Morgan Wright Posted November 20, 2017 Share Posted November 20, 2017 These things are really hard to find on ebay. Needs to have a hole between 13/16 and 7/8 diameter. Crank for Farmall tractor almost works perfectly but hole has to be drilled out from 3/4 to that size. Who knows where I can buy a Buick starter hand crank or two? I already ruined a 13/16 drill bit trying to drill out a Farmall and only got half=way into it. Buying another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Schramm Posted November 21, 2017 Share Posted November 21, 2017 What year and model? They are not all the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sligermachine Posted November 22, 2017 Share Posted November 22, 2017 i have one what year Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibarlaw Posted November 22, 2017 Share Posted November 22, 2017 They are also different between series. I sold a (fit a Standard) crank to the fellow who bought the 1922-45 at Hershey and he had to bore out the hole to fit his. I have one each of my cars, Master and Standard. The Standard having a slightly smaller bore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 24, 2017 Author Share Posted November 24, 2017 It's a 1918 Needs a crank with a 13/16 or 7/8 hole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert_25-25 Posted November 25, 2017 Share Posted November 25, 2017 On my 1925 Standard, the crank pin is a 3/4" shaft, and the bore in the hand crank is .760 to .770, So the cranks have a little tolerance, but they are not a sloppy fit. What size shaft do you have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 25, 2017 Author Share Posted November 25, 2017 A little under 13/16, the bore needs to be between that and 7/8 I just got another 13/16 drill bit....cobalt, cost me $60. Hope I don't destroy this one too, never would have paid $60 for a hand crank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 I'm just about tapped out. Used a $60 cobalt drill bit and got about an inch deeper into the hole. With only about 1/4 inch to go, drill bit is done. Used lots of water to cool everything and oil to lube the drill, but still not deep enough, bit won't cut anymore. Have to go in about 2 inches total. So close, but so far. Not paying for a carbide drill bit, which is $246........http://drillamerica.net/13-16-carbide-tipped-3mt-taper-shank-drill-bit/ Who has a starter crank for sale? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 (edited) The crank is 51/64 inch diameter, probably the same as the Master Six It's only a 1/64 jump to the 13/16 bore I'm drilling, but it's a nice fit, not too snug that it jams, and not too loose. I'll try again to get that last 1/4 inch tomorrow. Edited November 27, 2017 by Morgan Wright mistake (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 New info. I have two 1918 Buick E-49s and they aren't the same. The one I've been working on (engine removed from car) and the one on the assembled car: ..................crank diam...........diam of pin in crank.............bore needed..........distance from pin to end of crank engine.........51/64............................3/8.................................13/16..............................13/16 car................51/64...........................3/8.................................13/16...............................9/16 The Farmall crank starter I'm boring out has the corresponding measurements: .....................bore.........................slot for pin.......................bore needed....................length of slot to end of pin crank............3/4.............................11/32................................13/16..............................9/16 So the car needs 1/4 inch less depth of bore than the spare engine, so my bore is done, and all I have to do is widen the slot to 3/8 and its good for the car! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 OK, cut the slots wide enough with a 3/8 bit and a file, now the starter crank works on the car. If I can bore it 1/4 inch deeper it will work on both engines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 26, 2017 Author Share Posted November 26, 2017 OK after 45 minutes struggle, I got 1/4 in deeper, drill bit ruined. Now the Farmall crank fits both Buicks. crank $6 shipping $14 high speed drill bit $12 cobalt drill bit $60 total cost $92 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert_25-25 Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 Morgan, Given the price of towing or lost time when the car won't start, I hope one day that you find this hand crank pays for itself. You don't know how many times I wish I had a hand crank when my battery died on my car, and because it has an automatic, I can't even push start it. I am having trouble pushing manual cars too now. Good job with your perseverance. Your drill bit story also reminds me of a mill at the machine shop that was getting old and its name was Gnaw. They bought a new CNC mill and it was christened Newgnaw. Hugh 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
27donb Posted November 26, 2017 Share Posted November 26, 2017 (edited) It must be me... The only way I was ever able to use the hand crank on any of my 6 cylinder Buick engines was with the clutch pedal pushed in and all the spark plugs out. I have an original crank for each car but I never considered hand cranking these heavy engines as a viable solution to emergency starting when the battery was low. It's not a Model T!! Edited November 27, 2017 by 27donb (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 27, 2017 Author Share Posted November 27, 2017 36 minutes ago, 27donb said: It must be me... The only way I was ever able to use the hand crank on any of my 6 cylinder Buick engines was with the clutch pedal pushed in and all the spark plugs out. I have an original crank for each car but I never considered hand cranking these heavy engines as a viable solution to emergency starting when the battery was low. It's not a Model T!! That must explain why I can't crank the engine with it. I was thinking it was stuck and was getting ready to soak the pistons. Well, I'll do that anyway. Tomorrow remove all the plugs, funnel in some Marvel and Deep Creep, squirt in some WD and wait a few days. Then crank it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibarlaw Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 The hand crank is indispensable for timing the engine/setting the points. I have started my 1925-25 4 or 5 times with the hand crank just to show some folks at our car show. Each time it only took a half turn. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert_25-25 Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 I received 2 hand cranks with my car. (Sorry, not your size Morgan). I made contact with a previous owner's son recently. His dad brought my car home in 1959. The son was 18 at the time and his Dad wanted an old car that they could all work on. The son told me that they used to take it to the drive in movies with the top down. After the show they would crank start the car and drive it home. He said the batteries weren't very good back then. This is a photo of my car taken in 1963. I still have those license plates. Hugh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
