Owen_Dyneto

<span style="font-style: italic">Actually thats not correct</span> I'm not sure which statement you're saying isn't correct, but I can assure you that most if not all Packard 8-cylinder engine head studs between 1929 and 1954 were 7/16-20 both ends.

Actually, most large and heavy cars, not just GM, used vacuum boosters on their mechanical brakes. Packard, Pierce-Arrow (also used the Hispano-type drive-shaft booster), Lincoln, Duesenberg, etc. all had this type of system; many were made by Bragg-Kliesrath, later acquired by Bendix. Most of these are operated by a pull-cable arrangement with the cylinder located well rearwards of the pedal pivot.

I guess STP would work fine, but so does gear oil if that is what was originally called for. If it leaks, you normally just have to repack the stuffing box at the bottom between the lubricant and the headlight switch.

Packard head cylinder head studs are the same thread both ends for most years 1929-54, but that type tends to be the exception. The idea of coarse one end and fine thread the other is so that external fastner will tend to remove without taking the entire stud out with it.

Best place to find them would be the owner's manual, or the shop manual, both of which a serious owner should have. You can download them free at Packardinfo.com or buy hardcopy from any of the Packard clubs or vendors. Breaker point gap should be 0.017-0.020 inch, all models. Ign timing 5 deg. BTDC.

I'm a bit surprised that you feel you need hydraulics. My Packard with Bendix mechanicals stops extremely well, certainly better than my later Packards with hydraulics, and with very little pedal pressure. And almost no maintenance other than an occasional adjustment and greasing the cables every 15 years or so. I've also driven a 33 Buick a few times and found those brakes to be much more than adequate. It shouldn't be necessary to destroy the authenticity of the car, I'd suggest examining the brake system carefully, you'll certainly find something wrong with it.

I've read that the treaded ends that go into the block and often into the water jacket were formed differently than the standard threads at the other end, even though they may be the same thread size. Whether OEM or otherwise, I'd make sure to shellac the threads if they in fact go into the jackets.

An apocryphal story by the truck driver. Go and take a jar with some diesel fuel and water and shake. You can shake until the economy improves and the diesel won't dissolve water. Methanol, ethanol and isopropanol are the usual co-solvents used for that.

Though I've never experienced vapor lock, I once tried adding diesel in a 34 Packard Eight in preparation for a LONG, HOT July 4th parade. I added 1 gallon diesel to a full tank (25 gallons) of regular unleaded. No, I didn't get vapor lock but might not have gotten it anyway, but the car sure SMOKED. And that was only at about 4% by volume added. I can only guess what 25% would look like - it would make the EPA cheer a coal-burning locomotive! But if you think about it, and this requires a bit more physical chemistry than I have, adding diesel doesn't eliminate the low-boiling (most volatile) fractions in the gasoline, it only decreases them by virtue of dilution. Seems to me there are so many other established and proven ways to handle vapor lock that I'd think adding diesel would be dead last on a long list. In a carbureted car with a mechanical fuel pump at the engine, the last place you should get vapor lock is the line between the pump and the carburetor because that fuel is under pressure which raises the boiling point (always makes me laugh to see this line insulated, with clothes pins, etc). However once it dumps into the carburetor is is back to atmospheric pressure and could volatilize much more easily. A bit of diesel wouldn't eliminate the volatile fractions but should raise the average boiling point a bit. Insulating blocks and heat shields between the carburetor and intake manifold should help if that's the problem. Vapor lock is most prone to occur, all other things being equal, where the fuel in under negative pressure and that's between the tank and the pump. Using a pusher (electric) pump at the rear is perhaps the best solution if you have these problems; shielding/rerouting lines are other options. The folks who I guess have it the worst are those with vacuum tank systems as the line between the tank and the carburetor only has the (almost insignificant) pressure of the head height of the fuel line.

