New-To-Me '36 Model 81

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Morning Folks!

 

I've trolled these forums for a while now, ever since my father-in-law gave me his project car he never got around to. So, here I am trying to get my head around how much work this is going to entail. 

 

I know I'm going to need to tear the engine down and, at the very least, go through it completely. The same goes for the transmission, fuel lines, and brakes. I'm mostly good with that, though the amount of 79-year old crud I find may change my opinion. 

 

So, here's my question: I noticed in my initial inspection of the car that the back seat is built quite a lot like a nice couch. The arms, however feel pretty soft when you attempt to move them laterally. Is the rear seat actually built into the car? Is it removable? Does anyone have any resource for the blueprints of either seats or the door frames? 

 

I've scoured the net looking for information on this car, and unsurprisingly it's sparse. I can find information about '36 series 40's, and series 80's from years close to '36, but not specifically '36. Did the body change a lot between years?

 

I'm impressed with how well the frame and body, as a whole, has held up. There's the requisite surface rust, but all in all I can't find any car-cancer I am terribly concerned with. This is one behemoth of a car and I've never seen sheet metal this thick on a car! 

 

She'll be sharing the two-car garage attached to my shop with my other project car, a '64 Beetle. The Beetle was my first love and has been my partner through the past decade or more, but sadly I've found a fair bit of car-cancer beneath the louvers under the rear window. So until I can figure out how I'm going to fix that, the Buick will start eating away at my free time. 

[Mark Shaw]

The Buick will soon consume your entire garage, so I suggest you look for another place for your Beetle.  Once you start dis-assembly of a normal sized car, it will usually take up two or three car spaces. I believe 1936 was the last year for wood framed bodies, but at least the seat back and bottom cushion should be removable. Someone here should have a body manual that will tell the story.

 

I have an original  "glove box" size shop manual for a 1936 Buick that I can offer for a reasonable price to help you get started.  Just let me know via PM if you are interested.

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Thanks for the response, Mark.

 

Sadly the Beetle is already in several pieces. The engine is completely apart, the transaxle is dropped and partially disassembled, and the interior is gutted. 

 

I'm not looking to do a full restoration on the Buick, though, so hopefully space won't become an issue. My goal is to have a fun car for the wife and I to cruise around in with the kids in the back. 

[Pete Phillips]

Rear seat cushion should come out by itself, and then that will allow you to unscrew the armrests from the side panels. It will also allow you to access the bottom of the seat back, but I think the center armrest (is this car has one) is bolted to the trunk divider. Have you ever done a rebuild on a babbit-bearing engine? That's what you are facing with this car. And Mark is right, there is lots and lots of wood in the body, doors, floors, etc. of this car. If your wood is good, that is half the battle won. It's a rare and very worthwhile car to restore. And do I see a '55 or '56 Chevrolet parked next to the Buick?

Pete Phillips, BCA #7338

Leonard, Texas

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Hi Leonard, 

 

The only engine I've ever actually worked on was the flat-4 in my bug, so this is going to be a very steep learning curve. The doors *look* ok, but I haven't done much inspecting yet. As for the rest of the wood, I hope to get over there in the next couple days to start poking around a bit more. The grill and cowling are in the backseat, and the bonnet is there as well. New glass is waiting in boxes, too. Most of the hardware is there, as far as I know, but again I'm going to start really digging in soon. 

 

And yes, that's a Bel Air in the background. It's my father-in-law's other project car, he was able to put a bit of time into it so it's running. 

 

I'm building a shed to move my mower other yard gear out of my second bay so I have a place to move the '36. It's still at the in-law's house, for now. 

 

I found this at RockAuto, http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=3757029&cc=1485688&jnid=410&jpid=1

 

Is this a compilation of the books I would need to get started?

[Tom_S]

Mark,

 

Get yourself the 1936 Buick shop manual,  Buick master parts List of Body parts for 1928-1941 Buicks, Master parts list of Chassis Parts for Buicks 1928 -1941.   Valuable information in each!

 

Tom

[37_Roadmaster_C]

Darth,

 

I have a 37 Roadmaster phaeton which is quite simular to your sedan in body construction except for the top and suicide doors.  The large series cars were wood structure bodys until 38 when they went all metal.  The wood is a big problem as it is responsible for almost all allignment of the doors and main body sections.  The books to get are as mentioned above.  The shop manual and body manuals are available from Bobs Automobilia and the ones  I have gotten from them are EXACT copys of the origionals.  I have origional books which I keep out of harms way and use the copys to work on the car, that way the origionals do not get dirty fingerprints all over them . 

