95Cardinal

In the rush to complete the car for the Autorama deadline, I have fallen a little behind on my project updates. Let's skip the last 4 weeks of work and take a look at the car on display at the 2019 Detroit Autorama. Move-in day was Wednesday; the show opens at noon on Friday and runs unti 7pm Sunday. Larry Schramm graciously allowed me to use his enclosed trailer to move the Caballero in the slushy mess on Wednesday. I doubt his trailer has ever carried anything this heavy; we calculated teh trailer + vehicle weight at approximately 7700 pounds. 20190227_153613 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr I've never had a car in this show; it's an exciting day for me! 20190227_153554 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr We dropped the 2 cars (my Caballero and the Modified 74 Corvette) in Masterworks' spot and left as soon as possible. There are about 800 vehicles being delivered in a 36 hour window; you can't leave your tow rig in the building any longer than absolutely necessary. 20190227_170331 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr One happy guy... 0227191641.jpg.ef5664229c7ddb1571c395dabffff5ec by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr We made a last-minmute decision to make "Before" posters; Schramm to the rescue...again! 20190301_085728 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr I like the "Air Born B-58 Buick" advertising materials and logo; the decorative plate turned out great! 20190301_085756 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr Cloth pull-up sign to tell a little story and thanks the major helpers! 20190301_114915 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr Ready for Friday opening 20190301_114943 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr 20190301_115004 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr 20190301_172323 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr 20190301_172350 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr 20190301_172405 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr POM6 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr POM10 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr POM11 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr POM12 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr That's me, cleaning and preening the car. I figure I've earned the right to wear that "Authorized Valve-in-head" service shirt by now! POM18 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr POM22 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr TRh ecar drew a lot of attention. THere was almost always a small knot of 3 to 12 people checking it out and asking questions. 20190302_111636 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr Family visitors; my daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren came to check out our handiwork P1050016 by 2manycars2littletime, on Flickr I didn't win any awards with the car; the class competition (1958 - 1967 Restored) was fierce and I agreed with the judges selections of the top cars in the class. Mine was close, but not as perfect as the winners. All in all, a great weekend! I'm going to be off-line for a week. I'll add more photos when I'm back. Thanks again to Pat (BuickEstate) for his interior work, Jim P (57BuickJim) and Larry Schramm for years of hard work, support and help in bringing this baby home!

The seat side trim panels came back from the anodizer. Time to install them! I test-fit the passenger side panel and discovered that additional padding was required along the side of the seat. I inserted multiple layers of thin, felted cotton. Installation took a lot of finessing and adjusting. The lower panel on the passenger side required an "Ionia Body" tag. 57BuickJim to the rescue! Using a high-resolution image of an original Ionia tag, Jim re-created and printed new, replacement labels. The backing plates were made from .030" aluminum and the new tag was attached to the side panel with split rivets. To avoid deforming the thin aluminum side panels, I used a dab of clear silicone on the back of each rivet to bond the tag to the base panel. The rear corner closeout has to be installed before the upper panel. I used the original cover patterns to help locate teh attaching screw holes, then some gently prodding with a small pick allowed me to find the original attaching holesd in the seat frame. No new holes required! Near the top of the upper panel, the robe cord escutcheon attaching screws also retain the inboard edge of the upper trim panel. My grandson painted the spacer needed to align the rear folding seat back latch to the seat back. The liftgate window has 2 "layers" of stainless steel exterior moldings. The first layer was installed after the glass was installed. The second layer is retained by unique spring clips, many of which broke or disintegrated when the moldings were removed during disassembly of hte liftgate. I have not been able to find any replacements for these clips, so I had to fabricate 8 of them. The clip inside the white circle is one of the replacement clips I made, using a medium binder clip as the raw material. A heavy bead of glass bedding compound was applied to the liftgate surface and the clips were pre-inserted into the molding. I interspersed my fabricated clips with the original clips, using the originals in the most critical positions. The masking tape on the glass was marked to indicate the position of each clip (C) and each screw(S) for the two layers of moldings. I centered the molding on the glass and pushed each clip into position. The outboard, vertical moldings also act as retainers for the pillar scalp moldings. Quite a complicated molding scheme! I managed to scuff the top edge of the quarter panel with the molding edges. Another touch-up for the painter. All moldings in place; my clips appear to be working well.

