unimogjohn

Anyone have an idea what this stands for? ALA. It has two little mounting holes, one on each side. Looks like it should be nailed or used with small screws. Here is a pic.

Still Tuesday, PM. Picked up the transmission fluid, ordered the U bolts, and bought the little cut off wheels. Then got home and was able to cut the bolt for the rear shackle and the spring dropped. It's free! Started attempting to get the front shackle undone. No go. No amount of twisting, cussing, etc could I get the bolt to budge let alone undone. I sent a note off to Wayne to see if he had a better air impact wrench than mine. I even put a jack under the breaker bar that was on the bolt. Nothing moved. And to top it off there is absolutely no room between the frame and the nut to get a wrench on it. The bracket is totally locked in. My plan now is to apply some heat to see if I can get some movement out of the bolt. If that does not work then I am going to have to cut it out. And I am still having fun. I think.

Tuesday morning, August 13th. Raining hard so will be heading off to see if I can find some U bolts and rubber cushions for the Avanti spring. Also going to pick up 3 gallons of Dextron auto transmission fluid as am going to change the transmission fluid when I get it back on all four wheels. But, for your morning coffee, I have a Greg report. "Been cramming in work on the Avanti and other things. The next project on 5054 will be the installation of the rear quarter interior panels so that I can install that back glass. Photo of the initial stages of the upholstery pieces. My upholstery work never suits me. Somewhat of an interruption of that project is the Harvester. In order to get it ready for the Ford museum meet in September it needed some work. Sunday a gaggle of us retrieved it from Burchill's. It was a nice event that included Frank Gable (with truck and trailer) and old friends Bob Metz and Phil Ritter who served as wingmen. A nice visit with Rob and Mike , Stoddard and Harvester traded places and we got in late. Boy's day out. Now to get some things done on the old Termite Transfer. A component that's always been missing during my watch is the seat bottom, the panel that keeps your seat cushion and behind from falling into the spinning flywheel. I'm beginning a search for a sample in order to make a correct replacement. It should be the same for the '12 and up autowagons. If you know of any let me know. There evidently is a small wooden tool tray under there too. I've got enough remnants to get that done. That's about the latest." =

It is Monday, August 12th, PM. If I was a mechanic working in a shop I would be fired. I worked over three hours and accomplished very little. All I wanted to do is remove the rear end of the spring from its shackle mount. The nut came off with some Kroil and a significant amount of twisting with the breaker bar and long extension to get some more leverage. That done I figured it would be easy to take a long steel rod and my trusty sledge hammer to push the bolt out of the spring bushing. Not! No amount of beating could I that bolt to budge. Ah, an idea. Why not take my air hammer with a point edge and hammer out the bolt. So with 150 lbs of air pressure managed to get it to budge maybe a quarter of an inch. Then the air hammer gave up. OK, at least now I have enough room to use my air grinder to cut the bolt on each end to get the spring to drop. Well, got one side cut, and then the grinding disc was done. And guess what, no more discs. So I am done for the day. If the rear is this hard I can only imagine what the front is going to be like. On the good side, the top part of the shackle was evidently frozen tight. My banging and twisting dislodged it so it is now working. And I paid for the springs last night so they will be on their way from NC today. Oh, Greg is not happy with me putting in a used spring. I am sure at some point I will get a "told you so" moment.

Chris, boy you are making progress. Looks better already. Glad the scrapers are working for you. To remove the supercharged emblem you have to take out the vent flappers. Then through the open vent you can feel you way to the single pal nut that holds it on. I used a small wrench to get the nut started and then was able to use my fingers to get it off. The emblems then just falls on the ground. I did put a towel on the ground to catch it if it does push out. It is harder to get on than off. Not much room to maneuver.

Thanks for the info John. It would not have been good if that spring had come apart at any speed. Still Sunday. David Coco, trimacar on this forum, sent me a pic. Here is what he said. "How about a picture of Greg working? Drilling and tapping holes for top fasteners on rail for 1907 Autocar." So here is a pic of Greg hard at work.

