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Thinking I would next take off the trunk emblem I opened the trunk and low and behold there are a set of rocker sill covers (among other things...). Backed into the garage like it was and flat tires it was impossible to open the trunk very much so it's a bit like a treasure hunt. LOL Seems they are a bit better condition and looks like they will clean up too with some effort. I will put the better of the two on the Limited and be keeping the other set for the Roadmaster. Going to label them for the boys in case I don't get to that one although... motivation is high right now.

In the continuing effort to get the Limited together I went over to the garage with the Special and retrieved the passenger side seat back and brought it home. Using a vinyl cleaner/conditioner I cleaned up what vinyl is there and vacuumed the upholstery, Typically the top outside corners on these cars open up as the stitching lets go so had taken both backs to RM Restorations years ago and they were able to redo the corners without having to reupholster them. Will see with use down the road how they will hold up but... in the mean time it helps make the car look better together. I'm only putting the passenger side in for now as I have to install the rebuilt power brake booster and think access will be better without the driver side back there. Going to have to repaint the center pivot post before anyway...

A work IN progress.... Hell it's only been 39 years and counting! She still polishes up nicely though.

Using this as therapy and keeping busy. More than a few hours polishing chrome and stainless just to keep her up. Then I have front sheet metal to restore, put on her and an engine to rebuild, It's been a long time coming....

All and in all a pleasant afternoon/evening helping to make the old girl slowly come back to her once proud appearance. I have a few hours more on the paint especially the trunk then the roof let alone finish the front frame and.... It makes me happy to lay my hands on her like I did when dreaming about the day (at 16) I could drive my Limited.

Next I went at the driver side tail light with what was left of the metal polish squeezing the very last bit out I could. They are pitted badly but have a complete re-chromed set to put on once she is on the road. Even with the pitting the shine helps. With a little cleaner/wax around the chrome I finished with the trunk emblem which unfortunately the plastic popped into the housing but it didn't crack so will take it off later and silicone it back in place.

With a call from my wife that dinner was ready left things out and took a break. Still in cleanup mode afterwards went back to the passenger side to look at the Limited script. Something must have fallen while in the garage over the years as it was broken at the "M" but still on the car. Decided to use some silicone to keep it there but will replace it later with one I have tucked away in my goody box. While it dried I carefully used my metal cleaner rag and polished up both the script and the chevron.

Looking at the door jamb turned my attention to it since I was right there and my can of cleaner/wax was within reach. Using another rag I scrubbed and polished away till satisfied with the shine. I used the rag from the metal polish on the striker plate making it look better too. From several feet away the car will catch some eyes but I'm not kidding anyone (including myself) that the paint job really should be redone to properly show her. I don't have the resources for that now so getting her back together with what I have and running is the objective. One of my boys can decide when the time comes if that suits their desires. Meantime I noticed the stickers on the edge of the door. Sadly the top sticker is torn off and doesn't show any information as to mileage or the Buick Dealership it was serviced at but the bottom one shows the service centre in Cleveland, Ohio. I bought the Limited from an ad in Cars & Parts on the outskirts of Cleveland, Ohio in 1981.

Now fully committed to cleaning (brings me back to the days when Dad said I could have his Limited...) I looked at the rocker door sill and thought, will it clean up? Encouraging results even though it has a flaw or two. I think I have the pair from the Limited parts car that might be better but again, happy for now. As you can see my polish is all but gone... Managed to have enough to finish the sill though with a very little left and a rag that had some in it.

One can work up a sweat doing this so opened up the garage door, turned on my industrial fan towards me and went at a bit more trim. This quarter trim isn't the greatest but tried the upper half and went at it. Black paint really sets off chrome and OK with the chrome at a distance for now,

Came home early today and noticed the car cover on the Limited had blown off at the back so before putting it back on actually lifted it up on top of the car and grabbed a rag and my trusty metal polish. It started innocently enough having noticed the passenger side window frame had some rust spots and wanted to clean it up. I need to buy shares in this polish as I swear with only hand power and a micro fibre rag it is amazing! I'm sure it helps that the car has it's original factory chrome giving it a good base to polish as compared to faded chrome from a car that has sat out for a long time but happy with the results.

