Mark Shaw

White water spots are calcium carbonate deposits that can be removed with Lime Away shower cleaner. I used it on my 38 Buick headlight reflectors that were really caked from leaky headlight lenses. It did a great job by dissolving the carbonates & didn't effect the silvered reflectors.

Yes, I do use SAE 250 gear lube (similar to Steam Cylinder Oil or 600 wt. lube) that helps to slow down the gears when shifting. Yes, I do have a leather cone clutch and yes, the graphite helps make shifting smoother by reducing the amount of pressure needed to push the shifter into gear. See the original can below with description & directions.

Jake, Death wobble is relatively common in Jeeps.... What is Death Wobble? Jeep death wobble is a rapid oscillating in your steering components and results in your steering wheel moving very quickly from side to side. It has earned this name because it feels like your Wrangler is literally shaking itself apart and that letting go of the steering wheel can lead to a very bad day. When this occurs it becomes extremely difficult to control your Wrangler and the only way to get it to stop is by slowing down; sometimes it is necessary to come to a complete stop. This isn't your standard, annoying vibration from unbalanced wheels. Death wobble is a distinctly harsher shaking force and very difficult to control. Death wobble typically occurs at speeds above 45 mph and in most cases requires a trigger like hitting a bump or a pothole, but can also happen at speeds under 45 mph. One of the common myths about death wobble is that it doesn’t happen to stock Jeeps, only ones that have been lifted. This is not true. It is actually possible to have death wobble in ANY vehicle with a solid front axle. However, it is true that if you have recently done any suspension upgrades (Ex: Lift kits) you may be more likely to experience death wobble. There also isn't a set year range or specific Jeep years that are more susceptible to the wobble over others. Every Jeep, even the older Willys, can find themselves plagued with this issue. If you’re faced with this unfortunate situation, here are some steps to look into and possibly help to solve the problem.

Yesterday, I used a 6" I beam to correct my bent front axle. First, I removed the steering damper and attached the I beam to the straight side of the axle with 2x4 blocks and two ratchet straps. Then, I used a larger ratchet strap to pull the axle back into alignment. By leaving the axle mounted in the car, the tendency of the round axle to rotate was eliminated. The I beam actually started to bend with full tension on the larger ratchet strap. This project took almost all day since I had to remove my electric hoist and dismantle my jib hoist to use the I beam swing arm. Today I will test drive the car without the steering damper to see if this process corrected the death wobble. Stay tuned.... Well, it did the trick. I just finished a test drive without the steering damper and there was no death wobble at all. I didn't mention it earlier, but I added two table spoons of fine flake graphite to the transmission oil. So now it really shifts easily with no double clutching required. I previously had real shifting problems until I learned how to shift it from a fellow HCCA member on it's first tour. Owners need to speed shift this particular model Buick rather than double clutch or wait for the gears to mesh. This car now drives and shifts better than ever.

Did the previous owner remove the whole heat riser body or just the tube inside it?

https://www.conceptcarz.com/valuation/11758/Buick-Series-23.aspx I cannot verify accuracy of this site, but it's a good start...

With a little Internet research, you might find replacement gears you can modify to fit. https://www.enginegearonline.com/1-gpm-reversible-gear-pump-12v-for-motor-oil-diesel-fuel-and-water/

I did check the spring shackles per Jim's suggestion, and they were tight. But, with some help, I finally found the cause of the problem.... Yesterday, a friend came over and noticed that the front axle had a slight bend on the right side. It was hard to detect because the only line of sight to see it was through the wheel spokes. I put a straight edge against it to see it was close to an inch out of true. It appears that this car hit hard on a stump or other low object that actually bent the 2" tubular axle. The right wheel has not been tracking correctly and upon close inspection, we could barely see that the tire is scrubbing slightly on one side. So now I know what needs to be done & I have yet another winter project to add to a list that always seems to get longer as I tour with these old cars.

Remove the heat riser and test it for leaks. This is a common problem. Exhaust condensation causes the steel inner sleeve to rust out and allows exhaust gases to contaminate the intake. See the Prewar Buick forum for details...

The original rusted heat tube can be removed relatively easily by carefully cutting a slot down one side with a sharp chisel and prying it out. I used aluminized exhaust tubing from the scrap bin at a muffler shop to replace the heat tube in my 24 Master PU. A simple arbor press was used to install the new tube with oil to lubricate the process. I also used a freeze plug & steel plate to isolate the riser from exhaust flow. All this was done at a local muffler shop during the BCA meet in Rochester.

You might try here: https://forums.aaca.org/topic/323600-nos-ignition-parts/

The roadster is actually a 1929 Buick. Bill writes the 1929 Buick Silver Anniversary Newsletter.

This is a very old thread.... One more thing to consider is a restriction on the suction side of the pump that causes cavitation & results in foaming.. The restriction can be caused by corrosion in the engine block, but is more often due to a collapsed hose. New hoses usually have a spring shaped wire inside to prevent this.

David, I do realize that 100+ year old cars didn't need steering dampers when new (However, old VW bugs did). Since there are no specs available for the original caster settings on a 1912 Model 34 Buick, a steering damper will have to do for now. I do plan to make some wedges to increase caster sometime this winter. As stated before, I checked and corrected everything you mentioned, and my tire pressures are all 60 psi (checked with a digital gage).

I have a friend with a 1918 Cadillac that uses two bellows type thermostats. There is one for sale on evil bay... https://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-1920s-1930s-SYLPHON-GRILL-SHUTTER-THERMOSTAT-PACKARD-CADILLAC-BUICK/392386189682?hash=item5b5c0a1972%3Ag%3Abh4AAOSwxM1dV~VN&LH_Auction=1&LH_BIN=1

Davie, I did fix all those things, and just finished changing the wheel bearings to new TIMKIN tapered roller bearings. I thought that was the last thing to cause it, but it still had a slow speed death wobble. So, I installed a $30 damper to use the car on the next HCCA tour in less than a week. Re-checking all the front end joints etc. will have to wait until this winter.

I researched steering dampers here on the form and other sites. I learned that others were successfully using VW bug steering dampers on Model T and other small cars. So I bought one at a local auto supply for just over $30 and installed it yesterday afternoon. I used a 2" U bolt and made a second plate to accept the anchor bolt on the axle. I did the same with a smaller U bolt to fit on the 3/4" tie rod. (See photo below). This morning's test drive went without a hitch. No more "Death Wobble"!!!

These are fabulous cars to drive. This one may need some front end work since I see a steering damper was installed. I wonder if the oil heat/cooler has also been bypassed.

Thanks Dwight, The replacement bearings still didn't solve my "Death Wobble". So, today I will be installing a new steering damper made for a VW Bug. I'll post the results from that modification later in a separate thread...

I successfully replaced the outer front wheel bearings in my 1912 Model 34 Buick. Ball bearings with the threaded outside race are no longer made. So, I found two sets of TIMKIN # 1975 & #1931 tapered roller bearings that fit without spindle modifications. These worked nicely on my Model 34 Roadster and may also work on Model 10 and other series 25 Buicks.

Brian, Glad you now have a tow rig. You can find good deals on new car trailers in Georgia, but eBay or Craigslist are also a good options.

Most tire stores have stick-on weights you can use to static balance your front wheels. Jack up the front and spin each side to find the heavy spot settles to the bottom. Add weights opposite until the wheels stop at random spots.

You might try cutting old inner tube rubber to fit....

J, I use a red bicycle flasher on my cars after dark. Glad to see you're enjoying your Buick!

Yeah, and they only use "music" they like and don't give a rip about their audience... I like the show too, because it is one guy doing most of the work and his methods are inventive and practical.