60FlatTop

B, I wrote that because all the comments on the pictures found some fault with the Cord. The cars are safe. I showed the string of messages to my wife and let her read that reply. She immediately remembered the 1981 BCA Nationals in Sandusky, Ohio when everyone had to inform me that my '64 Riviera didn't come with a vinyl top. I mean the message was constant, enough so she remembered 30 years later. I thought there were some nice looking cars there too. Now, it is a Cord and complete mechanically which is pretty neat to me. A bullet hole and a stork; pretty insignificant. Imagine if I had put this view in:

I meant Hispano with a lovely stork, but I had IF on my mind, brain fart. Anyway I told the old guy I'd never pay the $1500 he wanted because it had too many faults and no one would ever appreciate the Cord under them. He didn't believe me so I talked him into going to a little car show in his area. People swarmed around the car all day pointing out incorrectness of various points on the car all day long. No one even noticed it ran and that he drove it while they Googled the engine number and stuff like that to verify everything met some level of their perfection. I stopped by his place about two weeks later and he had scrapped everything, even the metal building. He said he had learned it wasn't worth having stuff that wasn't right. Too bad, I was going to offer $1750. Bernie

Its not an Isotta Frashini?

Here's a "barn":

Ted, you can try an Interstate distributor near you. They sell plain black, no name batteries. You can make an original looking label or leave it the innocuous black. They sell what they call "blems" and about $35 exch. I have bought all my batteries at the Rochester outlet for the last 20 years or so. They are always friendly. Nicer than me, I bet. I'd probably knock off a couple points just for the Fords and Mopars on your list. I will need a nice big group 27 by spring. Bernie

I noticed it is slower than usual and usual isn't that great. Then I remembered how much it cost me and I was pretty thankful. I realized I should join the AACA this year just to support their efforts at making these forums available. That will be my first "to Do" item in January. Filling out the renewal for my local BCA chapter in a few minutes, too. Our Marque clubs and national car organizations kind of made computers worthwhile, didn't they? Wishing a Merry Chrismas and the best of New Years to the behind the scenes movers and shakers of the AACA, BCA, BCAFLC, RROC, and ISSCA. Bernie

I took my wife out to breakfast this morning and told her about your search. And I complimented your good taste in a first car. I am a little partial to the same model in a ;56. We had a red and white one at my grandfather's tire shop/used car lot when I left for the Navy in 1967. I still remember the cars I left behind, a black 1960 Invicta flattop, my village's 1949 Chevy ambulance, a '55 Willys Bermuda hardtop, a 1941 Nash, and a '56 Chevy 210 2 dr HT with no engine. Still reliving the '60 Buick experience although I don't push the speedo needle all the way across now; still suffering from the multi-car disease, too. Ummmmm, if you find two Roadmasters........ Bernie

The first car I ever licensed was a 1950 Special 2 door fastback. I was 16. The first car I ever owned was a 1949 Plymouth. I was 12. Neither car would appeal to me today. A '50 Roadmaster, sure. A Plymouth? Nah, once I sat down to write a list of all the adjectives I had heard used to describe Plymouths..... not even close to the ones for Buicks and not pretty. I am thinking about the motivators to buy and relive the first car experience. I have to say I think I am living the same experience. I have a friend who knew me when I was 12 and he has seen me buy and sell more cars that my wife has. The first thing he will tell you is that when a car doesn't meet my expectations its "down the road." Pretty neat; I don't need to relive. I never changed. 52 years and the only thing that changed is the date. Ask Mike. Or maybe it was obvious. Bernie

In the 1990's I had a very god business servicing freshly restored cars. After they were "finished" with the restoration, shop or owner, my mission was to make them start, steer, and stop. My rule of thumb was to tell the owners that if they added up all the receipts, including the ones they hid from their wife, they would be looking at 90% of the job. The remaining 10% was about what I was going to charge. At the time that was $2500 to $3500 for the level of cars I was doing. Oversights, untouched components, and painted worn out parts were what I dealt with. When the cars left me the owner could toss the keys to their wife and send her into town for a bag of groceries without fear of an "event" or non-event, as the case might be. No part of those cars endured a 50+ lifespan better than another. And most suffered from long periods of disuse as much as they did from wear. My personal cars reflect everything I learned from their example. I saw a lot of partial engine rebuilds; stuck rings, high blow-by, low fluctuating vacuum, hesitations, poor cooling, poor lubrication, and the prettiest copper colored bearing inserts you ever saw. It all wears out together. I spend between 5 and 10% of the value of my cars just on routine maintenance annually. Hopefully I can sneak in a restoration level enhancement in there as well. Collecting old cars used to be a rich man's hobby. Guess what; ever heard the guy who says the only thing that changes is the date? His car is deteriorating too. And it is expensive to fix. Bernie

'63 and '64 have the large openings. I glass beaded, epoxy primed, and black finish coated a pair of the small opening rears for my '64 before I learned; threw them in a lathe and took care of that little problem. Bernie

