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steelman

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Posts posted by steelman

  1. I see a power window switch in the passinger armrest, so it does have power windows. Brian is correct, the handle you see is for the vent windows, so they are non-powered. It does have the custom interior. If it has a power seat, those controls will be located in the drivers side armrest.

  2. One more value item these guys forgot to mention was interior. Rivieras had either a standard or custom interiors from the factory. Easiest way to tell which is which is the door panels. Standard interiors had short armrests like many cars of that time. Cutom interior models had a full length armrest with long horizontal wood trim accents above them. They also had a rear seat door handle at the back of the arm rest.

    Does the car have air conditioning? Power windows? Power vent windows? Power seat? All of these options add value and were fairly popular among first generation Riviera buyers when these cars were new.

  3. I've thought about maybe upgrading to disc brakes sometime in the future. I didn't want to upgrade my OEM type master cylinder when upgrading to discs being as I just replaced my master cylinder not to many years ago. I try to keep her as stock as possible but, have made some upgrades for safety, reliability, & convenience sake too.

    King, keep in mind that if you do decide to upgrade to discs in the front, you will have to change to a dual master cylinder and a proportioning valve for them to work correctly. No matter how new your single master cylinder is, it won't work with the discs.

  4. Nice !

    Did you upgrade to disc brakes too ?

    On the list, but haven't at this time. I don't push this car that hard, and just needed reliable brakes. This really woke up the stock drums and now I am not sure I need to make the change. As stated, it will slide you under the dash in the floor if you aren't ready when you hit the pedal. After this upgrade, discs moved down the list a ways.

  5. I'm trying to figure out what upgrade will work for a '63 Riviera. The booster is bad and I'm aware of Boosterdewey's services, but I would prefer to go with a newer booster and a matched dual MC. The existing MC bolted on with two bolts and had a deep recess for the pushrod. Is there a bolt in replacement for the whole shabang? Thanks.

    Yes, but it isn't cheap. After almost a year of trial and tribulation, I gave up on my stock system. Contacted Master Power Brake in CA. and told him what I needed. Never done one of those before, he says, but if you will send me your old unit, including the pedal assembly, I can build you one. Six weeks later I had a late model Corvette booster and master cylinder to install. And it fit like a glove. Warning, you will be under the dash the first time you hit the brakes if you don't have seat belts in your car. He may or may not have made patterns from the items I sent him. He may have enough information to do yours, or you may have to send all your stuff in like I did. This is not cheap, and I don't want to quote prices for him. I will say that mine fit very well and works great. Not original looking by any means, but works way better. Best picture I have is below.

    post-53315-143138570279_thumb.jpg

    post-53315-143138570284_thumb.jpg

  6. B) Is the high pressure discharge hose something I should have trouble finding? The local auto parts stores say they don't have one for my car in their computers.

    -BEPNewt

    Brian, chances are you will have to have hoses made. Our cars are not popular enough for reproductions to be sitting on the shelf. Not really a big deal. Take your old hoses to a qualified auto air specilist and they can make you new hoses. They reuse your old ends and recrimp to new hoses. If you plan to change to 134A refrigerant, tell them that and they will use the proper hose material. You may plan to use the origional R12, but that is getting harder to find. A/C shop should ask you that when you take the hoses in, but may not. If you can't find somebody in the Tulsa area, ask Jim Gleghorn, he can steer you in the right direction.

  7. I'm almost in the same boat. I like the smaller vents, but right where he has them. I also have wanted to have them on my Riv, but couldn't imagine them really looking good. CTX has changed my mind with those mock-ups! I've been trying to picture round or oval ones and it just didn't quite work in my head.

    Years ago when Hub Harness from Kansas built his wife a '65 Riviera GS to drive, he used Audi emblems to make the portholes in her car. Remains to this day one of the best looking Rivieras I have ever seen, and maybe a part of the reason I own mine today.

    post-53315-143138550786_thumb.jpg

    post-53315-143138550792_thumb.jpg

    post-53315-143138550797_thumb.jpg

    post-53315-143138550801_thumb.jpg

  8. Granted this isn't my car nor are the modifications anything more than photoshops but here's some of the concept drawings I've done for my '64 Riv. I'm honestly partial to the second one with the larger fender vents (will be functional, maybe with fans even) but aren't locked into anything yet.

    I like the vents from the third one placed in the location of the second picture. Are those from the Raineer? I have been looking at doing something like that myself.

    PS, Brian, I thought I was burned out on Starwires, but I really like these on your car, too.

  9. A fellow named Brian (bwpnewt) from Broken Arrow, OK that frequents this board may be interested in a trade. He has 4 15x7 Truspokes and wants a pair of 8s. He should check in soon. You need to see first that these are in fact a 5 on 5 pattern. If this works out, you could both have a set of 7s and 8s for your 64s.

  10. Had the Igniter I in mine for a year and a half. No issues at all for me. Don't know if it improved my milage or not, because I didn't have the car back on the road before I made the change. I will do this mod to every early car I own.

