1959 Buick Electra 225 Convertible

Well, Snow White has taillights…

Here’s a close-up of the taillight and fin with Joe’s beauty in the background:

The gas tank painted:

The rear end removed:

We decided to replace the mid-ship bearing, it’s a sealed unit that doesn’t run in oil. It was smooth but when it was spun it it seemed a bit noisy so one was ordered from NAPA (not an “everyday” bearing so it has to come from Kentucky):

New axle bearings are pressed on, drums turned, everything cleaned up and mostly painted:

Greg has rebuilt a lot of rear ends in his time, but after taking off the cover he’d never seen anything quite like this!

The bearing races are in the differential case and the bearings are supported by a hollow sleeve with axle shaft bushing inside.  Talk about re-inventing the wheel!

Take a close look at the procedures in the shop manual…..and all the “special tools” required.

Based on the positive reports I received that the rear end is dependable and durable we decided not to blow it apart. Hopefully it works out because the carrier bearings in there go for $439.00 EACH (and two are needed)! 

Here it is all painted and ready to go…

_________________
~ Tom Sidoti
1959 Buick Electra 225 Convertible

This entry was posted on Friday, January 8th, 2010 at 12:05 pm and is filed under Restoration. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.