Projects New Project: 1953 Oldsmobile

I like it.

 

One cool ride!

 

That is period perfect for about 1955. Sounds great too.

 

I'm not signed in and the link works for me. Sounds great!

 

Awesome.

Yeah, I don't Instagram and it played fine on my cell.... Sounds awesome.

 

IDK, it goes straight to a sign in or create an account page for me with no way that I can see to play it!

 

Worked fine for me and I don't do instagram. And FOR SURE those will get you pulled over.

 

Hell yeah, lol. Even with my flathead if I see a cop, I accelerate from the stop sign realllllllllly slow.

 

I had a '65 Chevy panel truck, just dropped a warmed over 283 into it, open headers no hood. Of course took it for a ride. Goosed it too close to a cop car... he's looking all over to find where the noise is coming from. Never associated it with the truck.

 

Not really an update, but just wanted to say, good lord I love these pipes! I just can’t get over it.

Had some crappy weather and got the car cleaned up tonight. Gonna go skirtless for a little while.



So, good new / bad news. I ended up getting the OT car, so now I’m back to necessity parts only for a while on the Olds. I’m really happy I got all of the major work done recently. There’s still a spot to patch in the trunk, but I’ll have to drop the fuel tank.

I’m sure I’ll be back soon with something broken. Till next time!

 

Alright, latest idea that I think is good that may actually be bad.

My wife bought of of those cricut things that makes decals. So far I’ve gotten some cool stuff out of it.




So here’s the actual bad idea part…

I love Pinstriping. I just can’t justify the money to have it done professionally on a car that has a crappy paint job. It’s on my list of things I want to have done eventually.

Till then, how ridiculous would it be to just cut out some decals for right now?

I’m thinking about this in white above the trunk latch.


And this above each headlight.


Alright, let me have it…

 

JUST DONT ! seriously dont... Its like getting a shitty scratched tattoo because you cant afford a good one. Its better to just save up and do it proper. Edit: its been a dozen years since I had a car striped but it really wasnt to expensive at all.

 

Go for it, not everyone can afford to have their car striped by a pro, but you can still add to the looks of your car until you get the car painted and can afford to get it striped by a pro!

 

I think I’ll at least try it out. It’s not permanent, so I can always rip it off. Maybe I’ll wait for the paint to fade more then take it off.

I just used a little bit of card stock to get an idea. Gonna try the ones above the headlight for sure (white obviously).

 

I like the white, but I think I’ll only do one above each headlight and be done.

 

I think it is a great look and if you don't like it... off it comes. This could be a nice side business.

 

Hey again all! Nothing broken, mostly.

Decided to clean under the hood last night for a show today. I couldn’t believe how well it all cleaned up. Helps that I did a tune up as well with new wires.






It was a show downtown at our new SoCal Speed Shop. Mostly cloths right now, but couldn’t help but get a few shots.




It’s finally starting to heat up again. My shroudless fan isn’t keeping up in traffic again. Before I build a new shroud for my fan, I’m going to try going back to my old electric fan and add some flaps to it for cooling on the highway. The fan always did great in traffic, so maybe this will be all I need. Pretty sure one of you recommended these to me somewhere along the way.



Bought four. I’ll report back on how they do in a week or so.

 

Where do the flaps go? This is a new one on me. I have a Spal 16" fan on my car that works well when I'm stuck in traffic, normally the car runs at 180 all day.

 

I’ll put one on each corner of the shroud and cut a hole a little smaller to match. The idea is that when the fan is on, it will pull them shut and pull all of the air through the radiator. When I’m on the highway, the should flap open and allow more air to pass over the radiator.

The whole reason I pulled it out to begin with was I couldn’t cool properly at 65+. Always did perfect in town though.

 

here is the Spal I had on my 64 Biscayne with my 348. It worked like a charm, never had an issue with the cooling. Flaps top and bottom.

