KAD36

John - you're on! :cool: So - more curiosity - I was doing a search last night and found on RockAuto and Napa a valve guide for the exhaust valve only and a valve stem seal. Whats the difference? The stem seals say you have to machine the guides to use them? Why? Can you use these guides on both intake and exhaust ? Bobs and CARS sites it listed the same part number for both intake and exhaust. Don't have my master parts book handy.

We can check it together in South Bend - heck it took me over 3 months to get back to John, you have till next July! After a couple of us get a few cold ones that gauge will smooth right out! Remembering my other car that had vac gauge idled at 700-800 in drive, maybe the higher idle smooths the gauge out - it seems conceivable there is a low end rpm where the steadiness of the vacuum in the manifold more naturally begins to reflect the pulsations in the engine. None of my past cars could ever idle under 500 in Drive without stumbling and stalling out. At some specified RPM it should be steady, so there is probably some minor wear somewhere. Bernie - the compression on mine is below spec but all cylinders are within 2-3 lbs of each other. Theres some blowby, but no blue smoke or anything out the tailpipe. My ride followed me all the way home from Utica and the car ran clean. Next time I have the valve covers off I'll check the stems - now I'm kinda curious. Maybe when someone working on an engine rebuild gets it going, they can pop a gauge on it and we can see what a new engine looks like. I think this whole vacuum gauge thing is cool - guess I am easily intrigued. Tune up a car with an old Stromberg vacameter, a Heathkit tach/dwell meter, a Monkey Wards non-inductive timing light that gives you a solid jolt every so often, and most important an acute ear. It just doesn't get any better than that!

Hi John - finally got a video done last night that we can compare. Buick Idle and Vac Gauge - YouTube Our cars are pretty similar. At idle, it runs about 17 in with about .5 in of fluctuation, and in drive it goes bonkers also. I have owned cars in the past with a vac gauge and they were steady whether in gear or not, albeit these were cars from the 70s and 80s and idled at 650-700 in drive vs 450. Maybe the fluctuations are a result of the lower idle speed and it should be measured at a higher rpm? Traditionally, the gauge action would make me think the valve guides are worn. Actually, I had both heads replaced and a valve job done in the mid eighties, and I have suspected the dealership that did the work at the time used low compression vs high compression gaskets (or maybe my rings are just that tired), and I seem to recall they did not replace the valve guides, or there was some obscure issue with them. I know that the heads were cracked and some of the valves burned and that was all fixed. I was just graduating college at the time and hadn't started my job yet, needed the car to get me and all my stuff home, money was tight and this was my ride and details didn't matter then. Anyone know what a 322 is supposed to look like on a vac gauge? With the exception of a rear main leak, lower than spec compression and blowby, this engine purrs like a kitten and still pulls pretty good. My intent is to leave it be and would like to learn more. Spare me any cinematography abuse - I'm keeping my day job Admittedly, though, it was a fun little project to edit and get to YouTube!

Lay low and be safe - it looks like Sandy is going to give us a wild weekend. Irene flooded the Binghamton - Owego area out last year and many places have just recovered, and there are still places closed and being leveled/rebuilt. Hoping we stay a little drier this time. Going to fire up the generator tomorrow, re-test the transfer box and make sure all is in in order. Stupid hurricanes. Since when do they turn left anyway? Who let that happen? :confused:

Hi John - I can call and ask him and post. He asked me for a follow up call after 1000 miles were on the car. His opinion was the weakest part of the 55 design was the sprag - apparently they beefed it up or improved upon the design in 56, we talked about that. The ears on the early bands occasionally snapped too - he showed me a later one (which I had in my collection that was different than in the car - not sure if mine was a GM or aftermarket) where the ears had more of a boss and re-enforcement on the ends. They are in the car now. His opinion, same as many of ours, is the 56 transmission is desirable from the mid 50's era because of the extra stage in the torque converter - more efficient on start up. The heat exchanger we all know is an easy swap, and the tail-housing & u-joint would have to be swapped to match the splines on the 55 driveshaft. If my savings account was a little deeper, I would have bought a 56 unit and brought it to him and put that in the car. Utica is about 90 min or so from Binghamton - same for you? Here is the website - he advertises Dynaflow rebuilding right on the front. Shop is clean, neat and well organized also - he gave me the grand tour. There was also a 55 Chevy with fresh paint on it when I swung the Buick in and dropped anchor. The one night I had to stay late at work in Syracuse and he hung around late for an extra hour until I could get there so we could go through all the broken parts together, explain what happened and determine the proper parts to fix. Another thing - he believes you get what you pay for in rebuilding kits, especially with the clutch packs and friction linings. People bring him no-name brands and he will advise against installing them because they usually don't last. I had some of the hard parts for him to use and let him choose his supplier of choice for soft parts and anything I didn't have (most of my stuff was NOS GM, acceptable used, or LEMPCO). This guy is tops. Here is his companies home page - check it out: Professional Transmission and Converter - Home Page Heres some pics of the unit just prior to going back together (the first time). I still have to get the busted pics up here. The turbine assy in Picture #2 was where the most damage was - the inner vane area had a big groove cut into it from the contact with the stator vanes and the metal had filled every nook and cranny in the trans. Jeese John - just remembered I owe you a video of the vac gauge on my car - sorry about that. I tend to post in surges. Maybe this weekend before the big storm hits.

