jeff

Black walls vs. white walls?? Get what you like, that's the most important thing. I do agree that in the day, probably no more than one car in ten had white walls. Even less on pickups and more utilitarian cars. Now, at a show, the ratio is probably reversed - only one in ten have blackwalls! But again - just please yourself, get what you like. Jeff (38 Special, black - with blackwalls)

Interesting footnote... My Buick service manual mentions a "police package" for the Special that consisted of a higher compression cylinder head and the 3.9:1 ratio from the Century. (plus the speedo gear, I guess) If you discount the higher compression head (couldn't have been worth that much!), this indicates that the Special would run with the 3.9:1 ratio. The only difference will be more 3 - 2 downshifts when taking a turn - usually with the 4.4:1 ratio I can just motor through in high gear. This, I believe, is what people wanted in the days before automatics - less shifting. So, if you are ok with a few more downshifts in your life, I think the Special will run OK with the 3.9.

If Glenn is not interested, I might like to take a look. Jeff

I would like to upgrade the door panels on my '38 model 48 2 door sedan. Hampton Coach lists an interior kit for a number of '37 and '38 Buicks. Looking at their list, they show a two door sedan for '37 (a '37 model 48), but not for '38. I would think they could use the dimensions from the '37 kit and use the stiching pattern and fabric choices from '38, right? Make's sense to me, but here is the reply... Thank you for your email. Unfortunately, we do not offer a kit for your 1938 Buick model 48. We have never worked on one and are not sure of the original materials.We do not know if or how the 1938 and 1937 differed. We are not aware of anyone producing the interior kits. We are not doing any custom work at this time. Any '37 - '38 folks out there who can comment on this? I would like to challenge Hampton Coach but thought I would check with some experts first. Of course, a non-Hampton Coach solution would be OK too. Currently I am running with a low-cost but not very authentic homemade solution. Jeff

Dave, I agree with your comments about the picture - must be a story behind it. As for location, my guess is that the shot may have been taken at a county fairgrounds or racetrack, so with those letters (F,R,K,A) all we need to do is search for a town or county name which includes those letters. Simple! (any crossword puzzle fans out there?) I used to enjoy working on my '38-48 with a good friend who would have been on the receiving end of this type of service tour in 1938. What a wealth of knowlege this guy was! Unfortunately, I didn't come across the picture until he had passed on. Jeff

Dave Corbin, Do you have this picture? I am told it is from a factory service tour, probably intended to introduce dealers to the new self-shift transmission. I forget where I got it, maybe your're the guy who first threw it out there. If not, enjoy. Jeff

OK, this time with the picture attached.

Here's the < 1 MB response. The picture shows the ~1/4 inch foam ring I made, it's glued to a ring of cork/rubber gasket material.

Glenn, I have a few pictures and comments in a Powerpoint file. Post your e-mail and I will send it. (it's about 5MB) Jeff

Hey, I just got back from reviewing your restoration pictures - there is something terribly wrong with that floorpan. Where are the holes you can fall through? Where are the jagged, rusty edges to leave nice permanent scars? What kind of restoration are you doing where you do everything right the first time, using the right tools and methods? Even with all of these issues, I was OK until I saw the dashboard. Now you have gone too far!! Even so, I will try to get some shots of my horn assembly in the next few days. In return, you'll have to agree to stop killing me with those nice pictures. Regarding your red wheels (and Dave Corbin's)... I like the look - if I were to make the change, what is the correct color? Do they still get the pinstripe? What color should that be? Thanks, Jeff

The spring-loaded center piece needs to be connected to ground to energize the horns. The trick is to only allow this when the horn ring is depressed. I ended up cutting a ring-shaped piece of gasket material to use as a non-conductive spacer to accomplish this. See if this description makes sense, otherwise I will try to get a chance to pull it apart this weekend and snap a couple of digital photos. However, I am sure my fix is not factory correct. By the way, I took a closer look at the picture of your car. Beautiful! How about a trade for my driveway restored, 38-48 (2 dr trunk back sedan) with working horn!

Who has a water pump rebuild kit for my '38 Special? (actually, since my pump doesn't have an external oil cup, I probably have a later service pump) All of the sources I have checked so far offer rebuilt exchanges only. I removed the pump to pull the radiator and have it "boiled". Although my pump was not leaking, it is a bit "stiff" to rotate. I would guess the bearings are nearly finished. Thanks for any help, Jeff

My engine seems to have a slight miss also. Biggest issue is it only gets about 12 mpg at 50 mph, and really run out of steam after about 55 mph. Vacuum gage fluctuates about 1 inHg (how steady should it be?) when running at a fast idle. I'll be checking valve adjustment this weekend, may also swap coils. All the other ignition stuff has been looked over pretty closely over the recent past. I'll let you know what I end up with. Jeff

I found that there are many wheels that are 16 inch, take the correct tire, have the right hub diameter and correct bolt pattern BUT won't accept the correct hub cap. It seems like the inner part of the wheel was changed whenever there was a significant change to the hubcap - also, the clips for the hubcap need to be at the right diameter. Having said all this, I think I bought a couple of wheels for my '38 off a guy who had a '40 or '41. So, you are not necessarily limited to one year, just be careful of the hubcap issue. Jeff