  11. Packing is a big concern, especially when shipping sheet metal. Crating materials will far out weigh the part when done correctly. UPS will not ship oversize pieces. They make enough money with small items, don't need yor big ones. FedEx will ship these as freight, but it gets expensive. Might be able to ship the door skins by Greyhound bus, but the hood is too big for them to handle. Jim Cannon recommends uship.com. I don't know anything about them, but respect Jim's opinion.

    Whoever you contact about shipping the first question they always ask is "What does it weigh?". Until you get them an accurate weight and size, they will not tell you for sure that they can ship the parts to you.

    I haven't helped much, but it is really hard for an individual to ship big items like these.

  12. Eliminating the STV is very straight forward and +/- $120. Basically just a blockoff plate in the top of the STV that causes the compressor to cycle like a newer car instead of run continuously as designed. Easy install, but this valve is in the back of the motor, so access is limited. The freon must be evacuated from the system to do this conversion. I actually had to remove my housing completely and remachine the top flat because I couldn't get it to reseal. Could have been just a bad housing, or maybe the reason my AC didn't work when I bought the car. But I don't think this is causing your problem either. Call Old Air as Ed suggested.

  13. Some more ideas are pouring into my feeble brain.

    1) Steve. Do you know anything more about the kick panel speaker surrounds in the one picture you posted?

    Ed

    I don't know anything more about this. It was a picture of a Riviera for sale not long ago on ebay. Like most of the responders to this post, my AM Wonderbar doesn't work. I have been thinking of upgrading, but don't want to cut holes in the doors for speakers. Even I have scruples. This looked like an interesting solution, so I copied the picture. Is it a big deal to loose the vents in a car with AC?

  14. Best place for pictures of just about anything is ebay. It is like one giant menu. And remember, just because we are on a diet doesn't mean we can't look at the menu. I have seen several bucket seat 66 Rivieras for sale here in the past. Most if not all will show an interior shot to compare your seats to theirs to see how close they are. But as I write this, there are no bucket seat 66-67 Rivieras on ebay. However, there is a guy starting to part a 66 Riviera GS. Best I recall, it was a bucket seat car from pics he had of the whole car for sale earlier. Link is below, and has a phone number in the ad. Call and ask if he has buckets and have him send you pictures if he does. Maybe not the direct help you were looking for, but this gets you started. Good luck.

    Buick : Riviera | eBay

  15. Hey guys don't get your hopes up with OPG. The one purchase I made cost me $20 to send back to them. They wouldn't cover the shipping on returns. I won't order again.

    Kind of ironic that we are having all these issues with OPGI and they had an add for their Riviera catalog on Hotrod TV this morning.

  16. A friend had a couple of 17" wheels repaired this way for his Talon in Oklahoma City. Questions they will ask are;

    1. Is a piece broken completely off or just cracked?

    2. If broken completely off, do you have both pieces?

    3. Is it just broken off on the lip or did it get into the fins?

    He used Wheel Connections, 530 N. Meridian Ave, Oklahoma City, OK. Phone is 405-947-2274. Now that I think about it, these are the same people that did some machining on my 17" wheels to clear the Riviera hubs. Hope this helps, but my friend and I have both had good experiences with these folks.

  17. but going through AZ,TX,OK, might be a little remote. Don't know if I'd find enough gas stations between fill up's.

    Have to come through before 6:00. That is when we roll the sidewalks up in Oklahoma.

  18. How about TA?

    Rob.

    The TA Performance water pumps have been recast to use a bearing in front rather than the factory bronze bushing for less resistance and a longer life. As originality wasn't my primary concern, I went with this one. You can tell the difference by looking if you know what to look for. In a AACA setting, the judges would find this, but chances are not at a local show. Drove mine 450 miles with the air on in OK and TX without an issue.

  19. Steve,

    I've checked the major fastener companies websites and can't find the flange head reduced shank bolts in 7/16 that were used on older Rivs.

    I find that a lot. You are right, every part is available for a 55 Chevy. Not sure the bolts you are looking for, but the best site for bolts is McMaster-Carr. Don't know if you looked there or not, but they are not automotive related, so most people don't know about them.

    McMaster-Carr

  20. What are you guys doing about bolts? Are you just matching the old ones with new ones from the hardware store?

    Most of my bolts (the few that actually came out in one piece) are junk.

    Interesting that new bolts are not available as a part of a body mount kit from somebody. I remember when I did my 55 Chevy, in the Classic Chevy Int. catalog, in the same group as new body mounts was an item for new body mount bolts. Just pick sedan, hardtop, wagon or convertible. All the new bolts you needed to do the job could be ordered at the same time you ordered the rubbers.

  21. Thanks Ed. It doesn't sound like the rapid click/buzz you get from the ignition, it's like microphone feedback. Comes in when you turn volume beyond about a quarter way. Had been working ok but isn't a major problem. I shall enjoy taking it apart in any case! Cheers. Dave

    Check your speaker, assuming you are still running the stock 63 single speaker. As the material in the speaker deteriorates with age, this could be the problem. Low volume OK and an echo increasing proportionally when the volume is increased is most likely a speaker issue, not a radio issue.

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