   The engine in your car is the 320 straight 8 and it does have babbit rod bearings and insert mains.  I just had my 320 compleatly rebuilt and the rods machined for insert bearings and the cost was north of 8K.  Now I had everything done including new valves, pistons, and all neded bits and pieces, the cylinders bored, crank and cam ground, manifolds plaoned and a bunch of other detail work done.  Your car may very well not need this level of repair, but I did not want to have to revisit mine anytime soon.

You have a great car and with some work will have a really fun car for outings with the family.  Keep us posted on your progress.

 

Robin

Edited June 5, 2015 by 37_Roadmaster_C (see edit history)

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Thank you so much for the response, Robin!

 

I took some time yesterday to take a more involved look at the wood framing for the car and have found it's 90% good. It looks like it was restored at some point in the last 79 year, so that's a relief. The 10% missing/damaged is the passenger side front door, a few pieces of the bracing is missing. I hope to use parts from the drivers door to mirror over, or at the very least use it as a starting point for replacement. One of the arm rests for the rear seat is loose, looks like it was knocked at some point which pulled the screws out. A little wood glue and a bit of saw dust should fill those voids fairly well. That should allow it to be re-attached. 

 

There are a few parts missing as well, most important of which is the front passenger door latch mechanism and both passenger side handles. The brake lights and housings are missing as well. And the trunk is locked... and I have no keys for it. I would imagine they can be replaced, or maybe the tumblers themselves can be re-keyed/replaced? All the glass is there in the form of new panes, though I don't have the rubber seals, or any idea how to install them. Ha! I've replaced windows on VW's before and they're not too much fun. I can only imagine how fun it would be to re-install these. 

 

Oh yea, the battery compartment under the front seat... I doubt I'm supposed to see ground around the battery tray. Right? 

 

As for the engine, I've been told it was running when it was parked, 8 years ago. *sigh* I won't know more until I can move it over to my shop and start digging in. 

 

I'll definitely pick up those books from Bob's asap. I may not be able to work on her yet, but I can at least get a fair anatomy lesson before I dig in. 

[Mark Shaw]

Darth,

    I took my 12 roadster to a locksmith to pick the trunk lock & to make a new set of keys.  I found lots of missing parts in the trunk. 

 

Maybe you will get lucky too!

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

I hope so, Mark. I have a set of lock picks, maybe I'll try my hand at it once I have it home. Do the ridges face up or down when you unlock the trunk?

Edited June 5, 2015 by DarthRuprecht (see edit history)

[Mark Shaw]

I dunno...  I never locked or unlocked the trunk on my 38.

[37_Roadmaster_C]

Darth,

 

For parts for your car give Dave Tachney a call at: 763-427-3460.  Dave is the go to guy for all things late 30's Buick.  He is a little hard to reach some times so keep trying.  He is in Minnesota and the best time to catch him is late afternoon/early evening his time.  Dave is a great guy and is very fair and honest with his parts.

 

As for your battery tray.....  Mine on the 37 is simply a bottom strap that holds the battery up.  I can see the ground also and I am fairly sure mine is stock.  Anybody have more info ?????

 

R

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Thanks for the heads up, Robin. I'll reach out to Mr. Tachney soon for more information. 

 

As for the battery tray, that seems odd to me, I would have imagined it would be enclosed. Honestly, though, if that's how it's supposed to be then great! One less thing for me to replace/repair!

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Here's an odd question;

 

Can anyone tell me how many pages the Fisher Body book for 1935/1936 should have? 

[50jetback]

My Fisher Body Service Manual 1935/36 has 78 pages.

PM sent

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Thanks for the help, 50jetback.

 

I received my copy of both the Fisher Body Service Manual and the Buick Shop manuals this week and have begun the long process of educating myself more about this old girl. 

 

I am missing a few parts for my '36, though. Here's what I know of so far. . . .

 

Passenger side exterior door handles (both)

Passenger side front door lock

Both tail lights

[Buicknutty]

 It sounds like it will be a nice car, love to see some pictures. If the engine hasn't run in the best part of a decade, oil the cylinders and rockers, before you try to turn it over. Better to be safe than sorry. 

 Anyway there are lots of great people on the forum here.

 Keith

[Guest DarthRuprecht]

Thanks Keith, I'll do that. I hope to finish my shed and move all the yard equipment out of my shop to make room soon. Have the frame up and the rafters installed. Just the roofing and walls to go. 

 

I've noticed quite a few helpful folks in this forum as well. I'm glad I found this place. I'll need the help very soon.