 20 miles. That also was using Petronix. So I cleaned an old set of AC44's, set the gap at 0.040 and after 22,000 miles they still look like new. Using the plain 43 44 or 45 plugs will probably be OK. My wires are solid wire. Just my experiences. Willie