56 Super

[JohnD1956 6,511]

@old-tank   @Elpad

 

Thanks for the interest.  I fixed those missing pictures.  

[Bill Stoneberg 1,424]

I can see the pictures and it looks like you went some nice places.

[JohnD1956 6,511]

6 minutes ago, Bill Stoneberg said:

I can see the pictures and it looks like you went some nice places.

 

That's a few of the places.  Most everyone we visited was very nice and welcomed the interest.  There was two incidents where we were not that welcome,  and in one of those we were kicked out before I had a chance to get any pictures.  I did not sit in on many of the interviews conducted.  Forgot my hearing aides one day and then discovered they didn't help much the other days.  It's very frustrating to know someone is talking and you can only hear faint murmurs.  So for most of the interviews I just stayed outside.  Once it is all put together I am supposed to get a copy of the series.  I'll know more about the sites then.  

 

What is sad is that the one town we went to was quite the resort in the late 1800's till the 1930's or so.  Then in decline as the vacationers stopped coming many places simply could not maintain the properties.  There were up to 73 hotels in various sizes in this one sleepy Upstate NY town.  That big one I am parked outside of was completely closed and not just because of Covid issues.  We went to another that had been closed since 2005 and subsequently abandoned to the delight of vandals.  Many houses and properties are simply rotting in place.  It was sad to see some of that.  

 

 

[JohnD1956 6,511]

After numerous attempts to adjust the brakes, I finally decided to send it to the trusted shop up the road from me.  I didn't have any trouble stopping the car on the new "over the counter" shoes, but I was having problems with the parking brake.  It would hold if the car was facing down hill and at idle in drive, but sometimes the transmission Park position will slip when facing uphill, and the parking brake would not hold under any circumstances if the motion was in reverse. I resorted to using a wheel chock every time I parked, which did work, but was annoying.  In addition, and adding to the confusion,  I usually park the car in the garage a short distance away from the final position, then push it by hand into it's spot.  And then before I start it I usually pull it out by hand to get the exhaust outside the house.  I was able to push it forward but could not pull it backwards by hand. 

 

The shop found that I had adjusted the parking brake lever too tight.  And had not advanced  the star adjusters enough as a result.  I had them do the anchor pin adjustment procedure on all wheels with the resulting brake adjustment and parking brake adjustment.  I tested it out today.  I can push and pull it by hand like before, and the parking brake works in Drive and Reverse at an idle.  Also I parked it on a steep hill, facing forward,  and the parking brake held great.  

 

While I hated to admit defeat on this, I just wasn't getting the situation under control and I wanted the car to be safe.  So it was money well spent.  

 

 

[NC-car-guy 3,323]

On 3/25/2021 at 11:49 AM, JohnD1956 said:

After numerous attempts to adjust the brakes, I finally decided to send it to the trusted shop up the road from me.  I didn't have any trouble stopping the car on the new "over the counter" shoes, but I was having problems with the parking brake.  It would hold if the car was facing down hill and at idle in drive, but sometimes the transmission Park position will slip when facing uphill, and the parking brake would not hold under any circumstances if the motion was in reverse. I resorted to using a wheel chock every time I parked, which did work, but was annoying.  In addition, and adding to the confusion,  I usually park the car in the garage a short distance away from the final position, then push it by hand into it's spot.  And then before I start it I usually pull it out by hand to get the exhaust outside the house.  I was able to push it forward but could not pull it backwards by hand. 

 

The shop found that I had adjusted the parking brake lever too tight.  And had not advanced  the star adjusters enough as a result.  I had them do the anchor pin adjustment procedure on all wheels with the resulting brake adjustment and parking brake adjustment.  I tested it out today.  I can push and pull it by hand like before, and the parking brake works in Drive and Reverse at an idle.  Also I parked it on a steep hill, facing forward,  and the parking brake held great.  

 

While I hated to admit defeat on this, I just wasn't getting the situation under control and I wanted the car to be safe.  So it was money well spent.  

 

 

Gotta know when to hold em' and know when to fold em' ...... glad you got er' safe again!

Edited March 27 by NC-car-guy (see edit history)

[JohnD1956 6,511]

I took the Super to one of the steepest grades I know of in my area and pulled up facing uphill to test the parking brake. It slipped slightly at first but did get to the point where it finally held. Now I just need to rebuild my confidence level in it.  

 

[JohnD1956 6,511]

For 46 years of ownership I was never able to get the parking brake warning light socket apart to replace that bulb. At one point the wire pulled out of the button under the bulb in the socket, and over time I tried again and again, unsuccessfully,  to get that thing open.  Recently someone on another forum told me how to do it so I took another stab at it this weekend and got hit opened.

 

Then I bought a new socket at a local parts store for a few bucks, disassembled that and used the parts to fix my original socket. 

 

Here is what I was working with. 

 

 

It was a bear to get back in the car.  You all may have a similar set up where the bracket that holds the fuse box is pretty darn close to the bottom edge of the dash, and I just could not get my hand in there to hold the spring with the light, insert the front cylinder with lens, and then rotate the assembly to lock it in place.  After two hours of trying I called in a good friend who works for the County garage, and he got it back together in a few minutes.  Thank you Adam!

 

Such a tiny thing, but it brings much joy!

 

[rodneybeauchamp 608]

John

 

As you would be aware, these require you to hold your tongue a certain way as you put it back in. 😀😀😀😀

 

Did you consider a red LED as an alternative to the bulb?

 

Tis great to have these little wins every now and then

Rodney 😀😀😀😀

[JohnD1956 6,511]

2 hours ago, rodneybeauchamp said:

 

Did you consider a red LED as an alternative to the bulb?

 

Tis great to have these little wins every now and then

Rodney 😀😀😀😀

 

Hi Rodney.  In answer to this inquiry, no, I never thought about using an LED.  I had the bulb in stock. And I like the warm glow of incandescent lighting.  Also I am not convinced that there is any potential savings in terms of long life of the elements, especially considering the likelihood of curtailment of future use of these types of vehicles.  

 

But yes, the small achievements along the way are nice to have.  More importantly I knew that wire was broken and it was always on my mind that it could possibly short out, although considering it's functional use, that was a minimal risk.  So it brings a peace of mind to have it repaired. 😃