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Sorry to bring up the most common problem once again... But I feel I've tried everything. My 49 22nd is still running hot....
I've replaced the head gasket, I've also had the cooling system power/back flushed twice. I have an electric fan, spark plugs are correct, and I've vacuum tested the timing advance. Everything checks okay.... I'm running without a thermostat to see if it helps... Any ideas? It hasn't completely overheated, but it definitely wants to.

Have you checked the water distribution tube? Also. are you
sure the heat sender is the correct unit and is functioning
correctly?

Check this post of Joeys.

Good Morning...Since you are in Hawthorne, you might want to speak to Robert Escalante at Custom Auto in Santa Ana. His shop has specialized in Packard Automobiles for over 30 years. They are at Third and French, in Santa Ana, if my memory is working this morning. The phone number is 714-543-2980.

Also, on the Packard Club web site, on the left column, about 2/3 of the way down the listing is a red tool box. In that area is a very long and complete listing of all of the possibilities for your Packard to run warm/hot.

In our case, we had a number of things that were slightly off and when all corrected the old girl now runs cool down the road and about 195 at long lights.

We did finally design and install a radiator shroud which also helped.

Ernie, custodian of 'Miss Prudence, a 1949 23 series Deluxe.

If you suspect the radiator, back flushing isn't going to help very much. You need to find a radiator shop that can remove the top and bottom tanks and inspect the core directly. The usual practice for tubed radiators is to pass a rod through the tubes to clear debris. Those places are dying off in droves so spend some time doing research.

Running the engine without a thermostat will not help.

A thermostat will meter the water as it flows through the radiator and thereby allow the water to remain in the radiator long enough to cool.

Is the water pump gasket installed correctly?

Does the water pump have serviceable vanes or are they all rusted away?

Use an infrared thermometer and with the front radiator cover removed measure the temperature of the front of the radiator and all vertical rows should have the same temperature (if some rows are cold then the tubes are blocked)

Try running no antifreeze for a short period of time to see if that helps.

Is your electric fan blowing air the correct way or is it blowing forward?

Is the radiator cap really pressurizing the system?

Use a digital thermometer and tape the sensor to the thermostat housing and measure the temperature directly to verify that the gauge is indicating accurately (the gauge on my Packard shows uncomfortably high even when the actual water temperature is only 200F at the thermostat.

I installed a six blade fan

Sorry I'm just now responding... Busy week at work. The previous owner had removed the Thermostat😕 I checked the temp with an infrared thermometer... The temp seemed to be fairly consistent along the block, the radiator seemed to have a difference of 10 degrees in certain spots. My fan has been installed properly, it definitely increases air to the block... However the air alone passing the radiator is almost intolerable to the touch (hot) I'm pulling my radiator and W.P. Tomorrow. I'm gonna also pull the water distribution tube, to be sure. Freeze plugs also.... The water pump seemed to develop the highest temp, before shutting her off, it was about 220 degrees. When everything else just peaked over 200. I'm assuming blockage, but I just got paid and don't mind fixing what's not broken haha I'm replacing the cooling system components, if nothing gives, I'll triple check my distributor. I had a similar problem with a 53 Packard years back. Thank you guys for your time and expertise

Please let us know what you find out!

Alright, so the Radiator has been repaired and Thermostat installed. The air flowing from the fan was finally cool. With the infrared Thermo I checked all around during warm up. Once the thermostat opened a big puff of smoke came from the block, it only smoked for about 20 seconds. What's a good operating temperature? It seems the only way to keep it cool, is to keep it in motion.