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I would think you could make a gasket. IIRC some of the old ones were nothing more than a cardboard like material. As long as the small vent hole is not covered a home made composition or cork like replacement should work.

51-6 gas caps are the same and from this old post it appears the old Stant number was G-37. That cap was apparently fairly common at the time and was used on several cars of the era.

Here is a current ebay listing for the old G-37 number.

The new plastic replacement for a Stant G37 appears to be a completely different cap but since many of the references say it replaces the G37 it might fit the tank. If not, and no one has a current number, maybe you can cross at the parts store by finding a listing for a Chevy or one of the other cars mentioned by various vendors as using the same cap.

well, cutting a new paper gasket did not help. I may try a rubber one, but I think a new G-37 is up next. Thanks for the info!
On my way home from work today, my gauges started bouncing arounud. Gas and temp gauge would go down and up. Could that be a sign the voltage regulator for the gauges is going? Guess I will check the wiring and put a meter on it and see if it is putting out a constant 5 volts.

Fluctuating instruments is usually a sign the regulator is acting up but it could also be a poor ground to the cluster and regulator. The output may be difficult to measure with a typical VOM as it is not a constant voltage but rather a pulsing 6 or 12v. There is a heater which works a bimetal strip. When contacts close you have voltage out and when open, 0v or ground. Depending on the load of the gauges, the frequency of the on/off gives an average output of 5v. If the meter is slow to respond or has a poor averaging capability it may never finish the analog to digital conversion before the off cycle of the regulator comes in.

Some Fords used the same regulator and there are also modern solid state replacements.

Here is what the output looks like on a 12v system. 6v is similar but the on period is longer since it doesn't need to chop as much.

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With your clock losing time, it may just need to be cleaned and oiled.

The voltage will not affect the time keeping per-se. Your clock is mechanical, just like an old key wind clock, it just has an electric winder.

Thanks Howard and Kev.
I cleaned and oiled the clock about 2 yrs ago, and just put it into service a month ago. It lost about 2 min after a week of running. That is accurate enough for me. I found that supplying the clock with 6v instead of 12v was gentler on the winding mechanism, so I built a voltage reducer with a 7806 (or 7808?)and some other electronics.

Thanks Howard about the diagram of the voltage chopper. I checked wiring, and supply voltage and they are fine, so the chopper must be getting sketchy. My volt meter could not display output voltage because of the averaging, but I could measure a frequency, which makes sense.... so I am on the fence about getting an original part and using that, or using a modern solid state part. Either a Drok, or building my own reducer with a 7805.
A 7805 with a heat sink can supply 1.5 amps. If I make my own reducer, I might need to make 1 for fuel and 1 for the temp gauge...

You should not need a different voltage reducer for the 53 gauges. The "chopper' VR puts out 5v. The Packard P/N for that VR is the same 53(and prior) thru 56. I'm running 12v (13.8v) on my '54 and the VR puts out 5v.

Just replace the VR with a NORS/NOS one. I think even Ford used pretty much the same one into the 70s.

The originals are available as are the Ford units if you want to stay old school. If you are running 12v there are the readily available Runtz devices from any number of places. I don't know how they are constructed but expect it is nothing more than something like a 7805 arrangement with a constant 5v out. Downside to those particular units are the expense of one unit needed for each gauge.

I have a couple of concerns about the constant voltage output to the old school bimetal strip gauges which would not an issue on the magnetic type gauges like some Packards used. On bimetal types, will the constant power that does not allow the bimetal to cool slightly between pulses cause the gauge to read higher than it would over a period of time or will the gauges by not having the larger voltage delivered in spurts to heat the strip not need the cooling off to average out the deflection.

Craig experimented using a Drok type converter to run his Panther project cluster. That seemed to work well on the bench but he hasn't got the car on the road yet to know about gauge stability or any long term issues. I wouldn't think there would be any issues but without any experience the question still sits in the back of my mind. If you went with the Drok you might be able to answer the question. Here is Craig's thread with what he used if you want to try the Drok. The Drok he used does look to be less expensive than the old style chopper.

https://packardinfo.com/xoops/html/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=182131#forumpost182131

The Drok is also available here in Germany on amazon, so I ordered one and will give it a try.

I installed the Drok voltage reducer today. I mounted it to the bottom of the dash near where the handbrake is, so it can vent any heat it might generate. I only tested the fuel and temp gauge in the garage. (key on and engine not running) So far, it works. The gas gauge might be lower than before, but I have to evaluate it after a drive. (It seemed to read high before, so this might be better)
It has been rainy here the last few days. I hope it dries up, and I can see if the gauges are accurate and steady with this power supply.

I went for a drive over the weekend and got up to normal operating temp. As you can see, the temp needle points at the right edge of the T in TEMP. I think this is a little lower than previously, but only a little difference. IIRC, the needle used to point between the T and the E. So far it seems to work ok, and I hope I can forget about this and work on other things. At least for now, the DROK seems like a viable replacement for the original chopper voltage reducers.

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