Guest shadetree77 Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 That was a really good price for all of that work. I think he gave me a good deal because it took a lot longer than he told me it would. He originally estimated close to $100. I'll take 45 bucks any day though!Another weekend, more progress. Crossed a HUGE item off the to-do list. Me and my Dad got the rear end put back in on Saturday. It wasn't too bad. The biggest problem we had was that the torque ball wasn't turned the right way and the holes didn't line up with the torque tube. I had to pull the rear end back, loosen the bolts on the torque ball retainer, put those two guide pins I made back in two of the bolt holes, and use a pry bar against them to rotate the ball. Then I made two longer guide pins to help everything line up. After that, it was smooth sailing for the most part. As soon as we got the rear end jacked up level with the trans., the tube slid right in with some slight persuasion. My Dad headed for the cold A/C (he's supposed to avoid temp. extremes and it was pretty hot at that point) while I finished bolting everything up.My Wife joined me half way through the day and while my Dad and I were working on the axle, my wife was busy scrubbing and grinding away at the rusted exhaust hangers. She got them clean and ready for paint....at the expense of a busted finger. One of the parts slipped out of her grip at the bench grinder and caught her finger between the vise grips and the bench top. Ouch!! She's OK though. Just a little sore. It helped that she was wearing heavy leather gloves. I was proud of her because a few minutes later, she was right back at it. She said she "didn't want to be afraid of the bench grinder" so she jumped back on the horse, so to speak. We finished up the brackets Sunday morning, painted them with Flame Proof paint, and baked the parts according to directions. We also cut new parts for the hangers out of the used coal mine belt. That afternoon I took my Dad to the movies for Father's Day. I took him to see the new Star Trek movie. We had a great time.Today, I assembled all of the exhaust hangers. I did a TON of wire wheeling on various bolts and fasteners. I've been putting that off for a while but I decided to get it over with. I hate standing at a bench grinder for hours on end. For some reason that absolutely kills my back and neck. I need to buy one of those tumbler things that you just throw your parts in and leave for awhile. Wonder if those actually work? Anyway, the hangers and clamps came out great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 Heck yeah Buddy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retirednow Posted June 18, 2013 Share Posted June 18, 2013 Looking great, Robert! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackofalltrades70 Posted June 18, 2013 Share Posted June 18, 2013 Wow Bro! You are getting there in a hurry! Glad you had a good Fathers Day with your dad! Looking good! Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted June 18, 2013 Share Posted June 18, 2013 Jeepers that looks like a nice place to lie back and enjoy the view. The underside of your car I mean. Great work by a truly functional family. I'd say you're lucky but, clearly, you work at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted June 18, 2013 Share Posted June 18, 2013 Really coming together Robert! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 Awesome. Next winter, will it be the topside, then trailering it to Portland, for 400 point judging? How close are you to running the engine to see if the trans is okay? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted June 19, 2013 Share Posted June 19, 2013 Thanks for all of the positive comments guys. They help keep me motivated. Sometimes, a little motivation can go a long way.Rob, I agree. I've recently caught myself lying under there for a few extra minutes after I get done doing something. Just admiring all of the hard work that has gone into it. Too bad all of that will be road side down!John, my Winter project will be patching the floor pans. I realize I'll have to do some more painting on the underside when I patch the pans but I wanted to go ahead and sling some POR15 under there now to hault the rust in its tracks. As for the 400 point judging, I think I have a long way to go before that happens. I'm hoping to get the engine compartment put back together enough to fire the engine soon. I've been putting parts back on the engine here and there. Still a lot left to do though. My next big hurdle is putting the exhaust/intake manifolds back on which I hope to have done come next week. I'll be cleaning and painting the exhaust manifold and valve body over the next few days. Then I'm planning to get my Dad to help me put the whole thing back on the car this weekend. The suspense over the transmission is killing me. I can't wait to see if it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted June 20, 2013 Share Posted June 20, 2013 My Wife bought me this today. According to the specs. on my compressor it should be able to run this gun. I didn't know HLVP guns used such a low CFM. We'll see how it goes. If it doesn't work, heck I'm only out 15 bucks. Man, I'm going to be kicking myself HARD if it does work. I could have used this thing a long time ago! I'm planning to test it out on my valve cover soon. I never did get the paint to look right with the brush. