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Tuesday 7th January 2014

A New Year, with Wade at the workshop today gathering up parts, equipment and stuff to be transported north to continue outfitting his Shed. Lent a hand to disassemble part of the old sheet metal shelving that stands against the far wall. All the stuff formerly occupying that shelving has itself already made the journey north but is presently occupying floor space in the Shed. Besides the shelving, a 320 head, exhaust manifold, starter and generator were also going. As well as some sundries and a bar fridge. After all, what would a shed be without a fridge? Also going, but not loaded by the time I left, was a trunk and running board matting for The Fossil, with these having gathered quite a layer of dust over the years. And speaking of The Fossil, Wade tells me that, when it too goes north, it's likely to occupy a space in the main garage attached to the house. Apparently there's little chance of it getting into the Shed with a few other vehicles already ensconced. But to fit it in the garage the front bumper will need to be removed!

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Monday 13th January 2014

An auspicious occasion today, I visited Wade's NEW Workshop near the shores of Lake Macquarie! Although Wade has been ensconced there since the middle of 2013 I hadn't yet made the pilgrimage to what will surely become a Packard sacred site. All that changed because I had an ulterior motive, not just to visit Wade and Gina but also to get Wade to run a hand and eye over the Coupe which was due for it's annual roadworthiness inspection check. No need to worry except for a blown tail/stop light bulb as well as a bad connection to that light, easily fixed. The other thing attended to was the drivers door arm rest which wanted to seperate itself from its fixings. A pair of bigger screws and it was back where it belonged. Besides enjoying the hospitality of Wade and Gina, with homemade pizzas for lunch(delicious) also had the opportunity to catch up with another PACA member and good mate of Wade's, PeterL, who literally lives just a stones throw away. Saw Peter's latest acquisition, his Hardtop '56 Buick Roadmaster as well as his FX Holden Sedan and '38 120 Sedan(although that was under a cover). A thoroughly enjoyable day with the Coupe running well on the 130 mile round trip. Sat on an indicated 60mph on the Freeway but, factoring speedo error in, it's more like 55mph. It would have been faster if the OD was right but fixing that is some way in the future.

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Tuesday 14th January 2014

A trip today with Noel to pick up the load of Packard parts that had finally arrived from the US. Included were a steering column and box for my Coupe and a footrest also for my Coupe, the inner fender panels and radiator splash guard Noel had purchased from PackardInfo member Saltydog, Greg, see this thread a couple of months ago. There were also some '37 Super 8 suspension and steering parts for Wade and Peter Packard to sort out between them as to who gets what. Met Noel at the 'old' workshop and headed off to the wilds of semi rural western Sydney to the Bond Store they had been unloaded at. Didn't take long to load, about 10 minutes for the large coffin that's what the box looked like, for the box to be loaded in the back of the ute. But probably took longer for it to be secured for the journey! Back at the workshop Noel unloaded his parts with which he is well pleased, just what he wanted!
Greg!
I also took ownership of my parts while the remainder were left for Wade to sort through on his next visit back to the big smoke. And earlier in the day, the Coupe passed it's registration check with flying colours!
Wade!

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Monday 24th March 2014

Yea, and verily, so it came to pass. Work resumed in the workshop! But wait, I'd better not get too excited, it was only me cleaning parts.

Background is that Wade was in Sydney today for an appointment and alerted me that he was bringing down the trans case, OD adaptor and the OD case so they could be cleaned up. He'd taken the trans and OD apart on the bench and found a number of problem areas to be addressed, namely some of the bearings and the layshaft(think you call it the countershaft, anyway it's the shaft down the middle of the cluster). During the course of his Sydney visit Wade found time to call into ABC Bearings and sourced 2 of the three bearings required. The other required is the double row bearing in the OD which from the Parts List is Group 3.447, described as BEARING, Unit main shaft, Part Number 347572. That part number is for 17th, 18th & 19th Series. But because the replacement OD is from a Post War Packard I was hopeful it's use continued unchanged. Was able to verify that in Max's catalogue, the same part number was used till '49, phew. The layshaft is Group 3.214 COUNTERSHAFT, Transmission Part Number 333572. Fits 39 to 54 per Max! Currently about halfway through the cleaning part. In addition to which, I've also been tasked with blasting some waterpump parts for a rebuild for a spare for RobT from South Australia. Will be back at the workshop tomorrow. Woohoo!

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Mal, good to see some progress and you back at it at Wade's Workshop. I had missed it.

Tuesday 25th March 2014

Spent the morning first on the waterpump parts then on the trans housing. Waterpump parts were wire wheeled then blasted, but still need another session in the blasting cabinet.With the trans housing, first cleaned the greasy gunk out then scraped and wire brushed the exterior before using the parts cleaner inside and out followed by repeated brake cleaner finishing. But, this too needs further attention before it's finished. Might be back tomorrow, if not then likely to be Thursday.

EDIT - Noticed one of the water pump impeller blade has a piece missing, Is this likely to contribute to an out of balance problem in the pump?

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Great to see that the team has re-grouped and production has started! Nice to catch up with you and others on the weekend Mal!

Friday 28th March 2014

Didn't make it back to the workshop on Wednesday or Thursday either, but did today. Reblasted the body of the waterpump, looks a lot better now. Found a pair of grooves worn into the bottom of the pump body, see pic's. Just wondering, how did they get there? They aren't cuts from something like a hacksaw and they certainly appear to be worn into the casting. Then started on cleaning the OD housing when John suggested putting that, the adapter and the trans housing into the hot washer, which I was all for. After that there was still some final cleaning with brake cleaner to remove the grime and buildup in the internal nooks and crannies which defied the washers cleaning attempts. Might even the deliver the parts to Wade next week as I'm likely to be up his way Monday or Tuesday.

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Tuesday 1st April 2014
No, this is NOT an April fool joke!

This morning did some reconnaissance for a run for our Packard National Rally in 2015. The end of which brought me in close proximity to Wade's new abode. I was about 57kms south instead of about 107kms, how close can you get? So dropped in the cleaned up trans and OD cases as well as the waterpump. For my troubles was presented with a bill for parts bought to date for the trans and OD rebuild. Reminds me, will have to follow up re the double row bearing and layshaft, haven't heard back yet from a likely source.

And this for Terry, traumjaegercat, I asked Wade about the water pump rebuilds. He remembers the incident about the incorrect machining dimension. It was because the new ceramic seal being used had changed from the previous one used. Wade used the previous measurements not knowing the manufacturer had changed the seal. And, as a bonus, Wade will dig out his drawings for the '34 Waterpump. May take a little while but once available will let you know.

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Cheers Mal,
I look forward to that
T