I'm trying to install a Kanter Brake kit on my 39 Six right now and the problem I'm having is the shoes are about 20 thousandths too thick to fit the slots in the WC pins, the adjustor and the Ebrake crossbar, Also the half circle cutout at the top of the shoe doesn't fit the anchor pin although that could probably be fixed with a little attention with a diegrinder.Has anyone else had this problem? I'll call them Monday and see if they have a solution. I appreciate Kanter having these parts reproduced but I think once again China is proving not to be a good partner.

Yes the mountain has been here a long time and I have been running Fire and Rescue calls with the local VFD for a long time, 30yrs, and have been on several accident scenes involving runaway trucks, We had a driver of a Power company truck killed a couple years ago. When I started in the Fire company we had a donated 49 La france open cab engine with straight cut gears and I've had a couple thrill rides down the mountain at 80plus mph when the driver missed a shift. We used to do a lot of things years ago- some I'd like to relive, others not so much. I have a 32 Essex with mechanical brakes and I've driven it down the mountain- twice- I still have it but it lives in a friends garage down in the flats.

#2 With the trans in neutral I am greatly relieved to find that the motor now turns by hand, so I pull the pan and clean it and the pickup. Everything looks good and there is less sludge than I would have expected. Also pulled the starter for a quick service on the bench and it seems to be in good shape. Also pulled the oil filter and plugged the outlets on the block. Put it back together with fresh Rotella and pumped up 30psi oil pressure on the gauge with the starter. I was also getting pretty pumped up myself until I checked compression with zeros on 1 thru 5 and 40 psi on 6. Pulled the inner fender and tappet covers to find 5 stuck exhaust valves. From my reading it seems these engines were prone to this even when new sitting on the lot waiting to be sold. So thats where things sit for now. Any magic trick in Packard world to unstick the valves or is pulling the head and doing a full valve job inevitable? With only 39K on the clock I was really hoping to get lucky with the engine. Also curious if its common practice to change the oil filter to a cartridge type (I have a couple extra Fram units)and do people relocate them so you don't have to R&R the generator at each oil change? Thanks

My interest in brakes is because I live on top of a mountain and its 6 miles to the bottom with 2 exceptionally long steep grades. At the least I will want to use a dual circuit master cylinder. I think I saw a disc brake conversion somewhere, maybe Kanter, but I don't necessarily want to go that far if bigger brakes off a 120 or something post war bolt on and would be less likely to fade.

Issue #1- car doesn't roll, four flats and the parking brake has been on since 1970. Amazingly all the tubes still hold air and the tires inflate without exploding. Disconnected the ebrake cables, backed off the adjusters and with a little persuasion the wheels are free but the shifter is frozen in gear. Took the rods off the column shift arms and put the trans in neutral and now its a roller. I am wondering if there is a bolt on brake upgrade thats worthwhile like putting Stude V-8 brakes on a champion or Hudson Hornet brakes on a Wasp- since all the brakes will have to be done from scratch anyway?

I appreciate the suggestions but I'm afraid I still don't get it. One of the reasons I like working on old cars is you can actually see and feel what you are doing and some times get positive results from using a hammer on the offending part, which is what I wanted to do with the computer but couldn't afford the expense. So instead of a long comprehensive report I am going to go step by step in short discrete posts. I hope it works and isn't too frustrating for those who choose to follow along. Thanks

I have tried twice to update this but I am such a slow typist the forum times out and eats my post. What am I doing wrong?

If this works you will see photos of the car as I found it

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Hi all, this is my first post and I'm hoping to benefit from the collective experience of the group, so heres the story. Recently a 39 110 business coupe appeared in the side yard of an old farmhouse I have passed by at least a thousand times in the last 30 yrs. Being a hopeless autoholic naturally I had to make a quick Uturn and check it out. A nice young woman answered the door and told me that her late great uncle had been the original owner and that the car had been in the garage as far back as she could remember and that it had just been dragged into the yard because the garage roof was collapsing, Unfortunately the roof must have been leaking for a long time judging by the condition of the paint on some of the upper surfaces. The car was very original and complete including the 1970 tags and the keys on a Packard fob still in the ignition. Turns out the car had been inherited by her uncle who lived in a city 3 hours away so she took my number and promised to pass it on. Usually thats the end of it but this time, a couple weeks later, I got a call from the uncle and after some friendly negotiations I became the neglected old relic's new caretaker. It took a little bit of work since all four wheels were stuck not to mention four flat and petrified tires but its now safely in my garage awaiting resurrection. I'll post pictures as soon as I figure out how which may be more daunting than getting the Packard on the road again.