Gene Brink

Thanks, Denis. Car looks great! Poignant file as it reminded me of my dad who had Parkinsons's disease and really did not want to give up driving his last Buick ('98 LeSabre). Hope I can be as graceful as the gentleman in the video when the time comes.

Welcome, Daniel. I am in Sylmar so almost neighbors, but do not have any suggestions other than be careful when threading plugs, etc into the all aluminum engine as it isn't hard to strip threads. Great looking Skylark - I've always liked them. Enjoy.

Why would anyone think you know anything about '54's, Lamar? 😏

Might not pay you anything but perhaps would pick up & take it all away so you don't have to mess with the stuff - http://sonnysautopartstn.tripod.com/. Good luck!

If all else fails, and assuming you have the old gear [or enough of it] to take measurements you can have a duplicate made by any number of precision gear manufacturers. Here is one and if they can not help perhaps can refer you http://www.amgear.com/specialty-gears.html. Won't be cheap but... Good luck.

Looks like he measured the ring gap at 1mm which is equal to 0.03937007874 so is much wider than spec listed by Hugh so I think Joel is probably right in thinking something is amiss with the crankshaft - either rods or mains. Imagine the place to start is with Joel's suggestion to begin checking rod caps & mains to see if they are causing the binding and proceed from there. Good luck, Catrinus.

Not able to answer your question but if you do not get a response perhaps NCP can supply you with measurements and you can compare to your Special? Good luck...

Agree. Plenty of pictures of engine & transmission plants on the web so I have no doubt those components were made elsewhere and added to the cars final assembly. Guessing the same is true for seats and certainly there were literally hundreds of parts manufactured by various vendors (some GM owned - i.e. Delco) and used for final assembly.

James, One thing I've not seen mentioned is that what you presently have appears to be a very clean (other than the mentioned rust) and complete car which will make a restoration easier and cheaper. Sell if and then "down the road" buy a replacement it will be difficult to find one this nice. You did not mention how the engine was running - assume decent as you drove it for six months. If you do not need to rebuild that is worth $$. Good luck with your decision.😉

James, One thing I've not seen mentioned is that what you presently have appears to be a very clean (other than the mentioned rust) and complete car which will make a restoration easier and cheaper. Sell if and then "down the road" buy a replacement it will be difficult to find one this nice. You did not mention how the engine was running - assume decent as you drove it for six months. If you do not need to rebuild that is worth $$. Good luck with your decision.😉

Oh gosh! I've found that cars of zero interest to me when new and now quite appealing when one sees a well maintained (or restored) example. Funny how "old" makes a car much more appealing. To answer the question, when I returned from "an all expense paid trip to Southeast Asia" in March 1968 a replacement for the '54 Cadillac limousine I was driving before I was drafted was on my shortlist of what to do. Wound up with a '60 MGA 😢 and after a few months of paying more than a new car payment to keep it running decided I would be better off with a brand new Buick. Wanted a GS but did not like the 68-9 because of the side-sweep body design (so wound up with a '69 Opel Rallye which was a great little car). Still not my favorite look but do now like (not quite love - save that for a '65) and a nice looking '68-9 GS and would be a pleasure to own.

Amen to that, Dave! I really enjoy being paid each month to NOT come to work! How sweet it is... Lamar, Looks like you worked with a great bunch of people.

And if you like jazz -

Thanks for suggesting, Valk. Until two years ago - Never Dull Wadding for metal polishing (works on chrome as well) but now find Blue Magic Metal Cream Polish to be the best I've ever used (and that include dozens of them). Plenty of waxes give more than satisfactory results provided you use regularily - don't think you can actually be wrong with any brand name stuff (i.e. - Turtle Wax, et al - NOT something you have never heard of) assuming you are using a product compatible with your paint. Currently using Meguiars, Mothers, Classic and Nu Finish (paste) and Meguiars and Mothers (liquid), and Meguirs detail spray. Not much difference between any of the paste or liquid but the detail spray falls short unless the wax is already "primo." (Must confess I feel better after using paste - must the amount of effort makes me feel as though I've accomplished more somehow. Black Magic used to make a paste wax that was the best I ever used - but was the hardest wax I've ever used [which may be why it isn't around any longer].) Darn - this makes me want to wax my wife's car...😉

