The countdown begins for the 1973........

The way I see it,you owe me on the 20 or so pictures range :grin:,and I believe that a lot of people here,may not admit to it,will agree with me :beer .Nice looking dash and glad that you kept the factory illumination.I really like the steering wheel,looks solid and sporty to me,very inviting :Brow: .

 

Good to see some progress, is it driveable after the diff is back in, or are a few more parts in the rejuvenation process? The air tube under the dash is set up like that to cool you know what? right?

 

When I finish the rear end there will be many pics of the entire car, something no one on the board has seen since I brought her off the shipping truck almost 1 year ago. I love driving it, very inviting indeed.

After the differential is back in it is driveable. There are others things I want to do but I can continue to drive it though. My feet? No, the lower instrumet panel filler is cracked in one place and the bottom two mounting holes are broken also. That is why the vent duct is hanging there.

 

Those little stick pretzel legs can't get that hot...lol
Doing a heck of a job on that old girl...looks nice.Is it heading to Salem this year???

 

There is enough hair to keep the heat in. p

Thanks, I like the way things are turning out. '73 is a great year. :bglasses: I was planning on but work and summer school ended up getting in the way so rather than try to rush all the things I want to do before showing it or driving it to Salem I will work at a slower pace but come next year. This way I get things done my way, the way I want. And I can work out any problems. Then its on to race all the tiny skylarks and GS's. :Brow: :bglasses: :grin: :3gears:

 

Hey Rob, is the Max Trac switch in the right spot? The only one I've ever seen is on the other side of the dash, but that was in a 71 Riv.

 

Trevor,
Yes that is the correct spot. Are you saying the Riv had it where the rear defogger switch is? o No: Never seen it there. Only other place it could be from the factory would be if you had a convertible with rear defogger, max-trac and power antenna. The power antenna switch would go in place of the max trac switch and the max trac would be moved further to the right, in front of the vent.

 

Took me about 4 hours start to finish today to install the posi rear end. Went in MUCH easier than the previous one I did. Lining the springs up was the hardest part. Took less than 10 minutes to fill the differential with fresh fluid and additive, new gasket and mount the cover up. Im becoming a pro at it. :laugh: Just gotta get out the torque wrench and check the 6 bolts to see if the impact did an adequate job. Also gotta bend up a new brake line for the rear end. I was going to test the rear end on the road and then replace the trans. pan gasket but Im smelling a bit of gas around the gas tank so it got me thinking that I really have been pushing my luck running with the original rubber fuel hoses from the tank to fuel lines. I'll drop that first, then the trans. pan gasket. Pics tomorrow. :bglasses: :Brow:

 

The Riv had it on the other side by the defooger, up at the same level as yours just the other side. I wonder Why/if Riv's had them on the other side?

 

Finally got the old brake line out and properly secured the new one that had been in there for awhile. It was bugging the you know what out of me. :laugh: Parking brake cables are all hooked up and not sticking so far. Also replaced the rubber hoses that ran from the tank to the hard lines. Yes I used rubber fuel line. If I get ambitious I will replace the fuel lines also, some spots look like they need to be replaced in the near future. More tomorrow.

 

Left the key in the car last time I started it about a week ago, drained the battery. Charger doesn't help so I'll use a jumper box. If not and the battery is dead Its under warranty. Tried to bleed the brakes by myself and it didn't work. I think that enough fluid made it to the splitter, maybe. To much pumping though. Had to re-prime the master because it was empty when I removed the lines. Having a buddy come over after work so I can bleed it the way I want, also the easy way. Then we can test drive! :Brow: :bglasses: :beer

 

Battery is charged back up, runs just as she did. Finally got the brakes bled. We kept getting a very soft pedal, tried to bleed the rears and nothing, no air, no bubbles no fluid. Brake light was on and would not reset with the button on the proportioning valve. It wasn't bleeding to the rear because the master cylinder lost its prime. Reprimed it in the car and bled away. Car stops well in the driveway. Will take it on a test drive monday to test rear end and brakes. Brake pedal is still a bit soft but i'm confident the shoes are not adjusted right. Hopefully I can get back to the really nice pedal I had before the swap. This was the most beautiful pedal EVER, so nice better than a new car. Just a tap and the beast would begin to slow down. Stomp on the pedal when someone decides to pull out in front of you and she holds well and does not lock up. :bglasses:

 

Nice Buick. I really like that shade of green on the Electras. Keep up the good work!

 

Took it for a nice test drive today to test brakes and the operation of the rear end. Brakes got a bit better but I still feel If I adjust the rear brakes I could get an even nicer pedal. No noises, creaks, rattles, knocks etc. No squealing around corners either. The car FLYS with this rear end, maybe its the increase in gear ratio from the 2.73 pegleg to the 3.23 posi but she takes OFF! :Brow: A little burnout was done but I never feel like doing it johnno style, although im tempted to do so to see how many blocks she will be roasting them for. :3gears: :grin: Gonna clean the car after lunch.

 

Sounds good,can't wait to see it :TU: .

 

Washed the car. Cleaned the windows, wheels, tires, door panels, some of the seats. Still need to clean all the door jambs, vacuum and polish chrome. Put the Riviera's cover over her today so all I have to do wednesday is dust. The cover is very snug on the big Electra. :laugh: Wednesday is the car show in town and I will be showing up on Corvette night. I'll arive at about 4:30 to get a premo spot in front, show starts around 7:00 but alot of cars are around by 6:00pm. I should have pics of the car up before then for you guys to see. :bglasses:

Also booked an appointment for an alignment as the caster is 1* off so the car pulls slightly to the right. Next monday if its no raining. I wanted it done today but the old guy who would have worked on my car is on vacation right now.

 

The rear brakes adjust when you go backwards and stop. If the adjustment is close you can find a parking lot and backup and stop several times in a row until the pads are adjusted.

 

PICTURES!!!!!PICTURES!!!!PICTURES!!!! (said in a chanting fashion)

 

How many times have you cleaned your tires by now? They better be shiiiiiney.

pics pics pics pics pics pics... . .. .. .. pics pics pics . . . . .

 

better yet, how many times have you cleaned the car....we want pixs or we're gonna have to delete this thread... :laugh: