I noticed there was an old post that recommended me to repair power antenna........ that is still true but it had an old phone number.
A good number is 512-635--5132 I can also be reached at barneyeaton@gmail.com

Since that old post lots of things have changed, parts are getting harder to find and there are parts coming from China that resemble the original Delco parts but as you would expect the quality is poor.
I can repair most GM power antenna from around 1961 until around 2005 when they were last offered.
The power antenna of the '60's and '70's were made by Tenna for GM .... I can repair them if the chrome mast is in good condition... replacement mast are hard to find and expensive.
Delco started making power antenna around 1977 with their first design then around 1980 they did the Slimline and that was the final design. Slimline Delcos were used on all GM products,
The only difference was usually the way they mounted at the fender line.
I have noticed that some of the repair kits being sold on line are parts that I made for one source and they apparently went to several vendors.... I use a plastic coated steel cable to replace
the original plastic cord that breaks. One vendor sends me Chinese kits and I replace the plastic cord with steel, but the rest of the parts are still poor quality.
The attached photos show some of the things to look for on the Chinese kits..... the red background picture are all Slimline Delcos.... the grey background is a varity of the early Tenna units.
I will gladly answer questions even if you are doing the repair yourself.

I am also the Buick Club of America technical advisor for 1988-1991 Buick Reatta

 

I deleted your double thread.

Welcome, let's see pics of your Buick. It's good to know you can repair the classic antennas.

 

Barney repaired the power antenna for my friend Rob's 63 Starfire. Great guy and did a great job at a reasonable price.

 

Sorry I do not own any Oldsmobiles at this time.... I did purchase a new 1973 Cutlass Salon 4 dr and a 1982 Toronado.
I have a 1991 Black Reatta with red interior....only 1215 coupes were made in 1991 and this color combo is one of 12
1965 Corvair Corsa convertible that I purchased in 1968 and it has almost 60 k on it today
1939 Buick Century Sport Coupe I recently sold, purchased as you see it and they had installed every option/accessory they could find.

 

I realize this in an Olds site, but could you also repair a power antenna for an '89 Lincoln Town Car? The electric motor and mast are good, but the plastic cable is shot (I think). Any guidance or referals here would be appreciated, thanks.

 

Barney,
I have seen several videos and web sites using the plastic coated metal cables. I was getting ready to use the same process on the antenna for my WIfe's Riviera but my past radio/electronics training got me wondering how adding 30 inches or so of metal cable to the antenna was going to affect the actual reception ? It absolutely will change the resonant frequency of the antenna. Have you had any feedback as far as the actual reception goes ?

 

On the 89 Town Car........can you send me a photo, at some point Ford/Lincoln started using Chinese made new units. If you have one of those, there are replacement parts
available on line and they are easy and simple to repair.
Can you send a photo to me or post it here and I will tell you what you have and your options.

On the question about the steel cable........I consulted some electrical engineers I know and they all said the cable inside the mast changes nothing.... and in ten years of using it
there have been no issues .

 

Here are some photos of the modern units coming from China. Even GM is using them, I have seen them in Delco boxes the main advantage to using a GM/Chinese replacement is they are plug n play, GM has purchased units that have the correct
connectors and fender mounting. Some of the clues to know what you have, The outer mast (under the fender) is much smaller and appears to be aluminum. The motor is exposed, sitting on top of the bottom housing.
If you take it apart, the plastic cord has "teeth"

 

For those considering an antenna rebuild/replacement know that I bought a Chinesium power antenna and it had a mini UHF connector for the antenna vs. a BNC (or was it PL-259) connector that was in my 96 Oldsmobile. I had to buy an extra adapter to get the antenna to work with my radio. Plus, it doesn't even fit that well.

 

Here's a close up of the power antenna in my '89 Town Car. I wanted to get a clear shot of the part number in case I found another. The motor spins, the antenna shaft is good, it's most likely the nylon drive gear or plastic cord that won't move the antenna.
Once upon a time, Ford sold service kits for these, but sadly no more. Any ideas here would be appreciated, thanks.

