Smartin Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 Piggy’s been sitting in the house garage neglected lately, so I thought I would tinker with it a bit. Ive never been happy with the carb I got with the car when I bought it. I was thinking there was something wrong in the base plate or primary throttle shaft. Well, I was right. I pulled the carb off in assumption that I could rebuild the one I pulled off Gonzo…but I quickly realized that I replaced Gonzo’s for a reason. The linkage was wrong for 58. So, off to my pile of parts carburetors…and I found one that had the right throttle linkage. Thinking I could use the whole base plate on piggy’s original carb, I set out to remove it from the parts carb. After completely disassembling the baseplate, blasting, and reaming out holes…I realized that one of the secondary bleeds was plugged up. I spent 2 hours trying to clear it with no result. Back to the parts carbs. I found one that looked clean…came off a 60 carb. I had to chop off one ear for the different idle screw adjustment, but other than that, the base plate is the same. Of course, this one had a secondary throttle shaft that was frozen solid. After another fight to get that one apart and cleaned, I was able to finally get it back together and installed on Piggy’s original carb. It fired right up and I let it warm up enough to get a rough idle mix adjustment on it. It seems to run smoother, but we will see if that horrible stumble is gone once I am able to test drive it. First pic is of the old base plat I took off Piggy’s carb. Second is the old primary throttle shaft end (goes toward the choke). I’m pretty sure this was causing a large vacuum leak. Second two pics are results of my baseplate parts search and the remainder of my parts carbs. Last one is of the battery cable end I replaced. Both cables were this type of end, so I replaced them with a pair from CARS. There was a day last time I had the car out when I guess the connection wasn’t great, so it got so hot it melted the lead/zinc end where the clamping bolt is. Fun stuff. So Piggy is fairly happy again. But I have a full tube up kit coming this way for Piggy and Gonzo. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancemb Posted February 13, 2022 Author Share Posted February 13, 2022 That looks like more fun than humans should be allowed. Will be great to have 2 roadworthy 58s this summer! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 My Coker Tire order that I placed in August has been pushed to July for an "expected date of shipping." So I canceled the order and Called Diamondack. I ordered two sets of Auburn Classics in 820x15 with a 2.5" whitewall, for both Piggy and Gonzo. They're over $300 each, but I can't afford not to have tires this year. They don't offer an 8.00x15, otherwise I would have bought them. Even the 7.60's that Lance bought for his 57 coupe are on backorder from Coker. So hopefully my $2600 tire order will be here by the first week in April. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usnavystgc Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 3 hours ago, Smartin said: So hopefully my $2600 tire order will be here by the first week in April. Must be nice to be loaded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted March 8, 2022 Share Posted March 8, 2022 Well, as far as I was concerned, the money had already been spent. I just canceled from one vendor and spent with the one who could produce the product. I am far from loaded 😁 If I was loaded, the car would be on a rotisserie LOL 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Lucas Tire finally came through a couple weeks ago with my 3rd choice for 7.00-15 bias ply tires for my '38 Century. I guess I'm lucky to have them! 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancemb Posted March 9, 2022 Author Share Posted March 9, 2022 $1200+ for a set of tires is less than half of the basic entry fee for buying an old car that has not been driven and maintained and getting it back on the road. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 True words. Nearly every single car I have bought in the last 25 years needs tires. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 18 hours ago, lancemb said: $1200+ for a set of tires is less than half of the basic entry fee for buying an old car that has not been driven and maintained and getting it back on the road. I'd say it's prudent to allow 10 ~ 15% of the purchase price for 'recommissioning' a car that isn't fully sorted... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty Heaps Posted March 10, 2022 Share Posted March 10, 2022 On 3/8/2022 at 11:31 PM, lancemb said: $1200+ for a set of tires is less than half of the basic entry fee for buying an old car that has not been driven and maintained and getting it back on the road. This is what $1200 got me. It runs! And the grill and bumpers were inside 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted March 10, 2022 Share Posted March 10, 2022 I dragged this home last week for $1000, but it’s taking $2000 just to get it to run down the road safely. 