1939 Buick Special fog lights

[Bob H]

Greetings:

I came across a set of Unity brand 6V fog lamps in decent shape for a fair price. Are these light acceptable as "period correct" for my 1939 Buick Special convertible project or are Guide brand lamps the only option? Trying not to offend the purists. Thanks, Bob H

[Grandpa]

The 6-11/16 inch diameter V-shaped lens Guide fog light (with the pointed back - not the later rounded back), which was introduced in 1939, would be a good choice for your Buick. Also, the second generation Guide Super Ray diving light would also be correct if you want that type of light.

Grandpa

[Bob H]

Grandpa:

How much do you want for your Guide fog lamps? Bob H

[Guest Grant Magrath]

Grandpa's on the money as usual! The Guide lamp were factory. Unity partnered up with Ford I think. I bought some Unity fogs for my 39 Chevy, and when I checked the numbers, etc, I found they were correct for a 37 Ford. Never both red me much though because only a car nerd like me would have noticed!

Cheers

Grant

[Bob H]

Thanks for the reply Grant! I had about given up getting an answer to my question and was close to posting it again in the form of an answer. Guide fog lamps have been selling for outrageous amounts of money, up to $1000 for restorable cores. That kind of money for an accessory item goes against my nature, the car will perform fine without them. But I do think they would add a touch of classic period functional styling to my 1939 Buick Special convertible coupe. As you said, who is going to get close enough to the lights to read the brand name? I think I'll check and see if the Unitys are still available. Bob H

[FLYER15015]

Bob,

Do you have any cooling issues with your '39 ?

I've heard they tend to run hot, so if you cover up your little bitty grille with lights, you may want to consider a "pusher" fan for the radiator.

Check my avatar.

I did..........

Mike in Colorado

[Bob H]

Mike in Colorado:

It doesn't matter what size your grille is somebody always comes along with a bigger one! My 1939 convertible coupe is still in the construction phase so it is a super good time to note chronic heating problems and take measures to prevent them. An auxiliary electric cooling fan sounds to me like good advice, especially in hot summers and traffic. I plan to make sure that the engine block cooling passages are absolutely rust free while it is disassembled and use rust inhibiting anti-freeze when it is put into service. I intend to install a premium radiator that will allow me to pressurize the cooling system raising the boiling point of the coolant. Anti-freeze also raises the boiling point temperature. Thanks for the suggestion, Bob H

[FLYER15015]

Your'e welcome Bob.

Up here at 8500' the air is thin to begin with and we don't have too many level roads. You are either going up or down all the time, and I mean 6% grades.

Add to that the 10% (soon to be 15%) corn gas crap we are forced to use and "vapor lock" becomes a way of life.

I have my fan on it's own circuit from the Batt so I can toggle it on / off independent of the Ign switch. Helps greatly on those long mountain pulls.

Mike in Colorado

[Dynaflash8]

The 1939 Buick fog lights and spotlights were made by Unity. They may have the Unity name on the fog lights. The spotlight has a tag on it saying "GM Safteylight". These lights did not say Guide until at least 1940 and I really think it was 1941. I had a 1940 Pontiac years ago that I restored and the factory option fog light (yes it used only one) was made by Guide, so I think the Buick was too. Fender skirts were also made by Foxcraft as a sub-contractor in 1939-1940 and were shared by not only Pontiac-Olds-Cadillac and Chevrolet, but also Packard, 39-40 Ford and Mercury, as well as Chrysler products through 1941. I'm sure somebody will argue with me, but at 75, I've only been doing this old car thing since I was 15.

Edited April 25, 2014 by Dynaflash8 (see edit history)

[Grandpa]

I would like to offer my understanding of Guide accessory lights - - - The Guide accessory lights were manufactured by GM's "Brown, Lipe, Chaplin" division in New York state starting about the mid-1930s. These lights were offered as accessories by the GM automobile dealers under the Guide brand name. Very similar (or identical) lights were offered under the "B-L-C" brand name as a lower cost alternative to Guide lights by Sears, Wards, auto parts stores, etc. The early production lights have the brand name maked on the lens. Starting about 1940 or 1941, many of the lights also had an oval shaped brass tag on top of the shell which identified the light as Guide or B-L-C and the model number. An exception to this generization, is the Guide Super Ray lights which were maked as Guide or B-L-C on the badge starting in 1938 or 1939. Grandpa

[39BuickEight]

Guys, what about the switch for the fog lights?  Is there a certain one that is more correct?  I see a couple different iterations on eBay right now, both with the 1939 maroon on them.  Are either correct?

Edited September 14, 2017 by 39BuickEight (see edit history)