Bloo Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 I think you would have to reverse either the field connections or the brush connections inside the motor but not both. Are you sure the airflow is wrong? No original motor to try? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 This is really the ultimate "you are the only one who will be bugged by this" situation! The heater is not only out of sight, but not anything you are likely to ever need on this car. Even if the car were being judged and you had to show the judges that the heater "worked," the sound of the turning fan would certainly convince them. But can you let it go? Haha -- maybe not. I sympathize. After all you have done with this car, you want to know in your heart that everything works the way it should! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grant Z Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 17 hours ago, kgreen said: Or it may be that this motor belongs to Grant's car, which is located in the southern hemisphere??? You will have to come down to see for yourself! 😂 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted February 27 Author Share Posted February 27 1 hour ago, neil morse said: This is really the ultimate "you are the only one who will be bugged by this" situation! The heater is not only out of sight, but not anything you are likely to ever need on this car. Even if the car were being judged and you had to show the judges that the heater "worked," the sound of the turning fan would certainly convince them. But can you let it go? Haha -- maybe not. I sympathize. After all you have done with this car, you want to know in your heart that everything works the way it should! Hit me, please hit me! 1 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 5 Author Share Posted March 5 On 2/27/2024 at 12:50 PM, Bloo said: I think you would have to reverse either the field connections or the brush connections inside the motor but not both. Are you sure the airflow is wrong? No original motor to try? I have two wires one positive the other negative. Reversing the wires dis not change the direction of rotation. I took the motor apart to see if there was any possible way to make a change and after multiple internet searches, I did not find any useable information. Interesting motor feature when I disassembled the motor though. The rotor and the field sizes were different. The external appearance of the motor was the same and was ordered from a Chevy parts dealer. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 5 Author Share Posted March 5 Would switching the connections at the brushes do anything? Logic tells me no. I'm going to swap this motor out if there are no options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 (edited) Can you reverse just the brush connections, without reversing the position of the field or brushholders? That should do it. Edited March 5 by Bloo (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 I remember a comment about a Buick V6 installed in a boat, indicating the engine turned in the opposite direction of the automobile version. Not sure if that would be the same for an engine in your vintage. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 6 Author Share Posted March 6 3 hours ago, Bloo said: Can you reverse jus t the brush connections, without reversing the position of the field or brushholders? That should do it. Do I understand you correctly that if the field wires were rerouted to their respective brush which was located on the opposite side of the field, then I can change rotor direction? Not sure if CW or CCW are correct in the diagram below, but confirming my understanding of your instruction: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 6 Author Share Posted March 6 1 hour ago, JohnD1956 said: I remember a comment about a Buick V6 installed in a boat, indicating the engine turned in the opposite direction of the automobile version. Not sure if that would be the same for an engine in your vintage. If I was unclear, I meant the heater motor. I believe my engine turns in the proper rotation 'cause three reverse speeds would not be useful. John, thanks for reading my questions and responding though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 These motors are available on eBay. How about this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/144945665926?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-166974-028196-7&mkcid=2&mkscid=101&itemid=144945665926&targetid=2260112199759&device=c&mktype=pla&googleloc=9031948&poi=&campaignid=20809489146&mkgroupid=157571175313&rlsatarget=pla-2260112199759&abcId=9346918&merchantid=8205884&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAopuvBhBCEiwAm8jaMc15vYNkUc7Ovgd7uYm38ERwWNqg4nlmjoxahr7OmIkNkE1UCEQRSxoCsbgQAvD_BwE Here's a photo of the box showing that the rotation is CCW and that it's correct for a '40 Buick: 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 12 minutes ago, kgreen said: If I was unclear, I meant the heater motor. I believe my engine turns in the proper rotation 'cause three reverse speeds would not be useful. John, thanks for reading my questions and responding though! Sorry. I made an incorrect assumption that you were referring to the starter. Totally my mistake. Carry on! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 2 hours ago, kgreen said: Do I understand you correctly that if the field wires were rerouted to their respective brush which was located on the opposite side of the field, then I can change rotor direction? Not sure if CW or CCW are correct in the diagram below, but confirming my understanding of your instruction: I believe that would do it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebastienbuick Posted March 6 Share Posted March 6 I may be making a mistake, but if you turn the propeller in the other direction, does the rotation change ? (the propeller sucks on one side and blows on the other) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 6 Author Share Posted March 6 1 hour ago, sebastienbuick said: I may be making a mistake, but if you turn the propeller in the other direction, does the rotation change ? (the propeller sucks on one side and blows on the other) No, good guess as I had that idea as well. I think Bloo nailed it. It makes sense of what I've read as well. Nice to have Bloo's confirmation though. