critterpainter

I am an AZ resident and in April I purchased an out-of-state car. Called Az motor vehicle to make an appointment to register the car. The operator said appointments were 6 weeks out, but did I want to transfer the title over the phone? I said yes and 20 min later the deed was done and I received the plates a week later. Strange times indeed.

Is the gasket in place between the transmission and the bell housing? If that is missing it could allow some other minor leakage.

That shaft only SHOULD go in one way. it is slightly larger on one end if I recall correctly. Bottom line. YES it is ok to Clean it well and silicon the end to stop the leak. Only other choice is to remove and analyze whats going on. Shaft or case may have wear there

Sounds like a bad rubber bushing or mal adjusted selector lever. When cold holds shaft holds lever in the low-reverse position. When hot the resistance was gone. The "neutral" position is between 2nd and 3rd normally, trans lever has to be lifted for neutral between low and reverse. another possibility is the shifting forks and neutral lever were assembled wrong. One check ball or spring overlooked will cause things not to work right. Bob (jr) at Bobs Automobilia has parts and knowledge on these large series transmission 805-434-2963

gdmn852 You are lucky, as I have worked on a dozen 36 through 52 Buicks and have NEVER had the fortune of not dropping the tank to replace the fuel sender.

No covers on the Buick fuel sender unit unless someone was creative. One must drop the tank for access. Make sure to add a ground wire to the chassis when re-installing. From the factory the steel fuel line acted as a ground.

Compare the generator part # on the two cars. I have a strong hunch you have a later generator on the "problem child" Did it ever have a 3 wire voltage regulator on it with a working charging system? You might want to have Bob check the application of the generator on the car.

So when you put the VR from the 80C on the 87 it worked properly on the 87? My gut feeling is the Gen on the 80C is having an issue or is a later unit. I no longer have access to shop manuals but the wiring inside a 1938 generator is NOT the same as 1941? or later.

Fuel sender is 0 to 32 ohms. Open circuit should read full, ground for empty. A common issue is a poorly grounded fuel tank. Bobs Automobilia 805-434-2963 is VERY knowledgeable on these cars. DanO is right about the manifolds. They can leak when cold and they will crack if the engine is running hot or has timing issues. (bad vac advance or worn dist body not allowing advance)

A discharge or a flutter on the gauge is normal at idle. It may have been camera (phone) angle, but I did not see a strong charge when the engine was reved up.

Are you looking for a Delco Combination switch? The type with a glass face?

The gasoline in the late 20's was not the same quality as the fuel sold in the teens. That is why Your engine and other marques (including the lowly Ford Model T) devised systems to heat the fuel up to help it to vaporize and run properly. The gasoline back then was not much better than kerosene. actually kerosene was blended into gasoline until the early 30's and the octane rating was between 40-60 octane! Now manufactures work to cool the fuel, not heat it.

It is NOT a do-it-yourself project. On the front shocks you have to grind the arms apart at the joining weld and have a BIG PRESS to disassemble. Use the rebuilding service closest to you due to the weight and cost of shipping.

As I stated in ad. NOT MINE. I have never seen it.....But if I was 40 years younger.....Hmmm

Think you have everything? https://slo.craigslist.org/boa/d/shandon-1945-dukw/7159353780.html

37 did NOT have a rear main seal. Labyrinth system (think model A Ford) Egge can re-pour the rear main and size it. Many folks use the later narrow rear main.

Thinking outside the box here. By any chance did the water pump decide to try to seize? If it is dragging or if the packing is binding it could cause an issue.

If you have a glass faced ign/light switch then Bobs Automobilia has some parts and does offer a rebuild service.

Be aware that Buick often used the power terminal on the fuel gauge as a junction block and the power wire from the ign switch goes to the fuel gauge. If you don't disconnect this wire from the fuel gauge BEFORE installing the 12V battery you will kill the fuel gauge even if the sending unit is not connected.

Two slightly different heater valves were used. The one pictured has the sensing tube wrapped around the bar that is shown. Don't try to remove it or cut it. It is a SEALED tube charged with a gas. Cut it and its junk. Its like a mechanical temperature gauge with a capillary tube. The style you received will work fine in its place. The sensing coil on it is contained in the valve assembly.

Kurtis Finding a QUALITY gear is hard these days. There are some modern reproductions out there that are fibre, but of a lessor quality. The most common reason in modern times for the gear failing is the owner not checking the water pump to make sure it is not seized before turning the engine over. That is followed by people overtightening the packing nut on the water pump and putting an excessive load on the gear.

Model A Ford??

I used to keep 4 Buick straight 8's running and I learned the best way to get the most power out of the engine was to adjust the valves. I would do a hot adjust on a running engine, then recheck the clearance again to make sure I got it right. As I was told by a second generation straight eight engine rebuilder (Jim Swanson) adjusting the valves hot with the engine running allows one to adjust excess clearance due to wear out of the valve train.

What Jim is referring to is the the fact that Buick used the + terminal on the fuel gauge as a junction point for the switched power wires. When converting to 12V those wires MUST be removed from that terminal and a separate junction terminal needs to be installed and then a separate wire with a voltage drop needs to go to the fuel gauge.

NOT the orig rear carb at the least. Originally the engine ran off the front carb and #2 came in under high vacuum. Only the ront carb had a choke and accelerator pump.