PM sent

Hey Paul -no operational issues using a single diameter hose without the damping that I experienced. Clearly the physics and math are straightforward and trivial to prove it . Seriously, it should just be a nuisance. I drove it that way for a few months until I found an original 2 piece. Working wheel back and forth will get the air out of it and it will be fine. Had mine apart 2 or 3 times, including getting the gear itself rebuilt. There are some great posts on a DIY reseal if you have some seeps/leaks, (see Old-Tanks BuickRestorer site http://www.buickrestorer.com/powersteering.html) to a full R&R if the unit seems worn out, shoots fluid all over the place and has inconsistent power assist (guess who.....none of my stuff seems to work out cheap - they are expensive to crate up and ship http://forums.aaca.org/f162/55-power-steering-pump-202084.html).

Well, I bit the bullet a few weeks ago after years of procrastinating and uncertainty, and had Joe at Professional Transmission and Converter in Marcy NY rebuild the dynaflow in my 55. Boy am I glad he did. He is experienced with Dynaflows, tore it down, mic'd it out, machined and resurfaced parts as needed, installed new parts (both my purchased NOS stash that I had been acquiring over the years and a stash of parts pulled from low mileage units I disassembled in my travels, as well as some other new parts I didn't know I needed). I went to see the unit when it was disassembled and wow, was it tired. So that others may learn - here were my symptoms: 1) Loud gear whining noise when fluid warmed up and unit in Drive, under load, from 0 to 10 mph. 2) Black film on dipstick - oil got greyish-black quick (like after 5-8000 miles) when wiped on a white towel 3) Chatter/slip in Low on hard acceleration, fluid warmed up. This was reduced after new thrust mounts and mounting pad and proper control valve adjustment, but would still happen 4) Leak down after fluid warmed up, car turned off for about 10-15 min. Basically, you had to put it in N and rev the engine about 30 sec before it would start to move in D. 5) Where did that broken thrust washer in the bottom of the pan come from anyway? Been wondering since 1989. (see old posts) 6) Feels like the switch pitch works. Sorta. When it was rebuilt 20 years ago, upon disassembly it was observed the stator vanes hit the turbine and were all pointing in different directions. Thats fixed, right? I think so...... 7) Harsh shift L-D, D-L. Like, BANG-Jolt shift. Only if you keep accelerating and shifted did it shift smooth. How about, we just never shift lest we break it. 8) Sluggish on a start in D, especially on a hill, but thats a Dynaflow, right? And there is a Low gear....oh wait, see 7) above. So... what did he find you ask? In no particular order 1) The switch pitch was NOT working. The vanes hit the turbine again, the piston that moves the vanes was cracked with pieces missing, and even if the vanes did work the piston was shattered and the fluid would go right past it, so there would never be any variable pitch action. The pieces of the piston came apart and jammed up the whole stator assembly. I had a whole new variable pitch subassembly in my parts collection, which he tore apart, inspected and rebuilt also to make sure all the vanes were properly swaged to the crank pins so they would not come loose and move in unison. 2) The unit was never re-bushed on the first rebuild - they were all shot, hence the leakdown when the fluid was warm. 3) The Low band adjusting screw was fully bottomed out, the band was worn, the drum horribly scored and discolored. Parts were re-machined smooth or replaced as needed. New bands installed. 4) Of the 5 friction plates, only 2 had any friction material left on them, barely any. The outer edges of all were blue/black as if overheated. All new installed. 5) The wrong gasket was used in the valve assembly, and 2 of the hydraulic circuit ports were covered up. Never did figure out what they did, but it was clear something was getting starved of fluid. 6) Found where the thrust washer was supposed to be - in the turbine assembly! The resulting loss of clearance made the unit chew up aluminum and fill the accumulators and valve body full of metal chips. New stator and turbine assembly installed (I had provided both). All new thrust washers, select fit as necessary to achieve specified tolerances, installed in unit. 7) Sprag - shot. I guess the term is "flipped". In any case, it wasn't holding well if at all. Actually, upon reassembly and the first test drive, Joe said "doesn't feel right". He took the unit back out of the car, tore it down again, and somehow determined that the new sprag he got was defective or not to his liking, ordered another, put it back in, drove it, and stated "now it feels right". A new spring and roller kit was also installed, but I lost track of where that went. 8) Front pump worn as expected. New pump and plate installed. 9) Pin on output shaft that turns the driving gear on the rear pump sheared off. Rear pump never worked. I think thats a don't care unless you are going to push start a Dynaflow car, but in any event, that was fixed. 10) The switch pitch linkage was not properly adjusted at the high accumulator and was not engaging the piston that allows fluid to flow to the stator to switch the pitch, not that it mattered because the stator self destructed anyway. 11) All seals and gaskets replaced, including torque ball seal, unit pressure tested. I haven't seen a leak yet. It took about 3 weeks for the rebuild, and the price was reflective of what was found and I thought it fair. Joe put alot of pride and attention into the rebuild - the car was not leaving his shop until he knew it was right and I was happy with a complete test drive. I am totally delighted with the work and the operation of the unit and it was worth every penny. The unit is cleaned and painted (I wanted it black). After 500 miles the fluid and stick are perfectly clean as they should be. I find that I am fire-walling the throttle far too often and the car is more of a pleasure to drive than I ever imagined. The acceleration is really smooooth. What is ironic is I probably put 40,000 miles on the car with the transmission in this worn condition - amazing it still worked. Joes opinion is a Dynaflow is a fairly simple and durable unit. I have to admit, if all a unit needed was bands and clutches and seals, and the disassembly stayed at the major subassembly level and there were no other "nuance" failures, my skills would probably be sufficient to disassemble, replace the typical worn parts, and reassemble. If I had tried that with the condition my unit was in, I would have been way over my head and not know what to look for. Wow....so, hows it drive? Boy, I have no complaints about a Dynaflow now after almost 30 years of what I thought was normal operation. It takes off in Low, like I'm afraid to push it too hard from a standing start. Yes, the tires do squeal in Low now, no using gravel or going around a corner to cheat. I can pull out of anyplace in Drive with confidence and there is hardly any hesitation like before - actually, I would compare it to my Tahoe if you started it out in second gear (some of the GM light trucks allow a 2nd gear start). I never heard nor felt how the variable pitch was SUPPOSED to work - there is about a one second delay, and then it sounds like the engine is going to crawl out from under the hood. It has NEVER done that before in all the years the car has been on the road. The rpms really jump up - it is a very, very noticeable difference in acceleration vs the subtle acceleration of what I thought was a solid working unit before. The shifting is also very smooth, and there is no whine when you pull away from a red light. When we went on the test drive and I had to pull out quick, out of habit I put it in Low. Joe pointed out - you shouldn't have to do that any more. He was right. On the drive back from Utica, I got in the neighborhood of 17 mpg doing a steady 65-70. It does not take much throttle to keep the car going. I historically got about 15-16. Time will tell but I expect an improvement. You could probably put me in one of those dinky 50's commercials as a gleaming new Buick buyer. Hope the thread is informative and entertaining - now to put more miles on it before the snow comes. Next project - a couple more chrome pieces, bodywork and paint. Oh and now that the dynaflow doesn't leak, it makes my rear main bearing leak look worse, so will be digging up that recent thread on rear main seal fixes using the heater duct wire to address it. I have some pictures of the worn parts and can post when I get them off my phone.

