unimogjohn

The mechanical ones were popular in the 30s and 40s. After than everyone seemed to go with the door stickers.

They were just dealer advertising promos. You could order them for just about any car, and I am sure that you could get one at most auto parts stores of that era. I see them on Ebay from time to time.

Hey, it's Tuesday, February Feb 8th. Alice dragged me from the farm yesterday, and we drove into Washington DC. Went to the new Newseum Newseum | Newseum Home near the mall. Interesting stuff. They had several major exhibits. A great way to spend the day. The only odd thing is that I have lived through all their major exhibits, now what does that tell me. But here is Greg's report for Monday night. "You'll be glad to know the air compressor is working again. Got back to work on the babbitting jig for the Peerless throwout bearings. Pictured is the prototype stage. It might work. I've been asked why work on these instead of the Matheson engine. Well, I've had these longer than the Matheson, and I'm trying to stay ahead of when they need these bearings. I've already lost the race on the engine.

You can use JB Weld to put in a connecting brass fitting in the top. Done that many a time.

Scott, certainly does not look like my 23-45. I do not have such a design in the fender itself.

Here is a vendor that has tank repair kits. I have no idea as to the price. Vacuum Tank Rebuilding Kits - The Classic Preservation Coalition

It is Sunday PM, Feb 6th. The weather was quite nice today. A bit of sun and 40 degrees or so. I managed to shovel the snow from the Avanti garage so I could sneak in. So jumped in the Avanti and started her up. I guess I am getting anxious for a run. Here is Greg's report. "Weekend damage assessment. Not quite as winterlike, the weather allowed me to spend some time with the Avanti. I've wanted to install the fuel tank access panel and back seat. Pulled the seat backrest and cushion out of storage. Scrubbed the cushion and realized it has issues. Vinyl aged and brittle. Scrubbed it with bleach and a toothbrush and noticed that some of the stitching has failed, some of the reinforcements torn from their hogrings. I began stripping the covering from the springs and decided to let someone more familiar with the process should take over. On to the backrest. Although just as brittle, looked ok enough to reuse. Scrubbed it, wiped it down and used vinly aerosol to recolor it. Looked pretty good. While it dried, I reinstalled the tank compartment cover. That called for relocating some screws, a few oversized ones too. The the fun part. The backrest has shrunk enough to hamper installation. Especially the top center area. So while wrestling with it to get it in place, it tore. Like I said, brittle. Of course it might have worked on a hot summer day. I so miss everyone complaining about how hot it is. So, today I've been telling myself ...."It's a driver". For a seldom if ever used back seat, it will be serviceable. I've always got the option to have it recovered at a later date."

Hi Roger and everyone, thanks for the responses. I also asked Greg as to his reasoning for the loop. So he responded and sent along some original pictures of the Stoddard Dayton engine. It is all very interesting. One of the pics is of the mechanical regulator. From Greg: "Sorry for the delay in replying. The answer to your question is "I don't know". I'm enclosing pictures of the SD oiling system for 1911. Mine is a little different. They used an unusual method. The gear pump picks up oil from the pan and feeds a manifold which directs the oil to pockets over the mains and cam bearings. The oil then gravity feeds into the bearings. Runoff from the main bearings is caught by slingers on the crank throws which then feed the rod journals by centrifugal force. There is enough pressure to then feed tubing that lubricates the wrist pins. You can see in the picture another pipe from the pump that stays on that side of the case. That is the line to an external pressure regulator. Prior to this, the regulator was threaded into that manifold making it necessary to drop the pan to adjust. I think you can see that hole on the manifold has been plugged. The 1911 external regulator installs outside the case, the line exiting ahead of the pump and the regulator behind, which is where the open check valve will dump the excess back into the case. On mine, the line exits behind the pump, the forward hole plugged. The return hole is over the right rear cam bearing. A picture of my check valve is included. As for why the loop. 1. Vibration issues? The tight circle in the 3/8" is really rigid. Both ends of the pipe are close together and mounted to the same case. Can't imagine vibration an issue. The loop may even cause vibration. 2. Possibly an installation aid. If the pipes were made up on the fifth floor (?) of the plant by someone who would never see the installation downstairs, someone may need to make an adjustment when fitting it up. 3. It has been suggested that the loop shown on the '11 picture may be to prevent drain back of the oil. That might work on that horizontal pipe, but I tried it with this one that has its outlet higher than the inlet end. As long as you have your finger over the upper end, it doesn't drain (of course), but break the vacuum and it does. As for my use of copper tubing. I've always been taught to use brass tubing. I've always found brass tubing on unrestored cars. For some reason Stoddard used copper. Might be because the soft copper allows you to thread the pipe through some of the many holes inside the case and pull it through and bend it for the next hairpin turn. Unrestored cars I've examined also used copper throughout. I didn't see any need to try to outdo the manufacturer. I do, however, like on the tightly bent looped line, will anneal the pipe before I install it. The only pic I have at hand of any original tubing is enclosed."

