Projects 1955 Pontiac Star Chief: ChiefResurrection

Indeed and ty, she helped me wrench on cars when she was 6-12 or so, can weld, thats my girl...and she loves this car =)

 

Update

This weekend in WA, Spanaway, is the Lemay 42nd Annual Family Car Show, going to take my 48 Chervy 3100 to it, its my sons truck ive built for him, ill get some pics on that up here soon and a video or two. Its done as far as im going to take it, its his now...but ill drive it to the show this Saturday.

In case you are in Washington, give this a look this weekend!

https://www.lemaymarymount.org/42nd-lemay-annual-show

Lemay by Bishop Schulz posted Aug 28, 2019 at 4:52 PM

 

Update

Hails to the enthusiasts of old iron. I have a new video up for the Star Chief project, dug into the latches and lightly touch on cleaning them. Hope you find it entertaining and as I go through this learning process for videos, I hope the become more and more interesting, funny, and worth the time.

Door latches!

 

On those latches (and other parts), I would be inclined to use Evapo rust, it will not harm zink plating like the acid in Vinegar can.

 

Update

For some enjoyment, some pics of rigs at the Lemay outing I attended. My 48 truck won a trophy, go figure!

My 48 Chevy 3100 Fleetline is there in the middle, rusty but so fun!

20190831_085713.rusty_in_line by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

Ive taken some pics of the racks of cars and left them at full resolution so you can play the "Find Waldo" with them and see what cars you can make out.

20190831_111922.racks Of Cars by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112204.more Racks by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112423.more Racks by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112639.more Racks by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

20190831_122706.more Racks by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

Some trucks!

20190831_112834.trucks by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

20190831_090435.desoto by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_090503.desoto by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_093121.buick by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_093222.54Merc.awesome by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_093419.starchief by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_093956.olds by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_093947.old Inside by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_094140.purple by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_095007.59 Fargo by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:50 PM

20190831_112038.duesey by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

I have a 58 citation (large model) i will restore at some point, so I had to include the little brother here.

20190831_112116.nice Pacer by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112143.50 Chieftain Deluxe by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112259.57 Starfire by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112438.56 Star Chief by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

Love the look of the old Benz...sleek!

20190831_112454.61 Benz by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_112607.57 Super Chief by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:53 PM

20190831_113151.tbird by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

20190831_114423.pacer by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

20190831_122432.tucker by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

Some Trucks!

20190831_112834.trucks by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 7, 2019 at 12:55 PM

 

Interesting, ill look that stuff up, thanks!

 

Update

This weekend I will be replacing the weather stripping on the other three doors, the drivers door replacement went great...a few hours before a heavy rainstorm. And no leaks...from that door....the rear drivers door leaked a bit and some water ran forward...so the sooner i replace them all the sooner the leaks will stop.

Then i'm torn. I think I will get new tires next so i can drive it a bit more safely...the old tires from 1975 are sketchy at best.

Then floor hole fixing....interior removal, cleaning, and installing a new interior...or at least one that looks period.

I need to tackle what to do about the radio too, any suggestions?

Thanks all for following along! More pics in a day or two, and a new episode in the Chief Project.

 

Update

Cleared out the garage enough to hold the Chief for the winter. Working on the rear drivers door today, going to get some footage up soon and pics.

Next video will have some great footage from the Mad Max car adventure and the replacement of the brake booster and its master cylinder.

Thanks for following along!

 

20190915_154817.winter_rest by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 19, 2019 at 9:04 AM

The Chief fits in the garage, just barely. I will keep it inside from now on that I have room, it will not rest though, I will be working on it every week, at least, and post updates here as I go along. The current list of things to do is:

. Weather stripping for rear driver, front and rear passenger doors
. Door motor revival for the passenger front and rear
. new window channels for all four doors, they are broken and rested away in spots,
so the windows are all cantered and wobbly while going up and down
. Water pump replaced
. New set of tires, ill do black walls out I think...someday maybe $250 each is okay for white walls
. Rear end pumpkin seal replaced, drive line refreshed
. Get some road miles on the Chief, it really needs exercise and love
. Drive to a car event, no matter the shape (if it can get there mechanically)
. Replace manifold straight hose with a pre-bent and put air cleaner back in place with fresh oil
. Rust treat and clean under carriage
. New shocks and possible springs, it does list a little to port
. Trunk seal needs to be replaced, its still actually not bad but whomever, back in the 80's did a re-paint,
it was a cheap one and they painted over every door and truck seal, silly
. Remove the old head liner and replace with something better, see about adding a pair
of rear reading lights, period style
. Remove the seats and carpet bits, clean the floor and prepare to replace parts of the Flintstone floor
. Send the clock to (WWW.CLOCKWKS.COM) be restored
. Figure out what to do about a radio and speakers
. Have the seats restored to period, they are 90% okay now, missing bits, but I bet cannot be just sewn up
. Once the floors are good, put sound deadening material on the floor, roof, doors, everywhere
. Install new carpet
. Install the seat solution, whatever that is
. Done really, I plan on doing nothing with the outside other than preventative maint on rust, the Chief
is a survivor and i'd rather not go and do more. Its a struffle enough to do the interior, however
since its smelly, mildew and rank with something that died in the trunk, it all has to go. I will take a
ton of pics of its current inside though before emptying it.

If you have suggests too, please list them!

 

Update

Looking at some old episodes of MyClassicCar, I found SMS, a company in the next state over that does specific interior cloths, and I found mine!

https://smsautofabrics.com/

The majority of the seat is the darker solid pattern, and the insets are the lifghter silver and green swirled/circle pattern.

Cloth For Seats From SMS by Bishop Schulz posted Sep 21, 2019 at 12:08 PM

 

Man i havent updated for a couple weeks! So far works bee really busy. I do have the weather stripping done on the drivers side. Need to do it for the passenger side now...as soon as it stops raining.

I am working on a new vid this weekend covering the brake master and booster install, so I will put the link here later this weekend. Cheers all!!

 

Looks to be coming together nicely. Keep posting the pics. Wish my '55 Pontiac was coming along as well as yours.

 

Update

Thanks @Rusty Heaps, will do, I'm trying to keep them coming at some sort of steady pace. Ive got a new video, it covers the brake booster install but is more of entertainment rather than procedure since I had a local hot rod show perform the work.

I did get down into the bowels of the car and did get my hands messy on this one. Here is the latest in the chiefs resurrection series, episode 5, brakes!

 

Update

Working on the next video and some pics for here on redoing the weather stripping on the four door chariot. Its been an adventure really, and a surprise too on how easy i thought a tough thing would be.

After that its time to fix the passenger side electric windows! Drivers side work fine, i suspect wire or shorted motors...we'll see.

Thanks for hanging in there on the project yall!

-bish

 

Update

Worked a bit on timing, the old 55 engine likes 5 degrees of advance, the books says it would and the engine confirmed that.

So with timing set, I drove the old Chief, about 2 miles...and here is that footage.

 

Update

I have the four barrel intake in hand now for the 55. I debated on a period 4 barrel carb, but I will be opting for a modern four on the engine with electric choke...we'll see how that fairs. So far the two barrel has been moderate, it leaks and is cracked, the choke sorta works and the accelerator pump isnt functional. Ive rebuilt these before but this one is just trashed and can't come back.

20191011_080321.intake In A Box03 by Bishop Schulz posted Oct 27, 2019 at 8:37 AM

I'll post some footage of my weather stripping job on the Chief next. The chevy 1948 truck can door weather stripping is the same for the Chieftain so poof, 50 bucks later and I have a right and left set of stripping.

Cleaned the remains of the old ones off, they were heavily solidified and the victims of the 1980's re-spray of the Chief. The new ones fit great and the Chief now seals up just fine.

 

Update

Started in on the intake manifold. The intake is from Franks Pontiac Parts and is from a 1958 mill. The primary passage inlets are smaller than the normal modern sized four hole carb intake passages we are used to seeing.

I am going to leave it just like it looks, no paint or cleaning or extra grinding, just the patina it has so it looks more right for the car than a full on modification.

However a set of titanium grinders and a few minutes changes that. I am going to put a two inch riser on it and a modern Holley/Demon 550 CFM carb. That's still a fair amount of carb for the Chief but I plan on jetting it a bit smaller and run just premium through it. There is a nearby gas station that sells ethanol free gas so its more like what the Chief was used to long ago. So with lead additive in hand, I think the chief will have a reasonable time running like it was used to.