10 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usnavystgc Posted March 10, 2022 Share Posted March 10, 2022 One more for the revolving door. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted March 21, 2022 Share Posted March 21, 2022 Piggins got a 200 mile shake down today. After getting it really warm running down the interstate at 75mph +, it was running a touch rough at idle. So I made an idle mix adjustment and it cleared up. I also forgot that my headlights stopped working, so I had to get home before it got dark. Barely made it before I couldn’t see. It was a loose connection at the firewall…which I’m going to have to pull apart and clean. I nearly breathed on it and the lights came on. But it was a successful run today, and it’s definitely apparent that it needs new tires. Sheesh. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted April 10, 2022 Share Posted April 10, 2022 Tires showed up yesterday for both 58’s. Eureka!! Piggy is on jack stands currently while tires get swapped. I did a quickie wire wheel and black painted the outer edges of the wheels. No red for now. I went to move the car into the shop today…and after sitting for almost 2 weeks, it fired up on the first revolution. I was stunned 🤣 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted April 11, 2022 Share Posted April 11, 2022 Piggy feels (and looks) so much better with new shoes. 13 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted May 22, 2022 Share Posted May 22, 2022 I entered Piggy in the 400 pt judging for Lisle...so I have some work to do. I have no idea how I'm going to get it done quickly enough, but I'm going to try doing a once-over on the engine compartment. It's the worst part of the car right now. And if I do that, I might stand a chance at a bronze award. I'm also picking up a flight pitch transmission from Jim Hughes the second week of June. So that will be done before I hit the road for Lisle, too. Also waiting on several pieces of chrome for the front end... I guess I should get started. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 No pressure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usnavystgc Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted May 28, 2022 Share Posted May 28, 2022 Just confirmed that the chrome pieces I sent to CMF will not be done in time for the event. Not really sad or mad at this point, since I have zero time to install. Their initial estimate for turn-around was 14 weeks. I think we are close to 20 weeks now. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted May 28, 2022 Share Posted May 28, 2022 Who is CMF? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted May 28, 2022 Share Posted May 28, 2022 Custom Metal Finishing Indiana. www.chromeplatingin.com Their pot metal work is exceptional. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 11 hours ago, Smartin said: Just confirmed that the chrome pieces I sent to CMF will not be done in time for the event. "Borrow" from Gonzo...? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 No, I had bought nice extra cores, so Piggy and Gonzo are (were) still whole. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted May 30, 2022 Share Posted May 30, 2022 It’s very apparent that the car hasn’t been apart before, which is nice to know. But it’s fighting me at every turn. I was able to get the transmission out today. Both mounts are completely split apart…would explain the violent thunk noise when shifting into reverse. I’m also going to have CARS add engine mounts to the list. What’s another $350? The good news is that I didn’t have to disconnect anything but the parking brake on the rear end to slide it back. I also was able to get the passenger side exhaust manifold off without breaking any bolts. Scratch that….I broke the small bolt that holds on the dipstick tube for the trans. They’re usually pretty hopeless to get out in one piece. I’m still contemplating taking off the driver side so I can make it nice and clean. my goal in taking off the RH manifold was that I thought there was a leak somewhere…or a crack. I found nothing. Now it has me wondering if there is a rusted out core plug in the intake manifold. I’ll know soon. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted May 30, 2022 Share Posted May 30, 2022 Here's my stupid YouTube video on the process.... I am happy to know that I didn't have to do a bunch of disassembly on the rear end to pull it back. I literally just disconnected the parking brake. Time saver...woohoo! 