Amen to that Bill! As he requested I sent him an email thanking him and telling that the car was running with the fuel pump. He sent this reply back: Hi Doug; Thanks for letting me know how the pump turned out and for the opportunity to work on it. It was a learning experience for both of us. That arm was a bit tricky to line up but I am pleased that it all worked out. It was certainly my pleasure to be able to help you out with your car an I appreciate the glowing reviews. Our motto has always been that "Service is our best part!" and I am fortunate that we have a good team in place to deliver on that promise. I enjoy a challenge so if you need anything in the future I will give it my best shot. Happy motoring. Regards; Ryan Sheeler D&T Auto Parts I won't mind the drive if I need his services again. Now if I can deduce if I need a master cylinder or not....

Loving old cars? Success and failures. I had been looking for a rebuild kit or a fully rebuilt fuel pump for the Nash all this time and saw both on Ebay but... having to ship them into Canada I was not confident they were done with current gas appropriate parts and with exchange and shipping.... Started shopping parts suppliers close to home. I spoke with a man doing them out of town and wanted $200.00 to rebuild mine. I get that he is a business but thought I could do it myself for a lot less than that. Then I called the President of our car club who has a large antique car collection and he recommended a place saying to ask for Ryan. After speaking with him on the phone and sending pictures of my pump felt he could source a rebuilt pump and would call me back. That was last Wednesday and I got busy so waited till Monday to call him. He told me he ordered a pump but it wasn't exactly the same casting and had a longer arm but felt the parts were the same based on the pictures I sent him so if I wanted he would let me take them to see if they would work and then settle with him afterwards. He is 40 miles away so decided to take my pump off the Nash early Tuesday morning when the Garage opened up and bring it to Ryan to save double driving. Naturally I missed Ryan by 20 minutes having not called ahead to say I was coming... He owns another store 10 miles away and had to go there. The young counter fellow had no idea what I was talking about and in fact made the statement that all he ever dealt with was electric fuel pumps and had never seen a mechanical pump... I suggested leaving my pump for Ryan to check if the parts would fit and call me. Disappointed and with customers expecting me I made a few calls. Fortunately they were understanding and willing to reschedule so went for some food and thought about checking to see if a friend was available for a visit. Said he was working but... he was at his boat so come on down. That worked out fine and after a lengthy catching up went back to the store finding Ryan was back. After introductions he said come on to the back and he started to disassemble my pump. The parts indeed were the same so he offered to put them together before we even discussed costs. Ryan is the owner of D & T Auto Parts - Carquest in Leamington and the other store in Kingsville. I'm guessing he is in his early 40s and was impressed at his willingness to get his hands dirty and help me out! Stated he had never done a mechanical pump either as we talked during the process. We struggled with the actuator arm as there are two parts and have to be lined up in order to get the pin where they pivot in. He said had he done these before there likely was a trick to lining them up but persistence paid off and he got it together. Once again he said to take it home and try it before paying him but when I asked what he wanted and said 100 I said I know it will work based on the sucking action once together and paid him cash on the spot. Said to call him and let him know either way how it went. A Great Man! With my work day totally amiss I went directly to the Nash and installed the pump (having to retrieve a bolt or two after dropping them onto the gravel below...). With some priming of the system FINALLY she fire up but was running rough with some missing. Glenn came back to see how I was doing and said the carb was flooding. We took the bolted on air cleaner off and gently tapped the carb after starting her again and she settled in with a smooth idle and no hesitation when revving her up. Let her run idling for a good 15 minutes checking for leaks of any kind and packed up my tools. With a car parked in front of me I decided to gently back her up a bit testing the clutch. When I put my foot on the brake there was a momentary pressure and then the pedal went to the floor! Great! Likely broke a line... Next.... Anyone wanting a '51 Nash needing some TLC?

Love your building Sir!

Picked up a few sheets of particle board before supper and went into the garage to prepare the ceiling for them. The plastic needed to be stapled up along with pushing some insulation back in place before trying to secure the 2 ft by 4 ft panels I had cut making it easier working alone. Of course I had to clear that shelf in order to gain room to screw the panels to the ceiling joists. Interesting adventure digging through stuff I hadn't seen in years like a dash pad for Dad's 1959 Oldsmobile Ninety Eight he scrapped. I liked driving that car almost as much as my Limited but back then it was daily transportation and winters around here take it's toll on bodies so it's days were numbered. The dash pad is in good condition with no cracks or deformities so going to list it for sale and hopefully find someone that can make use of it. I'm pretty sure I have the 98 model only chrome tail lights up in the attic (when I ever get to that stuff...). Any monies gained from the sale of parts will be saved and going into the "Limited Fund". Found, along with the grill sections for the Limited, the front lower splash apron that will need to be painted but it is not rusted out anywhere like they usually do so it will make a nice piece when finished. With the shelf cleared I took it down as that new door needs the room. Loosing the shelf space means more careful sorting, labelling and packing in containers but until I get everything placed to pack it up, the garage floor is as mess! Trying to console myself a little 'destruction' has to happen before some 'construction' can start. Tomorrow is going to be a bit of a scattered day in that I have to be at the Nash early to take off the fuel pump, then take it and drive out of town to a supplier that believes he has all the parts to rebuild it. Hopefully that will be successful and then will come back to do two jobs (maybe three if time) and planning on another "evening in the garage". My wife asked tonight if I thought I was making any progress? I told her yes I believe so but suggested she stay out and wait till I say it's OK to have a look see....

