JoelsBuicks

Straight, plumb and square is contrasted nicely by that beautiful door. No fluorescent lights in here - it’s got to be warm. You’ll have to find lights that will also show the ceiling. Great job on cutting that tin so square you can set it atop that baseboard and not have it crawl on you. Looks like Elvis is putting things in the right perspective.

In the spirit of preventing another unwanted merge I’ll comment. First, it’s so nice to see you at this again. I’m afraid the artist side of my brain atrophied long ago but I can still envy and enjoy it. I’m also glad that you are getting help that knows how to do something like you want it done. Going at it alone slows things way down and has a way of turning the recreation into work. Lastly, tell me about those 2x6 ceiling joists that are on 4’ centers and above the door opening. Is that to support some elevated storage or sign/memorabilia display? Many thanks for sharing it with us.

Larry, you are right. I did some searching and found that the reformulated gas is far fewer. But the map did not include seasonal blends. Two major changes that are now several years old are the benzene reduction and sulfur reduction. I recall a time when refiners were crying foul about ethanol reducing gasoline demand. Then, almost in a moment’s time, refiners realized they could leverage ethanol producers due to over production thereby buying it cheap and selling it at gasoline prices. Big profit! Then they started making subgrade unleaded and blending with ethanol to get octane. Big profit again because it allowed them to sell their iso-octane (2,2,4 trimethyl pentane) to the aviation gasoline market instead of downgrading it to unleaded. Big profit! Think about it, when was the last time you heard an oil major complain about ethanol?

In recent years refiners have had a surplus of butane. Butane is a relatively low value byproduct of refining. In fact, as refiners process heavier and cheaper crudes, those processes produce more butane. Refiners have discovered that they can blend butane into gasoline up to meeting a seasonal vapor pressure specification usually established by a city or region. Essentially they can sell butane at gasoline prices. The octane bump that they get from ethanol helps facilitate this blending. Butane is volatile and it will flash at elevated temps and cause vaporization in our fuel lines. High pressure and low temperature are the enemies of this vaporization. Gasoline has changed significantly in just the last 15 years. Also I have heard that in the US there are as many as 94 different “boutique” gasoline blends because of the many air quality regs and regions. Boy do I have stories that can’t be told!

Regarding fire resistance, boron is a fire retardant, have you thought about using it? 😬 ok, not funny but I just couldn’t help myself!

Looks like a Model 46. Trim on bonnet side is truncated and upright air cleaner vs horizontal. Lots of wood originally in floor may better explain why they are gone vs being rusted out.

I ended the wood at the bottom of the sill after coping it into the sill and securing it with a screw and glue. There is a separate piece of wood (thin like about 5/16”) glued and screwed to the bottom of the sill along the outer edge to accommodate that metal cover that is at the bottom of the doors.

Erndog, you are correct and for the record I need to simply say that this is the way I did it and it may well be incorrect. So, I went and checked the old rotted sill and there isn’t anything left at that point that would indicate that the brace was recessed or wasn’t . I then checked the old post and it wasn’t recessed there in the vertical position. Like you said, all other braces (six others) are indeed recessed and if I had it to do again, I would very likely recessed it (about 1/8”) for that reason alone.

I checked and those lower braces are not recessed into the sill.

If you can figure out that we are dealing with the same part then I can help you with dimensions or more pictures. I recall that these two posts were very difficult to make work. From what I could tell, the original wood was installed before the windshield metal was welded to the cowl. This means that you cannot simply duplicate the original piece and “slip it in.” It sort of “rolls” in after you remove some corner wood that is completely hidden once installed. Most definitely the toughest two pieces I made, even worse than the pieces that had no old wood left. I think that if I was again faced with this I might try to stop the wood post at the bottom of the windshield and then modify the upper using metal welded in for the upper hinge and for strength. It would take some head scratching to do this but it took me days to get those posts right.

Mine is ‘31 8-67 and I guess I don’t know the job number. I will have to get a closer look before I can answer your question about the brace. Both of my sills were rotted away from the post forward.

It looks like your old right side post is in pretty good shape, except for the top maybe. Which dimensions do you need and do you think a ‘31-60 would be the same? I had a partial old post rotted on top and bottom and just had to improvise- waited on making those final cuts until I could wait no more. By then I pretty much knew how they needed to be. I have never seen any factory drawings with dimensions but I bet they existed.

