60FlatTop

My Riviera experience spans quite a few years. I have kept the '64 for its style and appeal to me from their introduction, when I rode my bicycle to the dealership for the introduction in 1963. As far as interiors go the '64 is the tightest fit and least comfortable for me. Not quite as much elbow room. All around I would give highest points to the '66, slightly bigger car, nailhead, and the best operating hidden headlight system. That's 50 years worth of Rivieras starting with me at 23 years old.

With the primary lead still connected you can't get it in the position to really look things over.

Really hard to find the way it is listed. If it had a reserve I would think his wife told him he had to sell it.

I bought my 1960 Electra in 2001 from a surgeon who had broken one valve cover bolt off in the head while changing the gasket. After the bolt broke he drilled the bolt for an EZ Out. The drill went off track and into the cylinder head water jacket creating a small green fountain. Undaunted, he got the EZ Out into the hole and broke it off. The car sat for 3 years while he and another doctor tried to figure out how to get the broken EZ Out... out. He needed to relocate for work so he put the car on Ebay. I bought it and replaced the head. Just snug those bolts gently.

Horseless Carriage Days by Hiram Percy Maxim was written in 1937 and covers both electric and gasoline cars very well. https://www.abebooks.com/book-search/title/horseless-carriage-days/author/maxim-hiram-percy/ Highly recommended and not to be read once.

I can see that at some of the antique club chapters: I have a couple of old cars. One is forty years old and the other is 60 years old. A 1985 and a 1964? Those aren't old cars. That's just used car lot stuff. All over the mall parking lots. I read that right here on the forum. And remember the avatar of the writer. I skip right past their comments.

Could be. I did a Whois search and found all the website owner information is "redacted for privacy". https://www.whois.com/whois/ledefect.com

This is one of my favorite light and contour pictures with natural light and standard settings with a Canon Rebel EOS T3. I usually use a Canon Powershot ELPH. I could do some cropping and have a pretty good picture for framing. Close to 40 years ago I was using a Kodak Signet 40 35MM for my car show pictures. Around that time we had a professional photographer at a family picnic. Ever since I saw the results of his work I have paid particular attention to my pictures with the intent of exceeding his skills. That's almost four decades of awareness. I have been happy with the results from just raising my awareness of the subject and background without the details of the camera. I pay attention to pictures I see by others and learn from them, usually noticing something I avoid. There are 10 or 15 pictures in that setting. I like that one best.

Well, I thought I could help. Mine has all bolts. It is a newer one, 1963 as I remember. I have been meaning to part that transmission out for 30 years or so. But when I turned my cellar into a basement (there is a difference in these parts) the old tranny body became a base for resistance cords in the workout area. If anything looks useful holler.

I went back through the previous posts of the member and figured out the actual need. Looks like I won't have to do the New York Times puzzle for brain exercise today. Are you looking for one of the outer perimeter torus cover to flywheel studs? I can send you one of those.

It is a generational thing I have encountered many times: "we have done so much for so long with so little we are now qualified to do anything with nothing", often attributed to General MacArthur. And was probably completed with pride. I have worked in the shadow of those mechanics but never stood on their shoulders. My most memorable experience with their ilk is of spending about three hours inverted in the vee of an alligator nosed Packard with a stack of various spacers and washers reinstalling the wrong generator against my will.

Check the shop manual for the proper installation of the rear springs. It may call for wooden blocks against the axle housing during fitment and attention to the position of the spring ends. Don't count on those guys referred to as "my mechanic" to follow instructions. You may have to do that part yourself. Otherwise, if everything looks OK just get a six pack and shim the body the way GM would.

If you got about 15 miles per gallon traveling at 60 miles per hour you would use 4 gallons of fuel. Looks like you can figure the pump does about 6 times what you need.

"You guys want to make a little lunch money?" Any time I want some heavy work done I go up to the gas station on Main St. and find a couple of helpers. Works every time.

I was so happy with the bench I made from my old Cadillac bumper. And then some old curmudgeon came along and complained it didn't have a back on it. Worked fine for me. It's a '69 Fleetwood.

It was a shop that advised the car be given a thorough dousing. It was a mess. Trails of rusty water stripes in the splash pans, dripping from the electrical conduit, floor boards soaked. There are people who think all that noise and activity indicate hard work being done. Me, quietly removing caked on evidence of the ages in the manner of an archeologist, would be and has been, called lazy by some. Their perception, their reality, as the annoying man said. I am a Navy spit shine shoe polisher. When I taught my wife to shine my shoes she was amazed at the light, gentle method. She was raised to think it was hard men's work. She had to relearn so much in those first few years, well, I guess she still is.

That is a big tire. I would stick with the original specification. Thousands of them were worn out on those tires. I remember a term called "over-tired" some guys used that might apply. Kind of goes along with wanting a 4 core radiator, new station wagon springs, and those other Heavy Duty things that are the topic when uncles get together in the living room after dinner.

I have used US Auto Seatcover, an Ebay seller in Texas for my trucks and a late model Cadillac I have. I am fine with installing the new style with the U-channel attaching and replacement buns. I have done some of the old hog ring covers and would hesitate to do a job on something valuable with the old style methods. The first one I did was a Tahoe and I had a tough time pulling it into place. I through that one into my pickup and drove to a local upholsterer with the cover half on. He surprised me with the brute force he put on the seat, crimped in a few hog rings and was done. His demonstration made me more confident and the ones I have done since were easier when I grunted when I pulled. Hesitate is a keyword here. I do not always follow my own advise. SMS has some fabric I need at about $150 a yard. my estimate is 8-10 yards to do one of my cars. Would I venture purchasing 4 yards to see how I could do? Sure. I ain't smart enough not to. For a few hundred bucks I will know for sure. Although I do lean toward just handing it to the person I know can do it well. This is a good time to note that the foam or padding fails before the upholstery in many instances. The foam fails and the upholstery creases, traps dirt, and wears faster. On my cloth interior '05 Chevy pickup I saw the creasing start and put in a new bun. That was at least two years ago and no signs of further wear.

Reminds me of a time when a friend went to a national marque headquarters for an involved service seminar. When he returned I asked how the presentation went. He replied "Not so good. I still think I can do it myself."

Ken, I would like to give you a long overdue compliment on the presentation of your parts collection. It is refreshing to see them displayed with care and the attention to the background. It adds value to the parts as well as the seller.

I have a shop near me that will let me bring material, either stitched or by the yard and for full bench seats like my '60 Electra they charge about $500 per full cushion. They do nice work. Especially if you look at some of the home brew jobs at shows and cruise nights. I would check on something like that when it is the big, forever job with the best material. She has been pretty good about some of my own jobs when I removed upholstery and asked her to do a repair. I promised her that she would never be mentioned after I put it back on. With the values of first gen Rivieras heading the way they are the economy of DYI might not be the best move.

It's hard to be ambiguous online.

It's hard to be ambiguous online.

A 42-46?

Triggered a memory. I went to Ontario, Canada for a cruise night many years ago. When I met the friend who invited me showed me into his living room. Books were piled everywhere, on tables, on the furniture, on shelves. He picked up a pile from the couch and offered me a place to sit. Seeing that I noticed he spiritedly told me "Sondra says I can have a mistress as soon as I get the house cleaned!" That incident has never seemed to distance itself from me.