 

As you can see by comparing your Town Car antenna with the Chinese example, Ford is also buying the Chinese antenna.
Let me backtrack.... they first came from Japan but I suspect China just copied the design and started making them cheaper than Japan.
Your Town Car does say made in Japan..... by looking on the internet, you will see the design has changed very little.
Look on Ebay under power antenna repair kits and you will find the parts you need and they are cheap. You can replace the cord and
mast without taking the unit out of the car.... all done outside

 

Here is some additional general information......... The photo with the "A" "B" "C" designation for the fender mount....
These are all Delco Slimline made between the late '70's and end of availabity on new cars.
"A" = early '80's Cadillac used this mount
"B" = on '80's small cars
"C" = used on lots of GM cars up to about '87 when GM changed body styles on the intermediates Cutlass, Grand National, GP etc
"D" = common mount during the late '80's & '90's
"E" = this snaps into a black plastic trim piece on the fender very common on late Cadillac design started around '95
The motor assembly was the same with only minor cost reduction changes.

Here are some examples of the cord I have purchased and tried ............I use the plastic coated steel cable on 100% of the Slimline units

I repair.

 

Do you solder the cable into the ends or just crimp it ? If solder do you mind my asking what solder do you use ?

 

Hi.
I have a 1976 Seville antenna similar to the ones you have pictured.
Mine has two wires but now it ALWAYS runs. The mast goes up and down with my hand with motor unplugged. I've taken apart and twine is in ONE piece. Some reason there's no tension on spline. To add to the problem, the side with the extra wiring, there's some contact point that apparently don't let me adjust antenna as intended.
Are you familiar with that part of the wiring of this antenna?

 

Hi.
I have a 1976 Seville antenna similar to the ones you have pictured.
Mine has two wires but now it ALWAYS runs. The mast goes up and down with my hand with motor unplugged. I've taken apart and twine is in ONE piece. Some reason there's no tension on spline. To add to the problem, the side with the extra wiring, there's some contact point that apparently don't let me adjust antenna as intended.
Are you familiar with that part of the wiring of this antenna?
Rob

 

Deleted

 

Do you have replacement loading coils for cb/fm/am antenna and the tip at the top of tf the loading coil that gets broken off?

Thanks
Ron

 

x2 on the CB question, and I'd also like to add a question on whether you fix these. I know they are a whole different animal as the cable is longer (Delco cable is white, the Delco CB cable is pink). I need to remove mine in my 79 H/O. An NOS cable with the CB coil was installed in a modern Auto/Pro housing/motor and that promptly croaked after minus one year. I'd like to get that cable into another Delco housing/motor and I have several candidates for that.

Also, I may need a bottom bracket that bolts to the frame, as I used zip ties and I think that fouled up the ground a bit.......

THanks

 

Firm believer here of NO NYLON CABLE. Depending on when it was made, when it was installed, ancient parts still laying on the shelf...you're rolling the dice using the "NOS" nylon cords. Regardless, at some point someone (maybe not you) will be dealing with a constant running power antenna when it does give out. And it will. Sooner or later.

I had some custom antenna/cables built with 2mm push/pull inner cables by 88hurstolds here. I won't ever have to worry about the plastic-covered stranded wire coming apart, which is one step up from nylon, or the nylon cable breaking ever again. If your antenna is easy to get to for a rebuild, that's one thing, but in a G-body Cutlass, you're in for a spectacular project just to get the antenna in and out.

And for those that say nylon is good enough? I had a brand new G-body complete antenna I was going to replace the nylon cable in regardless of shape as an insurance policy. Glad I did. When I opened it up, the OEM cable was already broken, and it was never used! The bare metal flexible cable works perfectly well without any extra power consumption that I can tell. Goes up and down pretty darn smooth. Take your chances if you like, you'll never convince me to go back to nylon cables again.

Factory rivets and clips removed, and at first glance it looks pretty good.


Oh, wait. Carefully lifting out the mast assembly, only some of the cable came with it.



Hmm. Broken off down in there. A bit of a PITA to get that out.




Nylon broke into 3 pieces without even moving or being touched. These antennae are pretty durable, except for the nylon cord- the weak point. Non-believers will tell you nylon's fine. It's your gamble.

 

I'm all in for a steel cable if that exists for the AM/FM/CB mast. I'd be happy to send it to whomever can make that repair.

 

I pulled my antenna yesterday, the "NOS" cable was broken in 3 places. I'm going to give up on the NOS bubble coil antennas, and instead use a Japanese aftermarket model. This is a bear of a job and I'd like to think the next time I do it would be the last.

 

Barney has not posted since June 2023. Somebody might want to give him a call to confirm if he is okay.

 

Good advice, will do