It is Sunday, August 11th, early PM. I had a couple of hours this morning so decided to start taking off the broken spring on the Avanti. I have the maintenance manual so decided to read that first off. The instructions are pretty clear so off to the garage I go. I soaked all the bolts with Kroil. They all look pretty grungy. Off with the shock and then tackled the big mount on the bottom with the two U bolts. Had to use a breaker bar with a jack handle extension to get off the U bolt nuts. They were all on very tight, and I managed to break one and then had to cut the other one out. But the bottom plate is out. I am sure that I can get new mounting pads and U bolts at my local Carquest or NAPA store. Right now I am done with car stuff for the day, but if I get a hour or so in the late afternoon I will see if I can get one of the spring shackles out. For the rear one I know I have to drop down the exhaust or at least remove it from the two back hangers to get enough room to get out the long bolt holding the spring to the frame. Here are some pics. Oh, we went on a two mile walk this morning before heat of the day and spied this little nest on one of our trees. I think I will just leave it alone. It is huge, larger than a basketball for sure.

It is Saturday, August 10th, mid afternoon. It is so hot and humid you might as well be in the shower. But I decided to tare into the Suburban and replace the little AC belt tensioner that is really free and has a slight wobble. I would hate to have Greg borrow the truck and have that fail far from home. It went in easily once I could get to it. As I had everything out I saw a grease nipple on a steering component. Never knew that it was there. I am sure it has never been greased. It took 30 pumps to get enough grease in it to see it come out of the seals. Here are pics of the tensioner and the grease nipple. I guess it took about three hours start to finish. And over the past few days I removed the little safety brake batteries in all three of the trailers. One was bad, the other two charged up OK, but I bought three new batteries and will keep the others as spares. I usually pull and charge the batteries every 6 months or so, or when I am going to use them.

It is Friday, PM, August 9th. Just a spring time update. I wrote Dave, and he gave me a good price on new springs for about $200 each. I also posted on the Studebaker Driver's Club forum. I got a response for springs from a Studebaker forum member to who has a good used pair for an Avanti. So we made a deal of $80 plus shipping. It will probably be a few days before I see them, but I am happy. Talked to Greg, he is going to borrow my Suburban and enclosed trailer in September to take the 12 International Harvester wagon to a big event at the Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI. Right now his plan is to move the wagon closer to his work. To do that he has to move the Stoddard Dayton back to MD and switch the cars out. I think that this may be the event. Old Car Festival

Still Thursday, early PM. Well I moved the 23 McLaughlin Buick to the barn. I was going to leave it out while I worked on the Avanti, which is in the garage, but rain is forecast for the remainder of the day. It looks pretty threatening right now. Looks right at home in the barn. Looks very period. Before I put the Avanti in the garage I decided to grab Shadow, the dog, and we headed off to town to fuel up. Ran great, but I am feeling a slight misfire or hesitation. The only thing I have done lately is to put in the fuel filter with a integrated fuel return line, which I hooked up to the existing return system. I think I will change it back to a simple in/out filter and see if that is the issue. And took part of a freeway back home to just open her up a bit. We were at about sixty and all of a sudden it downshifted into second. First time it has ever done that. Surprised me for sure. I did not have my foot in it so I did not force a kick-down. When I slowed and then sped back up it shifted back up to 3rd. Odd. I have just purchased a filter kit so I do plan to change the transmission fluid soon. I will have to take some looking around at the linkage. Well, we made it back home just fine. Got 13 gallons of premium. Had a couple of folks come over and I talked to them a bit, recounting the history of the Avanti. They were impressed. They had not seen an Avanti before, only heard of them. All in all it was a nice thirty mile run. Pulled the Avanti into the garage, jacked it up, and put it on stands. Pumped out some lube so it had some room for the new fluid and put it in, and then topped off the pumpkin with fresh lube. All done. I was going to adjust the brakes, but that will have to wait until tomorrow morning. I was reminded that we have to head out this PM. But I did take the time to look around at the drive train. OMG! When I bought the car Greg came to look at it. He said at the time that it seems to be sitting a bit lower than it should. I did not believe him, I chalked it up to old age and time passing. He had not yet started on the restoration of his maroon Avanti. How could he remember. Well, I just happened to be looking at the rear springs and noticed that one of the leaves, the primary one that holds everything together, is completely broken. It looks like I will be on the hunt for a replacement. Wonder how hard they are to replace? Might as well try to get both sides. Here are some pics. PS. Just looked at the Studebaker International parts catalog. They want a princely sum of $575 plus shipping. I sure hope that that is for two, not one. Will have to ask Greg who is his spring rebuilder.

Dave, congratulations on your award. You certainly deserved it for sure. Glad the old girl ran great for you, quite an accomplishment even on today's roads. Good seeing you at the meet.