Went back at the garage today as every day counts right now with the process of getting the addition built. Brought down the bike that was hanging from the rafters and set it outside beside the Limited. This was my father-in-laws that I didn't have the heart to let him throw out when they moved to their apartment. With a bit of cleaning I think it will be nice being that it is black also. Didn't notice the manufacturer but it says on the cross bar Made in England. With it out of the way I did some re insulating before fixing up some plastic that had fallen down. With that task done I started moving the remaining things off the shelf and heard one of my sons talking to his Mom. Perfect timing to give me a hand taking down the shelf. I had to remove that 2x4 setup on the wall and the speaker before putting the shelf unit up so wished Mark a good night but before I knew it, after he was gone I was putting the shelf back up. I measured carefully putting two 2x4 blocks for support and then used my saw horses to keep it from falling forward while I screwed the unit in place. It wasn't pretty but it worked without incident. Once I had screws along the top in I repositioned the blocks to fit under the back at the bottom thereby levelling the unit and providing a strong place to screw them into the wall studs. With the plastic back up I could see things again and don't I find a rebuilt water pump... There also was the transmission cross member for the Limited so it now has a better place along with several oil & air filters for now. I'm sure I will rediscover more things as I clear that shelf to the right... That needs to come down as a garage door will go on that wall for access to the pad out back. After work tomorrow going to the lumber store to buy a couple sheets of plywood to put on the ceiling. Not planing on dealing with hanging plastic ever again! (it's really the insulation that I hate but... going to soon be done with that forever)

Made the decision the day was mine after lunch and dug into the garage to get the Limited moved out enough to change the flat tire which will make rolling it inside and out by myself much easier. Put a rope on my truck and inched her out inch at a time once the motor and stand were out of the way. I lined it up so the rear tire was accessible at the opening where the jack stands are. Using one of the many bumper jacks I have I was able to raise the car enough to remove the flat and put on the inflated roller tire safely. Once on the ground I roller her ahead with little effort just enough to clear the garage door as I need to do major reorganization inside at the back before rolling her inside again. Sorry Honey, your Van will have to sit out for awhile. Out in the daylight you can see how well the paint cleaned up on half the hood I cleaned. The first bit of work is to clear the shelf of parts as it will be taken down and moved to the side wall behind the bike. I sorted the small items to put in small bins and labeled what went in as I go. The big items will be wrapped and boxed like those tail light pieces laying on the bin. I bought those when I was in Phoenix Arizona visiting my sister while she attended ASU. That was 1977 and was my first experience with desert cars. While the interior and rubber was toast on the Roadmaster 2 door The body and chrome was excellent. The yard (can't recall the name of it) was a U Pull place and they even lent me tools. Not only did I get those tail lights but I also got a whole bumper, all with not a single struggle with bolts!! But I digress... With the Limited covered for the night and the door closed I thought I would see how the chrome would clean up before heading in. Encouraged I just couldn't put it down. Of course these are for the Roadmaster and I will clean the other one up, wrap it and box it separately clearly marked for when her time comes. So many Buicks, so little time...

After a somewhat disappointing week (some of it having no luck with the Nash and locating a fuel pump...) decided to end it around 3 pm due to a final phone call with a customer of 16 years. Seems she was expecting all four buildings I've done in the past to be completed on next Saturday which normally takes 5 working week days. Pointing that out plus the fact I have no employees with which to put inside the normally closed up offices on the weekends (due to you know what) was told she would get back to me. Diligent as always she wasted no time to call back and say "They have decided there will be no work done." When asked if that meant by me after all these years, she just repeated the same phrase and would not expand only to say should things change she would contact me... So.... Headed home, pulled out the last wheel for the Limited which wasn't drying well in the garage (which had to go back for a bad valve stem...), lit up some wood I had in the fire pit and made myself a Bloody Caesar. For my US & Offshore Buick friends a Bloody Caesar is somewhat of a Canadian drink in that it is made with Clamato juice instead of tomato juice. It can be made with what I call the full garden and such but I prefer the taste of the clam juice with a touch of lemon juice only. Naturally it blends well with Vodka... Having the fire well underway we finished a dinner of left over ribs and chicken before heading back outside to stoke the fire more and clean up some wood that I found had black ants making themselves at home. At least something got accomplished today. Good Night All.

