Top-5 V-6 engines according to . . . . (Re: Hagerty's enews)

[WkillGS]

....
 Did you buy this 2.5 gallon tank from Atlantic British?
.....

No..... I bought the non-compliant can and peeled the 'for water use only' sticker off!
It looks like the CARB approved models have the same can, but a different nozzle.

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers,

Hagerty's reports that Edelbrock is moving its headquarters from California to Mississippi as part of a merger with Comp Performance Group.  Here is the full story:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/edelbrock-to-shutter-los-angeles-county-hq-after-83-years/

Sadly, times have really changed from the days when California was the cradle of hot rods and speed parts.

Oh well, . . . . Edouard

[campfamily]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers,

Hagerty's reports that Edelbrock is moving its headquarters from California to Mississippi as part of a merger with Comp Performance Group.  Here is the full story:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/news/edelbrock-to-shutter-los-angeles-county-hq-after-83-years/

Sadly, times have really changed from the days when California was the cradle of hot rods and speed parts.

Oh well, . . . . Edouard

So yes the headquarters have moved, and their legendary facility in the South Bay will close. But sounds like a lot of the manufacturing is staying in California, being moved to San Jacinto. Wonder how long that's going to last......

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers with a taste for automotive history,

Hagerty's has an interesting piece on the curious 8-wheeled car by Milton Reeves:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/automotive-history/the-1911-reeves-octoauto-was-an-8-wheeled-technological-marvel/

Here is a period illustration of the car from the article:



As the article explains it was a novel but very reasonable solution to the problem of harsh rides and poor quality roads - to quote:

Reeves is best known for his eight-wheel, 20-foot long Octoauto, which may seem unconventional today but made perfect sense for the time. In 1911, Reeves modified a 1910 Overland by adding four wheels and creating two sets of four in front and back. Roads in his time were generally horrendous (particularly in rural areas), and since suspension consisted of leaf springs and tire design wasn’t what it is today, passengers felt every bump and pothole. Reeves simply borrowed a design employed on railroad cars, which used quad-wheel “bogies” to distribute the weight and smooth out the ride.

Alas, there was one problem with the concept - once more to quote:

The idea worked brilliantly. So much so that few argued when Reeves began calling the odd-looking automobile “the only easy riding car in the world.” The problem was that it cost too much to build. The four-passenger Octoauto—powered by a 40-horse engine—retailed for $3200, which is nearly $100,000 today.

The article tells the story of this interesting inventor and is an enjoyable read!

Cheers, Edouard 

[Dr Frankenbuick]

The Reeves family also built steam engines in the late 1800s. Milton's father started the company and his brother Marshal built steam engines at the time Milton went into autos.  My great grandfather had restored a mid-sized Reeves steam engine among others. He stoked them all up at family reunions including a small Case he built that I enjoyed driving at about age 10 or so.     

[elagache]

Dear Good Dr. and mid-60s Buick caregivers with a taste for things mechanical,

The Reeves family also built steam engines in the late 1800s. Milton's father started the company and his brother Marshal built steam engines at the time Milton went into autos.  My great grandfather had restored a mid-sized Reeves steam engine among others. He stoked them all up at family reunions including a small Case he built that I enjoyed driving at about age 10 or so.   

Thanks so much for sharing!    Since I also have a soft-spot for steam I really enjoyed the story and picture! 

Cheers, Edouard 

[Dr Frankenbuick]

A little more background then. My Great Grandfather build that small Case from scratch as time was available from 1950-1954.  One of my Father's cousins wound up with it after my GG died.  A college in IL rebuilt the boiler in the early 2000s as a project and returned it to my Father's cousin.  I took that picture while visiting in 2003 and it was running that day. It was heartening to see, hear, feel and and it smell run again. 