It is Friday, Feb. 4th. Here is Greg's report from last night. He is stuck inside too. "Well, the air compressor is still down, parts arriving Monday. Good enough excuse to tweak the Stoddard Dayton engine oil line. Pics of the bending operation and a dress rehearsal. It will need to be tested on the car and then lines adjusted, shortened and ends flared. That intermediate fitting is for the pressure gage line. The Matheson engine progress? Thanks for asking. The rocker shafts are still out, the rocker arm rollers too. They're being reground, and then we're talking about a quick trip to the platers for industrial chroming. I'm trying to treat the external components for rust prevention. I know the owner likes to polish his fleet, but I'm trying to save him a little effort."

It is Thursday, Feb. 3rd. The monster storm missed us, we got some freezing rain during the night, but that was it. Yesterday, it got up to 55 degrees (almost felt like spring), but today it will be hard pressed to make 30 degrees (20 degrees this morning). Here is Greg's report. He is working in the shop and not venturing out. If he goes up to the hanger he has to walk through snow and ice. And it is a fare piece especially if you are carrying something. "Today I picked up some aluminum for the Peerless engine bearing caper. It needs to be blast cleaned before I begin and the air compressor is down with a broken pipe. Maybe tomorrow. Spent some time on the Stoddard Dayton engine oil pressure deal. I have it laid out, some of the fittings don't mate, so I have to resolve that problem. Also I have a Plan A and Plan B. The zig zag pipe will fit up ok. The sales catalog shows a loop in a similar line for the 1911 model. I don't know what it's for, so after I get Plan A working, I'll try Plan B. It took two tries to get a pipe bent with the rollercoaster to come out."

It is Monday, Jan 31st. Waiting for another big storm to roll in tonight. Looks like it is going to be a ice event rather than snow. With all the trees an ice event is much worse than snow. If we get much everyone will lose power for sure. It is suppose to last almost three days! Here is Greg's report for your morning coffee. "The weekend is over. I did get to spend time on some of the various projects. Made the trek to Rob's place in MD to spend some time with the Stoddard Dayton car and also the project engine. The Stoddard needs an oil pressure regulator. Mine is plumbed unlike any other SD in captivity. The only part of the regulator that came with the car is the empty holes where the oil goes. Even the 1913 manual doesn't describe it, so I'm on my own. I've got a plan, now to make up the components and then see if it works. My dash gage registers to 12#. Without a regulator, when cold my test gage can register 85#. I need to dump some pressure before I hook up the original gage. I also spent some time with the Studebaker Avanti engine. One thing I didn't get with the pile was the oil pan. The Paxton engines came with pans that varied from a six quart to ten quart capacity. I've been trying to determine what this engine had so that I can duplicate it. Incredibly, I've been directed to a guy who worked for Paxton, the oil pan department. He's offered to replicate one for me. Although the search for pan information leads me to believe the pan department was freesyle and random. The modification of the pans could have one weld, two welds, a fittng for a temperature probe, etc. I think I'll leave it up to him to decide. I may also be influenced by Dave Coco's findings. He will be in California this week and may be able to inspect the pan on the #9 Bonneville Avanti. And today I started cutting out the babbitt mold for those Peerless throwout bearings. Photo enclosed. Oh yes, today I trudged through the snow to visit 'Ol Seabiscuit (the Avanti). Started without much coaxing and ran up to temperature. Throw in a little Tango on Saturday night and this weekend is gone. =

Tom, when I turn on my ignition, the amp meter shows a discharge. I would double check your connections at the starter motor. On mine, the discharge shows on the meter to the right. Just opposite of what you would think. When I turn on my ignition, the starter motor starts running, and the meter shows a discharge of about 8 amps.

