1948 Pontiac Streamliner 8

[SeventhSon]

Way cool car! 😀

[cevensky]

Got my order of LEDs today. I think the gauge cluster needs a better ground because the little bulbs aren’t quite as bright in there as grounded to the battery ground, and the temp gauge reads a little high. The tail lights are fantastic, brake switch needs to be hooked up (ran out of wire), but wow! Keep in mind this picture is the bulbs at “dim.” I’ll put the high beam indicator in later this week. Best part is: plug and play.

[cevensky]

Jeff, don’t be afraid to do anything yourself. Worst can happen is you screw up- at least you didn’t pay labor and you know exactly who to complain to. 
Read above for the explanation about the flashers, LEDs, etc. And previous pages about a 6v alternator off eBay.

This is my source for the LEDs:

https://www.ledlight.com/6-volt-negative-ground-automotive-led-lights.aspx
They have a great array of quality, cheap bulbs made specifically for old cars. I got red LED rears because red is brighter. Also that way I don’t have to buy new lenses for my taillights anytime soon 😁

[neil morse]

On 5/17/2020 at 3:42 PM, cevensky said:

ALSO: the heater core under the seat puts off quite a bit of heat on my ankles... is there a control for it or is it always on...?

 

On my Buick, there's a valve where the hose exits the thermostat housing.  Your car may also have been equipped with this.  The idea was that it could be shut off during the spring and summer months and then opened for the fall and winter..

 

[SeventhSon]

This thread just keeps getting better and better! Keep up the great work!

[cevensky]

Thanks guys, and Neil thank you for answering my most annoying question. I’ll look again for a valve. This looks to be the outlet originally fitted on the pump (afraid to try and take it off honestly), but maybe there’s something under the car!

[Bloo]

 

Those valves were common on cars of the era, as many of them just had a heater hanging under the dash with some little doors on front. The only control was for the fan motor. Without the valve the core would be hot all the time.

 

Cevensky, I don't know what the underseat heaters used originally, but if you can't find any kind of mechanical slider or pull cable for heat, then it probably had one of those valves like neil morse pictured.

 

On older Pontiacs, like my 36 (if it had a heater), the valve and the hose connection are in a goofy adapter at the back of the head, sharing the hole with the temperature sender. It wouldn't surprise me if they kept doing it this way. You can sort of see it here.

 

 

Edited May 28, 2020 by Bloo (see edit history)

[cevensky]

So we have no valve whatsoever to the under-seat heater core. I will change that eventually. My transmission has been leaking so I figured I’d put some kind of liquid fix in (that never works in my experience). Well, Lucas stop-slip and 2 quarts of atf made that transmission run like a dream. Wow. Smooth shifting, stopped the leak, and yes it was very dry due to my underestimating the leaks.

The next day it didn’t shift quite as well, so I’ll put another bottle of the Lucas product in, it’s thick but not terribly so. I let my neighbor (who helped me time it and adjust the choke) drive it up and down the street and he really enjoyed it. Improving day by day.

[cevensky]

Not that it was rough, but it was popping some on idle at the exhaust, so I borrowed a timing light but I’ve been unable to see the marks so far. Even popping the starter along to see the whole flywheel... but with the timing light, is it possible I have the flywheel on wrong? If I recall, there was only one way for it to go on. According to the manual, the flywheel marks are massive and easy to see, but I see nothing. I did retard the timing, it helped things a lot. Carburetor/choke adjustments are now necessary because it’s having a hard time starting, I think mainly due to maladjustment of the starting position of the automatic choke but I’m sure the points need to be replaced or adjusted. Letting it sit and idle for 10-15 minutes gets it running at 200-205°F according to the original gauge, but as long as it’s moving, it’s less than 180°F always. Maybe that indicates I’m idling too fast.

 

[jeff53]

Does anyone know where I can find the Spec./Recipe tech. sheet for getting the correct colors for a 1948 Pontiac ( 4 door) .  I have the correct color names  and numbers. Blue Lake Blue Metallic and Oyster Gray.. I know I should be able to give the names to the Automotive store- but with my luck It'll be "what they think it should be".  

 

[PONTIAC1953]

On 6/2/2020 at 10:41 PM, cevensky said:

So we have no valve whatsoever to the under-seat heater core. I will change that eventually. My transmission has been leaking so I figured I’d put some kind of liquid fix in (that never works in my experience). Well, Lucas stop-slip and 2 quarts of atf made that transmission run like a dream. Wow. Smooth shifting, stopped the leak, and yes it was very dry due to my underestimating the leaks.

