WCraigH
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Posts posted by WCraigH
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">(snip)...so i guess i have to live with the car goind dwon in the front when i hit my brakes and then the back stays up high in the back. I hate having to then hit the switch to lower the rear down again its like a see saw up down up down HOW can i keep it frokm doing this i jusy want the car to sit level..... </div></div>
Two things to consider:
(1) Your T-L Packard should stop on the level and NOT nose-dive (rear up). If the rear brakes are working well, the rear end will be pulled down by the "anti-squat" geometry of the rear suspension's torque arms upon braking. Likewise, upon acceleration, the rear end will rise somewhat.
(2) The front and/or rear T-L bar pivots have not been lubricated. The front and rear of your T-L Packard should move up and down freely and easily, returning to the same level as before. Use a manual lube gun and plenty of grease. The bearings are identified as 15.963 (each side, front) and 15.981 (each side, rear) in this diagram:
Torsion-Level parts, exploded view
Just in case you were wondering, you don't have to take anything apart. Just get under the car and spritz the zerk (grease) fittings.
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Yup, too rich. In addition to the choke blade, it could also be a leaking needle-seat.
Take the air cleaner off and observe the carb under both cold and warm startup. A mis-adjusted choke blade will be easy to spot. A leaking needle seat is harder, but would result in dripping or spilling fuel in to the carb. Also, black smoke coming from the exhaust pipe.
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According to this article in the Christian Science Monitor:
New cars are getting too expensive to fix
The reasons are air bags, materials (plastic, aluminum, magnesium) and computers. I never thought I'd see the day that my Packard would be cheaper to fix than a new Ford F150, but it seems so.
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Yes, but use a tubing cutter and at least a single flare on the end because there is pressure in those lines.
The reason for removing the cooler is because you still have the possibility of the coolant leaking out. That's a 50-year old assembly of metal and there is probably corrosion and vibration-induced cracks. I removed it on my 55 Pat. However, it is a PITA to get at.
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I agree with 52Deluxe about the stock trans cooler. I removed the one on my 55 Pat and use an air-type mounted vertically in front of the radiator.
Just cut the stock tranny lines where they come forward right before they make the turn across the front. Connect the air-type cooler rubber lines there.
You can completely remove the stock cooler by replacing it with Goodyear 60706 or equivalent. It replaces both lower hoses and the cooler.
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Whoa!
Pep Boys or whatever has an easy solution to this problem.
The only diff between an open (original) and a closed rad overflow system is the fact that one uses a modern rad cap and an overflow bottle.
My 55 Pat has a 13 psi Stant cap with a PB "Big Car" overflow plastic catch can and it has been in 115F stop and go with no coolant temp problems.
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">(snip) BTW, as I recall the vacuum windshield wipers were STILL pretty pathetic in our '55s, even with the booster pump. It didn't seem to be worth going to all the trouble of putting a booster on the system when every time you hit the gas hard the wipers stopped anyway...</div></div>
I agree. I looked into getting the vacuum wiper assy O'hauled on my 55 Pat, but the cost was about what the electric conversion cost. Hey, just the other day I got caught in a short rain storm here in the NV desert and was pleased that my wipers worked. That was their first time in a couple of years. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
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Not much is known about the history of this car. But it's probably the only Packard done by Alfredo Vignale in Italy. He usually custom-bodied Ferraris, according to the article. It does look somewhat like an overgrown Ferrari of the early-50s era, except for the 1948 Packard grille of course.
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A local car buff friend surprised me by showing me the April 1994 Special Interest Autos magazine. It features a 1948(?) Packard Vignale. It is based on a 1939 Packard 120 chassis that survived WWII in Europe. It was designed and built in 1947 and first registered in 1948, according to the article.
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Description New pair of FRONT MONROE shocks with hardware. These fit ... 1951-1956 PACKARD...</div></div>
1956 Packard front shocks are different ("T" bottom) than 1951-55 ("stud" bottom).
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There is a commercial electric replacement for the vac wipers:
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PackardV8: You probably have Chebbie-variety QJets. is the fuel inlet 90-deg on the P-side or is it straight in from the front of the engine. The former is Chebbie.
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One more thing about the Edelbrock carbs. If one hangs around the muscle car era chat forums like I do (Pontiac specific), then you'll get a lot of feedback about the Edelbrock carbs. While there are some good points, there are also some questionable points. Apparently, the E-carbs are specifically tuned for Chebbies. This means they don't work so good on Pontiacs or certainly Packards. The problem is NOT the jetting per se, but the idle and power circuits.
In addition, there are some issues about the quality control of these carbs. They are mass produced (maybe offshore?) and don't have the TLC that an owner built carb would have.
The Pontiac muscle car era guys have going so far as dig the Quadrajets (once known as "quadra-junk") carbs out of their parts bins and reworking those as opposed to buying the E-carbs. A few thousand non-Chebbie guys cannot be that wrong.
But hey, it's your $$$ and your car, so do what you want. Just let us know how it worked out.
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Roy's and other classic & perforance remanufacturers (as opposed to mass rebuilders) put brass bushings in the throttle shafts and hone the shaft bushings to the original OEM clearance. They also straighten the air horns, etc. The mass rebuilders don't bother with such details. And therein lies the difference.
Since you live only a few miles from Kanter, why don't you go down there personally and make a pain in the A$$ out of yourself insisting that you get your self-same carb back. And assuring them that if it isn't perfect, that you'll be back there with ... whatever vengence.
Under those circumstances, I'm sure you'll get what you want. And it won't be a new Edelbrock, which you don't need anyway, IMHO.