I’m glad that you brought the headlight s up. I was going to mention that because I had read the same thing once but my own experience is different. In one picture below is my Century Coupe headlight. It is about 11” long from the back of the light to the back of the ring. It also has the stainless trim on top. Compare that to one of my Roadmasters and that light measures about 13”. I could be wrong but it just doesn’t look like the Sr. 60 has been changed. Of course my Sr. 40 is short with no trim but I also own a spare set of long headlights that look original but have no evidence of the trim. Another interesting side note, One of my 80’s has chrome plated interior window garnish on the windshield and the front side windows. If that had been done post delivery it was before 1947 which seems unlikely. Thanks again for the comment, I’ve been wanting to share this for a while. Joel

I wonder how on earth do they get this wrong and is it purposely done? Surely these folks know that this isn’t right - maybe they don’t know. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt. Some of the subtleties: 16” wheels vs. 15” on Century, upright air cleaner vs. horizontal from EE-22 carb, one piece exhaust manifold is 233 not 320, hood is about 3+inches longer on Century (evidenced in ornate stainless on bonnet), taillight lenses without center button reflector are small series, and last, speedometer goes to 100 vs. 120 on larger series. I think another is the fan but I’m gonna stop before I step in it. Incorrect Series info aside, this looks to be a nice driver quality car. Hard to hide things with that many pics.

Not sure that this is the joint that you’re speaking of but if so, I sunk the screws in from the inside. I was careful about screw length and used glue in that mortise & tenon joint.

I would cut along each crease fairly deeply with a cutoff wheel but not cut through it. Then begin beating this back into shape. Consider hammer/heat/dolly for final flattening. Weld up the creases, grind to suit. Joel

If indeed the wood is solid, this car has lots of promise. But, I’ve seen so much wood that looks solid but isn’t that I am skeptical. When the seller says there are spare parts I have to wonder if they are actually spare parts or parts that have been removed and shelved or boxed. These limiteds have some unique parts - almost impossible to source. I hope this car finds someone with the passion and resources to see this one through.

I see the replies are few. First, I’m sorry to hear that you lost your Dad. He no doubt had many things in common with the many people that visit this forum. Also, I don’t envy your task of dispensing with his projects. Only with the luckiest events will you be able to accomplish this without a lot of work and time. Im not interested myself but I think you have come to the right place for advice and to even advertise. If your sights are set on getting the highest price, then you’ll probably be in for a very long effort. To do that you will want to set a price for each car and provide lots of pics and then wait. I don’t think parting out will bring the most but maybe someone else will have a different opinion. But, once you decide to part out, all you have left to offer is parts. I would suggest that you set your sights on making sure every car goes to a Buick enthusiast who will give it the very best chance of ending up like the Buick your Dad had in his sights. To do that, drop your price to levels even lower than what Jake suggests. Then, be willing to work with potential buyers in shipping and making sure parts are accurately divided to the right car. The tough fact is that none of these cars are premium value cars. They were once fine Buicks but the expense to return them back to that condition far outweighs their value, even if you gave them away. Good luck with it.

Jake, I’m gonna tell you something here that you probably already know. First, this car can be yours for $10k or less. The owner wants it gone, he doesn’t even know the model and he doesn’t want to overwinter it. Start at $8,500 and work it from there. But, make sure door wood is solid. Second Jake, your bank interest might be a tenth of a percent. So, you can own this car for nothing. Clean it up real good and make it reliable. Drive it and love it and keep it original. when you buy something reasonably priced that will hold its value, it costs you almost nothing. tell us us all about it after you buy it! I agree it’s one of the most beautiful Buicks Buick made. Joel

1939_Buick what a great reply! It just reminds me how important this forum and its members is to many Buick enthusiasts including me. Thanks to all who share their time and talent! Joel

That’s looking good and I think very highly of your disciplined approach to get an organized workplace before you get knee-deep into a project. I need to take a lesson from this myself. Thanks again for sharing it with us! Joel

Mr. Earl, is that called capricious compliance?

Just curious, are there several sizes of ‘35 wheels like for ‘36? I know for a fact that every ‘36 series wheel is different. Your wheel doesn’t look like my ‘35 (series 50). Joel

Holy cow Tom! Aside from the square end as you’ve said, that looks exactly like what I need. I see no reason to not buy one and just square the end of my handle shaft. I just knew this would be a long shot request but you fixed that in a hurry! Thanks so much for weighing in! Joel