Thanks, guys. I appreciate the good wishes. I'm not anticipating any award considerations because the Autorama competitors include many very high end restorers. But it will be a fun experience to go through the judging process at such an event. I'll post fresh pics on setup day.

Thanks, Larry. And thanks for all your help, too!

Installing the front door trim panels began with the 6 mil polyethylene water barrier. I was surprised to see that the original retainers each had a foam seal incorporated into the clip design. I have seen the simpler clips (on the right) on previous projects, but the integrated seal was a new feature to me. I inserted all the retainer clips into the trim panel and postioned the panel on the door inner, without fully engaging the clips. Then I marked the positions of the window and door handle shafts and cut small diameter holes at the shaft positions. A couple of additional test fits and eventually, I increased the diameter of the handle holes to accept the handle washers. After installing the panel with the retainer clips, the handles, upper trim panel and lock knob finish the installation. Oops...snapped this pic before installing the door handle.

This Power Steering emblem is the center of the horn ring. It's got a few scuffs and scratches and one of the attaching studs broke when I tried to install it to the horn ring. I repaired the stud with a Loctite "super-glue" type of adhesive. I also sanded off a bit of the flat side to allow the emblem to fit better in the cavity on the ring. Then, I re-painted the back side of the emblem with a semi-flat black that matched the original paint. A very gentle test-fitting of the emblem to the horn ring indicated that the build-up of copper, nickel and chrome (mostly copper) on the horn ring had altered the dimensions of the emblem attachment points. The holes on the freshly plated horn ring were slightly too small to accept the attachment pins. I taped off the chrome and enlarged the holes with jeweler's files. I removed small amounts of material (copper) until the pins dropped easily through the holes. Here's the polished emblem, attached with small dabs of clear silicone: The painted steering wheel looks great! And the horn ring makes it look even better! I masked off the surrounding areas before spraying contact adhesive for the rear compartment carpeting. Applied a coat of adhesive to the back of the carpet: Repeat 10 times, including rolling the carpet down to ensure a good bond. I applied the adhesive to one section at a time on the long pieces, then rolled the carpet into place. With all the pieces bonded in location, I have to add the hold-down screws in each corner of every panel. In every corner, I used a small pick to find the original hole location and installed the screw in the original position. One more step on the road to completion!

It's a bead braker, for compressing the tire section to break the beads from clincher type rims. They are sized for a range of rim widths.

Love it!

Assembling the front door trim starts with attaching the armrest base to the main panel, followed by a layer of padding and then the trim cover. The second layer consists of a sub-foundation that carries all the upper trim pieces. Lots of measuring and double-checking before bonding and sewing the individual panels together. The two-tone split lines must line up with the narrow, stainless steel trim moldings that surround the center section of the panel. I hand-stitched the upper and lower panels together and bonded the joints with contact adhesive. The completed upper panel is retained to the main board with several bend-tabs above the armrest, and adhesive & staples around the perimeter. Below the armrest, the beige and tan panels are sewn to the main panel with a seam reinforcement to provide a clean, straight edge at the color change lines. After sewing both the beige and tan pieces, I test-fit the moldings again: The beige material is "peeking" out above the lower molding, which meant that I had to re-do the two lower sections. Now that's better! Moldings installed and perimeters edgefolded. Waiting for the arrival of the Century script emblems. To install the emblems, I marked the positions of the studs on the front side of the panel and used a small pick to create the holes for the attaching pins. From the back side, I used a 1/8" drill bit to enlarge the holes in the main panel, while leaving the small holes in the vinyl cover material. Here, I am installing the retaining clips. I used a small socket, sized to drive the perimeter of the clip onto the studs. I used a small mallet to drive the clips and supported the emblems from the front of the panel with a cloth-wrapped piece of wood. Complete and ready for installation! I will cut the holes for the door and window crank handles when I install the panels to the doors.

