I am not sure whether anyone offers a replacement distributor for the Packard 352 Emgine . I assume Jack Vines who contributes regularly to the site would know. You can always call Jegs or Summit Racimg if you really want one.
There are plenty of distributors floating around and Kanter offers them used or rebuilt. Might be a good idea for you to request their catalog for the 55-56 Packard for Amy other parts you may need, Max Merritt catalog is also a good thing to have handy. Both outfits have just about anything you need and are always helpful.
You should get a number for Mike Delimsky, Southwest Packard ,Tucson Packard and Joel Ray who do not have catalogs but offer parts....sometimes at cheaper prices.
If you call Steele Rubber they will send a catalog of any rubber parts for your specific car.
You may want to buy the service manual and parts manual and service bullitins. While they are.available on this site, it is handy to have them available when you are actually working on the car for immediate access.

If you go with the stock distributor, you can buy a Petronix electronic ignition module and coiled which I have done for all of my old cars. The units are available on Amazon and are frequently offered on eBay.

I never worked on a Packard until opting to buy the 55 Caribbean and will admit that the car has been a challenge since there are no restoration guides as exist for Vettes, Mustangs and Mopar.....and parts are becoming harder to find since there is not a large reproduction market. As a result you have difficulty in finding people able to repair a car that few under the age of 60 have ever seen. Parts are expensive.

I do not know what you plan to do with your vehicle but while
it is better engineered than the Fords, Chevies and Mopars of the era, you cannot expect to be able to find every part as readily and doing the transmission conversions that are so easy in a 57 Chevy with all the conversion parts readily available may be more tham you expect...and more expensive.

The people on this forum and the parts people mentioned have helped immensely. Do your homework and have fun.
RJR

Sorry Leeedy---missed that third e again.

Since Leedy added a bit of Packard dual quad trivia, I thought it fit to add another.
If you attempt to install the oil filter canister from the single quad engine to your dual quad conversion, the lines from the canister used on the dual quad engine will encroach on the leading edge of the front carb and make you wonder what you are doing wrong .

The answer is that although the cannisters look identical the holes in the canister for the dual quad are drilled slightly lower.

This is probably not a commonly encountered problem for those who start with an assembled car where all lines are as originally installed, but starting with a basket of parts removed by third parties from unknown cars....and unlabled can lead to hours of fun
.
The power steering pumps for the Bendix and Monroe units are similarly identical to casual inspection but are not interchangeable .
RJR

Gentlemen- Thanks again for the info.
RJR

Gentlemen- Need help to settle an argument. To check the fluid level on the Ultramatic trans in the 55 Packard should the level be checked with the engine off or,warmed up with engine running and trans in neutral or park?
Old timer said off and cold.

Just got back from Hershey and decided that I am too old for all that walking. I have been going to the event for over 30 years since it is only about a 21/2 hour drive. The expression that familiarity breeds contempt applies to my experience. When something is so available you tend to forget that this is possibly the greatest car show on the planet. When you talk to people who have traveled from Europe or Australia for the experience you are slapped back into reality. For those who enjoy classic cars it is Mecca.
I drove the Caribbean down to the show for its first real road test and was pleased to have it get me down and back. The fuel mileage was around what I expected but the car cruised at Turnpike speeds with the top down as quietly as any car I have driven and it did not overheat in the traffic jams.i parked in the car Corral with no real belief or desire to sell to avoid having to hoof from the public parking areas. I was only on site for less than three hours on Thursday and Friday but got my speedometer delivered for rebuild and got to see Joel and the crew from Merritt.
I hope that anyone attending got a chance to slip over to the Hershey Lodge to look at the offerings at the RM Auction. They had a restored Packard Darren that had been used on the Banachek series and a Thirty One coupe roadster that was amazing. They also had two Dusenbergs and a Pierce .silver Arrow. I had never seen the Pierce before except in pictures and it was amazing, but for two million bucks it should be.
For anyone who has not had the opportunity to get to Hershey, I suggest you add it to your bucket list. Book for the entire Wednesday through Saturday period, and wear good walking shoes. Plan to be very tired but expect to smile a lot.
Might have time to do the full term.....next year.
RJR