MY GG also had a midsized Reeves, as discussed, a full sized Port Huron and a full sized Case stream tractors. They were all amazing to me individually at the time, but even more so to see them all running in the yard at once. Some years they put a huge fabric belt from the Port Huron's flywheel to flywheel on a large thrashing machine. That was a living history lesson to me with all those old guys standing around in bib overhauls running the thrasher and steam tractor as one.

 I know my GG rebuilt some of the other stream tractor boilers by himself after purchasing. Not bad for a one armed man who could not tie his shoes. They were all sold off after his death by my grandfather as well as his model T.  That is still a sore point with my Father. He wanted the T, and would have driven out to retrieve it. But, it had already been sold.   

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers,

Hagerty's had a piece by an auto detailer on how to remove odors from a car. 

https://www.hagerty.com/media/maintenance-and-tech/how-to-get-smell-out-of-car-lemon-law/

The article starts out with a horror story of car odors.  I suppose it shows that even in extreme cases you can get odors out of a car cabin.

The first part is some common sense about cleaning that shouldn't be a big surprise to anyone.  However once you have done everything to clean, the odors still need to be neutralized and in this I wasn't so familiar.  In particular, I wasn't aware of these whole car deodorizing foggers.  Here is the fogger from Meguiars the the detailer recommends.

https://www.meguiars.com/automotive/products/meguiars-whole-car-air-re-fresher-odor-eliminator-mist-new-car-scent-g16402-2

This is the sort of a product that might be useful to apply periodically to your daily driver to keep your car smelling fresh.

Cheers, Edouard 

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers,

This morning Hagerty's shared an opinion from Nik Berg of their English division about bringing back car model names from the past.  The piece is very appropriately called: "Dear car companies: Nostalgia is a deep but empty well."

https://www.hagerty.com/media/opinion/dear-car-companies-nostalgia-is-a-deep-but-empty-well/

The thrust of Berg's comments is to accuse auto makers of attempting to reclaim some past glory associated with a successful vehicle model, but failing to deliver a new vehicle worthy of the name-plate.  Berg lists quite a few examples of vehicles with resurrected names that really don't live up to billing.  As a result, driving enthusiasts are disappointed and glory associated with these special vehicles of the past is diluted needlessly.

There is some healthy food for thought in this piece.

Cheers, Edouard 

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers with a taste for *MORE*!!

This morning Hagerty's has the story of a custom built V-12:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/motorsports/the-mad-machinists-who-built-a-920-hp-v-12-nearly-from-scratch/

Alas, of course these machinists turned to Chevy components since they are the most plentiful.  Still, . . . . . . Ya' think that Matt and his gang at Buick Nailhead could be coaxed into trying to custom fabricate a V-12 Nailhead?

Cheers, Edouard 

P.S.  . . . There is still of course the usual problem.  Even if someone came up with a custom Nailhead V-12, we would have a terrible, simply terrible time trying to stuff it into the engine bay of our beloved mid-60s Buick A-bodies!

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers looking for new tools of the trade.

Yesterday, Hagerty's had a piece on some of the new products debuted at SEMA:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/maintenance-and-tech/4-problem-solving-products-to-help-you-and-your-project/

The list had a clear bent toward restomods, but one item could be useful to anyone attempting to restore a classic. 

The first was a variation on the Holley 4150 carburetor by Edelbrock - the VRS-4150:

https://www.edelbrock.com/vrs-4150-carburetor-650-cfm-1306-plasma-finish-1306.html

The biggest twist on this product is a provision to mount a throttle position sensor.  This would allow you to incorporate some more high-tech devices while keeping traditional carburetion.

The second a modular system of aftermarket electrical relays.  It certainly could be handy if you are interesting in incorporating after market devices in your classic.

The third is the item of general interest - the Plastex Plastic Repair Kit:

https://www.plastex.net/

They provide a series of photo examples of the sort of repairs that are possible with this product:

https://www.plastex.net/Repaired_Photos.php

It definitely looks like the sort of product that could be the difference between making a good looking repair and frustration!

