Welcome, Tom!

Though I am a V8 guy, I've enjoyed your posts as we moved from the PAC, to ClassicCar.com, and AACA sites.

I'm sure the viewers here will enjoy reading more about your experience with your '31. Pix are easy to attach, too.

Don't be shy about donating scans of any Packard material you have. If that stuff helped you, it will help someone else in the future. As more items turn up here for pre-war cars, hopefully others will be inspired to contribute.

Packard53 -

Any club's decision on maintaining a presence at Fall Hershey will clearly depend on whether or not they are getting enough bank for their buck. If they are going there in hopes of member recruitment and merchandise sales, a lot depends on the people attending the greater event.

As someone who used to go to Fall Hershey almost every year, for over 25 years, I can say it's getting too expensive for the Average Joe to attend.

In addition to hotels and motels that double their rates for the event, the high price of gas (which is still almost double what is the last time I went) and declining incomes (thanks to outsourcing good paying jobs in favor of exploiting cheap labor overseas) don't help. Then, PA is (for the umpteenth time) talking about making a toll road out of I80.

Parking is a real sore spot for me, with HERCO charging top $$$ to park in what amounts to bottom land. Last time I went to Fall Hershey, it was about double the parking/gate fee for large events in the Penn-Ohio area. What HERCO charges might seem reasonable to someone who can afford to live and work in the NYC-Philly-DC corridor, but it's no bargain to the working class.

Seems like all the nearby landowners who used to charge less to park on their fields got bought up by HERCO over the years. I have parked up at the school up on the hill on show day, but as I get older, getting back to the car is tough on the legs at the end of a long day. On the plus side, I heard they the Yellow field went away this past year and the land reverted back to parking for the event.

I've lost a lot of interest in Hershey in recent years. All things considered, regardless of the weather forecast for the event itself, I don't even think about going to Fall Hershey if it's been raining in the weeks leading up to the event.

Is your car not equipped with Torsion-Level suspension?

Though the high-volume pump is not an OE GM part, it was designed and manufactured by MELLING specifically for the OLDS V-8. Only through the efforts of the members of The Packard V-8 Club is a conversion possible to extend that application to the PACKARD V-8.

Since the PV8C only supplies the components needed for adaptation, they buyer is gonna find out that it's an Olds pump when they go to their local parts store to order one. Might as well be up-front about it and call it the Melling/Olds oil pump conversion - rather than come off like something is being swept under the rug. Haven't we seen too much of that (elsewhere) in the hobby in recent years?

If people don't like the idea of putting a "non-Packard" part on their car, they're free to do as they please, but it's better that they know in advance of a purchase like this. Of course, informed consumers like us know that there are some other "solutions" that are just temporary, at best.

What's in a name, anyway? I think V8 owners will be more interested in hearing about the long-term effectiveness of the solution, compared to others - and so far, so good.

Randy -

I understand about wanting to get back to original - had just wondered how that plate was sealed (if need be). My dad, who started turning wrenches prior to WWII, had told me that the gas tank fittings were soldered, and I thought it might be same for this sheet metal oil pan.

Quoting from the "1955-1956 Packard Flat Rate Manual"...

Oper. No.: 5-165
Oil Pan or Gasket - R & R
Includes : R & R Cross over, or side exhaust pipe, starter motor, flywheel lower cover, disconnect and lower steering linkage.
Suggested Time: 2.6

(end quote)

I'm curious to know how that compares to real world time?

BTW, the manual provided an additional 0.3, with pan removed, to R & R the oil pump assembly, and 0.4 to recondition the removed pump (i.e. - disassemble, clean, inspect, reassemble, and replace any necessary parts.

Yes, the Twin Ultra. pan used exactly the same drain plug and sealing washer as the V8 oil pan. I don't recall anything so substantial as a spot-welded plate in that application, but it's been over a decade since I had a pan off an Ultra.

Welcome aboard Randy, and thanks for updating us on your problem.

It's interesting to know that the pan has a "bung" plate that is spot-welded in place, lending itself to a transplant. Yet, I suspect that it wouldn't be too hard to fab a new one if a donor wasn't available. Also, have you any thought about "sweating" some solder (after welding) to make the seam leak-proof or is that not necessary?

