Robuick46 Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Hello dear Buick fans. My name is Robert and I live in Germany. Last year in June (2023), I bought a 1946 Buick Super from an older workshop master (a car mechanic with an additional training). He told me that he had bought the Buick himself in the Netherlands from a dealer. Previously, the Buick was owned by a Dutchman who had started to restore the car. But he died before he could finish the project (I hope that was not due to the many worries that the car caused him). The workshop master has finished the restoration. I have already read many reports in this forum and am always enthusiastic about the skills of the members, the stories and restoration reports. I am happy about every new report and especially with which I can learn something. I have little experience in repairing cars, but I am highly motivated. Robert 11 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil morse Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 Welcome to the AACA forums, Robert! That's a great looking Buick you have there. It's the same model and same color as my '41. I'm sure you will get a lot of enjoyment out of it, and it must really turn heads in Germany! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnD1956 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 That is a Super car! Congrats on your purchase! I love the Supers amongst us. How far have you driven it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmTee Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Ausgezeichnet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elpad Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Congratulations! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 Thank you for your welcome. The Buick is in a good condition. The underbody is only provided with a beeswax layer as underbody protection and I have not discovered any rust there (I still have to take some photos and post here). Nevertheless, there are of course some tasks I have to do. I got a shop manual with the purchase and read again and again in the topics to bring my knowledge in order. I renewed all the fluids and oils, filled the steering gear and also greased all the moving parts with lubricant, except the oil of the rear axle. I still have to check the oil level of the rear axle. The former mechanic had (for whatever reason) installed a can with brake cleaner and a hose that went directly to the carburetor to make it easier to start the engine in a cold start. I dismantled it and put the cold start automatic back into operation, which was totally adjusted. I have rebuilt the old oil bath air filter system with a suitable dry filter. 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 After a few trips, smoke suddenly penetrated the interior of the car. I noticed that when the engine was under load, smoke leaked from the crankcase inlet breather cap. I talked to some mechanics and was advised to close the breather cap and to install a hose that directs the smoke directly into the air filter. The problem seems fixed, but it comes with heavier load of the engine blue smoke from the crankcase outlet. I suspect that the piston rings and the oil scraper ring are worn or defective. For the time being, I can drive the Buick like this, although this is of course only a temporary solution. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 (edited) 22 hours ago, JohnD1956 said: That is a Super car! Congrats on your purchase! I love the Supers amongst us. How far have you driven it? I guess have driven about 700km so far. Of course, you get a lot of attention with this car and get many thumbs up. It's a wonderful car. Edited January 21 by Robuick46 (see edit history) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 21 Author Share Posted January 21 I adjusted the carburetor (as well as it went with the manual) and also renewed all parts of the ignition, except the ignition coil (I ordered the parts from Rock-Auto). I have to pre-pump gasoline as usual and after the second start attempt the engine usually runs. After about 5 minutes, the engine runs cleanly on all eight cylinders and also takes the gas well. The idle speed is also fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 (edited) I bought an original 1946 (first edition) manual from E-Bay US, which I had missed. Ups, I made a mistake, my Buick is a model 51 (bad mistake). ...and neither of you reprimanded me Edited January 23 by Robuick46 (see edit history) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 After about 4 months I knew about how the engine should sound in normal operation and noticed the rattling and clattering noises when the engine got warm. The noise came from the crankcase. So I ordered a valve cover gasket, pushrod cover gasket and oil pan gasket (all big gaskets and some small parts) from Cars. The prices of the spare parts are actually okay, but the shipping costs and the customs really hurt.I pay 50-70€ each time. This is almost always as much as the spare parts cost. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 When the seals arrived, I opened the crankcase with the help of a friend and we checked the valve lash together. We removed the spark plugs. I turned the engine on the rotor into position and the other guy measured the valve lash at the rocker arm. I knew from the instructions that we need a gap of 0.015", but the feeler gauge did not fit into any gap. We tried for a while and noticed that the valve lash was set incorrectly. Someone had set the lash to 0.006" (about 0.15mm) instead of 0.015" (about 0.35mm) and we fixed that. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 23 Author Share Posted January 23 An adjustment thread was unfortunately damaged and the lock nut could not be tightened. We have installed a thick washer (in the thickness of the nut). After that I did a test drive and the noises with warm engine were much more pleasant. I also had the feeling that the Buick drove better. 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew_Latvia Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Very, very nice car!👍 Congratulations! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted January 30 Author Share Posted January 30 (edited) Thank you very much, I love this car. My dad had a 58 or 59 Oldsmobile, I have some black and white photos of him and his car, but that was before I was born. Ok, next project. I couldn’t lock my trunk. The problem was that I could only push the key halfway into the lock. I found a thread on the AACA page on this topic and that really helped me to disassemble the lock. So I knocked out the pin and disassembled the lock into its individual parts. Someone had drilled the lock cylinder into unusable. I removed several bent or destroyed springs, bent the "partition walls" and made everything passable again until the key could be pushed back in. Of course, it no longer has the original security level, but it works and the trunk can be locked again. A spring is missing and I made a retaining ring from a key ring. The first photo is from the thread. Unfortunately, I did not take a photo of the disassembled trunk lock. Edited January 30 by Robuick46 (see edit history) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drhach Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Those tumblers are readily available on Ebay and you can rekey the lock to your key's code. It isn't hard at all, I did it :). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AGHodge Posted February 12 Share Posted February 12 Robuick46, Ihr Auto ist einfach Wonderschoen! In welchem Teil Deutschlands bist du? Ich hoffe, das Sie Ihr Auto in Ordnung bringen, damit Sie viele Stunden Freude am Fahren haben. Tschuss! Greg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingrudy Posted February 12 Share Posted February 12 Great looking car, glad that the fix was as easy as setting the valve lash to the correct gap. Best of luck with your "new car". 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 On 1/30/2024 at 11:50 PM, drhach said: Those tumblers are readily available on Ebay and you can rekey the lock to your key's code. It isn't hard at all, I did it :). Thanks for the advice, is there already a post about customizing the door lock or do you have a guide for it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 On 2/12/2024 at 3:27 AM, AGHodge said: Robuick46, Ihr Auto ist einfach Wonderschoen! In welchem Teil Deutschlands bist du? Ich hoffe, das Sie Ihr Auto in Ordnung bringen, damit Sie viele Stunden Freude am Fahren haben. Tschuss! Greg Vielen Dank für die Glückwünsche und die tollen Beiträge. Ich wohne ca. 1 Stunde von Stuttgart entfernt. Ich versuche mit der Hilfe von diesem tollen Forum, meinen Buick so gut wie möglich herzurichten. Ich versuche ihn aber auch, so weit es mir möglich ist, in den originalen Zustand zu bekommen. Es ist noch ein langer Weg, aber ich habe keine Eile, da der Buick funktioniert. Ich lese hier im Forum sehr viel Beiträge und schreibe mir die vielen Tipps von den Mitgliedern auf, um sie an meinem Buick umzusetzen. Many thanks to all members of the forum for the nice greetings and the great advice in the various posts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 My current project is the driver’s door lock. As you have already seen in various photos, the door handle falls down as soon as you lock the door with the key. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 (edited) So I removed the complete interior trim of the door, the door handle and the door lock. The previous owner used a wrong screw to fix the door handle, so it had always been wobbled although the screw was tightened. Edited February 14 by Robuick46 (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 I degreased the parts with brake cleaner and then I rust them with a brass brush. At the door lock, the retaining spring of the door handle mechanism was broken. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 ...after the cleaning and brushing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 (edited) The brass lever of the door handle wobbles a lot, I minimized the gap with a brass wire, which I then soldered. Let’s see how long this will work. Edited February 14 by Robuick46 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 I ordered a repair kit (and other small parts) at Bob’s (again about 70€ shipping costs with customs fees - ouch again). The new spring of the door lock bolt did not fit and I mounted the old spring again (from today’s point of view, I should have adjusted and installed the new spring). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 I painted the whole parts with rust converter primer and then lubricated them. Everything works so far. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 The socket for the door lock is heavily worn.The door lock rotates very far before the closing mechanism is actuated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 I covered the bolt of the door lock with adhesive tape and fixed it to the socket. I poured the shell-shaped socket with liquid metal epoxy glue. After drying, I could easily pull out the lock and then stuck the upper surface. After removing the adhesive tape, the bolt fits perfectly into the socket. In the pictures it looks as if the door lock was fixed diagonally, but I had aligned it at a right angle. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted February 14 Author Share Posted February 14 ...now I only want temperatures above 10°C (50°F) to be able to work in the garage again (and also want to work). Before I can install the door lock and the interior again, I still have to align the window of the driver’s door, because it jams in the upper area in the guide rail. Then I know if I did everything right. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buicknutty Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 That is a lovely car, and I have a '41 Canadian built Roadmaster which is the same colour. These are great driving cars! We are all waiting for Spring so we drive these beautiful babies again. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 The adjustment of the driver’s side window somehow does not work properly and the mechanism when cranking is very heavy. Since the door panel is dismantled anyway, I removed and restored the door window regulator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 The guides are made of leather and in the meantime porous, probably the first guides that were installed in the factory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 Time to be cleaned again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 ...and some color won’t hurt either. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 I brought leather pieces from a saddler and made new guides with my punch. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 I put the leather rings into water and pulled them over the bolt heads. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 ...then I disassembled the mechanics. ...the bushing is fine because it is hardened, but the tread is indented. ...the teeth of the gear are also worn. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robuick46 Posted March 17 Author Share Posted March 17 (edited) I tried to solder the teeth with brass gloss, but I have never done this before and therefore it was way too much solder on the teeth 🙈. With a Dremel and a file I fixed the teeth again. It’s better than before, but unfortunately not like new. I made a spare parts request in the buy/sell section. If someone has a gear left, please write me a PM ! Edited March 17 by Robuick46 (see edit history) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Machine Gun Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 Very nicely done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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