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter Bird Posted June 20, 2013 Share Posted June 20, 2013 Robert and family; your dedication to this project is incredibly inspiring. It's build stories like yours that make me want to get out of bed in the morning and tackle things that I normally wouldn't. Keep it going, folks!Now you've got me buying expensive paint brushes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted June 21, 2013 Share Posted June 21, 2013 I know I've said this before, Robert, but the parts are looking great! Thanks to Mrs. Shadetree for getting back to the beastie that bit her, by far the best thing to do. Glad to hear that your Dad is doing well. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted June 21, 2013 Share Posted June 21, 2013 Rob, I agree. I've recently caught myself lying under there for a few extra minutes after I get done doing something. Just admiring all of the hard work that has gone into it. Too bad all of that will be road side down!...don't worry Robert. we can help you roll it over at SouthBend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 One more big item crossed off the list. The intake and exhaust manifolds are back on the car! I have been nervous about those things ever since I loosened the first rusty nut. There are a lot of things that could have gone wrong but as of now everything looks to have worked out. Here's a summary of what we did for anyone who's interested in the details.As you'll remember, we took the manifolds off and soaked them in vinegar to remove the rust. After that was done we separated them from each other and in doing so, broke off a few studs in the exhaust manifold. We also discovered a large crack running down the side of the valve body. I took the parts to a machine shop where they welded up the crack, machined the valve body surfaces, removed the broken studs, and helicoiled the holes. I got them back after a two week delay and got to work cleaning off the new surface rust and degreasing. I painted the intake engine color as it is supposed to be and clear coated the exhaust and valve body with VHT Flame Proof Clear Coat. I also took this time to bend the butterfly valve inside the valve body into the "open" position to keep excess heat off of my carburetor. I then installed all new studs into the engine block. I cleaned out the holes, chased the threads with a tap, applied some anti-seize, and screwed them down snug using the "double nut" method. Speaking of the studs, I did have a problem with these (more than one actually but that's later in the story). All of my original studs were the same length except for the one in the next to last position against the firewall. It was around double the length due to the way it fastened to the manifolds. I looked all over for this longer stud (online and in all of my local stores) and could not find one to match. I ended up cleaning up the old one and re-using it. It was in decent condition, I just hope it isn't brittle after all these years. I reassembled the intake and exhaust as outlined in the service manual using new bolts, making sure to leave them "snug but not tight". I added lock washers too. There were no lock washers on there originally but I figured it couldn't hurt. When putting the valve body back onto the exhaust manifold I used a "glue" of sorts that I had never heard of. Forum member "Flyer15015" suggested its use and it made total sense to me. It's called "furnace cement". It is designed to seal up cracks and/or door seals in wood stoves and can withstand temps. up to 2000 degrees. I got it at Home Depot after searching several different stores (actually my Wife went on that trip, thanks honey!!). It was really hard to find in my neck of the woods especially in June! I installed the pilot ring into the exhaust manifold, coated the exhaust manifold surface with the cement, placed the gasket on there, coated the valve body surface with the cement, and assembled them with new studs, lock washers, and nuts. As a side note, I noticed that the manual calls for a "pilot ring gasket" to go under the ring in the valve body. Nobody makes this gasket so I'm hoping the cement will function as a gasket in this case. I also added a gasket between the intake and exhaust manifolds. The manual says that "no gasket is used" on that surface but they DO make a gasket for this so I used it. Time to put the manifolds back on the cylinder head. After some difficulty, we got the four intake pilot rings installed into the cylinder head. Took a while to figure out the best way to pop them in. Kind of hard to explain but it involved one of us compressing the ring with channel locks while the other pressed the side of the ring into the head with the wooden handle of a hammer. Anyway, I chose the copper type gaskets to go on my setup. Now back in the day, there were no gaskets under the exhaust manifold. Only the four ports of the intake had gaskets and they were small, flat, metal rings. Nowadays, the only