Helicoils have their place, but I suspect this will be a better fix in the long-run.

Don't worry about being long-winded in your posts, as this is the kind of good, detailed information that we need to archive for future reference. (A forum is about more than just one-on-one discussion.) Also, know that you can break your post into paragraphs as you would with any word processor, and this forum will handle it, without need for any special coding on your part.

Eric -

You are almost 100% correct. For '56 the running/courtesy light lens was changed (though not entirely opaque) to a translucent white material. But, I knew what you meant.

Now, you might be interested to know that I have a pair of lenses which were cast in a transparent amber sort of color.

I always figured that they were some hobbyist's attempt at repro of the clear '55 lens that had gone wrong - that is, until I learned that there were some ribbed stainless trim pieces done in a gold-tone finish. Although I have never seen any documentation on such trim, a few of those pieces have turned up on eBay - here and for a pretty good buck. Since then, I have wondered if these amber lenses, since the run right in the middel of the paths of the ribbed stainless, might have been part of that rare "gold package".

You might be interested to know that the lights on the side of the 1955-56 Senior Packards (rear door on sedan, rear fender on coupe) are referred to as "courtesy lights" in the parts books - more intended to illuminate entry/egress for front seat passengers.

There was, however, a second bulb in each of those lights that came on with the "parking" lights, but I don't find them to be of that much benefit as a side marker, because they lack any reflex as found on true side marker lights that were implemented as mandatory equipement in 1968 (at least here in the US).

What is more "telling" are the Scotchlight hex decals, offered as a Packard-supplied dealer accessory for wheel covers of earlier Series, that I applied and trimmed down for my Senior cars. When not illuminated at night, the casual observer would never know it wasn't the standard painted center, but a reflective decal.

I have a gut feeling that "side marker" lights similar those on the 55th-56th Series were used prior to 1955, but I have not found an concrete example.

It also seems to me that 1949-50 Pontiac had a turn signal lens that followed the curve of the front fender, though not reaching around nearly so far as that of the 1955-56 Packards.

Any of the major Packard parts vendors should have a repro kit (used to come in a plain white box), but I believe they all get them from Daytona Parts Company.

I would warn you, however, that I once purchased such a kit from a third-party vendor at Fall Hershey for shelf stock and for CASH, but when I went to use the kit, years later, I found parts missing. I could see this without even opening the sealed poly bag, but also noticed the letters "DPC" on the paperwork, which I have seen on kits I purchased direct from Daytona. I really couldn't go back on the vendor, but e-mailed Daytona and got NO response.

I would recommend that whomever you purchase the kit from, check it out as carefully as you can, without opening any sealed, yet transparent packaging, and call them on it immediately if you see a problem. If they don't make it right, let us all know about it HERE.

Perhaps others will have some additional insight for your specific carb model.

One thing my dad handed me when I rebuilt my first carb was a fiberglass tray - like what you used to see in cafeteria-style dining. Though otherwise completely flat, the tray had an upturned edge that kept the little parts (and small tools) from rolling off the table and onto the floor (or worse yet down the drain!). I suppose an old cookie sheet would do, but the bright yellow color of the fiberglass tray also made it easy to spot small parts.

Take the carb apart carefully - a little penetrating oil might be needed for stubborn components. Some parts are brass, which is a soft material - easy to strip-out a thread or a slot.

Soaking the carb parts, after diassembly, is a good idea, but I make it a point not to soak some of the delicate parts, the float(s), or the choke stat and cover. Just clean those off with an aerosol carb cleaner.

Also, because the soaking solution and most aerosol cleaners for carbs are acidic, my dad taught me to rinse the parts off with hot water, after they come oout of their bath - then blow out all pasages and dry with compressed air.

Get a new (not NOS) carb kit, stick with the shop manual instructions (especially and tightening sequence druing reassembly), and you'll do fine. Unlike carbs of later decades, most settings can be made with a common set of feeler and wire gauges.

BTW, I am going to pull the collection of sheets on Carter carbs for Packard applications, that my dad kept in his toolbox (years ago as a mechanic in a Packard agency), and scan them for the site. I suspect it will contain one sheet that applies to your carb.