The next day it didn’t shift quite as well, so I’ll put another bottle of the Lucas product in, it’s thick but not terribly so. I let my neighbor (who helped me time it and adjust the choke) drive it up and down the street and he really enjoyed it. Improving day by day.

no, according to the pontiac master parts catalog, 42 to 48 pontiacs used the same heater water control valve, i suspect you'll find it by chasing the heater hoses from the engine to the defroster assembly, different than what i have in my 1953 pontiac chieftain set up a little.

[PONTIAC1953]

Your heater water valve.

[PONTIAC1953]

Your defroster and under seat heater system 

[cevensky]

Thanks for the info, Charles. I have chased, and based on the picture there, that valve isn’t in line from the pump to the under seat heater. This means that hot water is always going to travel at some rate-or at least transfer heat- to the under seat core. The valve pictured looks like a component present on the passenger side of my under dash apparatus, which controls the amount of hot water going through the defroster core. Not terribly worried, it isn’t near cold here yet.

I got my “signal lights” cleaned up and tested, picked up a 6v flasher from napa, and with 75 feet of wiring, I should be able to get the turn signal and brake lights working this week. I slipped some asphalt loom (couldn’t find cloth like it had originally, but this works fine) over the signal wires and have my new hood release in, which works very well.

Edited June 25, 2020 by cevensky (see edit history)

[PONTIAC1953]

On 6/24/2020 at 11:50 AM, cevensky said:

Thanks for the info, Charles. I have chased, and based on the picture there, that valve isn’t in line from the pump to the under seat heater. This means that hot water is always going to travel at some rate-or at least transfer heat- to the under seat core. The valve pictured looks like a component present on the passenger side of my under dash apparatus, which controls the amount of hot water going through the defroster core. Not terribly worried, it isn’t near cold here yet.

I got my “signal lights” cleaned up and tested, picked up a 6v flasher from napa, and with 75 feet of wiring, I should be able to get the turn signal and brake lights working this week. I slipped some asphalt loom (couldn’t find cloth like it had originally, but this works fine) over the signal wires and have my new hood release in, which works very well.

where your temp control linkage or cable goes to is where your water valve is going to be, the longest line of hoses or hose is the water return from the heater back to the engine. the shortest hose pictured is the hot water supply going from the cylinder head to your water valve.

[cevensky]

It’s been a tad too hot to be in a closed car doing the wiring that needs to be done, but I have been driving it. Holds at 180°F on the gauge (which may be closer to 165°F I suspect, I need an IR thermometer) as long as we’re moving. If I sit and idle for 5 minutes or so, it gets to 200 on the gauge, and it’s hard to get it back down with any amount of driving. 
So since I can’t do much work with this heat and school keeps me tired, I decided to spread myself out even more by diversifying the fleet a bit. Couldn’t pass it up.

[r1lark]

Neat Caddy..............does it run/drive?

[Laughing Coyote]

Found the twin. https://tucson.craigslist.org/cto/d/tucson-1956-cadillac-deville-coupe/7173164524.html

 

[cevensky]

Sure does. I haven’t driven it, but when I went to first look at it, I put a battery on it, sprayed, and it roared. It didn’t do that today with jumper cables to the tractor, but it will be a nice addition and for $3000 I would’ve let it go had it not started. Bit fancier than my Pontiac, but gotta have the best of both worlds. 

[r1lark]

11 hours ago, cevensky said:

Sure does. I haven’t driven it, but when I went to first look at it, I put a battery on it, sprayed, and it roared. It didn’t do that today with jumper cables to the tractor, but it will be a nice addition and for $3000 I would’ve let it go had it not started. Bit fancier than my Pontiac, but gotta have the best of both worlds. 

 

Great! I really like the '50s 4-door hardtop styling. And, it looks like it has air conditioning?

[SeventhSon]

I love the old Caddies. Is that one missing the windshield?

[John S.]

Factory air ! Good lick on the Caddy. John

[cevensky]

It is missing the windshield. They’re expensive, but available. I rebuilt the carb, won’t idle. Time to take all the bolt ons off and find an vacuum leak. 
I digress. 
I’ve been driving the Pontiac regularly with great success. The paint is terrible, so I decided to try various grinding methods/tools. I was very surprised by a flap disc and can only say “wow.” I’ve been stripping with wire wheels and could have had the whole car in bare metal in a couple afternoons if I’d known about flap discs. Anyway, for about $50 of supplies, I mostly stripped and painted the front of the car. It looks better because it’s uniform, but needs sanding and another couple coats (plus a buff) to look really good. However, I think it’s very achievable to get a good reflective, glossy black with this $6 paint.