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usnavystgc Posted May 31, 2022 Share Posted May 31, 2022 @Smartin Adam, or anyone with the knowledge. I'm always looking for ways to improve performance and with that in mind, I just have to ask. Do you know if the 58 Flight Pitch tranny will fit on a 322? Specifically in a 56 Buick? Do you have any idea as to what the challenges would be of doing this swap? Are you aware of anyone ever attempting this? You should know that the chances of me attempting this are almost zero. I was just curious if its a possibility. In looking at the specs between a 58 Roadie and a 56 Super, there's about a 700 lb weight difference in favor of the 56 Super (in the case of my Super, there's probably another 200 lbs due to rust weight reduction ). I would surmise that this swap would be beneficial regarding performance and fuel economy. I'm sure there are challenges regarding the rear end splines and other issues. PS: I'm not trying to hijack the thread. If you want to keep this thread clean, you can respond in my Super 4 door sedan thread. I'm guessing this question may elicit lots of responses that you may not want here. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 16 hours ago, usnavystgc said: Do you know if the 58 Flight Pitch tranny will fit on a 322? I think Adam just performed the inverse swap on Miss Piggy because the FP Dynaflow has a checkered reliability record. Hopefully he'll clarify... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 I am swapping the transmission with another FP. This one has a pretty massive front seal leak, and that's beyond my scope of capabilities. It just happened that Jim called about a week ago and said it was ready to go. So I reluctantly added it to my list from hell to get completed before the nats. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 I will add that the FP gets a bad rap because of the "G" grade retard shift position. It was used as a means of braking assistance during downhill grades. If used as a "low gear,", it would roast the transmission. I guess the engineers overestimated the capability of people to learn something new, given the dynaflow's low gear selection was a popular thing to use off the line. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 Can one feel a substantial difference in performance between a regular Dynaflow and a Flight Pitch Dynaflow? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 1, 2022 Share Posted June 1, 2022 (edited) Yes. Flight Pitch is more crisp and responsive Edited June 1, 2022 by Smartin (see edit history) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodneybeauchamp Posted June 10, 2022 Share Posted June 10, 2022 Great video as always. Will be keen to see how you go about the rear main seal fix. I gather you will repack the lower half and use a punch to pack in more material in the top half. Something I need to do on my ‘63 Riviera. cheers Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 10, 2022 Share Posted June 10, 2022 I did the rear seal on the black 59 in this video: 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodneybeauchamp Posted June 10, 2022 Share Posted June 10, 2022 11 hours ago, Smartin said: I did the rear seal on the black 59 in this video: Thanks for that. Feel more comfortable using this method. Much appreciated Rodney 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 15, 2022 Share Posted June 15, 2022 One week until zero hour. My optimism is fading 😅 Every afternoon, I am working for a couple hours to try getting this done. I’ll likely spend next Monday and Tuesday solely on this car, to try and make this happen. Today we started on replacing trunk material, and I wrapped up the trans crossmember and mount install onto the trans. I’ve been over-detailing this stuff as I go, even through no one will look at this stuff. I just hate installing dirty greasy rusty stuff. 7 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 15, 2022 Share Posted June 15, 2022 (edited) I had a helper come today. Local club member and good friend who donated his day to give me a jump on some of the really monotonous items like wire wheeling bolts. I spent the day also working on Piggy, mostly on the blaster…but I failed to get photos. Edited June 15, 2022 by Smartin (see edit history) 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usnavystgc Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 It's always great to have a helper. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted June 16, 2022 Share Posted June 16, 2022 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted June 17, 2022 Share Posted June 17, 2022 (edited) Transmission is in and torque tube is bolted to it. We almost have the trunk material done. Just need to sew a couple pieces together and we can glue it all in. Seeing this makes me want to push as hard as possible to get it done for Lisle. We were short about a 1/4 yard to get all of the pieces cut out of the new material. So we cleaned the wheel well pieces and will re-glue them in. Edited June 17, 2022 by Smartin (see edit history) 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lancemb Posted June 17, 2022 Author Share Posted June 17, 2022 This car will look way better than last time I saw it. Looking forward to it! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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