65 Skylark Nailhead Tribute.

[elagache]

Dear David, Walt, Jim, Bill, and mid-60s Buick caregivers,

This one is done. I am happy with the finish product!!

It's absolutely beautiful!  You did a wonderful job!

I like the fat tires, instrumentation and the retro under dash AC!

Sorry for being nosy, but exactly how did you do the underdash A/C?  I thought of going this route and I try to keep track of all the clever tricks to get air conditioning into a car that didn't originally come with it.

Thanks for sharing photos of your masterpiece!

Cheers, Edouard 

[dlmwtvl]

   I bored the holes in the firewall, installed the grommets, and ran the lengths of hose through.
With the unit installed, figure what ends will work best. (straight, 90 deg., or 45 deg.)
Crimp them on, right there. Do the same for all connections. No extra, or twisted hoses, to contend with.
   The unit is a little noisy. I may put a rheostat, in place of the 3 position switch. That way I can keep the fan turning slowly, once cooled down.
I will get some photos of the routing.

[elagache]

Dear David and mid-60s Buick owners who want to be cool! 

   I bored the holes in the firewall, installed the grommets, and ran the lengths of hose through.
With the unit installed, figure what ends will work best. (straight, 90 deg., or 45 deg.)
Crimp them on, right there. Do the same for all connections. No extra, or twisted hoses, to contend with.
. . . .

Thanks for the info.  That leaves just one key question: which underdash unit did you go with?  Is this the reproduction that Vintage Air sells or something else?

Thanks again!

Cheers, Edouard 

[dlmwtvl]

It is a UD-110 unit, from Nostalgic A/C.

[elagache]

Dear David and mid-60s Buick owners who want to be cool! 

It is a UD-110 unit, from Nostalgic A/C.

Okay, I wasn't even aware of Nostalgic A/C so thanks for the reference!  For the curious, here is a link to the UD-110 system:

https://nostalgicac.com/ud-110-under-dash-a-c-only-evaporator-unit.html

Was there a particular reason why you chose this model?  I'm being nosy because I have a friend in New Mexico with a 1964 Skylark that doesn't have A/C.  He was planning to install the original Buick system, but obviously that's going to be a lot of work.  I'm picking your brain to see if your scheme would be a less painful alternative.

Thanks for the info! 

Cheers, Edouard 

[yachtsmanbill]

When my mom bought her one year old '65 Skylark in '66, I can remember her saying "OOH!!! It has air conditioning" with a Sears unit hanging under the dash. It would freeze you out.  I thinks its perfectly acceptable if you need it. If the car HAD a.c originally, I'd repair that if possible. To retrofit an OEM unit would mean a lot of changes to the firewall, controls, and just about everything under the dash. Its not a simple weekend job. I know a guy with a wagon that cut the holes for the vents and he had a dickens of a time.    Just sayin'....      Bill

[option B9]

 Hi David, The Buick looks great !!! You do very nice work.. Can you post the the front & rear tire size I want the same look on my 65 GS project once it is completed, this summer hopefully...

  Tony

[dlmwtvl]

I went with that unit, as a result of its size and cooling capacity.
 To be honest, I really couldn't find a unit I was completely happy with....
I wanted the one, you could get in the sixties. That cool, under dash, dealer installed unit, with some style.
This one, certainly will cool the vehicle down!!

The rear wheels are 15x8, with a 5" back space. (special order, at Wheel Vintiques) Tires 255/60R15
The front wheels are, off the shelf, 14x7.  Tires 235/60r14
Thank you all!!

[elagache]

Dear David and mid-60s Buick owners who want to be cool! 

I went with that unit, as a result of its size and cooling capacity.
This one, certainly will cool the vehicle down!!

That's good to hear!  When I thought of using an underdash evaporator, I couldn't figure out how to mount the gauges.  I like the way you put the evaporator down low and mounted the gauges further up.  That's a simple but still very elegant solution.

To be honest, I really couldn't find a unit I was completely happy with....
I wanted the one, you could get in the sixties. That cool, under dash, dealer installed unit, with some style.

I share you frustrations on this one.  The only reproduction of a 1960s unit I know about is the one from Vintage Air.

https://www.vintageair.com/search-results/?sqry=672001-VHY

It doesn't look bad, but is large and bulky.  I don't think you mount gauges as you did with this model.  So thanks for the pointer!

Cheers, Edouard