More work to be done, but I’m pleased with four hours of work. Obviously I’m just playing around because this thing is dinged and banged up... a lot.

Edited September 20, 2020 by cevensky (see edit history)

[cevensky]

So... I realized the other day that I’ve been running my engine on the distributor from the later (post-49) straight 8 I got from Georgia. I rebuilt the one that came on my engine after I  found yesterday. Engine’s been running well, but I wonder if this will make it run perfectly... maybe this is the reason I was unable to see timing marks with the engine running well before? We will see. 

[cevensky]

Hope I’ll have a second this weekend to pop it on. Everything should be set right, will probably have to retime the engine a bit. In the manual, it has specific instructions per the wiring diagram as to the orientation of the distributor (shows where points vs condenser should be in relation to engine) and also where the #1 cap position should be... does this matter?

(also if anyone needs a functional post-48 distributor, I guess I have one for sale).

[cevensky]

Hmm the camera makes it look much better than it does in person. This is just one coat over most of the car. It needs a good bit more and a lot of sanding, the roof has considerable dents and waves from hail and branches but the overall impression is much better now that there’s paint on the roof! Made me feel much better, $6 paint ain't bad! 

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Looks GOOD, guy. Looks good.  

 I must have missed something. What is this $5.00 [ $6.00]  paint of which you speak?

 

 Ben

 

 

[cevensky]

Haha thanks Ben, it’s $6 a can with tax. Each can covers pretty well and it dries well even if you don’t do thin coats, hard enough to sand after a few days in this humid climate. 
Rustoleum automotive enamel. It comes in red, white, black, and clear. I’m pleasantly surprised. I tried a spray lacquer by rustoleum and was not impressed. Enamel is the way.

[r1lark]

cevensky, I applaud you for working hard and smart to improve your car!  As you are showing, a full blown re$toration is not needed to have a decent car that you can have fun with. 👍

Edited September 20, 2020 by r1lark (see edit history)

[cevensky]

Thanks lark, just having some fun and I do like “re$toration.” I’ll be using that. 
The paint keeps getting better and better with more sanding and more coats. It’s hard to get a perfect finish on dented upright panels with cracked paint, a rattle can, and all the bugs and leaves Louisiana has flying around. Getting there though. 
The new distributor went on the other day and it runs totally differently... oops! But now I can see timing marks! Honestly, the previous distributor kind of “hopped up” the engine, but it does run a little smoother and no popping now. I still can’t adjust the idle any lower, is it appropriate after backing the idle screw out all the way to bend the pump rod? 

[jeff53]

Okay guys--- To begin with thanks for all your help,just a shame I had to bother you guys- but you guys seem to know your sh*t pretty good. Now me being an old greenhorn I have another question actually more but I'll stick to the painting part for now. You guys have guided me correctly so here's the greenhorn question that couldn't be found on youtube.....Details you may need for you answer...  My pontiac was originally a 2 tone-- so I decided to stick with that scheme when I was trying to get the pros to paint my car.

     The top part is considered charcoal gray metallic-- I got that done and it does have "clear coat on it" and as you can see the clear coat looks shiny in some areas and not in other areas -- someone mentioned I could simply wetsand the clear or buff it out later. so I moved on and did the bottom as you can see.. and yes the runs are gone and it looks okay ( not perfect nut green horn perfect) Now it's time to put the "clear coat" on the bottom.. Here's the question-- do I put clear coat over the whole car or mask of the top and just add it to the bottom. 2nd question If I wetsand the "top" do I have to reapply the clear coat" what grit?  or will buffing do the job?

    1 more thing awhile back, I was concerned about my serious asthma problems and working with urethane and pot life and all that stuff. I contacted Macco and price was way upthere. plus things they wouldn't or couldn't do. If this helps anyone and by no means am I recommending it- but it worked for me. I used a painters mask with the 2 filters and under that I had a dust mask. Those 2 together did restrict my air more( naturally) but I gave me enough time to paint a section--- go outside catch 15-30 minutes of fresh air..... What I did also was mix up enough to paint the whole complete area I wanted to paint. What didn't fit in the spray gun cup- did fit in a Sargento parmesan  cheese container and those have lids that also fix a measuring paint cup. This way I only had to mix paint once for that day. I put the 2nd coat on within 24 hours( aka  the next day)....  I put the 2 mask on together just before painting- after checking the pattern/ mixing the paint and while doing that stuff I wore 1 mask.... Warning for those with breathing problems--- If you even begin to feel a little light headed--- stop go get fresh air... I was worried about the pot life--- don't- 1 doctor/hospital visit will cost more than the paint.... 2 I kept my nebulizer within 50 feet and with the mixture in the cup.  I also to the time to see about how long I could handle 2 mask- before I even started- I worked in the yard with both on...1st.