I am trying to diagnose my '38 Special straight eight with a vacuum gauge. The results look reasonable, but my question is: How steady should the needle be? At a fast idle (7-8 mph, per the manual) mine reads between 19 and 20 inHG. The fluctuation is just less than 1 inHg. All of the books I have checked say to look for fluctuation of 3 - 4 inHg for major issues with a good engine being "steady". Anyone have some experience with how steady the gauge should be expected to be on a Buick straight eight? The engine runs smoothly, but runs out of steam beyond 50 mph and delivers 12 mpg at 45 - 50 mph. Nothing obvious in ignition or carburation systems, but I suppose something could still be slightly out. Jeff

Shag, Wasn't your original posting about looking for a source for body panels? There is a guy on the AACA site (you can get there from here) under Forums - General Discussion - Buy/Sell who is looking to begin fabrication of '37 - '38 Buick stuff. Check it out. Jeff

Hey Rusty, My '38 Special (2 dr sedan)is pretty much all back together with a good number of amateur patch panels. I may want to redo some body work in the future, however. I would think trunk floor sections, passenger area floor sections, and the tray at the back of the trunk would be good starters. Rocker panels, those front corners of the body that hide behind the front fenders, lower body and lower door sections would also be good. Those are all the parts I patched in, anyway. I could also use a better right rear fender. You may want to post on the BCA pre-war site. Jeff

I saw a reference to using a vacuum gage to diagnose an engine in one of your previous postings. I decided to pick one up last night, and also found some reference materials. Any other advice? I'm trying to figure if I should be getting more power and better efficiency from my '38 Special. Mine lays down and dies around 55, and delivers 12 mpg when I run 45 -50 mph. The top speed I can believe (4.40:1 gearing), but 12 mpg??? All the obvious stuff checks out, and the engine runs beautifully at 35 - 40 mph. I saw the "poof-poof" comment above, and thought I would re-check the valves. How's the Stromberg coming? Jeff

To clarify, if I may, the left headlight (driver's side) points toward the right side of the road, illuminating the shoulder. This is the one that stays in high beam mode on country setting. The right headlight (passenger side) is the one that would blind an on-coming driver. It's the one that switches from high to low with the foot switch. On the '38, the fender lights come on when the foot switch toggles to low beam, they go off when toggling to high beam. We may be saying the same thing. Jeff

You're on the right track with that adjustment - do you have the shop manual to consult? I can check mine this evening, but it stands to reason that the set screw is the adjustment point. It would be similar to the method of adjusting the newer type of bi-metal spring. You loosen the little cover and rotate it, tightening or loosening the bi-metal spring to get the desired result. The AAV1 should be very serviceable - this comment coming from an old friend who worked in a Buick dealership at the time. Seems there were two carbs used that year, Stromberg and some other (name escapes me). This gentleman told me many times that the Stromberg was the carb of choice, the other brand being impossible to work with. Stick with it.

That's the original, and it's a beauty! I pulled one just like it off of a parts car and have torn it down. Only problem with mine is that the throttle shaft is seized up and I damaged it trying to get it out. Plus a bunch of other stuff is shot, but it has been fun trying to piece it back together. If you pull your carb, you will find the choke asssembly separates into about 3 main pieces. There are two vacuum pistons and a bunch of linkage to be cleaned up. Once that all operates smoothly, I think you will be in good shape. Flush it out good with WD40 and see what good things happen. By the way, one advantage of keeping the original is the air cleaner will still fit. Mine has a later air cleaner as well and when I purchased what looks like the correct one, it wouldn't fit over my more modern choke.

I have a '38-48 (2 door Special) driver. Everything has been pretty much worked over, and it runs great. My question, what kind of gas mileage should I expect? I have taken a few long runs, and it looks like I am getting about 12 mpg. This was recorded on a 200 mile run with speeds of 35 - 50 mph (never more than 50!) Of course the car has the 248 cu in engine with a 4.40:1 rear. I would guess a 6 cylinder overdrive car of this vintage might get about 20 mpg, a small eight like mine about 15 - 17, and the bigger eights around 12 - 14. Any thoughts? Jeff

I ended up fabricating my own patch panels for my 38-48, but there may be something out there. Do you have the Stromberg AAV1, or a later retrofit? Mine is a later one, I think its a Stromberg AAV167, which may have been used to replace the Marvel? carbs (I guess they were unsatisfactory). Bottom line - the AAV1 has a really complex choke, while the AAV167 has a more modern, simpler type.

I am interested in a solution for my 1938 40 series. I have run it up to about 60 - 62 but wouldn't want to stay there. My current gearing is the stock 4.40:1 and it seems quite happy around 45 mph. Anything beyond 55 is a bit scary. I am amazed at folks who seem able to do 60 - 65 with their Specials - mine must not be quite up to factory standards, I guess! To me, splicing in an overdrive would be more effort than it's worth. If overdrive had been a factory offering, that would be a different story.

Many thanks for the feedback on the Baldwin P26 / AC P127 filter cartridge. Following your lead, I checked the Baldwin website. They have an excellent cross-reference page that may be useful to someone in the same predicament I was in. I am now hooked up with my local heavy duty truck parts place.