@Caballero2, I'm positive this wasn't a car unit as the cord is for 110 volt only. Would have been a nice treasure to fund though and have a picture of a record player in a 64 (?) Buick Electra.... This was a very nice car I saw around the Buick National 2006 taken in downtown Flint. Anyone know the car?

Once again another 90 plus day but found the energy to get gas and head over to the Nash. I uncovered her with full expectation of firing her up and she didn't disappoint me. While folding up the cover and letting her idle, suddenly it quit! Pumped the accelerator several times but would not fire. i poured in 2 gallons from my small tank and put some in a small bottle to put down the carb. It acted like it wanted to fire so know there was spark but hearing I was having trouble Glenn came out and we both tried to get her running with me inside the car and him under the hood. Somewhat frustrated after having it running so nice Monday he had to go into the shop to deal with his mechanics and a customer so went at checking things like fuel leaks or blockages. Decided to take off the fuel filter and with a light puff gas came spewing out so no problem there. That is inline before the fuel pump but it was not like it was full of gas. With that I disconnected the line at the carb and not a drop of gas there! I had in my truck a manual pump siphon and decided to check to see if gas would pump up from the tank. Had to disconnect the line at the pump and just before I did Glenn came back and said to get inside and turn over the engine to see if the pump was doing it's job. NOTHING! Since it was going to come off anyway he disconnected the supply line and used the siphon and gas came shooting out freely so.... I brought it home to inspect the internal condition thinking it might be the diaphragm possibly having a crack from age. Placed some new cardboard on my work space and started in disassembly noting condition as I went. Surprisingly the diaphragm was soft and did not see any visible cracks or dirt/buildup/varnish. What little gas that came out was not bad either and the casting was free of anything like old varnished gas. Two things I did notice that may or may not be a problem: There is a wear mark on the arm where it would touch the cam shaft. It seems to be on the side more than in the middle of the contact area. Hard to see with this shot. I then looked where the arm rocks in the casting and noticed what appears to be a stop bar letting the arm slide past it somewhat. Finally, looked at what appears to be a pin to hold the arm and it appears to be not fully pushed into the other side of the casting. While there doesn't seem to be any wobble when pumping the arm this just doesn't look right to me. Not sure when or if dad ever replace the fuel pump but having actual mileage of 100,000 miles and putting on 50,000 of that himself, maybe I should just replace this unit? Wonder if anyone in the Nash Club (in Michigan) has any Made in Canada rebuilt pumps available for my Canadian Statesman??

Have been told I'm different in many ways... My first High School car is this 1958 Buick Limited given to me by my Dad when I turned 16. I drove it for a year before this came along. As far as getting another one, I still have the Special convert today! The Limited sadly was rusted beyond the effort to restore but... Found her twin sister many years before stripping the parts car. I still have it and currently working on getting it in running order. Did I say I'm different? Oh Ya, cause if I could, I'd have another one (if I could afford it...) but happy with the two I had in High School.

A bloody Hot Monday today! Decided against more lawn cutting early with the sun and heat so went over to the Special to sort the electronics that was pulled out of basement that I will take to the drop off centre. Thought this unit was kinda neat so fooled with the speaker wires a bit and scabbed a wire for the antenna to see if it would work. Low and behold with a bit of fussing it works! Even the record played turns but slowly. Imagine there is a belt that likely is hardened and stretched but going to keep it for the garage addition at home. Pure 60's I think with those round speakers and bubble top. Cool Man.

It did the same for too! Not only do you have something special but you made your dad very happy and have a video memory of the moment. Congratulations on a fine job well done!

After a leisurely morning sipping coffee on the deck finally went over to the Special and cut the lawn. It heated up and with the humidity didn't get much of anything else accomplished except a little sorting of stuff in the garage. My big industrial fan is at home otherwise... The big bin is 95% full and is leaving tomorrow so decided to head home for a shower. Had to stop at the mechanics shop and take a shot of the Nash out back. Have always felt my cars are safe and secure if they need to sit there for awhile. Hoping Tuesday evening proves nothing major with the rear end...