My 1938 Buick Century Model 61

[EmTee]

Back in September I bought Matt Hinson's 1938 Century.  This car was restored by Matt as chronicled in the following "Our Cars & Restoration Projects" blog: https://forums.aaca.org/topic/297623-1938-buick-century-model-61-four-door-touring-sedan-trunk-back/#comments

 

 

I'm starting this topic to continue the car's story as I take the baton and work through the 'sorting' phase of the project.  My goal for this car is to get it reliable enough to participate in pre-war/vintage tours and other Buick or classic car gatherings.  As of today, I've added about 250 miles to the odometer.  The 'fettling' of various bugs and other nits is underway and I'll use this space to update my progress toward the stated goal.

 

Having never driven a pre-war car of any type, let alone a Buick, my first impression behind the wheel was how easy it is to drive.  The car actually looks bigger than it is; it's at least six inches shorter than my Riviera.  It is considerably taller, however.  Inside, the cabin is cozy - again, narrower but taller than my 60's cars.  It feels more like my '56 Bel Air, but narrower.  Steering is light, but has good road feel.  The clutch is also light and shifting is really effortless.  I drove my 4-speed GP the other day after having not driven it for a couple of weeks while working on the Century and it's funny how short the shifter throws and how stiff the clutch felt by comparison...  From the driver's seat it's really neat to see that long, tapered hood extending out in front.  It's also interesting to note how close you are to the windshield.

 

Over the next week or two I'll try to catch-up with what I've been doing since the car arrived on September 26th...

[EmTee]

Christmas came on September 26^th this year!  The Century showed-up at the end of the day, just as darkness was setting in…

The other pictures taken were just too dark to see anything, so I snapped these after parking it in the garage.  Previously I would park the Riviera in this spot.  It’s interesting to note that the Century is actually shorter, albeit much taller.

[EmTee]

One of the first jobs I tackled after taking the car for a brief drive to add some non-ethanol gas to the tank was to investigate a grinding/scraping sound coming from one of the front wheels when braking.  I pulled the drums and checked the brakes at each wheel.  I found that the scraping noise both Matt and I had heard intermittently was caused by the edge of the secondary shoe contacting the drum.  This was due to the shoe having 'jumped over' the eccentric wheel on the backing plate, which should normally be bearing against the back of the shoe.  This appears to have happened because the shoe retaining pin that holds the shoe against the backing plate was too long and not holding the shoe against the backing plate, allowing the shoe to override the eccentric when the brakes were applied.

I found that on 3 of the 4 wheels, the pin for the secondary shoe was about 1/4" longer than the pin for the primary shoe.  The LR wheel was the exception; that one was not scraping and had two of the shorter (i.e., correct) pins holding the shoes.  To fix the problem I wound up shimming the longer pins under the head on the outside of the backing plate to reduce the working length and allow the springs holding both shoes to be compressed to the same (shorter) height.  This seems to have resolved the issue.  Apparently, the wrong pins were included in 3 of the 4 brake hardware kits used when the brakes were installed.

[JohnD1956]

2 hours ago, EmTee said:

This appears to have happened because the shoe retaining pin that holds the shoe against the backing plate was too long and not holding the shoe against the backing plate, allowing the shoe to override the eccentric when the brakes were applied.

I found that on 3 of the 4 wheels, the pin for the secondary shoe was about 1/4" longer than the pin for the primary shoe.

Great sleuthing!  Any pictures?

 

[EmTee]

10 hours ago, JohnD1956 said:

Great sleuthing!  Any pictures?

 

I'll try to take a couple of pics showing the current 'fix'...

[EmTee]

Here's a picture showing one of the pins that I needed to shim to the proper length:

 

I used a 1/4" - 20 nut which was the right height and allowed the fluted end of the pin to pass through.  I considered cutting the pin and somehow crimping (or otherwise 'smashing') the end to provide the 'ears' needed to lock into the spring cup, but worried that the modification might fail later.  Ultimately, I'd like to replace the long pins with shorter/correct ones, but that will likely involve convincing Mike at NAPA to let me sort through his stock to identify the part number for the pins I need...

 

That said, I think part of the issue here may be that the original locking cups (no longer available) were a convex style, based on the illustration below from the shop manual:

 

Here's a picture from Matt's restoration blog showing the original hardware.  Note the spring pin retainers are the 'convex' style as shown in the shop manual illustration.  I may check with Matt to see whether he still has the original pins & cups...