@JohnD1956 It's gorgeous!!!

There are SO many parts on this car that are "58 only" or "57 & 58 only". These clips are the "D" pillar exterior reveal molding retainers. On the left is the OEM part; on the right, the piece I am making to replace one broken retainer. I started with a piece of spring steel and laid out the centers of the bends, then formed the part to shape using the OEM piece as my pattern. Finished part - best of all, it works! January 5: Down off the ramps and back to the paint shop for touch-ups and rear bumper final alignment! Unfortunately, the car was very difficult to start and it ran very poorly. More work to do... Notice that the right rear window is open. When I tried to roll the window up, the glass was moving on an arc into the car, inboard of the roof rail weatherstrip. Another task to add to the list... Looking quite spiffy! With the car in for some touch-ups, I shifted my focus to the rear compartment carpeting. It took some experimentation, but I was finally able to make acceptable, consistent stitches with the vintage Singer over-edger/serger machine. I had created full-size paper patterns and used them to cut the carpeting to size. Then ran the carpet pieces through the serging machine to finish the edges. I think they turned out great. A little bit of video... I finished all the ends by tying off the stitches and tucking the "tails" under the adjacent stitches. Then, I used a hook needle to draw the threads under the adjacent stitches. And I added a small piece of tape to hold every thread end down until the carpet is adhered onto the steel panel.

Engine number: 4=Buick Special E= 1958 Model Year I= Assembled at Flint, MI (Hopefully, someone else can confirm this; I thought all the plant codes were numbers.) 044949- vehicle production sequence The Special was equipped with the 250HP version of the 364 Nailhead. 7923184 carb tag: Rochester 4GC Quadrajet, original application was for Kiekhaefer Marine. http://www.carburetion.com/CarbNumber.asp?Number=7023183

Thanks, Dave!

Skinniest tires I've ever owned...

Time to install that massive rear bumper... All the edges were taped to protect the painted surfaces and I double-checked the clearance between the mounting brackets to ensure they would fit snugly between the frame rails. Two friends held the bumper while my wife guided us and I installed the frame attaching bolts. Didn't take us very long to get to this point: The bumper is centered, but it needs to be rotated up at the rear to align better with the end of the quarter panels. Final adjustment will be done at Masterworks when the final paint touch-ups are being done.

Pete, These are offered on ebay right now: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Expansion-Freeze-Plug-1-15-16-PHRS-Cup-Metal-for-GM-FORD-AMC-LOT-of-4-Plugs/292849460456?hash=item442f3024e8:g:Z6QAAOSwy3JcB1D7:rk:5:pf:0

The fasteners were all zinc plated. The castings and any bare steel parts were glass beaded, then painted with "cast gray" or "cast aluminum" as appropriate to retain the original appearance while protecting the bare materials. There are already a few parts that need to be cleaned and re-coated due to scratches. Ultimately, I will probably use matte or semi-gloss clear to protect those finishes if I begin to see any degradation.

I am looking for 2 hood hinge springs for my 1958 Buick. GM/Buick part number 1179401 Spring data: 23 coils 90 degree offset end loops ~ 0.248" wire diameter ID: 1.125" OD: 1.625" Free length: estimated to be slightly less than 8", but I have not been able to confirm this dimension yet. Send me a PM if you have anything, please. Joe Tonietto