27donb Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 5 hours ago, dibarlaw said: The hand crank is indispensable for timing the engine/setting the points. Totally agree. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 27, 2017 Author Share Posted November 27, 2017 Well I'm glad I have this crank for these reasons. It might help to break the engine free also after soaking it. Normally I'd just put the car in 3rd gear and tug on it with a tow rope, but if I do the rear wheels will probably just skid because the tires are non-existent. I wouldn't recommend making one from a Farmall crank like I did, unless you happen to have the $246 carbide drill bit on hand, or a drill bit re-sharpener. Keeping my eye out for a real Buick crank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert_25-25 Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 Morgan, I don't know how different a 1918 motor is from my 1925 design, but if the water pump is frozen, that will prevent the engine from turning over. My car has a fiber timing gear, and they are not that strong. A pull into 3rd gear would destroy it. Consider removing the water pump before attempting to rotate the motor. Hugh 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 27, 2017 Author Share Posted November 27, 2017 OK I'll take off the water pump and get it moving smoothly inside, and put it back, before cranking. The car came with 10 boxes of parts and a spare car. There's a NOS fiber gear too in one of the boxes. It came with everything BUT a friggin hand crank. I'm going to make a video of this car and put it on youtube today. The car is a time capsule. Hasn't been touched by a wrench in 80 years. The spark plugs and wires are 80 years old, distributor cap, everything. Tires are 80 years old. The only reason the guy bought this car was for patterns of wood he was cutting for the other car, he got half way into building the other one and gave up, but he never touched this one except to measure the wood pieces for the other one. Video coming. Pic here for now: 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
27donb Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 1 hour ago, Hubert_25-25 said: if the water pump is frozen, that will prevent the engine from turning over. Hugh Happened that way on my 24-45. Engine turns with the water pump removed, I disassembled the pump to get it to free up once off the engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian_Heil Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 (edited) Now that you have solved your issue, I will post this. Had a spare crank for my 1923 6 cylinder and sold it to a fellow in the UK for $50 plus he paid about half again that much to ship it to him. He must have known something. (See, if I had posted that up front you would have called me something.) Have used my crank twice other than letting people play with it to see what a beast a 6 with good compression feels like. Once we had a real cold spell here in mid Michigan and it was -17F/-27C in the attached garage, Lord only knows what it was outside, and I got it in my head to see if I could hand start the Buick after it had been 'sleeping' for 6 weeks. Three pulls with the choke on and it 'barked' on the 3rd pull. Went to 1/2 choke on the 4th pull and it started. Well, how about that I thought. To quote my wife, 'You are the only person I know who would wonder about that and then do that'. I took it as a compliment but have often wondered if it was? Second time I was on the 4 hour ferry boat crossing of Lake Michigan as we arrived in Wisconsin and they called all motorcycle owners and vintage car owners to some passage/gate since they didn't mess with parking the vintage cars or bikes, they let the owners back them into the hull and remove them as well. Down we trot to the bowels of the SS Badger only to see my headlamps a dim glow and I was the last car backed in, meaning the first one out and blocking half of those parked behind me as there are 4 lanes of parked cars but only 2 exit lanes at the gate. It was dark when we loaded and no one saw that my lights were left on including yours truly. The deck hand tells me not to worry, they have a tractor with a chain and they will pull me out of the way once we dock. The other old car people look at me with shame and gleefully start their cars. Back seat packed with luggage and daughter #3, who was 14 at the time suggests we push start it. Not a bad idea but we are packed nose to tail with only a foot between vehicles. No time to get pinned or break a leg between cars as we dock. Away I go, luggage flying, to find my crank under the back seat. No pull chain and tractor for me with all the other old car people looking on. With choke set and having run earlier that morning, it barked on the first pull, 1/2 choke and it started on the second. Never mind putting the seat cushion back correctly, pile on the luggage and get in as the gate is dropping. And, away we went. So, I hope you never need your crank but when your adrenalin is flowing like cheap beer, your pals are all looking on, you can crank that Buick like it was a scooter and the costs will be forgotten. Edited November 27, 2017 by Brian_Heil (see edit history) 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Wiegand Posted November 27, 2017 Share Posted November 27, 2017 Brian, you could have put Finn to work and had him pull you out had you not had the crank with you. Terry Wiegand South Hutchinson, Kansas 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted November 27, 2017 Author Share Posted November 27, 2017 (edited) OK here's the video of this car. It's like the movie Sleeper where Woody Allen finds a VW in a cave in the year 2500. Edited December 3, 2017 by Morgan Wright link changed (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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