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 9 Author Share Posted March 9 Finished installing the pretty stuff, now the car needs to be functional. Valves took forever to adjust, noisy as all get out until I could warm the engine and run in all the brand new machining. I used an old valve cover since I took it off and put it back on a number times figuring I would damage paint somewhere. Timing adjustment; darn I put the flywheel on without regard to the timing marks like I did with my covid series 50 "let's get this beast running" project. I was off a tooth this way and that way. It's now dialed in. I think my carb float level is too high, gas came out of a hole up near the fuel feed on a couple occaisions. Choke was out of adjustment, think it's good now. The vacuum starter switch was sticking. It is an NOS unit. The plunger appears to stick periodically. I took it off the carb and cleaned it with electronics cleaner. Not supposed to use oils as they will attract dust and gum up the works. The engine runs good and start fairly well, it has a minor skip. I've checked all the plug gaps again and the points setting. Maybe the engine needs to run a bit. I'll say that 320 cubic inches exhausting out of the straight through muffler sounds quite nice. The glove box light is still intermittent, can't pick up any AM radio stations inside the garage to test the radio. I'm getting killed on the details. So far several weekends were dedicated to adjustment and frustration. Good news, Bloo's guidance on the heater motor was spot on. My heater runs properly - thanks Bloo! 8 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
195354 Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 The details can be a time suck you are making progress. When you stand back you can’t see it very easily in your eyes. You are taking care of the details that take time. I looked back to the first page you have had quite a vision on day one. You have built a beautiful car. I had a dome light in a convertible that worked about 20 precent of the time. New harness and everything in the top frame repaired and looking good. I figured it out but it was a time eating project. Crossing the finish line can be exhausting Steve 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted March 15 Share Posted March 15 You truly have come a long way on the project and in a Good Way it's nice that the small things are what needs to be attended to since the big stuff is done! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted March 26 Author Share Posted March 26 The engine is running, though I think it could do better. Valve adjustment seems to have been a finicky sport on this engine. I appear to have a severe vacuum leak in the convertible top system; somewhere. I've disconnected the vacuum to the convertible top for this run. All fluids have been added, leak check for all fluids multiple times, all seems good. I'll set it back on its tires next and actually try to drive it. A little bit. But I'm not done. No, I'll wait. Face it, I need to learn all the bad news now. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted March 26 Share Posted March 26 Ken, congratulations on reaching this milestone! What a great sound. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted April 3 Author Share Posted April 3 (edited) This weekend is dedicated to searching for vacuum leaks in the pneumatic convertible top system, modifying the floor plate at the brake/clutch pedal and reinstalling all the cylinder locks that Frank Duval rekeyed for me. Thanks Frank! The convertible top takes a large vacuum line off the manifold. When I removed the connection on this line to take vacuum measurements, the engine performance improved dramatically: Leaks abound. I'll access the pneumatic cylinders and fill each with a little neatsfoot oil, not "prime" neatsfoot oil as that is a mix of other oils that could foul or bind the seals. The floor plate at the clutch and brake pedal is incorrect in that the plate has 5-inches center to center for the brake and clutch while my car has 5 1/2-inches ctr to ctr. I'll cut the panel and relocate the hole. Odd, I've asked others about this but all my linkage lines up straight. While I'm here, I'll share a "before" photo of the car. the initial car that I bought was missing numerous parts and had a 1941 engine. I was fortunate to find another of these fairly scarce vehicles so I chopped up the red primer and gray primer cars yielding one primary car. The chassis provided the later model year production engine, transmission and 3.6 rear end. The coupe was a gift when I bought the grey convertible. It provided a good number of detail parts such as clips, engine pans, extra carb, gages and some chassis parts. The coupe was ultimately sold. All other cars have been reduced to a pile of worthless parts. None of the cars had the correct 15-inch wheels, fortunately a donor car in Los Angeles provided them. Edited April 3 by kgreen spelling of course (see edit history) 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted April 8 Author Share Posted April 8 (edited) Still a lot of work to do and many issues to be sorted yet, trial run because I couldn't wait to drive it. My retread Montgomery Ward tires are possibly 30-50 years old. Strictly rollers, and I'll have new tires by the time the car comes back from upholstery. Edited April 11 by kgreen (see edit history) 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 Awesome, Ken! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC-car-guy Posted April 8 Share Posted April 8 1 hour ago, kgreen said: Still a lot of work to do and many issues to be sorted yet, trial run because I couldn't wait to drive it. My retread Montgomery Ward tires are possibly 30-50 years old. Strictly rollers, and I'll have new tires by the time the car comes back from upholstery. Awesome! In the end did you try the hill? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted April 8 Author Share Posted April 8 31 minutes ago, NC-car-guy said: Awesome! In the end did you try the hill? Yes, I did. The engine had no problem with the hill but the very old (way too old) Montgomery Ward tires spun; left several thousand miles worth of rubber on the concrete. They are pretty slick since they have hardened. I'll get new tires this summer while Mr. Pruitt gets the interior and top installed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted April 8 Author Share Posted April 8 It took me an afternoon to clean up the seat frame and track. Seems that the the seat pivot point in the center of the seat commonly breaks. I have a list of things to start correcting including the brakes as the junction block is leaking. Still not keen on the engine operation, idling high and it has not smoothed out. Need to clean up and paint the air cleaner. Windshield wipers work great, I didn't realize that they are a single speed wiper. Oil spatter on the windshield got spread out nicely. Still have the trunk wood to finish as well. One of the parts cars had the wood for a pattern, but physical damage from drywood termites while the car was in South Florida converted much of the interior of the wood into dust. I finished the heater, but the defroster still needs cleaning and painting. Other than the junction block for the brakes, I don't see any other leaks worth fussing over. I have body color wheels with the pin stripes already painted. The wheel shields are safely tucked away for later. I'll get white wall tires as they were standard issue on this model car. Here's the dirty mechanics wave and the wife who has yet to learn how much she spent on this car. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine Gun Posted April 9 Share Posted April 9 18 hours ago, kgreen said: Here's the dirty mechanics wave and the wife who has yet to learn how much she spent on this car. Are you going to post an "after" picture of the wife when you break the news to her? 1 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted May 2 Author Share Posted May 2 Tires ordered today, expect them in next week. Thinking I'd mount them and let a tire shop balance them. The wheels and tires currently on my car are 1941 16-inch "paired" with 20-50 year old Montgomery Ward retreads. I go them from Universal tire which is a sister company to Coker Tire. Contrary to drivability reviews but consistent with judging rules, I got bias ply. Now let's hope the story's told on this forum about lousy tubes and faulty tires aren't heading my way. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted May 2 Author Share Posted May 2 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grant Z Posted May 2 Share Posted May 2 On 4/9/2024 at 1:30 AM, kgreen said: It took me an afternoon to clean up the seat frame and track. Seems that the the seat pivot point in the center of the seat commonly breaks. I have a list of things to start correcting including the brakes as the junction block is leaking. Still not keen on the engine operation, idling high and it has not smoothed out. Need to clean up and paint the air cleaner. Windshield wipers work great, I didn't realize that they are a single speed wiper. Oil spatter on the windshield got spread out nicely. Still have the trunk wood to finish as well. One of the parts cars had the wood for a pattern, but physical damage from drywood termites while the car was in South Florida converted much of the interior of the wood into dust. I finished the heater, but the defroster still needs cleaning and painting. Other than the junction block for the brakes, I don't see any other leaks worth fussing over. I have body color wheels with the pin stripes already painted. The wheel shields are safely tucked away for later. I'll get white wall tires as they were standard issue on this model car. Here's the dirty mechanics wave and the wife who has yet to learn how much she spent on this car. I've not noticed any wood under the seat of my 1941 76C. Perhaps that's something that was changed! When you say "single speed wiper", do you mean no variation in speed or you just dial in whatever speed you want by turning the smooth rotating dial (like my 1941 model 44)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebastienbuick Posted May 2 Share Posted May 2 Beautiful work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38Buick 80C Posted May 3 Share Posted May 3 13 hours ago, kgreen said: Tires ordered today, expect them in next week. Thinking I'd mount them and let a tire shop balance them. The wheels and tires currently on my car are 1941 16-inch "paired" with 20-50 year old Montgomery Ward retreads. I go them from Universal tire which is a sister company to Coker Tire. Contrary to drivability reviews but consistent with judging rules, I got bias ply. Now let's hope the story's told on this forum about lousy tubes and faulty tires aren't heading my way. Who did your wheel pinstripes or if you did them how did you do them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted May 3 Share Posted May 3 (edited) 16 hours ago, kgreen said: Now let's hope the story's told on this forum about lousy tubes and