The tools for the operation

20191026_154338.after Grind THUMB by Bishop Schulz posted Oct 27, 2019 at 8:32 AM

Maybe ten minutes per hole and they are looking reasonably good. The important thing was to relieve the harsh lip that air would have hit entering the intake causing air turbulence and flow drop.

20191026_154334.after Grind04 by Bishop Schulz posted Oct 27, 2019 at 8:32 AM

Maybe the holes aren't perfectly round but for me, close enough!

20191026_154331.after Grind03 by Bishop Schulz posted Oct 27, 2019 at 8:32 AM

The intake should give the Chief a bump of 20-30 horses, i'm really fine with where its at, and I may not notice the extra bump but then again, typical modern cruising speeds of people around me ... well those extra ponies may come in handy.

 

Just curious as to why you opted for a modern carb when you have gone to great lengths to keep the patina, etc. on the car.

The original Rochester 4G and Carter WCFB are not exceptionally easy to find; but the slightly later (introduced in 1957 on Pontiac) Carter AFB is pretty common.

The 4G and WCFB CFM was never published, but comparing venturii area to carbs with published CFM, they are approximately 400~450.

The 1957 and 1958 Pontiac AFB's have some quirks; nothing bad, but somewhat difficult the first time until one learns the quirks.

By 1959, virtually all Pontiac AFB's were 575 CFM built on a 610 CFM frame, and the quirks are history. Use it as 575, or remove the modification and up it to 625.

The Pontiac AFB has the advantage of being calibrated specifically for Pontiac engine. Using the 575 on a 1957 Pontiac 287 might required opening up the idle tubes a couple of thousands, but otherwise should be fine.

You mentioned an electric choke. Not my favorite, but then not my car. The hot air choke on the Pontiac AFB may be replaced by an electric from a mid-1970's 9000 series AFB. If you go this route, would REALLY suggest you try hooking up the hot air choke. The hot air choke opens dependent on the temperature of the engine (takes longer); while the electric is timed. The load placed on the engine by older automatic transmissions can cause stalling at a stop sign until the engine is fully warm if an electric choke is used (I learned this fact the hard way, on my wife's car!!!!!)

Jon.

 

Bishop - since you are new to Pontiacs, might I suggest some "required" reading:

(1) Pontiac Performance 1955-1979 by Pete McCarthy (paperback)
(2) Pontiac V-8's by Jim Hand (also paperback)

EDIT - (3) the factory Pontiac shop manual for 1955

As to your comment about articles here and elsewhere on the 'net have soured you on the period carburetors:

I rebuilt my first carb in 1959. Since then, have done 1000's of them. Professional experience tells me there is no carburetor made new today that will perform as well without MAJOR tuning on your engine (assuming the engine is basically stock) as either the original WCFB or 4GC. And I have been a Pontiac enthusiast since 1964 (GTO!).

As to your comment about converting an electric choke to hot air:

I know absolutely nothing about the Demon (your carb of choice) choke, so cannot give you an answer on that.

Jon.

 

Listen to Jon here.
I've built a few Pontiacs for magazine projects too.
That 287 is low compression, small cam..In other words , set up for a 2bbl. That carb and that spacer is going to do nothing for that old engine, except suck down gas and make noise. Plus, (I'm being charitable here) it looks "out of place".
The best thing you could have done, for now, is rebuild the stock carb or find a similar one, put some duals on it, and drop in a factory HEI and wires. I know the HEI is o/t , but so is that carb and spacer...by a country mile.

 

I would like to see a Quadrajet base gasket set on that manifold. No finer primary metering system than a Quadrajet. 283 CID Chevrolet ran good with two four barrels so maybe 287 Pontiac might be ok with one. The secondary system has the ability to adjust to the CID if it's over 200. The 84-85 Chevy truck carburetor is the best choice and I like the big air cleaner that came on it too. I have a stock 55 Pontiac Star Chief with a two barrel that I want to put an HEI and Quadrajet on.

 

The Q-Jet uses metering rod technology, as Carter has on most of their carburetors since 1929, including the WCFB which would have been original to the Pontiac 287. Many of the Q-Jets used a two-step primary rod. As we stop at 1974, do not know if any of the newer Q-Jets used a three-step rod, as did Carter on the Pontiac WCFB. Some will have issues tuning the three-step rods, however if one has access to the rods and the ability to tune with them, the three-step rod can maintain a more constant A/F ratio over varying vacuum conditions than the two-step rod.