JB and 40, thanks for the help. And yes, we have made reservations and sent in our registration for the 2011 Buick National Meet. Planning to get there a couple of days before hand and see some of the sights before the meet officially begins. JB, you going? If yes, what are you bringing?

It is Friday, Jan 28th. Snowing, but only a couple of inches expected. Spent the entire day digging out and pushing snow. A neighbor (they are both in their 90s) down the road was without power as the generator had quit. So off we went in the tractor. Got their road cleared with a path so we were able to walk in. I took a look at the generator, and it had oil everywhere. Cleaned it up, put more oil in it, and it started. The problem was obvious, a rubber hose to the oil cooler was loose. So tightened all the hoses as all were loose, added oil and she fired right up with no leaks. Of course, five minutes after we had done all this, the power came back on. But we had a good time visiting. Our generator hummed along all night and never missed a beat. Power came on about 2 PM. So we were out about 20 hours. In that time we used about 4% of our 500 gallon capacity propane tank, which a fill is about 84%. So I estimate that we used about five gallons of propane. I figure that this is not too bad. Most folks have 1,000 gallon tank out in farm country. We are currently at 38% filled so I think that I will ask for a refill when the snow melts and a truck can get into the farm. Enough of my adventures, here is Greg's automotive report. He has been busy as usual, and spending time in the warm shop. A very interesting tale. "More time in on the Peerless bearings. Often the tooing required is not only determined by the job to accomplish, but also by the materials at hand to make the tooling. The tooling is so far undecided because there isn't any material at hand. I think I know how I want to go about forming the babblitt, but Plan A is to locate some alumimum bar stock to machine. Which reminds me, did I ever tell you about the time I had to do the bearings for an early four cylinder Premier? I came up with a quick and dirty pland to form the rod bearing babbltts. I would pour the molten metal around aluminum arbors machined to a taper. These would be positiioned in aluminum cans of the right size so I could just cut them away in the machining of the babbitt inserts. Then I searched the grocery store for cans of the right size to minimize the amount of babbitt used. Found cans just the right size. Vienna sausages! Bought enough to do the job plus a couple extra. Ate the sausages then poured the bearings. The good news is the bearings turned out terriffic. The bad news is that I found myself in the hospital getting my gall bladder cut out. I'm sure glad I didn't try that trick when I did that huge Robinson fire truck motor. I can see the epitath: "Here he lies, not too well, Pouring babbitt killed him deader'n Hell." As for the Peerless bearings, I will try to visit a local machinist friend to see what he's got on the shelf. Also, I'm going to take a sample bearing with me. Peerless used a unique method of oil grooving and I like it. Spreads the lubricant across both faces with little loss of bearing material. No way I can freehand it and have it look acceptable. I'll see if he can't follow it with a program and cut the grooves for me on his CNC milling machine."

Tom, does the starter work when you turn on the ignition and then press on the starter plunger? If yes, then you mean that your engine is not firing/running.

I finally found a good set of kick plates for my 23 McLaughlin Buick. I know that they came standard with the car originally. Can any tell me where on the running board they should be mounted? I do not want to guess where they should go. So would appreciate if someone could take a couple of measurements for me, before I resort to guessing. Here are the plates. Each has two mounting holes, which then screws are used to attach each one to the running board. TX

It is Thursday, Jan 27th. A winter wonderland outside. It quit snowing last night around midnight. Looks like close to 9 inches on the ground. Looks like a lot of digging out this morning. After I dig out a truck we have to go check on a couple down the road, Alice called this morning and found out their generator did not come on. They are in their late 80s so will head over there to see what is up. If I cannot get it running we will try to drag them over to our place, I am sure they will protest loudly. We are still without power, but the generator is just humming along. I will see how much propane it is using. Will be interesting to see what the consumption is. Just before the storm hit, Greg sent off this report. And he started on another project. How can he have so many? "It's snowing pretty heavily, and the power has been flickering. Before it goes out entirely I'll get this sent. A long overdue project, I've had some Peerless throwout bearings to babbitt and machine to size. I'm running out of excuses, so I'm getting started on that project. They get the cast babbitt lining on both sides of the casting. And the inside of the bore. All at the same time. Then some fancy oil grooving. They've been lying under the bench, out of sight. I'm still not sure how to do this. It will take some dedicated fixturing. If it was easy, everybody would be doing it."