 

Well, that ended up being a huge waste of time. I think the old electric fan has gone weak. Got everything reinstalled and it couldn’t keep the car below 200. Put the mechanical back in and it was perfect. Time to build a shroud for my mechanical fan.

 

Sounds frustrating; I feel your pain. But I suppose the combination of the mechanical fan with the custom shroud should probably be a winner--even if it requires the most effort. It'll be worth it when you're done. And on the bright side, now we all get to sit around and enjoy watching you whip up a shroud for your mechanical fan. Looking forward to it.

 

Listen, I know it’s not perfect. But if you’ll just ease back those expectations of yours just a hair, and squint your eyes, and only look at them from this angle, I’d say these cheap Amazon seat covers are just what Baloo needed.

Probably not.

 

Listen man, don't back up from that. We all do what we can do when we can do it. That is a BIG improvement no matter what. Is it the upholstery you want in time?--NO-- will it do for now? Hell yes it will.

 

Ok, question and an update time.

I’ll get the question over with; are there shops that can adjust wires wheels and make sure they’re set properly?

Quick story leading up to why I’m asking:


I got a flat tire yesterday. Which is a pain in the ass on my car. I have to disconnect the shocks and sway bar links to drop the rear end far enough to put a full size tire on. Didn’t have acorn nuts to match the threads for the back, so had to put the spare on the front and move a whee yo the back.

So that was fun.



Tire is already patched and put back on. I’m good to go.

Since my rears are a pain to get to, I decided to swap my newest tires (a few months old) to the back so I can plan ahead and replace the fronts (including the tire I just patched).

Ok, getting closer to why I asked.

I’ve had some steering wheel vibration and a severe pulling to the right for a long time now. I had a front end alignment and they told me it’s possible my frame was bent.

With the newest tires on the rear, my steering vibration is gone, so is the pull to the right. However, at 65/70 now I can feel a vibration in the seat, indicating it’s originating from the rear.

I figure it’s possible the new tires may have something wrong, but I’m also wondering if it’s the wheels themselves. So again, what kind of shop could adjust wire wheels for me and make sure they’re ok?





One more update, I hit up the lonestar round up last weekend. Damn it felt good to get back. The Olds cruised from Waco to Austin and back with no issues.

 

Chances are that your previous pull was a radial pull. Seen it many times. With black wall tires one flips the tire over and in 99% of cases it goes away. With ww's put it on the back as you have done. End of that issue.
If the tires are tubeless you could put some balance beads in the suspect. Tire stores sell them. They come in a small bag and if I recall you just throw the bag in there and drive away. Heat opens the bag, the beads do the rest. Worth a try. I have seen this resolve issues often.

 

You could have a tire with bad belts or general out-of-roundness. Now that it's on the rear, put your rear axle on jack stands, throw her in gear, and give those things a spin. Keep pony tails and necklaces far away, of course. But if your issue is as bad as you say it is, it should be visible when the wheel spins. Set a stationary object close to the wheel and/or tire as it spins. That gives your eyes something to reference against. If the rim of the wheel looks rock solid, but the sidewall or tread wobbles about, you'll have your answer.

 

Dude..So bad ass. Hope to get back in the game one day. But glad you're still at it...awesome car.

 

So, still haven’t fixed anything. Haha Just keep driving the car as is, but thought you guys would enjoy a couple of pictures.

Went to a local cruise night and a friend sent me this killer picture he took.


Also, I got a private message on Instagram from a legend saying he liked my car. Caught me off guard, but I thought it was super cool.



My family had no idea who he is, so I had to show them this meme for any relevance.


I’m off for the summer now, so hopefully I can get some things done on the car. In need to replace a brake line, mess with the tire vibration, and build a fan shroud.

 

That's awesome that you heard from Paul Sr! I'm actually a Paul Jr myself, hence the 'p' and the 'jr' in my username. Funny enough, my dad is the same age as him too. We don't make as much of a habit out of shouting at each other though.
I agree with your assessment of your buddy's pic too. That's a great one.