HarryJ

Everybody....Today I talked to both Soligen and Decatur Foundry. Decatur Foundry has passed on the option to quote, the job is too small. Soligen on the other hand has an interest in pursuing the subject to the next level. The gentlemen (conference call) I spoke to at Soligen are interested if it is economically feasible. Several options were discussed including only making digital patterns, to actually producing the part on a one off basis to a production run of 100+; and every thing in between. An interesting option was posed by Soligen; they suggested I consider casting the blocks out of aluminum! The blocks were origanlly painted a gray/green color. If manufactured to duplicate the exact shape of the originals and painted they could be indistinguisable from the cast iron. Soligen is quite precise with aluminum. More Anon.

Dave@Moon......Maybe I should have ask about the big four body builders, I forgot about Hayes. Who were Hayes primary customers?

stude8....It is an Oldsmobile; but I think it is earlier than 1922....say 1917, noting the fenders and cowl.

Peter/everybody.... I just sent out the packages to Soligen and Decatur Foundry. For everyone's information I sent the package to Donsco last week. Peter has received it and is working up a response. I would have loved to have attended the seminar at the national meeting, I understand it was quite a good one!

Raimondo...My E-mail address is 640angierave@bellsouth.net

I know Fisher built bodies for Chrysler and GM in the late twenties; but, did they build for anyone else?

gooph....First I would drain and flush the gas tank,then the fuel system and finally rebuild the fuel pump. If it has sat this long with fuel in it's system, Then it's probabably gummed up. Make sure there is oil to all of the bearing surfaces when you are ready to start the car. If the car has sat this long, every drop of oil has dropped from the bearing surfaces to the oil pan. For good measure I would squirt a few drops of oil in each cylinder, this will loosen up the rings and give the cylinders some initial lubrication. If the car has hydraulic brakes you may need to rebuild the whole system. Make sure and lubricate all of the oil and grease fittings on the car. Take this process slowly. You might want to turn the engine over several times without the ignition "on"; checking the lubrication each time.

Either is fine, however, I was asking for the production as you refered to it.

Who where the big three automotive body builders of the twenties and who were their primary clients?

thomaskenney...I think there is a very important place in the club for original cars. A repaint and new radiator core are minor changes in a car of this age; almost any car of this vintage would have some maintenance and repair work performed during it's life. Your car is a valuable record detailing how the car looked when new; showing the workmanship and fit. Personally I am a preservationist who enjoys driving, detailing and preserving cars of the past.

Great post! I wish I knew how to post something like this.

Thanks 29 Chandler....Everybody, again is their a source for electrolock rebuilds and NOS?

JT ....This is the web site of the Society of Automotive Historians; it's a great organization especially for those of who are really car crazy.

I got the last info for the quote packages.......The block weighs 87 lbs.

carbking......Thanks for being a wet blanket! Safety is No. 1 !

jberk.....I heard of this a long time ago and I can't remember the source. I have never attempted to perform this remelt technique and would not unless I had studied it thoroughly. I mentioned it in the post in hopes of soliciting comment from others. From what I understand the crystalization process zinc is prone to is due to small amounts of lead in the alloy. I heard it called internal granular disintergration. If the piece is remelted the lead is still present and the crystalization clock starts all over, eventually resulting in a cracked and fragile piece again.

Dynaflash8.......Excellent point. If the DMV will license it, it must be a car. I believe the primary goal of this organization should be to preserve the history of the evolution of the automobile; copies included.

dmaleta.....According to the "Standard catalog of American Cars 1805-1942" there were two Willard automobiles produced, one the electric car produced by the battery guy, and the other a steam car produced in Rutland, Vermont by a gentleman by the name of H.L.Willard.

Howard..... Wasn't the Shay just a fibre glass body on someone else's chassis? But this brings into question the Brewster and today's Studebaker Avanti, both of which are or have been marketed to the buying public. I think of these and other of their ilk as oddities. The Shay was not built to be a daily driver or family workhorse, but as a toy in my opinion. On a personal basis I vote "no", as to accepting them as legitimate antique automobiles.

29 Chandler....Is the replacement Electrolock you found a 5-B? I have very little left of the Electrolock unit on a parts car I have. My lock cylinder is missing and the timer end is from what I can tell only partially there. The info you posted is very helpful; however, it does not seem to detail exactly what the timer end should look like on the 5-B. Is there any more to the " Electrolock Applications List"? If you have the lock cylinder on your car you should be able to pick it or take it to a good locksmith who can. Once it is removed a key can be made. Where was the Mitchell Specialty Co. based? Was there a company in the past that specialized in servicing Electrolocks? On both of the '28 Chryslers I have the Electolock was by-passed at some time in their history.

Shop Rat......I've always used Tide. It works great for me; I've left it on a spot under a car for over a year or as short as two days and it has soaked it up and with a little wet mopping, the floor looks great again.

Shop Rat......I use Tide detergent sprinkled on small oil leaks. I let it stay for a couple of days then mop it up. The kitty litter tends to harden and stick to the floor since it is basically clay if I leave it for a while. Reflecting on a previous comment, some years ago I was working on the flat head six in my Chrysler with the spark plugs out for a few days; subsequently' I put the plugs back in and cranked the engine. It fired up and ran for a few seconds then seized up. Problem, I had allowed a bolt to fall into one of the holes; result, was a hex hole on the top of one of the pistons. Again the adventures of Mr. Badwrench!

This is stupid.....The other day I was working on my '21 Studebaker Light Six. The car was not registering consistant oil pressure, so I had disconnected the oil line from the oil pump to the guage and temporarily connected an extra oil pressure guage to the pump; this test out of the way I removed this test guage,but did not reconnect the dash unit. I busied myself with other jobs for a while and then climbed in the car and started it, got out and walked arround to the other side to witness a stream of oil squirting out onto my clean shop floor. It took two hours and many rags to clean up the mess. Maybe this post should be called the adventures of Mr. Badwrench.

Everybody....Let's not let this post die as I still need to know where to get a replacement or rebuilt 5-B Electrolock for my Chrysler.

stude8.....I would like to talk with the gentleman that reproduced the Zenith carbs to get an idea of his experiences. I realize this project probably was a challenge for him; however, hearing of his trials and tribulations would be educational. If you think it would be OK let me know who it is. By the way, I have heard of a way to revitalize old zinc castings. I have heard you can coat them with ceramic coating, cure this, then place the piece in a furnace and remelt the original metal. This will start the crystalization clock all over.