 

 

The style shown above would appear to require a longer pin.  So, maybe the longer pins would work with the original locking cups, but the new ones provided with the installed hardware kits look like the ones shown below (i.e., concave):

 

The interim fix seems to be working, so I'm not in a big hurry to change anything right now.

Edited November 25, 2021 by EmTee (see edit history)

[EmTee]

The car was very hard to start, both cold and hot, so I decided to check dwell, timing, compression and valve lash. My first attempt to set the timing failed because I was unable to see the flywheel marks through the timing hole in the bellhousing.  Following an on-line consultation ( https://forums.aaca.org/topic/369100-1938-320-eight-flywheel-timing-marks/#comment-2277336 ) I dropped the clutch inspection cover, identified and re-painted the flywheel timing marks.  They were all there, but the engraved markings are very light.  The timing was well advanced from the shop manual specification of 6* BTDC.  I reset the static timing to 6* and now the car starts right up, both hot and cold.  Cold start requires pumping the accelerator a couple of times, as the choke is currently open and not functioning.  Dwell was OK, so with timing set, I next checked the compression and valve lash.

I removed and checked the gap and overall condition of the spark plugs.  All eight appeared to be as new, with a sharp edge on the center electrode and tan colored insulators.  Gaps varied between about 0.022 and 0.032 inches.  I reset all to 0.025 inches in accordance with the shop manual.  With the plugs removed I decided to make a cold compression check.  There were three cylinders in particular that were significantly lower than the others.  I suspected (hoped) that tight valve lash would explain the discrepancy, so I proceeded to check the current, cold lash clearances.

 

Next, with the valve cover and distributor cap removed, I rolled the motor through the firing order checking the intake and exhaust valve lash at each cylinder with the piston at TDC on its power stroke.  The specified lash for both intake and exhaust valves is 0.015" (Hot).  I made the following measurements with the engine cold (not running).  1E=0.011, 1I=0.013, 6E=0.008, 6I=0.0.14, 2E=0.007, 2I=0.000, 5E=0.014, 5I=0.011, 8E=XXX, 8I=XXX, 3E=0.012, 3I=0.012, 7E=0.008, 7I=0.009, 4E=0.006, 4I=0.004.  (I screwed up measurement of #8, but that cylinder showed good compression.)  These readings confirmed my suspicion that tight lash might explain the discrepant compression readings.  Again, rolling the motor through the firing order, I reset the lash for each valve to 0.019" (to allow for the cold engine) and verified each by ensuring that a 0.20" feeler gauge would not fit.

 

Lastly, I reinstalled the valve cover, spark plugs and distributor cap.  I started the car and to my surprise, the valves weren’t nearly as noisy as I had expected.  Previously (and not surprisingly), the valves were virtually silent.  I plan to run the engine this way for at least a couple hundred miles before checking the hot lash setting.  That result will determine whether (and how) I re-adjust the lash settings.  If the hot lash ultimately measures close to 0.015, I may elect to repeat my cold lash setting procedure using a revised cold lash target.  I think that the cold method allows much better control over the final lash value than the hot/running method.

[EmTee]

A couple of miscellaneous tasks completed over the last few weeks included installing the rear seat assist straps and mounting my 'new' 1938 NY (YOM) license plates.  Since NC did not require a front license plate, the car didn't have a front plate bracket when I received it.  I contacted Matt Hinson who found an original one in his parts stash that he was willing to part with.  I gave it a fresh coat of black paint and it fit perfectly on the front bumper bracket.  The '38 NY plates I bought online were in quite good shape for their age.  I straightened and touched-up around the bolt holes.  The rest of the original paint looked good (including the lettering), so I just cleared over everything to restore uniform luster.  They look great on the car and complete the period look, if I do say so myself! 

 

 

 

[Machine Gun]

That's a gorgeous car. I hope it brings you many years of fun. I've long wanted a pre-war car but unfortunately I don't have the garage space to accommodate a second Buick. I'd love to see it next year when I hope to make a trip up to the museum in Norwich.

[lancemb]

So cool that this car was saved!  I love the grille on the 38.  The following year in 39 they had my least favorite grille.

[EmTee]

10 hours ago, Machine Gun said:

I'd love to see it next year when I hope to make a trip up to the museum in Norwich.

I'm counting on it! 

[EmTee]

10 hours ago, Machine Gun said:

I don't have the garage space to accommodate a second Buick.