It is Wednesday PM, Jan 26th. Well snow was predicted, and this time it came in. It started snowing hard about 3 PM and has not let up. I think that we have about 6 inches or so; and it is a very heavy snow. And as usual, the power went out about 6 PM. Thankfully, we have the new whole house generator, and it started right up. So for the first time we have lights, heat, and water. We are happy. Reports are coming in with freeways closed, thousands without power, etc. Glad that we are home. On the car side, I got a package today. I finally found a set of kick plates for the 23 McLaughlin Buick. They were standard for the car. Only took me three years to find them. They are held in place with just a couple of screws into the running board. Here is a pic.

I use Tractor Supply's Universal Premium Hydraulic Oil in my 1928 Buick shocks. It is available by the quart. I did try a hydraulic jack oil, but it seeped out around the seals.

Still Tuesday PM, now they are saying 9 to 12 inches of snow on Wed/Thur. I really do not think that they even have a clue. We will see. Asked Greg if he is going to have the rear seat recovered. Here is what he said. "No, not recovering the back seats. They aren't that bad, I might have to dye them to match the new vinyl which is a little darker. Also, what I'm paying Phantom for the front seats, doors, quarters and trim is about what I was paying for running Avantis when I was buying them. Remember, it's just a driver."

It is Tuesday, Jan 25th. A bit warmer this morning 28 degrees. Snow and rain expected over the next couple of days. Here is an update from Greg. "Due to popular request: Pictures of the seats. Trusted to Phantom Auto Works in Salem, Ohio. I rate them an A, maybe A+ job. Although they had a problem supplying them when promised, they tried very hard to follow my instructions. No wrinkles or puckers, not overstuffed. The seats were not only recovered, but with the tendancy of the foam structure to decompose and turn to dust, new foam was cut and shaped to suit. I can't wait to try them out. Otherwise, tonight was spent with micrometer and Matheson engine cylinders in hand. Numerous measurements taken , tomorrow night I'll mike the pistons and do the math."

I found this meter on Ebay for Greg. Not exactly his meter, but it does have some set up instructions. It mentions sample tubes that connect to the exhaust. Will have to figure what they look like and how they function. I can see that they hook up to the side of the meter. Here is a pic of the one on Ebay.

BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR, its Monday, Jan 24th. It is 6 degrees, very cold for us, but I see from other forum posts it is -23 in Maine. Greg is doing some research on the Avanti engine tuning done during its speed runs. He actually has some equipment used at that time. Look closely and you can see two meters on the dash picture. Really interesting. Here is Greg's report. "Photos of the Elliott Carbumeter as used by Paxton for tuning their Bonneville cars and who knows what else. I will need to find instructions, any information out there?"

I have a 1923 McLaughlin Buick. And it is 95% Buick with some special items that were McLaughlin. Most of the items that were McLaughlin were a bit more finished and refined than on the US built cars. Both the body and the engine on my car were made and built in Canada. Major and most minor parts interchange between Canada and US versions. Here are some of the differences between cars of the same year and model. Rear tire carrier: McLaughlin - cast iron like on earlier US Buicks; Buick - stamped steel Dash: McLaughlin - wooden; Buick - stamped steel Gauges: McLaughlin - all white faced; Buick - all black faced Gauges: McLaughlin - Water temp added; Buick - temp on radiator only Interior: McLaughlin - Leather throughout; Buick - embossed leather like material Steering Wheel: McLaughlin - natural wood and metal spokes; Buick - wood, which was usually painted Radiator Surround: McLaughlin - plated; Buick - painted Battery: McLaughlin - on running board; Buick - under floor Top: McLaughlin - different design/more elegant, exposed wooden frame, plated hinges; Buick - steel frame, painted hinges. Here are a couple of pics if you are interested.

C. Bouteiller of "NOS Early Ignition" will have them if anyone does. His telephone number is: 352-793-9122 (Oct until April); after April he has two numbers 413-243-4496 Home, 413-528-2815 Shop. His address at home/work is 427 Monterey Rd, Gt. Barrington, Mass. 01230 He has lots of items, but I caution you that his prices are premium. But, if you need them, he has them. Hope this helps. John