We got the timing gear cover pulled and as expected the housing for the seal did not have the knurled surface and spun. That was the source of the oil leak.
I thought it was worthwhile to advise those building a 352 engine or replacing the timing gear seal to know that Packard's warning in the service bulletin was real and that standard gasket/ seal kits for rebuilding may not contain the knurled housing.. and could lead to future failure.
The new seal from Kanter costs around $48 and has both the knurled housing and a neoprene seal rather than the rope. I hope and anticipate that this will resolve the issue.
Thanks again for the information.
I plan to pull the steering cylinder to see if it may have been rebuilt with the neoprene seal reversed. If the cylinder that was removed because it was leaking had been rebuilt before with the seal reversed, it is possible that the rebuilder without the information from the service bulletin could have reassembled the cylinder with the same reversed seal. Since there are few people who have worked on Packard's still around, they would not know of the timing gear issue or the cylinder problem from experience and without knowing to look at the service bulletins........
Anyway, we will get the cylinder pulled apart and see if that was the case.
Thanks Howard.
RJR

Gentlemen- Thanks again for your assist.
I ordered the timing gear seal and gaskets from Kanter and hopefully Owen's time estimate for replacement is accurate. The weather is really too spectacular to spend time in the office or the garage so the actual replacement may have to wait for a few days until the rains and gray skies return. (I wish this weather would hold for Hershey but it seems to rain for that event on a regular basis).
The rep at Kanter was not someone who has worked on the power steering systems and suggested I wait to talk to Stan on Monday before ordering another set of seals for the cylinder or control valve. I am still a little confused about the workings of the Bendix system and why the cylinder only leaks on the extreme limit of a turn. I suspect that the pressure is highest at this point and presses fluid past the seals. The control valve does not seem to have the ability to change the pressure generated by the pump but rather to direct the flow. That unit is not leaking, nor is there fluid loss from the pump or lines. If anyone has experienced this type of leak...and found a solution, please let me know.

Has anyone had a speedometer rebuilt/ serviced and was satisfied with the cost and work? Please provide any info. It is going to be a pain to replace the Speedometer unit and figured it might be worth the effort/ cost to be sure the unit is properly calibrated and serviced before hanging upside down under the dash.

Thanks again
RJR

Gentlemen- Still trying to work out bugs and could use some imput before wasting more time and money.
My speedometer does not work. Was able to determine that cable is fine and turns with spinning the wheels which confirms that unit in transmission is working. I have two heads from parts cars but would like to properly bench test before installing. Do not see any postings on this issue or in the service bulletins . Notes in post by Howard recommend oiling the wick but not much else. If any info...please let me know.

The cylinder on the Bendix power steering is pushing out fluid when steering wheel is on extreme right turn. The pump is rebuilt and new hoses.
I had the cylinder rebuilt with a kit from Merritt but still getting the same leak. Before having the cylinder replaced with professiolly rebuilt unit ($445) or pulling and rebuilding the existing again. Could the leak be caused by the control valve? Only part not new or rebuilt.

Latest headache. There is a significant oil leak at the front of the engine that just developed. The engine was professionally rebuilt and I am just getting break in miles. Problem discovered when I pulled into garage after driving around 10 miles. Appears to be timing cover gasket. I note from the service bulletin that early unite had this problem and were replaced with a knurled finish to prevent spinning. I note that Kanter offers replacement unit with the knurled edge and neoprene gasket.
Has anyone else had this issue? How hard is replacement with engine in car? Assume need to pull radiator and front accessories., pullies and vibration damper to access timing cover. Not sure if also have to pull the water pump to access.
Would it be easier just to pull the engine?

Any help appreciated.
thanks
RJR

Gentlemen- Sometimes the solution to a perplexing problem turns out to be so simple that you kick yourself for not recognizing it earlier.
I posted a while ago that I was experiencing problems with the top refusing to lower evenly. The driver side would retract sufficiently into the well, but the passenger side would not.
Removing the cylinders from the top mechanism allowed the top to be lowered sufficiently to install the boot which seemed to eliminate an issue of there being some restriction.
I finally bit the bullet and removed the rear seat and the cover panels and with the help of a friend discovered the problem.
The top cylinders have fittings for the hoses from the pump located on opposite sides of the cylinder. I had installed the cylinders with the bottom fitting facing forward and the top fitting facing the rear.
WHen the top was lowered the top fitting on the passenger side made contact with the wheel well preventing it from retracting further..
The contact was easily observed with the seat and panel removed but was not obvious otherwise.
The solution was equally simple....pull the pin holding the bottom of the cylinder and rotate 180 degrees.
Works fine now and aside from having to reinstall the interior panel and the seats tomorrow I should be able to grab some rays....if the rain and cold ever ends.
Things like this make me feel like an idiot. Maybe my experience will help someone else save some gray hair.
RJR