The last item is a distributor for vintage 4x4s.  Certainly an emerging market, but of no interest to mid-60s Buick enthusiasts.

FYI!

Cheers, Edouard     

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers who indulge in "wrenching" . . . .

To our great chagrin, this disagreeable business called aging goes all the way down to our hands.  When getting down and dirty hurts your hands too much, the temptation to find some sort of gloves is overpowering - but can gloves actually work in the engine bay?  Rob Siegel has a thoughtful piece where he outlines an arsenal of gloves depending on the wrenching task:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/opinion/the-hack-mechanic/when-it-comes-to-protecting-your-hands-do-your-work-gloves-actually-work/

This sort of advice seems especially relevant to someone like me who will be getting back to wrenching after a long absence.

Cheers, Edouard 

[option B9]

  Edouard, Good to see that you are posting, we all want to see you back here and soon you will be wrenching again. Hand safety is a great topic. Most of us work on our own Buicks and sometimes other cars too. Usually we keep our Buicks so clean that we don't need hand protection. But when that dirty job needs to get done I have learned to put those gloves on. Absorbing all of those chemicals in your skin is not good.
   The blue 3 mil gloves are a good general purpose glove. But If your doing brakes, cooling system, using carb cleaner or any nasty greasy work move up to the black 5 mil. I've learned not to keep them in the supply cabinet, because if they are not out where you need them you will not use them, so I put them out in the open. I have a smaller hand so I wear large size, but I also keep a box of X-Large 5 mil. So when a friend comes over to talk, while I'm working. I can invite them to help by offering a pair of gloves to fit there hands !!! So far it works every time....
   If I work with paint remover or any kind of acid I have a good pair of acid gloves that I always use. 10 to 15 dollars at you local neighborhood hardware store, after use clean them with soapy water, rinse and let dry. 
Like everything else they do deteriorate over time, so check them for cracks before each use.
    Just putting in my 2 cents on Skin Safety.

             Tony 

[elagache]

Hi Tony and mid-60s caregivers,

Hand safety is a great topic.
. . . .

Thanks for your sage suggestions!  I can remember (and I suppose you can do) when you were working with your dad - what gloves? 

But the suggestions you are making weren't available 40+ years ago.  It is important to keep up with the new technology even when it comes to glove material!

I've learned not to keep them in the supply cabinet, because if they are not out where you need them you will not use them, so I put them out in the open. I have a smaller hand so I wear large size, but I also keep a box of X-Large 5 mil. So when a friend comes over to talk, while I'm working. I can invite them to help by offering a pair of gloves to fit there hands !!! So far it works every time....

These are both good points.  Gloves need to be handy just in case a situation that you thought didn't need gloves - turns out to need them!  What better way to make wrenching a community activity than to protect the hands of your guests!

If I work with paint remover or any kind of acid I have a good pair of acid gloves that I always use. 10 to 15 dollars at you local neighborhood hardware store, after use clean them with soapy water, rinse and let dry. 
Like everything else they do deteriorate over time, so check them for cracks before each use.

I've also come to the same conclusions after damaging my hands with those sorts of solvents.  So I have a pair of these gloves handy as well. 

Indeed if you make working on your car more pleasant, you'll work on it more often!

Cheers, Edouard

[elagache]

Dear mid-60s Buick caregivers who are fussy about fuels,

Hagerty has a quick recap on the issues of gasoline with an increased ethanol content:

https://www.hagerty.com/media/maintenance-and-tech/what-you-need-to-know-about-e15-fuel/

I would expect essentially everyone on this forum would have heard that President Biden has permitted temporarily the sale of E15-blend gasoline through the summer months, a time period in which it is typically banned.

The Hagerty article reminds us of the issues we need to consider in filling up at a station with E15 and reminds us that we can avoid this if we are willing to search for stations selling more conventional gasoline.

It is a quick but prudent reminder of the issues we will be facing this summer as we get our beloved Buicks out for good weather.

Cheers, Edouard