   But for any other greenhorn follow these guys advice always 1st take your car to Maaco- if you don't have the right PPE. or like the one person said--- you might get your car painted - but someone else may end up driving it. I only attempted this because I was out of options.

  Here's some photos-1st photo April wo17 ,drove to a shop this way ,rattle can by me and I wanted at least a Maaco quality job -- 3 days work,--- 2,3 photos I put a stop too... but this was after 4-5 months at a shop-   we ended up in court. last 2 is where I'm at now I don't have photos of what was done from another pro- from Dec. 2018- July 2020.

    The photo is of my brother and I in'74...... I didn't think too ask "how to save the paint job back then- Az. sun faded the paint and it was kind of chalking-- Didn't realize all it needed was maybe just some buffing and polishing

[GARY F]

I feel for you with your breathing problems. One question. Did you put epoxy primer on, then 4 coats of color and 4 coats of clear. Put the clear on right after the color. That is the way I did mine. The next day start wet sanding with 1500, then 2000. Then buff and polish. I don't know how to attach a photo of my buffer but it is Makita  variable speed and I used it at 1500 RPMs. It cost $200.00 so it is a good one.  Good luck and I enjoy following you.

[cevensky]

Hey Jeff- I think you might be better served to start your own thread for your project. It would make it easier for us to follow your project and for others to provide you with the help you need without getting our cars mixed up!

good looking paint, wish I had the space and cash to do that after proper body work!

[jeff53]

14 hours ago, cevensky said:

Hey Jeff- I think you might be better served to start your own thread for your project. It would make it easier for us to follow your project and for others to provide you with the help you need without getting our cars mixed up!

good looking paint, wish I had the space and cash to do that after proper body work!

 I'll try and start a new thread- just gotta figure it out - not to computer savvy, but thanks for the suggestion. As far as room goes I don't have a lot either- and I can't spray outside either- my neighbors have a pool and wouldn't be right for me to send paint dust their way when the wind blows... So what I did was tackle Wally World ( Walmart) nought 3-4 or more of their 9x12 plastic rolls that come in small box and in different thickness including the kind of clinging stuff..(auto store charges too much) then told my wife it's either get it done this way now or wait 'til winter and her car would be parked outside  most of the winter or pay thousands to try another another "Pro"...  Sh e opted for now... So with the 9x12s I went to work using blue painters tape.. Even figured a way to put it on the garage door so I could have a place to make test patterns ( ok,ok, so I wouldn't get killed ).... I had to paint the doors on the car because their was no way to stand them up and I don't bend so swell at this age. Only thing I wish I had done was pay the lousy extra $100 bucks and bought another set of 10,000 lumens LED shop lights--- There are spots that are thin by the front of the left headlight.

 I would never recommend urethane paint too anyone without some experience... I had none and my biggest problem was having to get the other coats on "within" the 24 hour period or scuff everything up and put another layer of paint on... now cold weather is setting in and I have to try and finish when it's above 60-65 to put the 
clear coat on the bottom- therein lies the headache- 48 hours ago I painted the bottom and now it's to late to spay clear or repaint that front area...I was told I have to scuff up everything if it's longer than 24 hours. Anyhow-- if you have a 2 car garage and a very understanding boss (my wife) you can do it..

  Oh I only went with urethane because I was told to stick with the same kind of paint all the way thru 
urethane based"... If I had known what I know now before I started------ I would've stripped what the pro did, back down to the metal- and started with either lacquer or enamel--- because I had no intentions it being a show car..... that's for someone much younger and with big bucks...

[jeff53]

15 hours ago, GARY F said:

I feel for you with your breathing problems. One question. Did you put epoxy primer on, then 4 coats of color and 4 coats of clear. Put the clear on right after the color. That is the way I did mine. The next day start wet sanding with 1500, then 2000. Then buff and polish. I don't know how to attach a photo of my buffer but it is Makita  variable speed and I used it at 1500 RPMs. It cost $200.00 so it is a good one.  Good luck and I enjoy following you.

