35 model 41 new project

[Guest pacman35]

So I just pulled this out of storage over the July 4th weekend. My father parked it in 1957 and it has been stored ever since. (not always in ideal conditions but covered). The shed picture is where it had lived for the past 30 years. Goal number one is to see if I can make the motor run. This was purchased new by my great grandfather, sold to my father, and passed to me. Any advice or thoughts are welcome,

[GARY F]

nice looking car. I like those years. got any pictures of the interior & motor?

[Guest pacman35]

limited, still cleaning it out

[JohnD1956]

Wow!  That's awesome!   If it were mine I'd be inclined to do some close under body inspection before even considering the engine.  Looks like the shed has a bed of leaves, which would be less than ideal. I'd recommend checking the frame to be sure it is solid all over. This includes any wood framing in the body too. 

 

 If it isn't then you'd be pulling the engine for a frame up restoration, so there is little benefit to putting in a bunch of time on the engine at this point.  If I was doing a frame up restoration I would do the engine last.  The reason is;  when you have the body and interior all done and ready to go, then you can rebuild the engine and immediately put it into the vehicle.  I often wonder if those who start with an expensive engine rebuild lose sight of the finish line because of the financial impact of an engine rebuild?

[Guest pacman35]

21 hours ago, JohnD1956 said:

Wow!  That's awesome!   If it were mine I'd be inclined to do some close under body inspection before even considering the engine.  Looks like the shed has a bed of leaves, which would be less than ideal. I'd recommend checking the frame to be sure it is solid all over. This includes any wood framing in the body too. 

 

 If it isn't then you'd be pulling the engine for a frame up restoration, so there is little benefit to putting in a bunch of time on the engine at this point.  If I was doing a frame up restoration I would do the engine last.  The reason is;  when you have the body and interior all done and ready to go, then you can rebuild the engine and immediately put it into the vehicle.  I often wonder if those who start with an expensive engine rebuild lose sight of the finish line because of the financial impact of an engine rebuild?

 

Great feedback John? please keep it coming as it has been a long time since I've played with an old car and this is a completely new venture for me. Unfortunately the storage conditions were not perfect, but were much better than outside in the weather. It has actually been stored about 3 hours from you up on Wellesley Island since it was parked in 1957. It was in a large barn with a concrete floor up until about 30 years ago when it was moved to the shed shown in the pictures. It is surprising it survived as the shed has taken hits from two large oak trees over the years. 

 

Engine:

The motor is complete sans a carburetor, Dad took it off years ago and can't find it. Fortunately he stuffed a towel in the intake and the animals didn't mess with it. We are still searching boxes in the attic and hope to find the carb. The air cleaner was in the back seat. The hoods were a little stiff to begin with but with some lubricant and cycling are now functioning well. 

 

Frame/running gear:

The frame is solid with some expected surface rust, and the underside woodwork on preliminary inspection looks to be in decent condition all things considered. All wheels turn freely and the mechanical brakes and emergency brake work correctly. I have memories as a young child, 6-7, of repacking the wheel bearings with my dad in the barn. The tires were shot so I picked up a set of junk roller wheels and tires (in pictures) and they worked perfectly. We actually rolled it on to the trailer in the dirt and off in to the garage with minimal effort.

 

Body:

Missing the front fender and the hood ornament is broken off. Will start shopping to replace them eventually. Front driver headlamp is broken, though the glass pieces are all inside the car (weird). Stories from dad explain many of the dents in the body work (did I mention it was driven? by college kids?) Other than the move mentioned all hardware is present and accounted. The running boards are solid and the majority of the pads are still there though the edges are really dry and brittle. All doors open and close better than my wife Mercedes. Grille is rusted but solid, and like much of the front has dents.

 

Interior:

There is some deterioration in the  extreme lower door panel woodwork but the cloth is still holding up. The vinyl roof insert is done and will need to be replaced and I am not sure if the metal trim will be able to be recovered. It is all there but in really rough shape. The headliner is deteriorated and the woodwork is rotten but enough is there for me to document it and rebuild it. (where would one find original plans??). The dash is complete and in remarkably good shape, all levers, buttons, cigar lighter, dome lamp and switch, rear window shade, rear seat grab bar..... everything is there. Seats are in ok shape with minor tears, still as yet completely discovered as the seat covers are still on the seats. My father had the foresight to put seat covers on the seats prior to storage so the mouse nests were on top of these and not directly on the seats. I have the original keys and they work, I also have all of the original documentation in mint condition. 

 

Comments:

I would like to keep the vehicle as original and complete as possible and still make it run/drive. If this is not possible then a frame up restoration will be done. I will post more pictures as the clean-up continues (traveling this week). As can be seen from the pictures, this car was driven (69K+ miles) and has some body damage. While I may fix all of this someday, it is not in the immediate plans as the Sherman was not a garage queen. Thanks for sharing in my excitement on this project. Keep the input coming and check back as I add more details. 

[Buicknutty]

Very neat car. It looks and sounds remarkably good for a car in storage for so long. There is value in keeping the patina, and besides, the cost and time of a complete restoration can be daunting.

If you wish to get into the engine in the near future, take it in baby steps. Take the rocker cover off and oil the valve train, and push rods and lifters, cam, and the valves themselves, by pouring oil in and around them all. Take the plugs out, and oil the cylinders, and let it all sit for a couple of days. Drain the crankcase oil, and take the oil pan off and clean it and check for debris, fill with fresh oil.

When you're ready to turn it over, don't just hit the starter, use a wrench on the front pulley and make sure that it will turn first. The sudden jerk of the starter can break things that otherwise may not. If it seized, and that's a very real possibility, don't overdo the force. Different people have different thoughts on how to free up a stuck engine. Automatic transmission fluid can be effective, but time is the best. Next to taking it apart that is. If it will not turn, then you'll need to take the head off to see what the problem is. But take your time before you go that far. It is possible that it could be so badly seized and nothing short of a complete rebuild will fix it.

Also, try to get a shop manual, or at least a copy of one, unless you have one already.

Otherwise, I quite second John's advice about making sure that there aren't any other issues before you put much money into the engine. These steps will take time, but not too much money.

CARS, in NJ, and Bob's Automobilia are two places that you can buy parts, amoungst others.

Hope that this helps.

Keith