Jim Cannon

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: 1965rivgs</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Also,the windshield interior pillar molding appears to be painted and not chromed. Jim, do the chromed pillar moldings and the ribbed dash seem to change simultaneously in your research? Tom Mooney </div></div> Tom- It appears that the chrome trim came later than the ribbed dash, but to honest with you, I have not been making a note of that with specific car data plates. It would be hard to go back now and capture that. As Tim notes above, he had a fairly early car with the chrome trim... confounds me. You are never really sure about who might have changed what at some time in the past, unless you really know the providence of the vehicle.

If you are replacing the booster and the master cylinder at the same time, then it does not really matter which you get. Just so you get the pair the same, they will work. If you really want to put on new exactly what is on there now, pull the master cylinder off of the booster and look at the depth of the hole that the push rod presses into. It will be shallow or deep. Get the new master cylinder type that has the same hole depth. Then get the booster type to match the master cylinder type. I hope this is clear. If not, drop me a personal message.

That would be for the bearing. NAPA does not stock the support.

Here is a link to a car for sale on eBay in Las Vegas. What caught my eye was the very early Fisher Body number on the data plate, FB 286. This is now the earliest job I have in my database, with a date stamp (if I can read it right) of 09A, or first week of September. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320364492662&viewitem= Early '63 details you see here: - smooth dash - 120 mph speedo - no dimple in the vacuum storage can for the brakes This is a well optioned car, with power windows and vents, power seat, A/C. If anyone has a '63 Riv with an earlier FB number, please contact me!

I assume this is for a '63-65 Riv. If not, please advise. Bearing can be obtained at NAPA. I found one store in my area that had one on the shelf! I just had to go pick it up. Failing that, order one in and you will have it in a few days. NAPA Item # BRG6908VAL Be very careful pressing old bearing out and new bearing into the rubber mount. It is easy to tear the rubber.

Yes, it is the same.

There were a few '64s produced with the 401 engine, so it is possible that this is what he has. It is more likely that it is a 425 and he just assumed that it was a 401. You can tell by looking at the engine code on the block deck, behind the water manifold.

Tim, I sent you a PM also. Look for a flashing small white envelop at the top of the forum screens.

Matt- If a car does not have speedminder then that little hole is used to set the speed needle for the cruise control. I am pretty sure you will not find a lens without a hole.

I am not selling this car. I do not know this car nor this seller. I have zero interest in this car. Needs work, for sure, but it looks like it is in pretty good shape for the price. (I've seen a lot rougher cars for $5500). Anyone in the NY area with interest in a '63 might want to look at this one. http://newyork.craigslist.org/que/cto/1043131036.html

The shaft of the motor has a screw thread cut in it. You will see this when you take it apart. The screw and lock nut on the end are used to adjust the "lash" of this shaft, where it drives a gear. You want to adjust the screw in just enough to prevent the shaft from moving as the screw drives the gear, without jamming it. It is not required to remove this when taking motor apart to clean and lube it. HTH.

That does help, Tim! I'll wait until you guys thaw out for the photos, there's no rush. Thanks for the help.

If you have a '63 Riviera, I would like to get from you a picture of one of your front seatbelts (buckle and tab, not fastened). I'd like to see how many different styles are out there. If you know for a fact that your seatbelts are NOT original to the '63 (you put in later model belts because you prefer the looks) then please don't send me a picture. I am trying to establish what the original belts/buckles looked like. Send you photos to me at: 63Riv at comcast dot net Thanks!

