Well, after getting the car warmed up really good after driving it for an extensive period (over 2 hours), the lifter tick is back, again after I warm it up really good. Got frustrated and changed the oil out to 20w50, that seemed to make things a bit better (the oil light doesn't flicker after full warm up, though I realize that's "by design" as pointed out in a previous post), but it still happens.

I'm so frustrated.

Kanter lists springs as available. Folks report that they ship overseas.

Kanter 1955-56 Springs

Other folks report that springs for Packards are available from Eaton Detroit Spring, though you have to call or otherwise contact them as they do not list parts for Packards on their website.

Eaton Detroit Spring

Max Merrit lists Front Coil springs but not rear leaf springs. But it's possible they do have them, just not listed.

There are a lot of different kinds of helper springs, from "add a leaf" kits to things that go on top of the spring

Over the top Helper Spring

To this, which is what I have used on my 1953 with some success until I get around to replacing the rear leaf springs.

SurBilt Rear Leaf Helper Springs

All the specifications, including the original wheel and tire sizes, are at the end of the service manual in the "Literature" section of the website:

1955-56 Service Manual

On my 1953 Cavalier I run these thin white-wall Hankook P724 P235/75R15

Hankook H724 OPTIMO H724 P235/75 R15

Coker tire cross reference says they are equivalent to the old "8.00 15" size

Coker Tire Cross Reference

I believe lots of people run Cokers or Diamondbacks, which have the wide whitewall look but are more $$

Coker Wide Whitewall P235/75 R15

They will get back to you, sometimes it seems to take a day or so.

Phone or email seems to work:

sales1@kanter.com
973-334-9575
800-526-1096

Just go to that link and type in "water pump". It has options for 356's and 288's.

Also Kanter lists water pumps as well:

Kanter Auto Parts, Packard Parts 1940-1950

As always, best probably to give either one of those vendors a call.

looks like Max Merritt offers rebuilt pumps for those years

Max Merrit Packard Parts -1941-47

I am not an expert here but I understand that there are a couple of different options for an Oil pump, there are modifications to the origtinal done by Ross (Speedwell garage), there is a kit to adapt an Oldsmobile pump, and there is a kit to adapt a Melling pump. Hopefully proponents of each approach will post here.

Well, those are all interesting. The first one is for a Mazda GLC and similar, it has a chance of fitting the Ford Courier booster since that was a Mazda product as well, maybe the booster that naturally fits these is 7" or less as well, haven't looked. The second one is for a Nissan Sentra. None of these are for particularly large cars, but they did use disc brakes (at least on the front), from what I understand disc brakes require more cylinder volume than drum brakes, but really it's dependent on the stroke and probably not possible to know unless one gets one. They could also have issues with balance front/rear, again hard to tell unless one got one.

The position of the bolt on the pedal arm doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the pedal ratio. It's the ratio of the distance from the pedal to the pivot axis, to the distance from the master cylinder axis to the pivot axis, measured perpedicular to the master cylinder axis, like in the attached diagram. Maybe they can measure it according to the attached or similar diagram.

Attach file:

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  PedalRatio.jpg (53.72 KB)

In the end, I sat with a stethoscope and put it on the valve stems themselves as they went up and down, as the engine was running. That was possible using the long stethoscope probe, you just rested the side of the end of the probe on the valves.

I found 2 "bad" ones and 3 "suspect" ones.

I put new ones in. Thank you Ross for testing the ones I had purchased, they tested out good, as did the two I had taken out previously, which were probably the wrong ones as I had only listened from the head with the valve covers on, which is very difficult as the sound travels everywhere.

I checked the clearance for the lifter plungers with the gage I obtained from Pacific Northwest Packards, everything was between 0.040 and 0.045 clearance, well within the spec of 0.030 to 0.070.

I cleaned all the lifter passages up real well also, and I installed a rebuilt oil pump I obtained from Kanter. I also installed an oil pressure gage in the passenger compartment - mechanical, using copper lines.

I took it on two long drives, each lasting over an hour, and in both cases the lifters were quiet, even as the engine/oil slowly heated up.

No noisy lifters anymore. At the end of the runs I had oil pressure at idle with the transmission in H of around 8 or 9 psi (rapidly going to 35 above idle), I think that is better than what I would get previously, which would sometimes cause the oil light to flicker - no flickering anymore.

So, crossing my fingers, seems like I have solved the lifter problem. Thanks everyone for your help and advice.