Thanks Howard for the picture. That will come in handy later. For now I've decided to roll with the dual master set up as it stands. I've replaced most of the lines. Some were replaced previously when the dual master was put in. They appear to be stainless steel and incredibly hard to bend.


Not much progress unfortunately. I've called every brake place around and no one arcs brake shoes. In fact, most places said "what's that?". I've tried taking more off the web where the adjuster sits to no avail. I don't think there's any way I'm getting these shoes to fit without taking off a bunch of the lining.

So I'm just going to bite the bullet and order some new shoes from Kanter. Should have done that from the beginning. Live and learn.

-Kevin

The number of shims on a side does not matter. You only need to adjust one of the axles for the end play.

Roger, that mirror looks like the popular "Peep" mirrors used on hot rods and street rods. You may want to look on the Speedway, Summit and JEGS websites. You usually see them mounted to the top of the door. I mounted a pair on my 115C Convertible Coupe on the vent window frame. They were attractive looking and provided good rearward vision. The high mounting provides the best view. They did interfere with the vent window opening fully, but this was not a concern to me. The mirror shown in the photo looks original-like. Most attractive.

Here is a photo of the mirror installed.

Attach file:

---

  photo-1.jpeg (322.59 KB)

West, here are photos of the front carpet for my 1955 Clipper Super Sedan. It is one piece. I used the old carpet as a pattern. It fit well around the transmission hump and the section in front of it. I know the Caribbean has different material, but the pattern is probably similar.

Attach file:

---

  IMG_0001.jpeg (105.55 KB)


  IMG_0002.jpeg (106.83 KB)


  IMG_0005.jpeg (103.36 KB)


  IMG_0003.jpeg (102.22 KB)


  IMG_0007.jpeg (92.87 KB)

14 ga wire is fine. The wire should be connected to the same coil terminal as the wire that is going down to the distributor but a connection at the distributor terminal will also work.

The missing wire is actually a ground that starts at the solenoid. When solenoid plunger extends to engage OD an internal contact in the solenoid closes which puts ground on the wire. That ground goes up to the kickdown switch and connects to one of the top terminals. Those terminals are normally open so ground goes no farther.

When kickdown is desired, the quick accelerator movement to floorboard pushes the kickdown switch plunger and opens the bottom contacts in the switch so relay can drop out and cut power to the solenoid. Slightly after the bottom contacts open, the top contacts close to pass the ground on to the coil. The ground at the coil shorts out the points so spark stops being produced. The no spark condition causes the engine to miss and that relaxes the torque in the OD so spring in solenoid can retract the plunger and drop the unit out of OD. As soon as the solenoid plunger is released it starts to move back and the internal contacts supplying the ground to the coil wire open again. Ground goes away and coil can start producing a spark so engine resumes firing. The entire sequence is timed to last only a few milliseconds. There is not an exact time given for the sequence to occur and documentation says only that the action results in a "few" missed sparks.

No idea why someone would disconnect and remove the wire and switch but if the wire to the solenoid contact is shorted under the car or something is broken in the solenoid or something mechanical in the OD keeps the solenoid plunger from retracting quickly, the ground could remain present long enough to kill the engine. Keep that in mind if you have a problem after connecting things back up.

Here is a good 51-4 diagram that shows all the contacts.

Attach file:

---

  51-54 R11 schematic.jpg (116.42 KB)

thanks for this advise. I noticed that one side had one shim and the other several. Appreciate the heads up!

Thanks. I went online to Ecklers and did not see any mirrors that matched your picture. Do you possibly still have their part number?
Thanks, again.

Hi, I'm needing some information and hoping to pick someone's knowledgeable brain; how do I remove the tail light lens from my 1957Packard Clipper sedan?

No Have. I have had these rebuilt as well, its a matter of having the two inserts remade, simply a delicate machining operation and not fun to remove/reinstall in the captive sheet metal. But it CAN be done. As for finding GOOD replacements, good luck.

I am not familiar with Ford option? More info please. (kinda like using 68 Mustang window risers for the doors...can be modified...)

I will check to trans number as soon as I move car to my location and can get under it. Need to make arrangements get brother to help.