I suggest you contact the ROA Dealer members listed in the back of the Riview. I'm sure they have some and can mail them to you. The housing is the same in '63 and '64, so if your lenses are good, you just need the metal part and can use one from either year.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: TexRiv_63</div><div class="ubbcode-body">You got me curious so I took a better look at my car. I was wrong, my cap is not vented and I saw the tube you describe. I assumed it was a vented cap because I was thinking of the modern style sealed cap, but there is no vent hole visible. I'm guessing this setup was to avoid gas leaks due to the filler pipe being so horizontally oriented. Lots of evidence of leakage out the vent tube on mine so it probably was not too effective. You do need a non-vented cap. </div></div> Yes, non-vented cap on 1st generation Riviera. You need Stant gas cap 10646. When the rubber gasket under the cap goes bad with age, fuel will splash out of the filler neck. Not good; replace it when it does that. The loop in the vent hose has to go pretty high. Even then, you will lose a bit of fuel out that hose when you accelerate hard. :-) Back when your gas was 35 cents a gallon, you did not mind too much.

Contact the following guy (who advertises in the Riview): Barney Eaton 20111 Deerfield Dr Georgetown TX 78628 512-869-5114 E-mail: barney@texas.net Swap e-mails with him and shop online at the manufacturer sites he points you to. When you decide what you want, he will quote you a price. I'm not sure of his payment options, but I'm sure you guys can work something out. I got the Dustop cover. It is intended for indoor use, it breathes well. As the name implies, it keeps dust that settles off of the finish. I hope this helps.

Just use 1/4 inch vacuum hose. It wont collapse.

You should post this question down in the "Riviera Owners Association" forum, a few more lines down. There are a number of real Riviera experts. You do not need to be a ROA member to post questions there (but it is still a good thing to do!).

The suction valve in the earlier post is not the actuator asked about. The OAP vacuum actuator worked on my '63 on the firewall with no modifications. It did not work under the blower motor (the recirc door) right out of the box. I had to plug one of my vacuum lines running down there and use a small T-fitting to apply the vacuum from the other line to both ports at the same time in order to get the flapper to work properly. I sorted it all out with a small handheld vacuum pump, some T-fittings and lengths of vacuum hose. Easier to work on under the car there without the engine running just to give you vacuum. You can see the position of the flapper with the fan motor removed. Your '64 may be different from the '63, so YMMV and you may need to do something different to make it work. But to answer your original question, yes the vacuum actuators sold by OAP are good. Dual port is original on the firewall. I don't know (for '64) if it was original under the fan motor. ('63 had 2 stacked diaphragms).

Yes, it sounds like you have the stock box in there now. You can put a box in from a later full size Buick and get fewer turns lock to lock. Then it will drive more like your modern car and not need so much turn of the wheel to go around the corner or to park. Most people like that. Yes, the 12:1 would turn faster. So you only have to give the steering wheel 1/2 or 3/4 of a turn to go around the corner. It also takes a bit more steering effort, so it gives you more road feel. (As you know, we can steer these cars around the corner with a single finger.) I'm not sure why your wife thinks she won't like it because it will actually make it more like what she's used to driving and a bit easier to maneuver.

First figure out what you have now. How many turns now lock to lock?

Flush lines with denatured alcohol (pick up at Home Depot in paint aisle). A large syringe works well. Follow with lots of low pressure compressed air to dry the alcohol out the lines.

What is it about DOT 5 that is bad? This is the first I have heard of it causing problems. I thought silicon was good for rubber. I will drain and flush the DOT 5 out of my system and replace it with fresh DOT 3 if it is really bad for the car.

Yes, 748 is white leather and vinyl in 1963.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: REX STALLION</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> Now I know what period correct is when it comes to white wall tires on my 64 Riv, BUT I have seen wide whites on other large cars on this vintage.I like the look but was wondering when wide whites went out of vogue. This car will be a mild custom . </div></div> On daily drivers, wide whites (let's say 2.5-3" whitewalls) faded out of vogue by the late-50s. For example, they were quite popular on the 1st generation T-birds (1955-57). My dad had them on his '57. He also has them today on his '58 Olds. They look sweet! My friend Geno has a mild custom '63 Riviera, slightly lowered, pearl white paint, with full wide whites. I really like the look and it gets a lot of attention when we cruise around in it. Here is a photo of it from the side. Click thumbnail for full-size version to see detail. (BTW, this car is for sale; if anyone is interested, contact me off list.)