60FlatTop

My wife is working at the library tonight so I am home alone looking at car websites when I should be surfing around for much naughtier stuff. I do get some entertainment, though. I'm just sitting here thinking about many of the threads on the forum and how they might relate to even subtleties is this thread. I know the CarbKing and I have dial indicators. I am also getting real entertainment connecting two thoughts. "I have been rebuilding carburetors since 1959" and "let it be known that we are no longer doing ANY work to carburetors". What a collection of stories must have led that decission. I'm picturing a girl, a scarecrow, a tin man , and a loin saying "We've come so far to have you fix our carburetor and make our Buick run good again...." What, no magic! Bernie

I'm a lurker here with a Park Ave 3.8 convertible that has engine drivability problems I am trying to sort from your experience. This thread interests me because I have had a wide range of separate body and frame converts of all types. Cowl shudder is memorable on a '71 Ford LTD I had and I don't recall any on a '67 Skylark. I remember the weights they put on the '60's Lincoln convertibles and they were an echo of the early '30's Packard bumper end balasts. So I have had an awareness of our Flexible Flyers since I was around 15 years old. As our cars age and go through various owners on the way to us they go through a wide range of service technique; I really like the aircraft level maintenance. Feed Forward, not Feed Back! My Electra had two owners and shows 53,000 miles. I think the original owner maintained well though not extravagant, the second did repairs, minimal maintenance, and handed me a lot of work. Here's what I think is important: Use a four post lift. Especially if the job entails an overnight stay. The lift points on two post lifts appear counter to the flex and resonance points I have seen on cars through the years as well as my personal observations when using jack stands. It means a lot to me to know my car is supported by the wheels or at suspension points. Something as simple as a fuel pump replacement that needs to wait a day for parts can leave a car hanging in an unnatural position for 48 hours. Experts will say "Oh, don't worry." Sorry, its my car. I won't worry because it won't happen. You can see from the shop I use. Today chassis driveability may be more related to service history that manufacture. I'm a four poster for 20+ years now. Only a few short trips up a two post when absolutely necessary. Its just the way I want it done and the guy who complies gets a little extra to take his wife out. We are both happy. Thanks for reading this far. Bernie

You just reminded me of a long discussion as to whether anal-retentive should be hyphenated. One of the most excruciating things I remember in my whole life was a 80 mile ride in a 1941 Cadillac and all the windshield molding screws were haphazardly tightened at different angles. AND I DIDN'T HAVE A PHILIPS SCREWDRIVER TO SQUARE THEM UP!! God! It's making me squirm in my chair now. Bernie

Or take a long piece of cotton string and wrap the shafts where they exit the base of the carb. See if it makes a difference. That's step one. Step two would be to test it for the next 20 years. If it works out OK then you can disassemble, bush it, and make the permanent repair. Or extend the test just to be sure. Bernie

It looks like a fuel pressure regulator reset by manifold pressure. It could break and leave you stranded. The $199.95 Ebay price is probably close to the cost of a flatbed ride home; could pyramid your investment by a factor of two. Once I serviced a 1932 Hudson Eight with a vacuum tank and an updraft carb. I removed a fuel pressure regulator someone had installed. Of course that's a prewar topic. Take your lead from the 250,000 cars they sold without the option. Bernie

People take cars apart and never put them back together?..... and then sell them in pieces? I wonder why that happens. (Could it be related to the inexpensive dis-assembly and the 300 $100 jobs they create for themselves? Bernie

Oh! And it does look like this now, just in case a cynic like me is out there:

Isn't the aging brain a wonderful thing. I don't remember anything that hard after this............. or before: Bernie

My Electra and my Riviera master cylinders are both sleeved by Apple. The key is keeping water out of the brake fluid once everything is fixed. The vent on the reservoir allows humidity to be absorbed over time. Annually you can take an old turkey baster and draw the darkened fluid from the reservoir, refill it with fresh, and bleed each wheel cylinder until nice clear fluid comes out. This will get the moisture out and prevent those muddy corrosion deposits from forming. I prefer doing this to using silicone fluid where the idea of "do it once and forget it" gets ingrained. I just think it is important to physically check the brakes each year. Bernie

On the topic of recalls, has anyone realized the fantastic job Toyota did in resolving the 2009 runaway acceleration problem. Every single car has apparently been found and repaired. I haven't heard of a stray incident. And their cars were running wild killing people and endangering the whole population of the Untied States! I would say Toyota deserves special recognition from some authority for that kind of effort. Evey single car found and fixed; it verges on the incredible. Interesting word, incredible. Bernie

I think I see a quote from me in the description: Buick : Riviera 2 DR in Buick | eBay Motors Bernie