Yesterday was December 15th and I drove my '60 Electra to the bank in the sunshine. This is western New York! Then I got thinking about the 21st. It would be kind of fun at the end of the world to go out in a Buick. So which car to be swallowed by the earth or engulfed in a fireball with; the '60 Electra that I drive a lot or the '64 Riviera that I have owned the longest. The media and the History Channel have done a lot of speculation but never gave consideration to car guys who have a tough decision to make. The media exploited the issue but didn't give me guidance. They all think everyone bought one Prius... and bought it too late. I saw my neurologist a month ago and told him I wanted to work another 30 years (I don't work hard). He said since I am 64, why not work 36 more years and shoot for an even 100. So he's no help for the end of the world. Its not like I'm some whacko. If I was I'd be considering the Impala SS and the Park ave convert for exit cars as well. Its just a simple, logical decision about the end of the world. Hmmmmmm, Spock had a Riviera too. That would be a last stand for logic. I am sure it will be right down to the last minute. I will post the final choice on the 22nd. Bernie

The valves sound fine. On really bad ones the gas would just pour out through the valve. You will probably find bad valve guides on the ones that leaked a little. The inconsistent seating location will take the nice smooth edge away. Lapping would be fine. Don't do a grind unless you put new rings in too. Now, as for the tools; ever been in an argument over whether anal-retentive should be hyphenated? Here's the verge of extreme, but ignition wrenches are such a PIA and magnets work so good:

There is a cork pad under the breaker plate that is supposed to be lubricated from the distributor oil cup. There is a good chance it is dry. Even though you see the vacuum advance work it may be dragging. although t is a delicate piece of cork I have been able to remove it and work fresh oil into them with my fingers. It makes a world of difference. Bernie

I don't have any on my "60 Electra or the '64 Riviera. I had some store bought ones on the Riviera around 1994, threw them away. Bernie

I always figured a Buick water pump to be good for 50,000 miles and then you got to break a few 1/4 cap screws and deal with a lot of frustration. If nothing else, tale all the 1/4-20 screws out and NevrSieze them real good while the radiator is out in case you need to do some drilling. A few times I have used hardened allen head screws. The are more resistant to corrosion. Bernie

Never saw that answer coming. As Robin would say "Holy flying ramps, Batman!" Bernie

Too-long? Sometime in the early 1990's I owned a '39 Model 90 Buick and a '39 Cadillac Model 75, both 140 inch WB'ers. That cured my desire for limo's for a while. I do like the Model 81 Pete is showing. Interesting that the price is pretty close to the addition I am planning for my garage. Never enough space!

Anyone familiar with the term, clusterphobia? Bernie

Pete, If I had those initials I would sure do something to make them PRDL. There is a sense of Power Gliding right out of them. Bernie

If you choose a spot in the garage where you will always service the car on ramps you can drill four holes and drop shields in them with some 1/2" bolts screwed in some the heads work as a brace. Go deep enough and you will have a handy anchor point for a little body pull if needed. Bernie

Here is a 1932 Model 90. Bernie

A few years ago I restored a Stewart Warner vacuum tank back to operation for a 1932 Hudson Eight Brougham. It is a medium blue wood wheeled dual sidemount car in Oklahoma or Nebraska now (I think). We threw away all the "improvements" including a pressure regulator between the vacuum tank and the carb! It's gravity feed. And we corrected the wiper vacuum supply so it didn't draw off the tank, too. Sometimes the updraft carb will leak a bit and if it spits back due to a lean mixture of the timing being off or the advance lever out of adjustment you can get a little fire going. I am overcautious; I start those cars with the hood open. Bernie

The carbon generated in the production of my '60 and '64 Buicks has been degrading naturally for 52 and 46 years, respectively. I am pretty sure there are a couple of Bessemer smelting pots running at the Prius plant and a few volatiles escaping from their paint process. Because I own more cars than a sane person you can factor in that I only drive the two about 1500 miles a year each. I'm so green I can't conceive of a government program to destroy a couple hundred thousand operational vehicles and create a big carbon footprint making new replacements. As my kids would say when they were younger "Duh." Anyone have a comparison between manufacturing a new car and the operational cost of a used one and where the durability in years of service and MPG cross? Bernie

Apple Hydraulics can sleeve your master cylinder. They has done a lot for a friend of mine and me. If you save your piston all you need is the cups and a good cleaning. Bernie

I have been using Castrol LM (Low Moisture) DOT 3. With DOT 3 the best practice is to flush the system every year. Just use an old turkey baster to remove the old fluid from the reservoir and fill with fresh. Then bleed each wheel cylinder until nice clear fluid comes out. This is brake day. Check all the holes, lines, and clips. Sit in the driver's seat grip the steering wheel firmly and push the brakes as hard as you can, like your son or daughter just ran in front of you. Then you are good for the year and corrosive moisture is gone from the system. DOT 5 carries too much of the "do it once and forget it" stigma for me. If you bought a car and don't know what is in it just remove little fluid and put it in a small saucer. Put a few drops of water in it. With DOT 5 the water will bead up and bounce on the surface; DOT3 will allow the water to mix right in. Bernie Oh, afraid to push on the brake pedal real hard? Remember that next time you wake up at 3 AM.