The bearings were shot. If I ever get around to updating my project blog, I've got some pictures. The pin itself was fine. Pressed in new bearings, shimmed it up to a comfortable fit, and she looks like new. I have almost the whole front end back together again, but I still have to set the running torque on my center link.

Oh yeah, and bolt the steering box back on! Still looking into how/if I want to rebuild that at this juncture.

West, not sure when they changed to the style shown on your '40. On my '37 115c, I have two bearings (sealed type) and a pressed in pin. No greasing required.

I believe Fred was answering a question of mine regarding the ball studs connecting the drag link to the pitman arm and center link.

Good news is, the original poster is getting lots of advice!

Fred,

I misspoke regarding the cup and cone bearings. What I was referring to are the rod ends linking the drag link to the pitman arm and also to the intermediate arm, not the bearings in the intermediate arm. In my hurry, I misread the service manual.

No offense intended to your company by referring to the lack of inner tie rod ends, merely stating a fact. I've sent a lot of money your way since buying my car a few short months ago, and will continue to do that in the future. I've actually really appreciated your company's customer service.

That being said, quit being so jumpy! No one really likes getting yelled at, even on the internet.

I do agree that tie rod ends are all different, like pistons, but often times one can cross-reference a tie rod end out of a MOOG book or similar and get the same or better performance. Unlike a piston, where you are dealing with reciprocating mass, thermal cycles, and the compression developed inside a combustion engine, a tie rod end has three jobs in life:

- Provide sufficient angular motion to not cause suspension binding
- Be of sufficient material construction (based on material and design) such that it survives the life of the car and does not fail catastrophically
- Bolt into existing suspension components and not have any clearance issues.

Opinions are like a lot of other things, everyone has one. Just my while trying to pass along some recent experiences.

I just finished rebuilding most of the front suspension on my 115. The Kanter kit is good, it comes with inner bushings, torque arm bushings, upper wheel control bushings, lower wheel control bearings, a king pin kit, and outer tie rod ends.

Here are my lessons learned:

- Follow the procedure in the shop manual to disassemble the coil. Installation is the reverse. I initially rented a spring compressor for the job, but did not use it. Because of the frame to upper spring mount clearance, a spring compressor is nearly impossible to use. I simply put a long 3/8" bolt through one hole of the support arm inner bushing and compressed the spring with a floor jack.

- You will probably need to get a center post rebuild kit at the same time you order your front end kit.

- The kit doesn't come with inner tie rod ends or the cup and cone ball bearings on the intermediate arm. Not sure if Kanter has them; I'm currently trying to source the cup and cone ball bearings from my local parts store. The inner tie rod ends look like an easy part to find at any local store.

- I didn't rebuild the king pin or lower wheel control arm bearings as mine were tight, so no observations there.

- The torque arm ball recommends soap water to ease installation. I tried this, didn't have much luck, and instead used a very small amount of silicone grease.

Good luck!

As a '37 115 owner, I will say that the beauty of the Jr Packard is the same now as it was in 1935 all the way up to 1956- they allow people to own a Packard at a price a little closer to Chevy. I'd love to a own a big beautiful Sr. Packard, but it's not an investment I can afford to make right now, but I can afford a 115.

Wishing I could buy them all!

Quote:

I got the procedure from the service manual for the Carter WA-1. That being said, it was for a new-ish carb, not one that is eligible for Medicare!

When I tried it, I did apply a little common sense. I put my float in the freezer for about 5 minutes, got the water temp up to 100 or so (not near boiling like the manual said, and like I realize I said before), and dunked it in.

I believe your methods would work as well.

John H, it sounds like it might be your float. A simple way to test the float is t to put it in the freezer, microwave some water to near boiling, and dunk the float in.the water. If you see bubbles, the float has a leak. The cold air inside the float heats up in the water and will leave a telltale stream of bubbles if it leaks out of the sealed float.

Quote:

Not sure when they changed the bolt pattern, but on my '37, the bolt pattern is about 1" too large in diameter to use the Autozone puller.

Fred, thanks for the thoughts. I ended up buying a sheet of 1/8" rubber and using a hole saw, spade bit, and Xacto knife made my own. The caption of the picture says it all, but I'm trying to restore a driver that I can put in shows, not a show car I can drive from the trailer to the parking spot, so I think it will turn out ok.

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Well, it's been a few weeks since I've posted, and in that time I've gotten the frame sandblasted and painted, prepped and painted my front shocks, received a lot of parts, and started some re-assembly.

I put the rear leaf springs back on today. I had to cut out the grease seals out of a rubber sheet for the rear shackles.

As soon as my centerpost rebuild kit comes in, I expect to be able to get the front end reassembled.

I do have an issue with my exhaust manifold heat riser valve. It's frozen, and I've been soaking lube on it for about a week, but I'm not sure how to get it apart if I can't get it to loosen up. I don't want to apply heat to the cast!

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