faulty tires aren't heading my way. I bought a set of Firestone 7.00-15 bias ply tires and tubes from Lucas for my '38 Century two years ago -- so far, so good. I've put about 5K miles on them and they are performing well. Ignore the ridiculously low pressures specified in the shop manual; they are too low. I'm currently running 35 psi in front and 32 psi in rear. I experimented and wound-up with the current values being the maximum before I started to notice an increase in ride harshness. Edited May 3 by EmTee (see edit history) 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted May 4 Author Share Posted May 4 On 5/2/2024 at 5:04 PM, Grant Z said: I've not noticed any wood under the seat of my 1941 76C. Perhaps that's something that was changed! When you say "single speed wiper", do you mean no variation in speed or you just dial in whatever speed you want by turning the smooth rotating dial (like my 1941 model 44)? You have a couple areas on the body with wood as well as the front seat. A wood buck is located on the convertible top frame in the area behind the door glass. The weather strip retainer is mounted to this buck and seals the rear portion of the glass when the top is in the up position. Here's my first several attempts to make one: I used yellow pine and made the draft block like this: The buck is curved (angled) side to side on the narrow edge so the door can be closed to meet the weather strip without binding the glass. It is also curved as is obvious in the photo at the top edge as the door glass is curved. I found that the band saw was the most productive tool, followed by a belt sander (that I wish I had upgraded). I initially tried using templates, but found that fitting and sculpting my draft block was the best method. There a couple easy pieces to make that fit on each side of the rear seat to hold the curved panel used to cover the top actuators. The seat back on the rear seat is attached to a wood panel and of course the trunk shelf is wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted May 4 Author Share Posted May 4 On 5/3/2024 at 4:55 AM, 38Buick 80C said: Who did your wheel pinstripes or if you did them how did you do them? I hired a pinstriper that I met at a custom car show using this detail which credit is found in the image below. My wheels at 15-inch and the drawing specifically says not to use it for this size wheel. I verified the dimensions on an existing 15-in wheel that I had that was in good shape. The dimension that varied was the approximate distance from the seam as noted. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shootey Posted May 4 Share Posted May 4 4 hours ago, kgreen said: I hired a pinstriper that I met at a custom car show using this detail which credit is found in the image below. My wheels at 15-inch and the drawing specifically says not to use it for this size wheel. I verified the dimensions on an existing 15-in wheel that I had that was in good shape. The dimension that varied was the approximate distance from the seam as noted. William c. Anderson’s book Restoration Facts 1941 Buick at page 35 reads as shown in the attachment below. Note that his book deals only with 1941. Years 1940 and 1938 may well be different. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted May 4 Author Share Posted May 4 Thom, that is what Anderson’s book says and appear to match what I have. 1/8 between the stripes and a 1/8-in center stripe. My outer stripes are 1/16th inch wide. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shootey Posted May 4 Share Posted May 4 12 minutes ago, kgreen said: Thom, that is what Anderson’s book says and appear to match what I have. 1/8 between the stripes and a 1/8-in center stripe. My outer stripes are 1/16th inch wide. Perfect Ken. The drawing dimensions of 64ths threw me off a bit. I recently had a sheet metal shop cut some strips measuring 9/32” wide (for an obscure application on my woodie). It was done perfectly, much better than if I had tried it using my tin snips. I guess their shears can be calibrated very precisely. Thom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grant Z Posted May 5 Share Posted May 5 15 hours ago, kgreen said: You have a couple areas on the body with wood as well as the front seat. A wood buck is located on the convertible top frame in the area behind the door glass. The weather strip retainer is mounted to this buck and seals the rear portion of the glass when the top is in the up position. Here's my first several attempts to make one: I used yellow pine and made the draft block like this: The buck is curved (angled) side to side on the narrow edge so the door can be closed to meet the weather strip without binding the glass. It is also curved as is obvious in the photo at the top edge as the door glass is curved. I found that the band saw was the most productive tool, followed by a belt sander (that I wish I had upgraded). I initially tried using templates, but found that fitting and sculpting my draft block was the best method. There a couple easy pieces to make that fit on each side of the rear seat to hold the curved panel used to cover the top actuators. The seat back on the rear seat is attached to a wood panel and of course the trunk shelf is wood. Many thanks for that info Ken. I'm aware of some (if not all) of that other wood you mentioned. It’s just the seat that I wasn’t aware of but I’ve not dismantled the seats yet so I’m sure I’ll find out. Looking forward to meeting you in 66 days in Cleveland. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kgreen Posted May 18 Author Share Posted May 18 Proper 15-inch wheels, trim rings and hubcaps with standard issue 7:00x15 WW bias ply tires. I refitted the wheel shields on as well. That's just the right stance too. 14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now