The Old Guy

Thank You Barney!!!! I have turned into a "Certified Curmudgeon) and it is difficult for me to enjoy myself at meets where so many are wrapped up in the so called "perfect " cars. I have lived all my life in the Flint area (home town of Buick ) and have NEVER seen a perfect Buick come from the factory. In the system ,as it is , a paint run or a door fit , are point deductions, and they came from the factory that way. The Buicktown chapter used to have the largest group at the national meets ,and now it seems we could care less.

My BCA number was 1308 , my BDE number was 001, and my BMD number was 004 ,( I was also the first director of the Buicktown Chapter ) so you can see that I was around Buicks for quite a while.!! The national meets used to be FUN !! The members drove their Buicks to the meet , and there was a lot of comeraderie. It seems to me that it is all about trophies and trailers today. I hope that the members that are vying for the positions on the BOD remember what this organisation was all about , and try to bring it back.

My wife and I took the 40 convertible to our BuickTown chapter meeting in Davison Saturday. We went up the expressway and home by back roads. Total about 20 miles

Everything evolves !!!!! The BCA in its infancy was a group of CAR people who drove and enjoyed their Buicks. It is now ruled by a group that see Buicks as a work of art, and they judge them as such. It really is a SHAME thet the old BCA is not available anymore. !!!!

My 57 had power brakes and steering that were installed in 57 when the car was built. The trailer did have electric brakes.

I hauled a 1954 Airstream trailer all over the country with a stock 57 Buick , and never had a problem !!!!

Don't forget trying to run over a balloon tied to a stake. You must do it with the right front tire. Also have a race between cars that have a passenger holding a paddle with a cup of water on it . the winner is the one that gets there first without spilling any water

I ran it down the Drag Strip in Milan MI in 2003 . I couldnt' push it too hard as the leather cone clutch slipped quite badly

From 1971 to 2003 I was the driver of "The Bug " for all the BCA meets.I helped get it running for the first meet in 1971, and was permitted to drive it. It was taken to Milan Dragway in 2003 and I drove it down the dragstrip.

They are a Little different because of the EPA mandated bumper laws, but very definitely "Boattails"

If I remember correctly, there is an after market part that will fix the problem you have Contact one of the dynaflow rebuilders and see if it is still available

I have all my Bugles from 1966 to 2012 I don't belong to the BCA anymore ,as the club policies have changed into something that doesn't work for me ! I bought the binders ,and they are enjoyable to go through occasionally.

There are kits available to use a relay to help . The voltage drop through all the connections is sometimes significant.

John I drove it until they blew the engine ( I told them it had a rod loose) They got it fixed thanks to Nicoli Bulgari , and it won't be driven anymore.

Thanks Keith I figured you or someone else on the forum would have the answer . I am doing well , but I don't do much with my Buicks anymore.

I had a friend call the other night ,and he just bought a 49 Roadmaster 2 door Hard top and wanted to know how many ere built. I looked through all my literature and couldn;t fin the answer. Can somebody out there help me PLEASE ???? Thank You in advance

Mr Earl The "original " Buick Bug is in the Buick Gallery of the Sloan Museum in Flint. You probably saw it at either the 2003 BCA national running down the drag strip in Milan MI or at the 2008 meet when it was parked in front of the Sloan Museum. There were 2 original "bugs" built and they have 622 CI 4 cylinder engines

Mr Earl. I have sold almost everything!! I am down to my 37 Buick street rod,my 40 convert, and a couple of Roadmaster wagons that are every day transportation. My son, that retired from the Navy , and his family are on a mission trip to Africa and he sold most of the stuff before he left

It is interesting to note that the " driven class " is still treated like second class citizens. They are not given anything except the grille badge, and that is given out on the field. All the emphasis is on the "trailer Queens" although the people promoting the BCA are the ones that DRIVE their Buicks. I think Brian tries hard to promote tbe BCA to people that enjoy their Buicks, but he is still fighting a losing battle. I quit fighting the "powers that be" and don;t even belong to the BCA anymore I drove a Buick to EVERY BCA National from 1971 to 2009 and finally threw in the towel. I won't say anymore.

I was fortunate enough to be at breakfast with Roberta and the usual tuseday group, so was able to talk to DD and Larry. As Roberta stated, : we spent more time looking at Dave's lastest acquisiton than we did eating."

I ran the "Power tour" in 2001 when it went from Detroi to California supposedly out route 66 fron Indiana on. I was surprised toi see most of the car run the interstate. I ran all of Rte 66 I could find and had a ball. When I left California, I went north to Washington stste and came home across the top of the country. This was the "break in " cruise for my 37 Buick and in almost 8,000 mile , I never had a glitch.

Old Tank it appears they are losing quite a few of us " old guys" The hobby has changed enough that they do not need us

Brian You say the BCA is committed to the PRESERVATION of Buicks ,and the jduges gig the cars for having paint less than perfect,and a door that doesen't fit quite right. Buick never built a "perfect" car !! They built GREAT cars ond for being bult on an "assembly line" .they turned out well, but they weren't perfect.

The BCA is being overrun with " class conscousness " The rules are changed by a small group that "runs" the organization , and it is quite evident that cars are the last thing on their minds. I tried for some time to talk some sense into the BOD, but they are NOT interested in members that actually have Buicks that are driven !!! WHAT A SHAME

The first car I drove was a 1929 Buick ,that my Dad bought it 1933. I drove it when I was 13 in 1946