It is Thursday, August 8th, AM. I sure hope the rain holds off, I have Avanti work to do. And speaking of Avanti, here is Greg's report from last night. I have included a few pics of his 1912 International Harvester that he talks about. "It's Wednesday. Staying busy. Made a couple trips to the Burchill Old Car and Cigar Smoker's Club. The Harvester has been awakened and is ready for it's Dayton/Harvester swap at Frank Gable's convienience and weather permitting. Don't want any waterspots on the old Cornbinder. Tonight I devoted to the 5054 Avanti. Not my favorite job, but some upholstery panels need to be installed before the back window can be installed. The old cardboard paneling is toast, so new ones being cut and the old vinyl being reinstalled. Trying to type this with sticky fingers from the contact cement. Also I'm stripping the paint from the engine fan assembly. I'd send pics tonight, but mislaid the camera. You'll just have to use your imagination. The rebuilt brake booster has arrived. Still waiting on a carburetor kit, voltage regulator, alternator pulley, and maybe another heater housing. The old one has cracked up fiberglass. Easier to replace than repair. That's all I can think of right now." =

Ken, guess so. Whale oil - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia It is Wednesday, August 7th, early PM. Yesterday was the coldest day on record for northern Virginia, 74 degrees. The average temp is 88 degrees. Raining here this morning so left the Avanti in the barn for a bit. We will see what the radar looks like to see if there is any clearing coming. So with my Avanti plans out the door I decided to install the ignition wire set that I bought from Bob's Automobilia. Bob's was at the Buick Nationals with their familiar 1960's era travel trailer. A nice set for $50. As you might remember, my wires were too short. When I advanced the timing the wires would either pull out of the distributor or would act like a return spring and move the distributor to a retard position. The only fix was to replace the wires with longer ones. Nice kit as it had everything needed to do the job. I did not use the coil wire as I have my coil mounted high on the firewall. I guess everything took about a hour and a half. I am a slow worker. Everything turned out great. Here are the before and after pics.

It is Tuesday, PM, August 6th. Today was Avanti day! Took time to give it a good wash both inside and out. I have no idea how a car can get dirty just sitting. But she sure looks good now. I then pulled it up on ramps to see if I could find the leak in the power steering. I have to add about a pint every week or so. Well, after crawling around for a bit and looking the gaggle of lines going into the controller I found one leak. One of the lines is just a bit loose at the controller. I tried every wrench I had and got it tighter, but I don't know if it will stop the leak. Just not enough room to get a wrench on it to really get it super tight. Greg said that I have to drop the steering assembly to get to lines. So I will leave that job for another day. I do have one line that has a kink in the metal and a chunk out of the rubber line covering. That will have to be replaced at some point. I also looked at the pump, and of course it has a leaking pump seal. Well, the good news, everything works and is well lubricated. I do have a spare rebuilt pump that I bought on Ebay last winter so that will take care of that issue. If I am to drop the power steering controller then I am going to replace all the lines. So will how much that is going to run me. I know that Bob Helm, a Studebaker and Avanti vendor, sells them as a kit. I will give him a call. But, I will leave well enough alone for now. It is not that much of an issue replacing fluid. I then pulled the Avanti out onto our country lanes and let her have her head. She ran great and I had a very nice ride for about twenty miles or so. Made me realize that I have to get her out more. Tomorrow, if the rain holds up, I am going to adjust the rear brakes and also put in some special friction oil for the TT (Twin Traction) rear axle. I had rebuilt the rear brakes, but that was almost two years ago, so want to take up any slack between the shoes and the drums as the brakes should be broken in by now. As for the TT axle, I did change the oil, but did not realize that you had to add a special additive to lube the clutches in it.

If you want someone that will be honest and do an outstanding job I would go to Paul Rose. His shop is near Winchester, VA. Vintage Motorcar Company (VMC) - quality repairs and/or restoration to antique automobiles Well worth a call at least. With a visit, you will be impressed with the work they do.

Bernie, can you give us an assessment of the engine, transmission and rear end? Are you planning any period upgrades to make it a better touring car?

Chris, great start. Remember it is an elephant, so take little bites. In a few weeks you will have it stripped of that maroon. Let the transformation begin!

Leif, with the exception of the dual fuel input lines, it looks to be the same Marvel that is on my 28 Buick model 29 Town Brougham. It is a standard car.