You just need a 4-post lift!

 

[EmTee]

The car is definitely running better.  Starting is much better, both hot and cold.  Oil pressure has been running at about 40 psi (judging by the gauge) and temperature generally hovers around 180 ~ 190 degrees.  On one local trip, however, the temperature climbed toward 200*.  I was able to get home before it overheated, but as soon as I got home and shut it off the coolant boiled-over and puked orange liquid on the floor from the overflow tube.  As received, the cooling system was filled with plain water and with the daily high temperatures here in steady decline, I need to flush and refill the system with a 50/50 water/antifreeze mix anyway. 

 

Another thing I noticed was that both the upper and lower radiator hoses are too long.  Each one has a kink that reduces cross-section.  The lower hose in particular was kinked where it makes the 90* bend.  Also, I noticed that I can squeeze the lower hose completely by hand (especially when hot).  This made me suspicious that perhaps the lower hose had collapsed during the last trip, where I had run the car at a constant 50 ~ 55 mph for a couple of miles.  Following the near-overheating episode, the car seemed to behave normally.

 

I disconnected the lower hose at the radiator and let the water drain on the ground.  Although orange in color, there were no chunks or large flakes observed.  All of the color was due to very fine iron particles.  I removed the upper hose and back-flushed the radiator.  Again, I saw no large particles in the water that was expelled from the tank.  I let the hose run until the water was clear.  I then removed the thermostat, which appeared to be functional.  Rather than tempt fate, however, I decided to replace the thermostat with a used one that I ‘gutted’, leaving just the center opening.  I reinstalled the thermostat housing with the modified ‘thermostat’ (essentially a restriction plate).  I then trimmed the upper hose for length and reinstalled it (no kink).  I removed the lower hose and noted that in addition to being too long, it did not contain an internal coil (i.e., ‘spring’) to prevent the hose from collapsing from pump suction.  I found a used lower hose that I had saved which had a coil inside.  I trimmed the Buick’s lower hose to the proper length (to eliminate the kink) and inserted the coil into the hose before reinstalling it.  I filled the radiator with water in order to test the result before adding antifreeze.

 

Following a couple of successful test trips where the temperature stayed right around 180*, I again drained the radiator and this time the engine (via the water jacket petcock) as well.  I filled the system with 9 quarts of green anti-freeze and topped it off with distilled water.  After driving the car and checking for leaks I let it stand overnight before verifying the freeze point (-34* F) with my hydrometer.  According to the chart on the jug, that value signifies a 50/50 solution.  So, with that, the cooling system ready for winter.

[EmTee]

Note the post above refers to work performed 2 or 3 weeks ago.  Since then, I've been fixing other small issues and driving the car locally at up to 40 or 50 mph for short sprints.  Last week I decided to push it a little harder and ran a steady 55 ~ 60 mph for several miles.  Temperature started to climb above 180* (outside air was about 50*).  When I pulled into the driveway I saw coolant running from the overflow tube and the inside of the RF fender and outside of the RR fender were wet with coolant.

 

The 'rest of the story' is unfolding here: https://forums.aaca.org/topic/371177-1938-radiator-flow-specification/#comment-2298149

[EmTee]

One of the nits that Matt warned me about was the hood struts.  As they were, they refused to hold the hood open for more than a few seconds before beginning to slip on the inner surface of the hood.  If not caught in time, the strut would collapse, with the hood slamming shut on top of it.  Matt told me that the ’38 design for the struts is different than the ones on his ‘37s, so he was not familiar with how they are intended to operate.  After staring at them for a few days (during which time I used scraps of wood to prop them open) I concluded that there had to be something missing.  My solution to the problem is replacing the hex-head bolt holding the strut to the cowl with a bolt modified to include a U-channel to capture and hold the strut in the upright position.  The strut itself is riveted to the cowl bracket through a slotted hole.  The idea is that extending the strut (i.e., rivet against the bottom of the slot) allows it to be rotated to the vertical position, then pushed down into the U-channel to lock the strut.  Raising the hood and pulling up on the strut allows it to be rotated and placed in its stowage clip so the hood can be closed.

 

I started with a pair of ¼” carriage bolts and two large fender washers.

