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I'll try to find some more numbers. In the meantime I emailed the fellow (very knowledgeable Packard guy) who was the source of the solution.
He may be able to say what model uses a 50 544 drum with a 1-5/8 to 1-3/8 hub.

I say "solution" because all I remember is that I had a broken axle and somehow it was repaired. How much of the rear-end was changed, I don't know.

If the correct 1803 rear end was as popular as it sounds, it may not be as difficult to find as finding a commercial drum/hub assembly (or whatever the heck I had on the car).

An alternative might be to remove and re-rivet my hub to the new drum.

I haven't found a machinist to ream out that hole on a taper and cut the key slot deeper. Everyone says it's tricky.

Caution has been expressed in welding the original hub faceplate back on to the drum because of the different metals, rates of expansion, etc. I wonder if the T clips or pins they used to hold the two together are available anywhere.

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No experience with the commercial and LWB chassis axles but can confirm that the taper on 48-50 Custom 8 axles is 1-1/2 to 1-1/4 as reported by Howard. This axle part number is 323143 and uses 12" drum # 351423. The same drum appears again from 1953 to 1955 and has a depth of about 2-5/16".

1-5/8 <--> 1-3/8 pretty much describes the taper on my '41 LWB Limousine [model 1908 body 1450]. Just FYI.

I think we've established that the person who replaced the broken axle back then replaced both axles with commercial ones and the brake drums, too. Unlike many items installed on the Duchess over several decades to keep her on the road, from the carburetor to the steering wheel, I think I'll keep the rear-end as is for now.

What the flackmaster sent me and Max Merritt pulled were the correct drums for my 1803. How were we to know the axles had been changed?

Last week in desperation I asked a client, who owns a large manufacturing business with half a dozen CNC machining devices for making precision modular airlocks, for a recommendation on a machine shop that could machine the taper of the hub hole to the larger size and deepen the key slot. He said he'd do it as a personal favor and is picking it up and the broken drum next week. You have to live right, guys... and maybe be willing to play chauffeur for a couple of special occasions.

So we'll see what else can go wrong. Stay tuned. And thanks for all your help in solving this.

AXLE AND HUB: The owner of the machining manufacturing company suggested it would be best if the operator, the shop foreman in this case, have the axle, in addition to the original hub and the replacement hub, to be sure we had a perfect fit.

My friend Vaughn agreed to come by and help me with that. Because I jacked up only one side, no synthetic gear oil leaked out, eliminating a smelly mess. The parts were gone a week, so it was just a matter of reassembling the axle and wheel when they returned.

I cleaned up the parts, primed and painted some. I used the same seal, so after I run it a bit, I'll check that it's not leaking. Poured some gear old on the bearings and reassembled. Took it for a short test drive and everything seems fine.

FLUTTERING: New problem. I'm not sure how else to describe it. When I press the accelerator pretty far down to go up hill, the engine starts missing. I suspect it's water in the gas. Is adding STP the cure, if that's the case. I'll assemble more data tomorrow about what the conditions are when it happens and when it doesn't.

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Why do you suspect water in the gas? What about fuel volume?

I don't remember your fuel set up, but if you have them, have you checked your fuel filters?

And yes, that was a terrible sentence.

Cheers,

Tom

Joe,

I recently "discovered" the Marine (green) Stabill. Bought it to protect the fuel system of my new snow blower. Stabilizer recommend in owners manual.

Back in November the last place I was able to buy regular unleaded without corn syrup could no longer get it on any type of a regular basis. Result of using ethanol was loss of mileage and rough running. Put the Marine Stabill the tank of my truck last week. Within fifteen minutes it was running like a champ again. To see if it was my imagination, put it in my neighbor's Volvo (lady I bought the Derham from) w/65k on it. Has been running poorly for a while. Anyways, same results, car is now full of pep and vim. No more hard starting or shaking.

May be the easiest fix for you to start with. Good luck with it.

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Hey Joe,
Maybe I'm misunderstanding (wouldn't be the first time), but the rear wheel bearings should be packed with an appropriate heavy grease and not 'oiled'.

Joe, JD beat me to the keyboard, but I fully agree with him. The rear wheel bearings should be packed with wheel bearing grease. There are two oil/grease seals for each rear bearing: One on the inside of the bearing to keep gear oil from getting on the bearing and keeping the grease from getting into the oil; and one on the outside of the bearing to keep the grease from leaking onto the brakes and to keep dirt and moisture from getting into the bearing. Looks like you have some more work to do before driving the Packard. I hope we caught this in time as you have been through more than enough with the rear end.

(o{}o)

Sorry I completely missed the bearing "oiling" part of your post. You can buy a fairly simple bearing packer for not a lot of money. I can go see what I have and give you the mfgr and model # if you want.

Also forgot to mention the Marine Sta-bil is a treatment that counters the ill-effects of ethanol and prevents corrosion and crud build up. Cleans injector nozzles, throttle body, carbs, intake valves and fuel systems