G'day Kevin, we probably are talking about the same conversion, but I hadn't realised that there were three parties involved - designer/developer, engineering/machining & installation. I visited who I understand to be the designer and it was at a house with a number of sheds in the yard, not a full blown automotive workshop in an industrial area. The critical element of the project is the machinist and it is he who I understood had died. A couple of years ago a mutual friend suggested I contact the designer, which I did then via email so it's been awhile this project has been stalled.

Craig, I'm sure Mr Butler is well known and respected in auto circles where you are but, and certainly no disrespect intended, that doesn't appear to be the case over here in Australia. Further, taking Kevin's point on board about his desire for privacy, I've got no idea how to go about contacting him. An email address would be great as a short note shouldn't put too much pressure on him.

Essentially, my thinking is that if he has cast up and machined one or more bellhousings for the V8's, he or somebody close to him probably still has the mould, which could be used again (in theory anyway, not knowing the casting method). A bellhousing would be easier and less costly to ship than a full transmission, especially seeing a core should be readily available over here. Kind regards, John

This is a very interesting topic that I have been following and now feel the need to contribute. But firstly, a comment about Craig's post #42. The guy who was doing the Turbo 700R4 conversion in CA is still with us - it was his sub-contract engineer who did all the machining etc who died.

I visited him earlier this year and was told he still had all the blueprints, measurements etc, and was shown a modified 700R4 casing for a Packard straight 8, plus modified flex plate (see pic's below) He had none for the V8's left, but was hopeful of producing more if a quality replacement machine shop could be found. It seems most aren't interested in small production runs.

When I last communicated with him there had been nothing put in place and he stressed then that he wanted to remain incognito until such time as it is. I have deliberately not mentioned his name for this reason, but am able to contact him.

He was also remanufacturing Packard V8 oil pumps until his engineer died (my car has one fitted). Essentially, the vac pump was thrown away and the housing remachined to take a longer, 1/2" shaft. A 1/2" base plate machined to accept and support the shaft and Mellings Cadillac gears completed the job. No doubt there is more to it than that but you get the picture. A '57 Chev electric wiper motor is also fitted to my car.

I was basically marking time about a 700R4 project because of the bellhousing issue. However, I didn't realise that later versions of this transmission came with a bolt on bellhousing making them more conducive to modification, albeit with the need for some electronics. The 700R4 has been used extensively in Australia by Holden for many years, and I guess the later versions as well. Finding a core for modification shouldn't be a problem.

I wonder if Mr Butler has considered producing and selling machined bellhousings only? Does anybody know whether this might be a possibility? John

Attach file:

---

  (125.86 KB)


  (128.25 KB)


  (163.38 KB)

G'day all, fascinating what you learn on this site. I've just reset the float level and drop to factory spec's on the Rochester 4GC on my '56 Patrician, and wondered about how accurate my settings were. Reading about the two screws on the side of the carby that could be removed for inspection purposes gave me the advice I thought I needed. Unfortunately, the '56 4GC doesn't come equipped with these screws, or mine doesn't anyway. I wonder why Packard dropped this useful analytical component (???). Also, before the rebuild my carby was leaking and I suspect it was a combination of a very worn accelerator pump and too high a float level on the secondaries. Regards, John

Hi all, Mal's correct. I've been right through the sheds and workshop helping Dick locate parts that we were after and he certainly has a heap of the stuff, much of it needing identification to the untrained eye. Clearly Dick knew basically what he had but I don't think he had any numbering/listing system that I could see, but he had a pretty good idea of what he had in storage and what it was probably worth.

Chuck, we haven't met so it's a little impertinent of me in Australia to be handing out advice. However, I think Dick had the right idea in cleaning and preparing parts for sale and running them on ebay. He was always very careful to describe them accurately and completely honest in his dealings with potential buyers. He had said on more than one occasion that he had someone (I don't know who) that was going to take the body and trim work of his hands as a bulk lot so he could concentrate on parts more easily handled. Is there someone nearby that can help you with this really big task?

Also, you are probably aware of this but Dick had a '50's model at a panel shop on a nearby property for body and paint work. We actually delivered some guards for it while we were over there. Nancy would do doubt know the man's name if you need it. If I can be of any help over here just let me know. Kind regards, John

Fellow Packard enthusiasts, many of you will know Dick Benjamin of Temecula, Southern California. Unfortunately, Dick died from complications suffered after surgery a couple of days ago and will be sadly missed. Dick was a great Packard man and had an enormous knowledge of the marque, particularly the late '40's and 50's models. I bought my '56 Patrician from Dick and have yet to meet a more honest or helpful person - a true gentleman in every sense of the word. I consider Dick a very good friend and was fortunate to be able stay with he and Nancy when John King and I visited the US earlier this year. Along with many others, I'll miss him dearly. RIP Dick. John Payne

The Packard was owned by Russell Kerr, long time member of the Packard Club who up until recently regularly attended Club meets here in Victoria. Russell decided to sell this car and a '56 Patrician recently because of his advancing years (he's in his '80's). We hope he and his wife Val still continue to attend meets, even if it means driving brand X. John Payne

G'day Big Kev,

Just letting you know the Aussie contingent was at the meet and we enjoyed ourselves immensely, and even bought some parts to take home. I looked out for you but didn't find you. I remembered you said your nickname described you well, but I forgot to ask whether the "big" was a vertical or horizontal reference. In any event, our paths might have crossed, unknowingly. I did get to meet Harry, the subject of the video, as he is a friend of Dick Benjamin, who I bought my car from. Dick came up for the swap meet and introduced me to Harry. What Harry didn't say in the video was that the car ended up with a flat battery and Dick helped jump start him. By the way, you didn't organise the weather very well - I nearly froze my arse off late Sunday morning, and got a little wet into the bargain. Cheers, John

G'day Big Kev, just confirming with you that John King and I, John Payne, will be attending this event and we have booked to stay at the Doubletree for that weekend. I'll lookout for you. Cheers, John

Just letting you know that I have taken PackardV8's repair fix, done a few mod's and fitted the final product, and I'm happy to report mission accomplished - and it works!

The attached pics show the pieces and the final, modified, adapter (sorry about fuzzy pic). The plate is 3mm steel and the old adapter is glued to it with Loctite 401 (super duper super glue) to make sure it stayed in place during reassembly. The shaft is the bolt which was cut and welded into position in the plate. I actually forgot about the rotation of the barrel in the casing initially which caused the bolt head to foul on the end of the casing. It then had to be reground, rewelded and ground flat to avoid this.

The main problem after this was reassembly as it had to be done in the trunk lid. While laying upside down in the trunk, getting the spring to sit in place while the adapter is bolted into place proved to be a real pain in the proverbial. Also, while I had everything apart I used split pins to hold each end of the rod linkage. By the way, the bend in mine now points to the rear of the car, not sideways like in the other pic. It might have pointed to the front originally but was easier to reassemble this way. Cheers, John

Attach file:

---

  (122.55 KB)


  (72.77 KB)


  (44.66 KB)

Regarding leather headlining material, when my motor trimmer son-in-law and I were doing the retrim for my Patrician (cloth and leather), I asked about the possibility of redoing the headlining in matching leather and his response was that leather would be too heavy and most likely sag before too long. Therefore, as my grey brushed cotton headlining was in pretty good shape, we decided to leave it unchanged. The previous owner of my car is of the opinion that this headlining was not original but I can't remember what he said was. By the way, we picked the leather upholstery colour by matching swatches to the vinyl front door window trim (dash extension). Cheers, John