 

I ground the heads of the carriage bolts flat, drilled the center of the bolt head to create space for the weld bead and removed material around the circumference until the heads fit snugly into the washer hole.  I then trimmed the washers so that the upper flat edge fit against the step in the bracket below the rivet.  (This prevents the bolt from spinning as the nut is tightened inside the car under the dashboard.). The lower edge was trimmed to match the bottom of the cowl bracket.  I then welded the U-shaped pieces to the modified carriage bolt heads, filling the cavity from the inside of the “U”.  The backside needs to remain clean and flat, so that the U-bolt fits tightly against the strut bracket.  Grinding the weld flat and some black paint yielded these:

 

 

The last step was to reinstall the struts on the car.  The U-head bolts simply replace the ordinary hex-head bolts that were there originally.  The photos below shows the final result with the struts locked in the ‘open’ position:

 

 

They hold the struts securely, such that I am not afraid to leave the hoods open with these locking channels.  Raising the hood and pulling up on the strut allows it to be rotated to the down position and placed into the stowage clips at the outer edges of the cowl.

[edinmass]

Car looks great........keep putting time in it......it just gets better. You should try and get the choke working correctly........it’s a pain but worth the effort. I used to sell stainless hose springs for lower hoses to prevent collapse......another common issue on early cars getting driven fast. 

Edited November 27, 2021 by edinmass (see edit history)

[dibarlaw]

EmTee:

 Keep at it, things are comming together. The overheating issue solutions on my 37-41 had to evolve one step at a time as you are doing. As edinmas has suggested I had already done the Evaporust treatment for three cycles. I feel that the block was now well cleaned but my problem was caused by the last pocket of sludge that was left from the block cleaning. I should have had the in-line filter. What ever was left in the block purged and packed the radiator solid.       

This was the 3rd cycling of the Evaporust prior to getting the new recore. Then progressive cleaner filter fabric starting with a mud consistancy then down to some scale specs at the bottom right. The bulk of the scale was scraped off the filters and put in the matchbox to show how much was still in the system. Of course this was after the shop that did my car in 2012 said they cleaned the block and cleaned the radiator.

I did take a photo while it was at the shop and they did have the core plugs out.

Only hope was a recore. No overheating since 2015 when it was done. 3 summer time over 100deg trips totaling over 7,000 miles without a problem. The 2017 BCA meet in Wisconsin was a 3,000 mile round trip.

While winterizing my now wrecked 37 I changed out the Gano filter and there was about 1/4 shot glass of rusty scale. Not bad after 6 years.

[EmTee]

While the radiator is out of the car I decided to tackle a couple of other items on my 'To-Do' list.  I previously had noticed what felt like a 'grabby' LR brake when backing out of the garage, so I pulled both rear drums.  I saw evidence of leakage from the LR wheel cylinder and what appears to be some differential oil accumulating around the LR axle shaft in the area around the seal.

 

 

There was some contamination on the shoes which I think I have cleaned-up OK.  While looking the brakes over I noticed evidence of brake fluid leaking from the LR wheel cylinder.   I removed the LR cylinder and pulled it apart on the bench.  Inside I saw new guts, but the bore is badly pitted and I could see marks in the cup seals from being dragged across the pits.

 

 

The RR cylinder is essentially the same, but wasn't leaking yet.

 

 

I looked into having them sleeved (since they appear to be original Delco cylinders) but Apple Hydraulics wants $75 apiece just to install a sleeve. I decided to just replace them with new ones from CARS.  I ordered new cylinders for all four wheels, assuming that the front wheels are similar.  I'll keep the original cylinders just in case I decide to have them sleeved for reinstallation later.  I also ordered the inner and outer axle seals for both rear wheels.  I have the differential drained and will remove the spacer block and axle C-clips when the new seals arrive.

 

 

[lancemb]

Moisture always seems to settle in the v wheel cylinders and rust.  Have you ever heard of someplace resleeving with stainless?

[EmTee]

I know that Apple Hydraulics (https://www.applehydraulicsonline.com/collections/buick-brakes) uses brass.  I'm going to save the original wheel cylinders, which appear to be original Delco from 1938.  Next time I have to service the hydraulics I may have them sleeved.  I believe my master cylinder was sleeved by Apple before i bought the car.

[DonMicheletti]

Kerps Power Brake in southern California re-sleeves in stainless.

I prefer stainless sleeving, I have seen cylinders sleeved in brass oxidize and fail

[DonMicheletti]

Make that Karps Power Brake Service in Upland, CA

[old-tank]

Those replacement cylinders will last 30+ years if you drive the car regularly, keep the the shoes adjusted so that there is  limited travel in the cylinders, and flush the fluid every 2 years.