Kevin, Best metal polish I've found is Blue Magic Metal Polish Cream (https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Magic-400-Ounce-Polish/dp/B000BO8Z9I/ref=sxin_0_osp20-bf3d0f63_cov?ascsubtag=bf3d0f63-fb92-43e9-8a32-3b423fca9170&creativeASIN=B000BO8Z9I&crid=1132SJAZ74UZH&cv_ct_cx=blue+magic+metal+polish+cream&cv_ct_id=amzn1.osp.bf3d0f63-fb92-43e9-8a32-3b423fca9170&cv_ct_pg=search&cv_ct_wn=osp-search&keywords=blue+magic+metal+polish+cream&linkCode=oas&pd_rd_i=B000BO8Z9I&pd_rd_r=a90df18b-e450-4fa2-8033-45b6fa2c75d0&pd_rd_w=NuEVl&pd_rd_wg=vrZyq&pf_rd_p=62c00474-6fe0-420f-9956-a05256e04b43&pf_rd_r=RQ5Z1E4CRNA39MER6P7A&qid=1580432549&sprefix=blue+magic+%2Caps%2C213&sr=1-2-32a32192-7547-4d9b-b4f8-fe31bfe05040&tag=bestcont06-20). Prior to finding the Blue Magic I always used Never Dull Wadding Polish (https://www.amazon.com/Eagle-One-Nevr-Dull-Wadding-Restoration/dp/B000CNBI1A/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=never+dull+wadding+metal+polish+cream&qid=1580432634&s=automotive&sr=1-1). Neither will address the grinding marks but will polish the aluminium very well and are both easy to use (but wear some gloves or your hands will be very black after using).

https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/d/san-diego-1993-buick-roadmaster-wagon/7052632964.html. I'll bet this one is "still head Turner"

Wife know you are using the good china again, Morgan?😉

Not suggesting you purchase from Kanter as you can find better prices but can look at and get an idea of what parts you will need here - https://www.kanter.com/productdetail.aspx?DeptNo=1600&MakeName=Buick&MakeYear=1949&CategoryID=39&ProductCode=181&Router=Gallery. Parts you would need are - 4 Outer Pin Kits 2 Outer Tie Rod Ends 2 Stabilizer Link Kits Upper Inner Bushings Lower Inner Bushings 1 King Pin Kit with bushings Depending upon the condition of some parts you might need additional items if they are worn so much replacement bushings, etc. are not workable. Good luck!

So lucky to live near a wonderful museum that I can drop in every couple of months to see what is on display (also have a research library that one can utilize as well). Went a couple of weeks ago and a very nice 1905 Buick was proudly on display. All the cars on display are running and licensed and they are driven regularly (occasionally I see one) which is perfect. If anyone is in Los Angeles this should be on your list of things to do (and it is free!). Anyway some pictures...

No start for the last month or so but running okay prior to that? Assuming so what, if any, work have you done since it was running? You've indicated that you've confirmed that you have compression, spark and fuel (at least starting fluid) as well as valve actuation. That pretty well leaves timing as the culprit I'd say. Good luck solving the mystery...

You are right about the slide switch for AM/FM so if you find something ('65 dash is quite different than '64 BUT the radio appears to be very close in size in both '65 & '66 so if you can find something to look at and measure it might work after a bit of cutting on the dash face. Good luck.

It has been almost 55 years since I last drove a '52 but if memory serves me correctly there are three positions on the ignition switch counter-clockwise is Lock, 12 o'clock is On and all the way clockwise is Off (and you do not need a key to turn to on from Off). Patrick, I am assuming you have not been able to start the car at all since your rebuild. How long has it been since it was running? If a long time check your manual and try polarizing your generator as if it is not correctly polarized your points can be damaged and then follow Matt's suggestions to determine why you have such a low compression reading on #1. If it were me I'd use a shot of starting fluid for my initial start up when you are ready to try again as it will fire much easier than with gas. Good luck.

Very nice work on the tailgate🏆

Two questions. Is the rear axle easy to move forward/backward? If not you will need to make it so as mating the spline shaft teeth will require some precise & gentle movement. And, 2 - Do you have the transmission in park so the output shaft will be stationary when attempting to mate the spline and u-joint? If not it is possible the pressure on the spline will permit the output shaft to turn with the u-joint when you need to be able to move the drive shaft a bit to line up the spline teeth. Once you have everything oriented correctly everything should slide together easily. Good luck😊

Amen to this! Best bet to avoid bending/cracking is to be sure to only use the center section when closing the hood.