Spitfire8 Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 A couple posts back I questioned the process of steering wheel centering on my '36 1401.After verifying wheel alignment, I now realize the off-centering of the steering wheel is caused by a drag link that is too long! After disconnecting the drag link, and manually centering both steering wheel AND front wheels, I find the drag link knuckle joint extends past the receiving pitman arm hole by about 1.5", requiring the steering wheel to be turned off-center in order to mate pitman arm with drag link. That extra drag link length also prevents the front wheels from turning full-right, as the back end of the too-long link now hits the sidemount bracket at the frame.That's the "mechanicaleeze" part. My suspicion is someone replaced the original drag link with one from a different year, or perhaps one from a Super-8 or 12.Soooooo, the question: Anyone know if the Standard 8 link was shorter than the Super-8 and/or 12 for 1936 (1935 too?) Better yet, anyone in a postion to measure a correct link along the top surface and post-back with the overall measurement? Once I know the length, I can seek the correct part.....Thanks in advance for any assistance! Bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen_Dyneto Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BigKev Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 The 35-41 Parts list (along with most of the others and the service manuals) are available online for viewing. Here is the link:http://packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/article/view.article.php?251 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff Posted March 16, 2009 Share Posted March 16, 2009 Try this exercise...Jack up the front end, and find the center of the steering box travel (count steering wheel turns from lock to lock, then go half-way to center).Are your front wheels still aligned? Perhaps someone got the tie rod ends adjusted incorrectly and screwed up the centering of the steering box itself. Set up jack stands on either side of the car, front and rear, and tie a reference string to each pair so that the strings are parallel to front and rear wheel hubs. Now, with the steering box centered, measure to your reference strings from the front and rear of each front tire sidewall (or front and rear edge of the rim). This will tell you if you have lost the center point of the steering box or not. If you have, even up the tie rod adjustments while the car is still in the air. Measure the same way for your final toe-in adjustment, but this time with the car on the ground since the exact measurement will change. (a little trig will get the measurements you need from the angle you desire).Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Mitchell Posted March 17, 2009 Share Posted March 17, 2009 I can give you the phone number of someone with a 1401 who will measure it for you. Dave Mitchell packard12s@hotmail.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spitfire8 Posted March 31, 2009 Author Share Posted March 31, 2009 First, thanks to those who responded to my earlier "steering wheel centering" posts. After some additional pondering, I began to question the position of the pitman arm on the steering gear shaft as a possible contributor to the off-center steering wheel and "too-long" drag link. So, I pulled the pitman arm off the shaft, and rotated the arm clockwise one spline. At some earlier time, the arm had apparently been misinstalled on the shaft.With the steering wheel manually centered the same number of turns left and right, the pitman arm now lines-up with the drag link ball-joint stud. Problem solved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbirdman Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Congrats on your solving the mystery. Always like a good mystery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 You may still want to check that you are really operating at the center of your steering box travel when your wheels are pointing straight ahead.Tie rod adjustment, pitman arm to splined shaft, or steering wheel position can all mask the problem.With the front of your car jacked up, start from where you think straight-ahead is, then simply count the number of rotations left and right of center until you run out of travel. (gently!) For example, if you count 3 2/3 turns left, then 3 2/3 turns back to center, you should have 3 2/3 turns available to the right. Usually what happens is someone incorrectly reassembles the steering wheel (or pitman arm), then compensates with tie rod adjustment. Seemingly ok, except you are no longer in the "center" of your steering box travel.Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 Oops, I hit send, then re-read your post! Looks like you are centered up just fine!!Good job.Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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