[Bloo]

Brake and Equipment of Minneapolis, MN sleeves cylinders in stainless.

 

https://brakeandequipment.com/

 

 

[EmTee]

Spent the last couple of days disassembling the rear backing plates, removing the axles, bearings and inner/outer axle seals.  BLUF: both axle bearings were largely free of grease, most of which had hardened and migrated either between the bearing and inner seal (most of it), or escaped the outer seal and wound-up  around the axle and on the backing plate.

 

 

The right bearing cage was 'frosted' with a coating of rust.  The left bearing cage looked better, but both bearings had at least 2 or 3 rollers with pitting on their faces.  Likewise, both inner races had some pits.  The right axle bearing race showed roller marks that I presume occurred while the car was parked for ~20 years.

 

 

 

 

Backing plate removed:

 

 

[EmTee]

Outer seal removed:

 

 

Bearing removal:

 

 

Bearing removed:

 

 

Inner seal removed:

 

 

Awaiting new parts from CARS:

 

[EmTee]

I cleaned-up the backing plates since I have them off.  As mentioned previously, I removed both rear wheel cylinders after finding orange 'scum' under the dust boots.  The extent of the leaks is readily visible when looking at the back of the backing plates.  The left rear wheel cylinder was clearly the worst offender...

 

At this point, aside from some additional cleanup, there isn't much more I can do until the new bearings and seals arrive.  At the other end of the car, i received confirmation from Classic Radiator that the parts necessary for rebuilding my radiator (primarily the new core) have been ordered.  With Christmas right around the corner now, I probably won't be doing much more until after the new year.

[EmTee]

Well, with the holidays over I finally had the opportunity to get back at the '38.  While away for the holidays the pieces I needed (axle bearings, seals and wheel cylinders) arrived from CARS.  I brought my axles over to my brother's shop on Saturday to install the new bearing races since he has a hydraulic press.  The removal and installation went without a hitch once we figured-out a way to grab the old races with his bearing separator.  The issue was the races fit tight to the axle flange and don't provide a gap to accommodate the tool.  After staring at it for a few minutes we decided to cut a pair of grooves into the old races using his chop saw.  My brother applied pressure to the blade as I rotated the axle back-and-forth about 90*.  Then rotated the flange 180* and repeated.  We cut a groove about 80% through the race, so as not to nick the axle shaft.  We were then able to grab the race with the edge of the bearing separator and pushed the axle out of the race without any drama.

 

 

 

With the races installed, I started installing the inner seal, bearing and outer seal on the left side.  I borrowed 1-7/8" and 2" sockets from my brother to use for driving the seals and bearing, as they were close to the outer circumference of the parts.

 

Inner seal installed:

 

 

New and old bearings for comparison:

 

 

Bearing packed and installed:

 

 

Outer seal:

 

 

 

 

[EmTee]

Finally, the backing plate and axle reinstalled:

 

 

...and then the right side:

 

 

 

Next step is to re-install the axle C-clips and button-up the differential.

[EmTee]

Yesterday I reinstalled the axle spacer block and its centering collars in the differential.  I wiped-out the remaining oil from the bottom of the housing and didn't find any debris.  The pin that secures the side-gear shaft for the block has a simple straight-slot screw head.  It includes a split lock washer, so I decided to skip the blue Locktite and torqued it down as tight as I could using my big screwdriver and a 3/8" wrench on the hex under the handle.  I figured there's really no longitudinal stress on that lock screw and it hadn't fallen-out in 80 years, so I reinstalled it as I found it.

 

 

 

Next, I'll install the new wheel cylinders and reassemble the rear brakes.

[avgwarhawk]

Nice step by step! 

[sloperlad]

Fabulous progress and an entertaining read. Following with much interest as I had a mechanic from the prewar Buick club  do the same to my old girl. It is amazing how much work is involved keeping these cars roadworthy. Well done sir. 

[EmTee]

I'm taking advantage of the crappy winter weather to get her 'tuned-up' for spring.  My plan is to drive the wheels off of her next summer! 

[usnavystgc]

Do it.

[EmTee]

Last Saturday I went to NAPA and picked up a gallon of GL-4 85W-90 for the rear end.  I looked at the various options and decided to go for the GL-4 rather than guess whether the alternative GL-4/GL-5 would really be OK given that I think there are some copper shims in the differential.  It holds roughly 1.5 quarts, so I have enough left for a future change and some topping-off in between.