Back at the end of December, I had to get the car back to Masterworks for some paint work. Before taking it back there, I wanted to get the rear seat heater connected and finish up a few undercar tasks. Time to get the car up on my ramps... It was not an easy move; the car ran very poorly and the wet tires made it difficult to get up the incline. Got it on the ramps and went to work... I had to do a little bit of housekeeping, but in general, everything was looking quite tidy under here. The rear seat heater requires 2 connections; one on each side of the vehicle. The coolant lines run from the water pump output to the driver's side of the heater, then the return line goes from the heater's passenger side outlet to the temperature control valve, on the passenger side of the cowl, under the right fender. Of course, BOTH connections leaked with the OEM style clamps, so some additional work was needed to stop the drooling. I'm back to the rear compartment trim. The rear liftgate and tailgate opening takes a windlace seal along the vertical sides of the body opening and the liftgate opening. There's a short section of rubber seal on each side of the tailgate, between the vertical body to liftgate joint and the lower outboard corners of the liftgate. The short, vertical pieces are sewn to a pressboard substrate, folded at both ends and retained to the car by the painted steel quarter trim panels. Similarly, the upper windlace is sewn to a pressboard substrate and then retained by the garnish moldings. This is the original rubber seal that was installed along the upper edge of the tailgate opening, between the tailgate and the outboard corner of the liftgate: It was stapled to a tack strip that was screwed to the inner quarter panel. I bonded multiple layers of 1/8" panel board together to make up the tack strip. The tack strip was then screwed to the quarter panel, using the 2 small holes nearest the top of the panel. Cut the weatherstrip to length and glued & stapled it to the tack strip, then installed the steel trim panel.

My son-in-law has a 3d printer that could produce this part, but he told me that his printer wouldn't be capable of delivering the smooth surface finish required for the emblem. We also would have needed a 3D scan, as Beemon indicated. The commercial 3D scanning & printing costs were much higher than the casting costs, so I went with the casting option.

For the past 4 years, I have been looking for one of the correct Century script emblems for the left side of the car. The right side emblems slanted "forward" and the left emblems slanted "rearward". Since my search has not been successful, 57BuickJim volunteered to share his knowledge and skills in moldmaking to help me create an emblem. He and I used the good part as a sample and built a silicone mold to re-create the emblem. I was concerned that a plastic emblem might not be strong enough to withstand the forces involved in the installation process, so I made a sheet metal reinforcement plate to add strangth to the plastic part. This is my first attempt at the reinforcement: Tin snips, a dremel and a set of X-Acto files got me this far: The reinforcement didn't fit well, so I made a second one: I drilled and tapped six #3-40 holes for insertion of threaded attaching studs to the reinforcement Here's Jim, working on the mold Out first mold failed because the material was too old and didn't react. Back to the drawing board... Jim made a second and ultimately, a third mold to replicate the original emblem This was my first attempt to manufacture an emblem with the steel reinforcement Then, lots of patience and grinding required to trim away the excess plastic We learned that we had made the mold too "deep" and the part was too thick. It would stick out from the surface of the door trim panel about 1/8" further than the rest of the emblems. Jim made another mold and cast new parts made from plastic, without the metal reinforcement. As of today (February 4, 2019), the plastic emblems are at Vacuum Orna-Metal in Romulus, Michigan to be vacuum metallized. The craziest thing is...I found the emblem for sale on ebay about 3 days ago. Now, I'll have 3 to choose from!

I had a similar experience once; it was caused by a worn transmission output shaft bushing. The shuddering only occurred at a narrow range of vehicle speeds. U-joints can also do this; only vibrating at a narrow speed range until they fail completely.

Thanks, 2carb40. I thought those horizontal frame jacks were only used in 1957. Were they also used in 1958? Joe

I need a bumper jack for a 1958 Buick. If you don't have a jack, a good picture of a 58 Buick jack would be a great help. I'm also hoping someone has a photo of a jacking instruction card for an Estate Wagon. I know it is not the same as a regular passenger car jack instruction sheet. Thanks! Joe Tonietto

Exciting and more than a littl bit stressful... It's amazing how many little details are still unfinished! But I believe the light at the end of the tunnel is NOT a train.