I like that car. Bernie

Our age and level of attention to detail makes up poor customers to any "professionals" whether they are mechanics or doctors. A professional in business has to rapidly and profitably use their skills. The everyday skills are generally the average of the last 60 to 90 days of jobs. They do the routine at whatever rate of warrant returns they find acceptable as well as profitable. Rebuilding nailheads, Kettering engines, or 9 main bearing straight eights does not fall into a professional's scope. The primary consideration is attention to detail; following the manufacturer's instructions exactly. It is rare to find a shop who will read a manual. Self reliance is our best means of survival. Cleaning that engine is an easy job for a conscientious amateur with lots of soapy water and a collection of bottle brushes. A professional will rarely do that and probably tell you its not necessary. A conscientious amateur will follow the steps in a shop manual with full attention. Take your shop manual to a shop and they will wonder why you brought it. I have set my shop manual on the counter when I used to farm out work and picked it up at the end of the job; obviously never moved or referenced. The work was shoddy and I had to redo it myself. Books are cheap on Ebay. Basic mechanic's texts can be had for under $10. Stock up and study or prepare for long lists of excuses. Do I practice what I preach? I trained my nephew to do a large percentage of my work, but there is still stuff only I do. In another part of my life I found the same situation to exist in the medical field. I spend one hour a day studying neuroscience and the circulatory system. Each new book gets more expensive than the last. It is a repeat of the situation I found with cars when I was in my 20's. Build a garage, buy books, buy tools, and concentrate on your car. Self sufficient hobbyists smile a lot more. Bernie

I'm reading a book about Jagwires right now. When I get done I'll look into it. Bernie

My old cars all have brake lining from Rochester Clutch & Brake. I take the shoes and drums in for them to fit individually. Here's a set I had done for the '53 Jaguar: They are non-asbestos, bonded, and ground to fit. They sell three levels of stopping power; nice feel, sporty stoppers, and nose stand. I see ads for NOS brake shoes from time to time. I'd probably throw them out. Because of my age and attitude its not really a discussion thing. Its more, just humor me. Bernie

"65 Riviera's still had the flat glass but most of the other GM lines shifted to curved glass for '65. That was their standard. In '66 GM started its big money saving move to eliminating vent windows, not all models but the Riviera was one. Bernie

I have done a lot of work on well maintained original cars, low mileage ones where normally consumable parts last for decades. Although brakes feel hard, the shoes need to be pliable enough to smoothly conform to and grip the drums during a stop. I think there is a chemical "outgassing" or aging process that causes brake linings to become less flexible over long periods of time. I had one very low mileage car come in that would barely stop. the 40 year old shoes looked new. You would have sworn I was taking the owner's "blankie" away when I replaced those shoes. That's all we did and the car stopped just fine after. If you don't know how old consumable parts are just remember "When in doubt, change them out." Bernie

Mine was broken in the center when I got the car. We heli-arced it, It is repairable. All the door related items on these cars are easy to fix and access with that removable door skin. I have been looking for a similar bolt on skin design since the '63's came out. Haven't found one on a production car. The Riviera was the first GM car built without a metal frame around the full perimeter of the windows. Being an upscale car wind noise was not acceptable so allowance was made to adjust the widow fit to the weatherstrip with the door closed and all adjusters accessible. These were flat windows. When the standard GM bodies went to curved frameless glass in '65 the curve helped seat the glass in the weatherstrip so the access for fine adjustment wasn't needed any more. Its a one shot engineering fix. Bernie

I was poking around some old pictures and found one with the W-O tailgate logo. I remember calling one of my Rolls-Royce friends and telling him about the big W-O on the back. I told him I thought it was a Bentley!

They'd look nice on the front of a garage. Bernie

Pictures of the mechanics AND the tank & sending unit could be telling. Actually the one word response "Pictures?" made me think of a conversation like this: But that would be a real risk of not getting it. Bernie

No, the mechanics: Sometimes you get an uncomfortable feeling. Bernie

A carpenter can build a real nice shipping box. For an engine a base with a couple of trimmed 4x4's and five pieces of 3/4" plywood make it compact. $100 or a little more should do it. Bernie

Let's hope this native is applicable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIVfbylUU-M Bernie

2000 bucks and you get +-$80,000 worth of work thrown in free. My grandfather told me something like that about buying a $2 marriage license;the return wasn't work, though- more like unrefined fertilizer. I could see buying that car and just letting it sit in the back of the garage, shaped like a '39 Buick with no intention of ever completing it. Actually I just narrowly escaped buying a Lincoln convertible on those terms: Needs door alignment for show. Over the years I have found that the day dreams, planning, and just sitting in a chair and enjoying the shape have a lot of value. I don't have a project car since the old Jaguar went down the road. Feels like something is missing. Bernie