Still Monday, PM. Move the Jag to the trailer once I got the 23 McLaughlin Buick out. First time starting it on the new Optima sealed battery. Wow, she took right off. Since it was on t he driveway decided to go for a ride. Headed out on the country lanes, but wanted to be in walking distance just in case. So went one mile out to the main road and then back to the house, and then two and a half miles down the other way, so I had a nice run of seven miles. She ran great. Since she was back in the garage I decided to see if I could get the curtain rod holders in. First I cleaned out the holes as the local mud wasps had a couple of nests in there. Then I enlarged the holes to 1/2 inch and drilled through a metal sleeve and into the door wood framing. After careful measuring and drilling I got one in. Looks great and the head matches the detent in the metal that the old holder made 90 years ago. So, I have one done and three to go. Here are pics of the cleaned out and enlarged hole and then with the new curtain rod holder installed. And also decided to buy some spares and repair parts for the Jaguar. So am getting an oil filter, distributor cap and rotor (spares), and a new reverse light switch that goes on top of the transmission. I know I have to pull apart half of the car to replace the broken one, but just one more fun thing to do. Just a note at the end of the day. I finished drilling the final two holes and installed the three remaining support sockets. They look great. Really finishes the doors with just that little bit of nickle plating on top. And they are not coming out in my lifetime. Maybe the guy fifty years from now will be cussing me as he tries to get them out.

Still Monday, about noon. Got the Jaguar out and took a look at the rust spot in the bottom of the door jam. It is just surface rust from water moving down the gasket and onto the sill. It is just a little unsightly as your eye is drawn to it as you open the door to get in. And I am sure I get points knocked off when the car is judged too. The door jams and sill plates are still original. I have some touch up paint that the previous owner left so dragged that out to take a look what is in the bottle. Well, it is maybe a 1/4 teaspoon of paint goo. Maybe I can test it with some solvent to free it up a bit. I was told that the paint on the car is water based so maybe some water will do it. I forgot to smell the paint, so maybe the smell test will give me some ideas. I used my trusty Dremel tool and cleaned up the rust, and then was able to put some paint goo on my finger the slide it along the exposed metal. Not perfect, but it works. I think I will head to the hobby shop to see if I can find a close match in their model colors. Here are a couple pics of the before and after. The pics make it look much worse that it actually is.

Chris, next time I will take my green Avanti and we can do a show and tell. Mine looked as bad as yours, err well almost, so folks can see what throwing thousands of dollars and a lot of elbow grease can accomplish. Remember, money is only paper, here today and gone tomorrow.

The previous owner of Wayne's 1964 Buick Skylark posted a pic of the car in 1964 on the buy/sell forum. Thought I would post it here too.

Wayne, worked hard on her all day Saturday cleaning the engine bay, and yesterday he took it to a "Cars and Coffee" event near us. It got a lot of admirers. He was also very happy at the way it ran and sprinted down the freeway. Yes, he had the top down. Your car will have a great time with Wayne. He treats all his cars to everything imaginable, and he is a stickler for perfection and making things right. I will send the pic to him too.

It is Monday morning, August 5th. Going to be a nice day today, then not so much for the next couple of days. I will take this opportunity to take the 23 McLaughlin Buick out of the trailer and take it for a nice ride before I put it back in the garage so I can pull the radiator. The Jag then goes back into the trailer. Still hope to get the cover off the Avanti and work on it too. Busy. And speaking of busy, Greg is hard at it on his black Avanti. "It was a good weekend for getting something done to Avanti 5054. With Dynamat and carpet applied to both sides of the front toeboards and firewall, I also stuck some insulation inside the console tunnel. Next I primped the dash and vinyl surrounding the windshield by cleaning , masking and spraying fresh vinyl paint. With no excuse remaining, I got the windshield ready for installation. Only took two tries, but it's now in place. Looking for some easy tasks to accomplish, I filled the steering box with semifluid gear oil, attached the engine to frame ground strap, also stuck the upper and lower radiator hoses on. While I'd been working in the console I'd noticed the quadrant controlling the heater and venting was showing signs of rusting, so out it came. I had to drill the heads off the screws to free it from the car. It's now cleaned, primed and "semi cad plated". Today especially the weather was conducive for progress, even though I feel Summer has peaked and on it's way out. While on an outing this evening, I noticed it was a great day for collector car spotting even though mine stayed in the barn." =

Chris, good seeing you at the little event. Your Avanti was a hit. Lots of folks looking at it. A true survivor car. Thanks for bringing it.