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I agree with B.H. and the others about doing your own rebuild. I only suggested Roy's if youi don't want to do it yourself.
IMO, the most critical part of a 4GC rebuild is to thoroughly clean out the idle circuit holes. The 4GC has fixed idle circuit passages for the secondaries in addition to the adjustable primary side. These holes are very small and are probably the first thing to varnish up. That was the main problem with the 4GC on my 55 Pat. The other problem with my 4GC was a worn accelerator pump link hole that caused hesitation on off-idle acceleration (throttle plates would move before the accel pump). But JBWeld and redrilling of the worn holes fixed that.
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DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE BUY A REBUILT CARB! There are many reasons for this, not the least of which is that a "rebuilt" carb had some serious problem to start with the that mass rebuilders are ill-equipped to fix.
Get yours rebuilt. There are several rebuilders around. The one I would recommend is Roy's Carburetor Factory at (775) 727-4700. He's working with me on my blow-thru QJet turbo project and has been doing carb rebuilds and remanufacturing for 40 years. Tell he I referred you and that you'd like me to also look at the carb, if you elect to have him do the work.
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Yes. Paul in Vegas has run such a combo. The Ford manual 3-speed apparently bolts up to the Packard manual bell housing. But it "kept striping gears" (no surprise) according to Paul the last time we discussed this.
And I believe he ran this in his 56 Caribbean, but you'd have to ask him.
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Re: "spilling gas all over the place" sounds like a float or needle/seat problem that should be readily fixed.
WRT more CFM: The usual answer is Edelbrock Performer (nee Carter AFB). But make sure (1) you modify the throttle bores in the intake manifold, i.e., bore out at a machine shop to the AFB size (this alleviates the adapter which is a POS) and (2) you get the (more expensive) 2nd-ary adjustable air-valve type because your heavy Packard will not take kindly to sudden full throttle application without same.
Of course you'll have to deal with (1) throttle linkage issues, not the least of which is the T-U adjustment, (2) vacuum connection to the distributor, (3) fuel line from fuel pump, (4) etc.
Somewhere in my computer, I have the CFM ratings of the 4GC and WCFB carbs, but they are less than the "modern" AFB-types.
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Packford; Do you have any pics that you can post?
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PackardV8: email me and I'll provide Paul's phone #. He's the authority on that (Ford P/U) conversion, plus I'm sure he'd be pleased to discuss it with you.
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">(snip) And Craig in Nevada. After Empire of the sun I watched "Mars Attacks" and the Martians first landed and attacked the U.S. Forces in Pahrump Nevada, so when you're out scouring the desert for old Packards, be careful one could be hiding a Martian just ready to attack you. </div></div>
Hey tfred: There are more weirdos out here than just Martians. They even have a TV show on the local channel 41 called "Out There TV", which comes on at about 5am a couple times a week...don't ask why I'm up and maybe watching it! Also, Pahrump, NV is known as "Art Bell's hometown." If you don't know who Art Bell is, then you don't listen to late night talk radio about weird stuff. Also "Area 51", which the USAF denies exists is right over the mountains to the east. There are sometimes weird colored, moving lights to the east, but hey, they're just lights, right?
On the other hand, Pahrump is very much a "car" town. Lots of older cars (no running Packards, except for mine) and plenty of car enthusiasts. Pahrump only has two stop lights, but the Nye County Sheriff office is at one of them, so you don't want to be speeding anywhere near there. However, the biggest crime reported on the local TV was shoplifting and some minor vandalism. That's a lot better than Las Vegas, where there's a murder about every two days.
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<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">(snip) BUT, i would like to improve to something better and very interested in disk conversion like Craigs but i am leaning more toward retro fitting some production disk units rather than a custom design. Just a different approach with same results. </div></div>
For a different, but equivalent result, Paul in Las Vegas retrofitted a 1972
Ford 1/2-ton pickup front disc brake on Packard
He also fitted a 1972 Lincoln power steering & power brake (hydraulic) to his Exec. Neither of these conversions is for the casual hobbyist.
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tfred:
Here's the link to the conversion:
Remember that the stock pedal lever ratio is 1:1. With drum brakes, which are self-energizing, this is probably adequate. PackardV8 can verify this about his setup. With disc brakes, the 1:1 is [color:"red"] NOT adequate. I had to fabricate a 4:1 pedal lever arrangement, which moved the pedal position down. It takes a little getting used to, but has proven to be fine in service.
Oil ?
in Packard
Posted
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">would tell u if you have a restriction in the filter causing a reduced oil flow to the lifters. </div></div>
An inspection of the oil flow diagram in the Service Manual would show that this is not true. The oil filter on the V-8 is at the "end of the line" [color:"red"] AFTER the lifter galleries. Therefore, a "restricted" filter would actually help the oil pressure to the lifters.
I believe that PackardV8's suggestion to "DISable" the filter is intended to get more total oil flow to the lifters by eliminating a "leak" at the terminal end of the oil galleries. [color:"red"] However, I don't subscribe to this technique for a variety of reasons, not least of which is that dirty oil is "bad" and bypassing the filter doesn't filter the dirty oil.
BTW, a noisy hydraulic lifter is not necessarily a really "bad thing", in the sense that it only means that the lifter plus valve train components have some extra clearance at valve open event. This noise is the taking up of this clearance, which the hydraulic lifter was meant to eliminate in the first place. Unless a hydraulic lifter is not functional, nothing bad will come of this noise -- as opposed to other "clacks", etc from the engine would would be [color:"red"] BAD.