 

Yesterday I finished the rehab on my '38 Century front brakes, so now the car is now off the jackstands and back on all four wheels.  I installed new wheel cylinders on all four corners, as the originals (which contained new guts) were all leaking to some extent due to significant pitting in the bores.  Also found two wheels (one front and one rear) that required anchor pin adjustment to properly center the shoes in the drum.  Cleaned everything up and bled each wheel.  Now have a nice, hard, high pedal.

 

Next job is installation of my nice, new, shiny re-cored radiator!

 

[EmTee]

Now that the rear axle is buttoned-up and all four wheel cylinders are installed and brakes adjusted, I can turn my attention back to the radiator.  First job was to try to do something about the mess she created when the old, plugged-up radiator core backed-up and puked all over the radiator support and front crossmember...

 

 

 

I was preparing myself for the worst, but it turned out that the rusty sludge came off with some detergent and a little elbow grease.

 

 

With that job done I was finally ready to install the re-cored radiator.  Classic Radiator apparently did it right, as it slipped right back where it belongs and I was able to get all six bolts in and snugged-up  tight.  Now, the shop manual implies that the water pump, fan and pulley need to be removed and installed as a unit, however, I was able to remove the fan and pulley first when i removed the water pump, so I went ahead and reinstalled the water pump and thermostat housing. (I did verify the pulley, fan and bolts will go back into place; but that'll have to wait for tomorrow.)

 

 

[Matt Harwood]

Trick for lining up the bolts for the fan/pulley assembly: make yourself a stud and thread it into one of the holes. Slip the assembly on, bolt it into place, remove the stud and install the last bolt. Otherwise you'll spend the rest of your life trying to get the fan, pulley, and water pump to line up.

 

 

 

[EmTee]

Thanks for that tip, Matt!  (It took me 10 minutes to get one bolt in just to find the right set of holes, as my water pump is drilled with two sets of holes, as can be seen in the photo above if you look closely.)

[EmTee]

Well, I was sure I had either the appropriate stud, or at least another bolt that I could cut to make one for the fan.  But, after checking my nut & bolt caddy and digging through my bolt bucket I came up empty...  Instead, I used a smaller (thinner) bolt to line-up the holes and then fumbled and fiddled for 20 minutes (after first dropping two bolts) until I had all four bolts snugged-up and the fan was installed.  I then installed the generator belt and the lower hose. 

 

Before installing the original 160* thermostat I suspended it in a pot of water and verified that it began to open at about 160* and was fully open by 170*.  Conversely, it was completely closed by about 155*.  I called that 'success' and installed the thermostat.  I then stole a pair of ankle-high nylons from my wife and installed one of them into the upper radiator neck in preparation for installing the upper hose.  I want to get a new upper hose to use with the stocking filter.  The hose I have is a reproduction of the original which has a 'wrapped' construction and is quite stiff.  Since the stocking filter is a temporary measure, I want to get a new 'cheap' hose that is more flexible, since I'll be removing it at about 100-mile intervals to check for crap migrating from the block to infest my newly rebuilt radiator.  Lacking only the upper radiator hose and a manual heater control valve (which I also have to purchase) the cooling system is nearly complete...

[EmTee]

Slight change of plan...  I have been thinking about the nylon stocking filter and anticipating a fight when it comes to installing the upper hose while at the same time ensuring that the stocking stays put because of the limited space between the thermostat housing and radiator hose barbs.  That, along with mild paranoia that despite nylon's toughness, it may still be cut (or tear) due to the volume and velocity of the coolant causing abrasion against the header of the core.

 

So, knowing that Larry (dibarlaw) had successfully used a Gano filter in his '37 Special, I decided to get one for myself.  From a picture that he posted earlier in this thread I see he used the clear (acrylic) version.

 

 

Although it's certainly convenient to be able to see what's going on without any disassembly, I went back-and-forth and eventually decided to go with the aluminum version instead.

 

 

In the end, I figured that periodically dumping and refreshing a little coolant to remove and check the filter wasn't a bad thing.  Given the money I spent on the new radiator I also expect that I'll run this filter for the foreseeable future until I'm absolutely certain that there's no more crap migrating from the engine to the radiator.  In that regard, I am assuming that the aluminum body will be more durable.