Most greases "channel", that is to say the first pass of a gear pushes the grease out of the way, and it stays there so the second pass doesn't benefit from much lubrication. That's why most all early steering gear boxes used gear oil instead of grease. Unfortunately, when many of these began to leak (often into the headlight switch), subsequent owners just substituted grease and this is often the reason restorers have the problems they do. Packard for quite a few years recommended gear oil for king pins and universal joints - same reasoning.

IIRC, the 31 units are quite different than the 34-42 units, don't quite recall when the later unit first came into use, perhaps 33?

If you're serious about your car, perhaps you should avail yourself of a parts manual. For 1934 and I would suspect 35/36 to be the same, the link has a different part number for an Eight and a Super Eight. Can't say the difference is length, but I'd suspect so.

Unless there was an engine swap, the info is incorrect. It should have a 356 cubic inch L-8, 160 hp. The 327 engine is a postwar Packard engine, and never had that little horsepower either. Perhaps just another uninformed owner?

You might also consider Steve Babinsky at Automotive Restorations, 1050 Rte 22 West, Lebanon New Jersey 08833, tel 908-236-6400. Not only does he repair them, but he also had a run made of one of those not readily available. Tough man to get on the phone sometimes, try 6-7 PM weekdays in not successful during the day.

If you"re a CCCA member and have a qualifying car, it's not too late to register. You'd also be welcome as a spectator. You can find details on the Metro Region CCCA website, www.metroccca.org. Meet site is Hamilton Park Hotel in Florham Park. Or email me if you wish.

I know exactly what you mean. I'm sure when I was a lot younger I did 250 miles in a day in my 34 Eight, but nowadays about 120 - 150 is quite enough and leaves me a bit tired. It's not the handling or suspension or brakes as much as that you can't relax much, too many dingbats on the roads, and at 50 mph or so you don't have that burst of power to get out of troublesome spots. The upside is that I avoid Interstates like the plague so I actually get to see a bit of scenery and the countryside (though occasionally getting lost as well). I'm signed up for PAC's Henry Joy tour this summer up around Saratoga Springs, NY and have decided to take the 34 (took the Caribbean last year); not sure if I'm driving it or having it transported. Lots of time to decide.

St. Patrick's Day parade in about 2 weeks is the normally the first event of the year here in northern New Jersey; even old cars which are not painted green are acceptable. Then middle-of April is the CCCA Grand Classic in Florham Park NJ as well, So time to get the 34 out of it's winter hibernation, it's been long enough!

No, not the Packard Club website, but the Packard section of this (the AACA) website. See the thread titled "Can you say shimmy", very detailed.

If there ever was any documentation on exactly which cars by vehicle number were painted "gold", I've never heard of it surviving. So any 50 Packard will a new gold paint job and claiming to be one should be suspect. We do know from that well-known photo that the gold-painted cars included Eights, Custom Eights, Super Eights, etc. and in several body styles.

Buna/nitrile rubber is recommended for ethanol-laced fuels.

I concur, you have something on your car requiring attention. These cars did start readily when they were new with 6 volts and there is no reason for conversion to 12 volts because of the problem you cited. Though the most obvious have been noted (12-volt or otherwise undersized cables, poor ground) you might also consider the starter motor condition, worn brushes, bearing/bushings worn, etc.

By all means go to the thread cited above in the Packard section of this forum, the topic was very thoroughly explored there.

If adjusting (decreasing tension om the spring) didn't decrease the pressure, then almost with certainty the relief plunger is stuck.

Sounds like you better inspect the oil pressure relief valve before you burst the bourdon tube in the gauge! In 1934 the relief valve moved to an external location but I believe yours in internal on the pump body. Perhaps the plunger is stuck in the closed position, or perhaps it just needs adjustment. Mine is set to give a maximum pressure of 55 psi.

Are you sure you mean anodizing and not just simple gold electroplating? Anodizing is generally used to refer to processes on aluminum and it's alloys and I believe those trim pieces you refer to are die-cast. I think you want ordinary electroplating which almost any full-service chrome plating shop can do. I had mine (on a Packard) done by Frankford Plating in Phila.