KongaMan

Quartersawn is stronger when bent parallel with the grain. That why they use it for guitar necks.

"Walnut" is somewhat non-specific. There are several species of walnut, and much variation between individual billets of wood in each species. Is your wheel walnut? No idea -- but you can't say it isn't just because it looks different than another piece. FWIW, it looks like it might well be.

You only need to know one spot on the gauge: too hot. It doesn't really matter if it's marked as 240º, 115º, or just a red line. Any gauge will let you know how close it is and when it's got there.

Buy a Fahrenheit gauge.

Question about this scribing with a knife... My experience in bending cardboard is that cutting along a bend line is a precarious proposition and also weakens the material along the bend. IIRC, the original something of a double crease which provided the needed flexibility. I can't duplicate that, but I've found a passable solution is to crease the material on the back side; take something round and firm (that won't cut the cardboard; I think I used an eye bolt once) and run it along the bend line. That seems to make it much easier to bend while minimizing the risk of splitting. Anyone else tried this with trunk lining?

When the AC is on, all air flows across the evaporator unless the heat is also on -- in which case some of the air flows across or around the heater core. See Fig. 11-73 - 11-77 and the table in section 11-16 e. So, if you replaced the heater evaporator dual-stage diaphragm with a single-stage adjustable diaphragm, you would want it full open for maximum cooling. Of course, you would then lose the ability to have air come out both the heater and AC outlets. And why would you want to do that? If it's really humid and you want to put dehumidified air in the cabin while running the defroster to clear the windshield.

That's a false dichotomy. Full thermostat control is compatible with an STV-based system; all you need to do is replace the sliding lever with a temperature-controlled vacuum valve. Above the set temperature? Decrease the vacuum to the STV. Below? Increase it. Bingo; Bob's yer uncle. If you want to bypass the STV function entirely, pull and plug the vacuum line. Set up a thermostatic switch to turn the compressor on and off. That changes the nature of the system, but it accomplishes the same thing. As a practical matter, I've never found it exceedingly burdensome to adjust the lever as preference warrants.

You don't restore what ain't broken. But the stock AC on my 63 blows like a meat locker. But what I am saying is that the STV update kit isn't an STV at all; it's a pipe.

Dunno that your thinking should be influenced by a story, but I once had a vacuum heater valve go out about 10pm, 20° outside, and several hundred miles from home. No amount of sucking would get that thing to open (I knew I should've brought the girlfriend), and no replacements to be had. I drove all night freezing my butt off, using a credit card to scrape the frozen condensation off the inside of the windshield. Didn't think of it at the time, but I should have disconnected the hoses and shoved a screwdriver through to rip it open. If the cable breaks on a manual valve, you can still twist it open. But then, most of these cars are parked for the winter, so it's not clear how important a fully functioning heater is.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but a vacuum valve is not a perfect functional replacement. Specifically, I believe that a vacuum valve would be either open or closed; a mechanical valve can be anywhere between closed and fully open. IOW, you might get finer temperature control with the mechanical valve (although you still have the temperature door to direct air flow across the core).

Put a squirt of penetrating oil on the shaft and let it soak in for a bit. Then grab the lever with some pliers and twist it back and forth firmly to see if it loosens up. If that doesn't work, take it off the car and soak it in straight CLR for a while. The valves often get jammed from minerals in the water used to fill the cooling system; the CLR thing might be helpful even if the twisting frees it up.

Don't analyze the valve by the position of the control lever (it could be way out of whack). Rather, look at the valve itself. Disconnect the control cable, then turn it fully CW to close. These valves sometimes get a little stubborn at either end of their travel. Turn it back and forth through out the entire range a few times. The procedure for adjusting the cable is in the manual.

It's not clear what's not compliant. Maybe the hardware is all made in China and they're 13 mm holes. Maybe someone doesn't like that the bolt sticks up way above the floor. It can't be that hard to make a 7/16 bolt with a short (7/16 or 1/2) shoulder.

The belts for my 63 look like the ones in the first pic. But it's got a black interior, so I'm good with that. I did install some after-market belts in the 64, only to find out that the original bolts don't fit. Haven't quite decided whether to rebolt or redrill.

How do you charge it if the clutch won't engage?

Because they can. They sell compatible rather than functional replacements. Most folks don't know how their AC system works, so they don't know that the STV replacement completely changes the way temperature is modulated; they don't know that they had a two-stage diaphragm. All they know is that they get cold air and the defroster works, so it must be right.

The thing with a used third member is you're rolling the dice. If you think it's in the rear end and you know the backlash, etc. in your current gears is good, it might be better to bite the bullet and change the pinion bearing* in what you have. I just went through that. Local shop wanted $800. I bought an in/lb torque wrench on eBay for $30, a 20-ton press from Harbor Freight for ~$120, and made a retaining arm to hold the yoke. Didn't take long at all, and now I own the tools. Which I have subsequently used to change axle bearings in two vehicles. Having said that, vibrations can be a bear to track down. It could be something like a vibrating exhaust pipe that gets amplified, a bad motor mount, an out-of-balance fan, or the way the jack is wedged against the body in trunk. Had another annoying vibration which turned out to be a bad idler pulley on a serpentine belt. You kind of go through the process: does it vary with vehicle speed or engine speed? Does it change with the gear you're in? Does it show up with the rear wheels off the ground? Etc., etc. Yeah, it's a PITA. * Pinion bearing noise will vary with vehicle speed, not engine speed. Mine kicked in ~30 mph. Dropped it into neutral and it was still there. Good luck. And bone up on your profanity. You're going to need it.

That's the way they're supposed to work. 👍 If I understand his observation correctly, though, the OAP diaphragms don't work like that. Rather, if vacuum is applied to either port, the actuator will retract fully.

OAP makes a few "restoration" parts that don't work the same as the originals. Caveat emptor.

I used an air filter from some Briggs & Stratton lawnmower engine, trimmed to size.

I know nothing of this particular kit, but... Before you drill any holes in the door skin, plop your butt in the driver's seat and make sure that the mirror is in a usable location. Too many people position the passenger mirror the same place as the driver's mirror only to find that they can't use it. Even though you have the instruction sheet, remember: trust but verify.

If I read his thread on v8buick correctly, he sold a manifold with the mod already done for $75. Might be worth contacting him to see if he's got another laying around -- then you could just do a quick pick up.

Probe the backside of firewall connector. If that's a no-go, unplug it and probe the other half. The goal here is to exhaust every possible failure point before having to go upside down under the dash.

The dark blue wire is for the right turn signal. That's a different circuit than the left turn signal. You need to find and probe the light blue wire to check voltage to the left signal.

One shouldn't anticipate much suspense about what that decision will be. In times of uncertainty, decisions are often taken not from the desire to do the right thing, but from the fear of doing the wrong thing. More cynically, there's little risk to going with the flow. If everyone else is doing it, you're inoculated from criticism by following along. As a practical matter, comments on here suggest that if the meet were to be held, attendance would be somewhere between sparse and abysmal. That is, the membership's perception of and reaction to the perceived health risk is likely the primary factor determining the viability of the meet. IOW, there's no sense in throwing a party if no one comes.