gaskets you can get are made for both manifolds and go on in three pieces. I think the reasoning behind this is that after 60+ years your manifolds are NOT going to be level and therefore would not seal perfectly against the cylinder head as they originally did. So you need a gasket to fill the spaces. The service manual also advocates the use of a "mixture of graphite and oil" to be applied between the cylinder head and the manifolds. I was told to apply a generous amount of this mixture on both sides of the copper gasket. From what I understand, this lubricant allows for movement between the manifolds during expansion and contraction. I bought some graphite lubricant from Home Depot. It can be found on the aisle next to the key cutting area in a small, white tube in a blister pack. I poured a little STP motor treatment (the really thick stuff) in a small cap and mixed in a generous amount of graphite powder making a paste of sorts. I applied it to the cylinder head and the manifolds with a small paint brush. I then put the copper gaskets on the cylinder head. I hefted the extremely heavy manifolds into place while my Dad went around putting the original, block shaped "clamps", lock washers, and nuts on the studs. At least, that was the plan. We quickly realized that the studs were screwed too far down into the cylinder head and the nuts would barely go on. It was decided that this was due to the use of the copper gaskets. The gaskets introduced a good amount of space between the engine and the manifolds that was not there originally. To solve this, we had to remove EVERYTHING we had just done and loosen the studs a few turns. So we basically did this job twice. I should have known something like that would happen. I'm hardly ever able to get something done on this car on the first try!So after the second installation, I torqued the bolts and nuts down to spec. being careful to follow the exact torque sequence outlined in the manual. The manifolds are back on the car and looking brand new. I can finally let go of that big knot of worry I've been carrying around in the pit of my stomach ever since that first nut was broken loose. Here's to hoping it doesn't leak!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 Looking good, Robert. Looking good. Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted June 24, 2013 Share Posted June 24, 2013 It looks nearly ready to run again, Robert! I may of mentioned earlier about the trails with the heat riser on my '41. I went through an awful lot of work to try to get mine freed up, all to avail, so I did just bent the valve to the open position like you did. I really wanted to have working the way it was designed, but couldn't get it to work again. Keep up the good work, I love to see the pictures of your progress!Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 (edited) Thanks guys. It's getting there Keith. More parts get added to it every day. Not too much left to go before I fire it up and test the transmission. Got to get my valve cover painted and put back on, put the carburetor back on, make a new mounting pad for the radiator and get it put back on, put the thermostat and water neck back on, install the oil filter can, hook up the wires.....I guess that's about it. Should be able to start it some time this weekend. That is, IF I can come up with the $100 or so I need to buy all of the fluids. I know what you mean about that valve body. I tried anything and everything to unstick mine. Nothing worked. Like you, I really wanted it to operate like it was meant to. But it just wasn't meant to be. I went ahead and put the original spring doo-hickey back on it today though. Gives the appearance that it works. I had to make the little bracket that the spring hooks to as mine was apparently lost long ago. I made it out of a small L-bracket that I had. I enlarged the hole in it with a drill and attached it to the exhaust pipe flange as shown in the parts manual. I'll take pictures of that at some point. Edited June 25, 2013 by shadetree77 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Oh man, I need a straight eight. Another photo by 2RobsGarage to hang over the mantle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Model56s Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Great job Robert - I'm wondering if there'll be anything worth reading in the Bugle after reading your posts here! The best part about reading these posts, especially yours, is the perseverance that dedicated people show for these projects. They can be daunting. I'm very interested in seeing the engine come to life and the Dynaflow perform flawlessly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Bruce aka First Born Posted June 25, 2013 Share Posted June 25, 2013 Great job Robert - I'm wondering if there'll be anything worth reading in the Bugle after reading your posts here! The best part about reading these posts, especially yours, is the perseverance that dedicated people show for these projects. They can be daunting. I'm very interested in seeing the engine come to life and the Dynaflow perform flawlessly. And we know it will. Know it will. It will. Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 (edited) Thanks for the positive vibes guys. They keep me persevering!! I'm sure some of this will end up in the Bugle. Most likely the stuff about the manifolds. As far as everything working flawlessly, I can only hope at this point. The suspense is killing me. I have to make myself slow down while putting things back on so quality doesn't suffer. It's not easy!!Another day, more progress. Carburetor installed, battery tray installed, alternator installed (and looking much better in black if I do say so myself:D), and new choke stove pipe fabricated and installed. I used a dremel tool to cut the angle on the end of the pipe. Don't know why it was like that but the original piece was so I re-created it. I've also been working on my valve cover paint. I've decided that it is going to be PERFECT before I put it back on. To me, that is going to be the focal point of the engine. When people look in there their eyes will be drawn to the graphics on the valve cover. Therefore, I want it to be really nice. I've painted it and stripped it 3 times now because I wasn't happy with it. Hopefully, the fourth time's a charm!! Pictures coming soon (if it turns out good this time). I also included a picture of the valve body spring with my fabricated bracket. Not exactly like the original piece but close enough. Edited June 26, 2013 by shadetree77 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 Looks good Robert! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 Nicely done Robert. Are you missing a return spring on the gas pedal linkage though? It looks like the carb is wide open in those pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 Good eye John. It's not on there in that picture. I have a new one but haven't put it on yet. Still a million little things like that to do. Maybe I'll get this sucker back together....eventually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Lots of progress to report but I'll save a lot of that for tomorrow night. For now, I just want to share this. My Wife and I have been working on this valve cover for a while. It was stripped, sanded, and repainted a grand total of THREE times before I was satisfied enough to proceed with the lettering experiment. Here's a little breakdown of the process following along with the pictures below.First, it was wire brushed and sanded down to bare metal. We degreased it and primered it. I held the vinyl lettering up to the sides to approximate where red would need to be. I taped off two rectangles and painted them with red VHT Engine Enamel. I then wet sanded the entire valve cover paying special attention to the sharp edges that were created by applying the red paint. Basically, I sanded the edges gently until I could no longer feel them. This way they wouldn't show under the top coat. That was followed by a quick wash down with Dawn dish soap. With the help of my Wife I carefully placed and applied the vinyl lettering to the red rectangles. This was not easy and we had a near disaster because of a poor quality decal. Some of the letters stuck to the backing and ripped and mangled. I thought it was done for but my Wife saved the day on that. She jumped in and used a needle to unfold the lettering and put them back in place. I couldn't believe it!! We then wiped down the entire thing again with some alcohol to remove any hand oils. Then it was time to break in my brand new HVLP gun.My Wife helped me mix the paint, I donned my respirator, and went to work painting a few practice parts. I got my settings where I thought they should be and began to paint the valve cover. I think it came out great. I got a little bit of orange peel on one of the corners and a bug landed in my paint but for my first time with a paint gun, it looks pretty good. We let the paint dry for a couple of days.Here comes the big moment! Removing the vinyl lettering. I had never done this technique so I was nervous. Would the paint crack and peel? Would the vinyl lettering disintegrate? Turns out, neither one. I started out gently lifting the corners of the letters with a razor blade. This wasn't working very well so my Wife suggested using a needle. That did the trick! I then used tweezers to peel the lettering. The letters came up perfectly. What do you guys think? Better than sticking one of those clear stickers on there huh? And it will never peel or yellow! I'm going to clear coat it in a few days just to make sure the letter edges don't peel.NOTE: My camera did NOT like the red coloring on the letters. It kept blurring it and making it look like there is a weird texture or blotchy pattern in the lettering. That stuff is not really there so overlook that. That red color really screwed with my camera for whatever reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithbrother Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 I would TEST the clear on a scrap of the lettering. Funny things can happen, been there, done that. I wish you well,Dale in Indy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Model56s Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Impressive Robert! I was never a fan of plastic appliqué decals. This was a great idea - did you come up with this or was it a suggestion?Geoff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasJohn55 Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Nice Robert! Attention to detail, the mark of a true Craftsman! TJ55 PS: All women should be as good with a needle as your wife! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Nice work Robert. Much better looking than the decal. I'm guessing someone is looking for their pants though. Man, nothing safe in your home when it comes to Buick repair, replace and paint. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retirednow Posted July 1, 2013 Share Posted July 1, 2013 Wow, that looks great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted July 2, 2013 Share Posted July 2, 2013 Thanks guys. I'm still in awe that it came out looking half way decent!Dale, will do. I wish I didn't have to clear coat it as I'm afraid of something going wrong on the very last step. But, I'm also afraid that if I don't clear it the edges of the letters may begin to peel.Geoff, I guess the idea came from watching all of those restoration shows on TV. I remember seeing the technique of painting over vinyl lettering on one of those shows at some point, maybe American Restoration. Don't remember exactly. I did some more research on it online, then I just went for it. Some of the steps I came up with myself as they were not mentioned on the tutorials I found. One such step being sanding the edges so that they wouldn't show under the top coat. We also came up with the techniques for removing the lettering after painting over it. Nothing I found explained that one either. I had my doubts about the whole thing, but as you can see it worked out just fine in the end. Much better than a decal!Thanks much John! I'm proud to say that my Wife is very handy with a needle. Something that a lot of women her age can no longer claim.Chris, you've got that right! I'll use anything within reach to help get my Buick looking good! Lol. Just kidding, but I do get away with a lot. What can I say? My Wife puts up with my crazy "car guy" ways! By the way, those jeans are mine so she didn't get too steamed. Don't tell her I put the dog on the table either. Lol!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nahuelsan Posted July 2, 2013 Share Posted July 2, 2013 Hi Robert. ¡¡Great Job!!. In the first reading I don't understood the purpouse of the painting that red background if you have the red lettering already. But finnaly the finishig you've achieved is perfect. If you don't mind, I'll take this craftmanship as example when it be the time of restore my valve cover. Just tell me if you have copyrighted this procedure... Lol. Congratulation for your job. Othr subject: I also own a dachshund, but with long hair. I love her. It's called Violeta. Here a picture (as you can see she's very stressed): Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted July 2, 2013 Share Posted July 2, 2013 Nahuel, that's a nice lounger you have for Violeta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted July 3, 2013 Share Posted July 3, 2013 Thank you Nahuel. I thought that if I put the letter stickers on there they would turn yellow and peel in the future. I came up with this technique so that would not happen. Feel free to use anything you see on my thread. That is part of the reason why I do this thread. To help others with their restoration. I have two Dachshunds. They are both short haired. The black one is called Pickle and the red-brown one is called Pumpkin. Dachshunds have always been my favorite kind of dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 As always Robert, great looking work. Nice technique.Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Peter Bird Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 Great idea! Even had me stressing about the outcome and I wasn't even there. Came out a peach! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shadetree77 Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 (edited) Thanks guys. Not a whole heckuva' lot to report lately. The weather has been completely against me. It has rained every day for a week with no end in sight. The picture below is truly disheartening. I'm so incredibly close to getting the engine started to test the transmission and Mother Nature is dead set against me. Everything is ready to go except for the valve cover and the radiator. I can't do any of that until it STOPS FREAKIN' RAINING. Times like this that really wish I had a garage. Edited July 6, 2013 by shadetree77 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 Gorgeous work with a brand-new paint gun. Your sense of adventure inspires me. Not enough to get up off my big fat... chair but enough to feel bad about not doing so, anyway.Slant Sixin' in Seattle, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 Send some rain this way, brother!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avgwarhawk Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 I love Dachshunds. Great lap dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pawnpro Posted July 8, 2013 Share Posted July 8, 2013 amazing car, I love that grill! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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