edinmass

There is a reason a good DVOM from Fluke is over a grand. Most meters aren’t shielded, and are as reliable as a member of congress. Good diagnostic work requires good tools and equipment.

Every time I’m in Hershey, I visit the library. It’s a fantastic resource………..and half the time Steve buys me lunch. To get the free lunch all that is required is to say nice things about Oldsmobile. 🥸

Yes……you sure gave me the “business”!

The above is what about my shop was……..and the comments are 100 percent in line with what we were experiencing.

Cascadia……….Interesting interpretation of BAT………to be honest many of the pre war cars there go over the expected money……….but I certainly don’t study it, it’s just a basic impression I have of the site. With 150 there under your belt, on post war stuff, I will defer to you on your impressions. That said, I still think without that specialty collector of that brand/era car…….it’s close. Personally I like the car…….and would play with it at a certain number…….but a fair amount lower than the high bid. That’s the benefit of having a bunch of running cars……….the next one can be a bargain, or you can pass it. My 1951 Plymouth Cambridge coupe I bought in 1982 for 750 bucks with 12k on the clock was an overpayment then……but I like the earlier style better. The seller is now looking for twice the high bid……..so my best guess is the real number is somewhere in the middle.

Ok, that’s not correct. Does the car have a kick shackle? That’s a common problem on GM cars of that vintage. It could have broken springs or the shackle could be under or over tightened……..both would cause what you are describing. Also “too much positive castor” would cause it. I bet factory specs call for 2-3 degrees positive…….today’s modern roads you want 1/2 degree negative. It actually makes it slightly harder to steer, and the wheel doesn’t return by itself…..but it makes for very stable and safe driving. Just looked it up…..it does have the kick shackle.

Stuck valves are common, on our 34 last month we had zero reading on three holes. All the others were 85-90. Our car had stuck rockers……….that were binding, the valves were free in the guides. We pulled the head anyways. Running a pressure pot gave good oil flow along the rail…..and all the rockers were showing oil…….but it was stuck hard on the shaft.

I would suggest that BAT is usually higher than average on selling numbers. So my contention is that 12 is the current retail number for the car. It’s very nice, and would be hard to duplicate, but lots of eyeballs had a chance to bid.

I probably have some 4-5 inch units up north, but they are from 1929-1931. They are off Pierce Arrow cars…….similar to a three ton truck!

Some are high maintenance. Keeping water and coolant out of the oil is important. They work fine. We used ours year round…….IE burned off the oil we didn’t have room to store. They are not particularly efficient. We would easily go through 2000 gallons a year.

Unless kept in a warm and dry place, the primer will allow rust.

You have an unfair advantage, you were selling them new in the 30’s. 😏

Looks like an early Spicer unit.

Dave……higher pressures make it easier to steer. I can’t help but ask this question and do not want to be insulting. What you call wander may be just how the car is……….having driven hundreds of pre war cars I often find people don’t always have a reasonable expectations of how their car should drive. Thoughts? PS- how about a photo of your car? 👍

I have done countless pre war cars with this unit. You can see the threaded rod on the first photo I use to extend the reach to clear the hubs. The car in the photo is a Duesenberg J. It had a death wobble. Also had frozen springs from sitting five decades. We ended up making new springs from the factory drawings……..time consuming and expensive. All worked out well in the end. We took measurements before we unstuck the springs, after with the originals, and then with the modern springs. Shocking how much it changed. We drove the car 1000 miles on a tour two weeks ago, and it behaved great. I check the alignment on all our cars every year……….the turn plates are 1960’s snap on units I bought at a swap meet for 100 bucks. They sure were heavy to carry but worth it. Other cheaper or home made options are available.

Here is my set up…….

I have been out of the shop for a week due to some medical issues. I will see if I can find photos of my equipment and shims. Ed.

Put a 1/2 degree NEGATIVE in it, and set the toe. Shims are available but expensive. It’s difficult to align them correctly. Most shops “set the toe- and go”. You have to install shims, assemble everything tight, and then take a reading again. It can easily take 5-15 hours to do a single car. I rarely align a pre war car that is even close to correct. Before you do anything else, be sure your air pressure is 45 front, 40 rear. Take it for a spin and see if that helps. Usually most people complaining about wandering have loose parts or box. Does it death wobble?

Clutch disk is stuck to the flywheel. Just unbolt the trans first and pull it off. Then work on the stuck clutch. It will probably take heat to get it to release.

Whenever I see a big classic car with a modern radiator in it, the first question I ask is where else did they cheap out on the repairs. And the answer always is everywhere! More often than not, I pass on them.

You need to know the correct flow rate, and be sure the new core has the same rate. Just because someone recores a radiator, doesn’t mean it will function correctly. Lots of shortcuts taken by shops that don’t know any better.

A PCV valve is a controlled vacuum leak. Installing one will drastically affect carburetion. It could also affect vacuum advance on a distributor. Drain the oil overnight on a hot engine. Install a 100% synthetic motor oil. It’ll probably cut the smoking in half. Klots makes a 100 percent synthetic that DOES NOT SMOKE……..it’s about 45 bucks a quart. Dirty used car dealers use it to run cars through the auction.

I’ll take the carb. Sending PM.Ed.

Just tell you wife that I said it was “OK”, and that I insisted you do it. Put all the weight on my shoulders! 👍

Garage looks great. Colors are nice………my only comment would be to seal the concrete. It’s now or never. Also, having a decent size concrete pad outside is important. I skipped it on my build and came back later to do it. I did 20x25 but wish it was larger. Working on equipment and trailers outside is much easier.