And for a basically stock street engine, the 287 WCFB was factory calibrated for the engine.

You mention the 84-85 Chevy truck carb is your best choice. Again, I know nothing about the carbs after 1974; but if one looks at pre-1974 carbs, the calibration curve for a Chevrolet is significantly different than one for a Pontiac. Typically, the Chevrolet curve will be MUCH STEEPER than the one for the Pontiac.

Can the Q-Jet be tuned? Of course. Acquire a copy of Cliff Ruggles book, a pin vise, a set of number drills from 1 to 80, an A/F meter, and have at it (or just install the WCFB). Again referring to the earlier Q-Jets; be careful when you play with the air bleeds, as the Chevrolet air bleeds and Pontiac air bleeds are in a different location in the Q-Jet because of the significant difference in the A/F curve.

The above is probably moot anyway, as I am unaware of a Q-Jet intake that would fit the 287 without modification, and I do not believe a Q-Jet could be placed on the original intake without a lot of welding and machining.

Jon.

 

Update

Replacing bits of the rubber on the vacuum system, needed to take notes as this survivor still has all the necessary routing in place, just that the rubber has become a solid.

Created a schematic to assist myself in returning this to working in case I need to step away from the process for a week or two and forget what went where.

Did a lot of web searching and found NO schematics for a 55 Star Chief/Chieftain showing the routing for wiper motor, squirters, duel action fuel pump.

So here is one:

1955 Pontiac Star Chief Vacuum Routing_small by Bishop Schulz posted Nov 1, 2019 at 3:43 PM

 

Update

Worked on a wiring diagram, something clear and easy to read and with some colors to help me out too. This is the original one from the book, cleaned up and colorized. Enjoy!

Wiring Diagram.refresh.FULL-COLOR.small by Bishop Schulz posted Nov 10, 2019 at 11:42 AM

 

Update

Small setback for the 66 Mustang, I mention it here as it impacts my work on the 55 Chief...a modern part failed on the mustang, a ball joint, pecifically a tie rod end, outer, failed.

The ball cast as the sphere, the ball itself is cast in two halves...crazy...and thats what happened, it separated into two pieces and just fell apart as the wife was on the freeway, so a screeching road sent her to the side of the road as one tire decided to "Halibut" itself and take the care somewhere the other tired didn't agree with.

20191109_152334.mustang Tie Rod Broke by Bishop Schulz posted Nov 10, 2019 at 11:48 AM

Who makes a ball that fails like that...guess I get what I payed for, 30$ versus 90$ for a tie rod end...so next time, its the 90$ Moog and peace of mind.

Okay back to the Chief!

 

Happy November, Winter, Holidays, fun! And some Knish!

20191109_180907.knish by Bishop Schulz posted Nov 10, 2019 at 11:50 AM

 

Update

This update is not the Chief per-say, its some video content that I have related to fixing a tie rod end on my wifes 66 Mustang. I know you are following this thread for Chieftain work, I am editing that video here and it will be posted in the next couple of days.

In the mean time, if you are jonzing for a 15 minute video on some car stuff you've probably done a few times yourself, and its kinda funny? well here ya be:

Chieftain next week!

 

Update

Thanksgiving has seen some progress on the old Chief, hard to do with below freezing temps and icy rain.

Sent the old dead clock off to get a warm over refurbish.

20191116_185908.clock_in Box by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 8:51 AM

20191116_185957.clock_openend by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 8:51 AM

20191116_190009.clock_peak by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 8:51 AM

20191116_190023.clock_in Bag by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 8:51 AM

20191116_190114.clock_out Of Bag by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 8:51 AM

Clockworks are an awesome team, go see Jerry! They will take such care with your old clock, they offer options for restore, covert to more modern innards, they are amazing! I've had them work on a couple now and i've been overjoyed at the results.

20191116_190248.clock_portrait by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 8:51 AM

 

Update

Before I get more miles on the Chief and his sketchy transmission, I need new circle/spin balloons (Tires).

20191130_tires_outside Before From Waiting by Bishop Schulz posted Dec 1, 2019 at 9:45 AM