61polara

Welcome to the Forum. Buick offered the Dynaflow transmission beginning in 1948 through 1963. There were several improved versions of this transmission issued through these years and the 1963 Buick you road in years ago was the final and most refined version. We have a very active Buick following on this site and also host the Buick Club of America forum further down on the AACA forum.

LaSalle

Is the local / distant function a seek function the GM Wonderbar or Town and Country seek functions?

The knob under the dash on the pre-war versions was to be pulled out when push starting the car only. It is spring loaded and must held out against the spring and returns as soon as it is released. The owners manual and service manuals state that the knob should never be pulled out while driving or transmission damage will occur. Pulling out the knob locks a one way roller clutch in the lower range of either gear so that it does not freewheel and the car can be push started in first (low-low) or third (low-high) gear. I believe the post war transmissions still have this one way roller clutch, but changed the instructions on push starting to eliminate the knob. Both of these transmissions free-wheel in the lower gear of each range, but become non-freewheeling when in the higher gear of each range. Push starting a post war car you are to get up to at least 15 MPH and then release the clutch. This is because the governor points will have opened and the transmission will be in the higher gear of the range. If the one way roller clutch is worn out, it's time for a transmission overhaul to prevent further damage to the transmission. Driving the pre and post war transmissions is the same. The high range is adequate for 90% of all driving and is not sluggish. Better off the line performance can be had by starting in low range and manually shifting to high range. This is a very flexible transmission and it does not damage it to start in low and shift to high. Shifting this way you can choose, through the accelerator to hit gears 1-2-4 or 1-3-4. Overall, it's a very simple transmission that is very trouble free. Slipping the clutch on a start all the time will quickly wear out the clutch as it is a small unit and not designed to be slipped for a start.

In the DPC and HPOF classes the cars are not judged, but rather evaluated to see that they meet the criteria of that class.

Actually, in the DPC and HPOF (Historical Preservation of Original Features, ie unrestored cars) are supposed to be parked in year order from oldest to newest. This is done at most AACA Nationals, however at Hershey, the cars are parked in the order that they arrive due to the volume of cars in the class.

I have a pair of nice rocker moldings. Can bring to Hershey next week if you are interested.

Roll the front floor mat back and you will see an access cover plate. Remove it and you will see the cap on the master cylinder.

Overall setup day is Monday. Tuesday the flea market and car corral are open for business. With Friday being the car show day, it may not be quite as active as other days.

This link will give you plenty of information on your Chrysler. Directory Index: Chrysler_and_Imperial/1939_Chrysler/1939_Chrysler_Owners_Manual (oldcarbrochures.com)

I would change the voltage regulator before the generator. There are procedures in the shop manual to test the generator output and the voltage regulator. The points in the regulator may be sticking. You can open it and clean the points and see if that helps.

I believe the window motor is connected to the regulator by a rubber collar. The gear set is in the regulator above the motor and can be seen in your photo. It sounds like your motor is ok but the rubber collar is bad. I believe one of the major Lincoln suppliers has reproduced this.

Ford didn't move to hydraulic brakes until 1940. The 1938 brakes were cable operated rather rods and were difficult to keep adjusted because of cable stretch. I was common to convert these cars to hydraulic brakes using the 1940 system. If the system has been converted it could have DOT-3, DOT-4 or DOT-5 in it (DOT-5 is not compatible with the others). Since the fluid is unknown, it would be best to flush the system and start over with a known fluid. With a loss of braking on the system, it would be best to go through the complete system.

Not on topic, but Ben I have to respond to your criticism of the Hornets Nest Region. I'm a 40 year member of AACA and 37 year member of Hornets Nest Region. I'm sorry that I don't remember you, but you were apparently a member of the Region in the 3-4 years that I was working in Atlanta. Yes, on region tours, you will find most members driving mid-fifties cars and up to the 25 year AACA limit on acceptable cars because of comfort and highway speed safety. However, I don't consider the Thomas Flyer in the Zenith Awards this year by one of our members a "1957 Chevrolet" or the Model T that is a HPOF National Award winner. In your years in the Hornets Region, you didn't find the early cars in our Region, but there are a lot of Model T and A, and an early electric car as well as many pre-war cars. There was even a, 1942 DeSoto convertible, one of 4 or 5 known to exist. Sorry you had a bad experience in the Region, but it sounds like you really didn't get to know the Region. If you are ever back in the area, I hope you will rejoin us again.

Consider going back to the original style vacuum pump fuel pump.

The burning odor could be nothing more than valve cover gaskets leaking oil while sitting and building up on the exhaust manifolds. This will start smoking and creates a burning smell. Check the simple things first.

Check for a break in the wire from the coil to the distributor. Also do you have power to the coil?

All though you do want working turn signals and horns, North Carolina does not require any safety inspection for vehicles over 35 years old. If the car was titled in a state other than North Carolina it will require a serial number inspection to title the car in North Carolina.

Make sure you are checking your ball joints for wear based on the 1957 Buick shop manual. Based on the design of these ball joints, if they are tested in the conventional way, they appear to have excessive wear and many good ball joints were replaced unnecessarily.

I have used semichrome polish and it worked well. I could at least see through the rear window again. It was a short term fix as the plastic window split within a year. The truth is that your top as really reach the end of its life. Time for a new one.

Last year someone brought me a box of assorted glass lens from the 1930's. I was able to identify the majority of them through a google search of the number on the lens. Also, this site is very good. Original Vintage Lenses - OldCarLenses, US

The pits are filled with copper plating. Plate, file, sand, replate. Over and over until the pits are filled. Next a coat of nickel and then a coat of chrome. This is very simplified, but it's the basics.

I believe the value of this product is in refinishing plastic parts that were originally vacuum plated.

I received an email this morning from John, Dollie's husband that Dollie passed away yesterday unexpectedly. Dollie headed the team responsible for reviewing judging forms and entering scores into the database for all of our AACA Nationals. She has been a wonderful person to work with over the years that she held this position. She will be greatly missed. Thoughts and prayers to her husband and family.

I've experimented with it when it first came out and found like you that their must not be any imperfections in the base coat as the "chrome" layer will magnify it. On small pieces, it's next to impossible to tell from chorme plating but as the parts get larger, it becomes more apparent. Possibly because the larger the piece is, the more difficult to get the base coat perfect.