Hey Paul You need to have the 2 different diameter hoses for the pressure side to eliminate the hissing. Do a search on the forum - a couple of us have been this route before. Replacing the original one with the same diameter hose resolves it. I found one of the original types new on eBay and carry the CARS one as a spare. A hydraulic hose shop in town was able to make one up for me but it wasn't as close to the original type. http://forums.aaca.org/f162/55-roadmaster-202145.html http://forums.aaca.org/f115/55-buick-ps-hose-137051.html Sounds like you are going at your Roadmaster like gangbusters! Its great to read your progress.

Thanks for the compliment Paul. Your car looks sharp as well and you will, and are, getting solid advice from many mid-50s Buick owners on this board. No matter how deep you get in one or more of us have been there and can get you out. My lessons learned to pass on was to have the management inspect with me my areas of concern - those being the recessed areas in the front bumper (they look like vents cut in on the left and right sides), the recessed area along the length of the back bumper, the top of the reverse lamp housing where it meets the base of the tail lamp, and the recessed areas inside the trunk ornament. My portholes were re-pro and are holding up well. I also scribed my initials in all my pieces. All I will say is my first newbie chrome experience was an expensive lesson in malcontent, and any recessed area either discolored or peeled within a few years, and it was wavy to boot. During my visit at Librandis they took the time to explain their process to me and what they would do different to ensure my past problems would not be repeated. Then I drug them through it again on pickup, inspecting each piece closely. While I probably drove them crazy my money was better spent on a shop that paid attention, took pride in their work and was confident enough to spend time convincing me. And I didn't have to worry about it getting lost in shipping/receiving. Yeah - that happened the first time too! Good luck. Hey - how far are you from the Plainview area? Some old friends of mine are down that way.

Librandis in Harrisburg PA did my chrome back in 2005 and I'm very happy with it. Folks on this site recommended them to me. Has held up very well, no issues getting into the recesses. My preference is Hexavalent chrome vs Trivalent. I can't comment on price - it is expensive and I wanted it done right. I also wanted some place I could drive to so the pieces could be hand delivered, I could see their shop, and discuss each piece with my concerns, then personally inspect each piece upon pickup before accepting. Learned from bad experience prior. I plan to take a couple more pieces to them this winter. Librandi's Plating

Yes - well said! One thing is for sure - the engine sure is rugged.