Well it was a "prof. x  auto paint shop owner that started-- he put Evercoat Epoxy/ Primer/Surfacer on the 4 doors/hood and trunk lid and started in 2018 ( that's why I finally decided to  get the parts back and finish) What the problem I think began- was he painted the underside of the trunk lid with the urethane based color coat and clear coat. So being inexperienced I asked the auto store what would they suggest. Simple ans... stick with urethane based products all the way thru so I did, not knowing how bad fumes would be.  I should have undone everything and taken it back to the metal and either put lacquer or enamel on... it's was never intended to be in a show or compete.

          There are not 4 coats of either on ( clear or color)... The top ( black area)has 2 maybe 3 coats of color and only 1 coat of clear and the paint is metallic

[retirednow]

5 hours ago, jeff53 said:

 I'll try and start a new thread- just gotta figure it out - not to computer savvy, but thanks for the suggestion. As far as room goes I don't have a lot either- and I can't spray outside either- my neighbors have a pool and wouldn't be right for me to send paint dust their way when the wind blows... So what I did was tackle Wally World ( Walmart) nought 3-4 or more of their 9x12 plastic rolls that come in small box and in different thickness including the kind of clinging stuff..(auto store charges too much) then told my wife it's either get it done this way now or wait 'til winter and her car would be parked outside  most of the winter or pay thousands to try another another "Pro"...  Sh e opted for now... So with the 9x12s I went to work using blue painters tape.. Even figured a way to put it on the garage door so I could have a place to make test patterns ( ok,ok, so I wouldn't get killed ).... I had to paint the doors on the car because their was no way to stand them up and I don't bend so swell at this age. Only thing I wish I had done was pay the lousy extra $100 bucks and bought another set of 10,000 lumens LED shop lights--- There are spots that are thin by the front of the left headlight.

 I would never recommend urethane paint too anyone without some experience... I had none and my biggest problem was having to get the other coats on "within" the 24 hour period or scuff everything up and put another layer of paint on... now cold weather is setting in and I have to try and finish when it's above 60-65 to put the 
clear coat on the bottom- therein lies the headache- 48 hours ago I painted the bottom and now it's to late to spay clear or repaint that front area...I was told I have to scuff up everything if it's longer than 24 hours. Anyhow-- if you have a 2 car garage and a very understanding boss (my wife) you can do it..

  Oh I only went with urethane because I was told to stick with the same kind of paint all the way thru 
urethane based"... If I had known what I know now before I started------ I would've stripped what the pro did, back down to the metal- and started with either lacquer or enamel--- because I had no intentions it being a show car..... that's for someone much younger and with big bucks...

I agree with cevensky. If you can post here, you can start your own thread. It’s very easy. Just click on Our cars and restorations and hit the start new topic button at the top of the page. Posting stuff about your car here just interrupts the flow of the op’s progress, and your car will be the sole focus of its own page

Edited October 2, 2020 by retirednow (see edit history)

[jeff53]

12 hours ago, retirednow said:

I agree with cevensky. If you can post here, you can start your own thread. It’s very easy. Just click on Our cars and restorations and hit the start new topic button at the top of the page. Posting stuff about your car here just interrupts the flow of the op’s progress, and your car will be the sole focus of its own page

Okay ,thanks

 

[cevensky]

Thanks for the understanding Jeff, it’s mostly out of self interest because I’d love to see another thread where you can post each and every update on another 48 Streamliner! If you need help starting a thread, send me a message.

 

Making paint progress when I have free weekend days without call at the hospital. I think I’ll try a spray of the clear coat I used back when on my dash project. Next up is getting the new trunk lid I got a while back sanded and painted. It should turn out nicely. Compare this picture to the first picture I took of the hood after paint a few posts back. 

[cevensky]

Went ahead and painted the new to me trunk lid today. Unfortunately a lot of the clips that hold the trim down broke but two are enough for now, I’ll probably take it off eventually to do a some filler in the places where it needs it. Overall much better, but I’ll also need a new trunk handle, the rest of the mechanism is ok but my handle is just trash. Also got the trim painted, looks really sharp. 

I also banged out the really deep rear fender dent and painted it, although it will also need some filler.

Waiting on some better weather to finish the brake lights and turn signals. I really need to change the oil and get a new set of spark plugs now that I have the proper distributor and the timing more or less set, it stumbles on fast acceleration from idle and is loud in the engine compartment... maybe an exhaust leak? Maybe valve clearances need to be set again? 

Edited October 11, 2020 by cevensky (see edit history)

[Ben Bruce aka First Born]

Keep up the good work!  Looking good.

 

  Ben