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Packards are also sensitive to thickness at the gear end plate between the pump body and cover. Several have made gaskets out of regular material only to find very low pressure when starting the engine. The original gasket is about as thick as onionskin or tracing paper.

Pressure seems good so as long as the pump works and RTV didn't ooze out to clog anything I think I would leave well enough alone.

Just standard practice for positive displacement pumps, use as thin a gasket as you can and still get a good seal on the cover plate. Another factor on pumps is to look for gear wear patterns on the cover plate; these, like a thicker gasket, will allow oil to cycle within the pump rather than being discharged, resulting in lost pressure. It was a common practice years ago to put some emery or crocus cloth on a piece of flat plate glass and surface the cover until the wear marks have been removed.

I usually cut a gasket from a piece of cheap notebook paper. They are better now, but for many years the gasket that came with many overhaul sets was way too thick and gave poor pressure. .002-.003 is OK.

Thanks you guys for the replies. I saw a drop of oil hanging on the outside of the oil pump a while back. I'll clean it off and try and note exactly where/if it is leaking. I have heard stories about people shopping at a certain grocery store to get paper bags that are a good thickness for gaskets. If I do put a gasket there, I now know what thickness it should be. .002-.003 inch. Thanks!

Next question about a small problem. Normally at idle, I will have 18.5 inches of vacuum and a nice stable idle at 500rpm. I have a tach and vac gauge in the car. If I get stuck in traffic on a hot day, like on the way home from work today, the 8dle gets a little rough. Vac drops to about 17 inches, and the vac signal is not as steady as under normal conditions.
Coolant temp is still fine, so I think the fuel system is getting hot.
Cunifer line from the tank is new, fuel pump was rebuilt a few years ago, heat shield is on the fuel pump, the solid fuel line to the glass filter and carb are in the original style. Any suggestions on what could minimize this?
Insulate the fuel line? Heat shield on ex manifold or carb?
Any other system I should look at?
Filled up today, and calculated 12.5 mpg. Mixed city and some highway driving at 62 mph. Seems reasonable.

My lovely wife and our new daughter Lucy and I visited a small but exclusive classic meets baroque car show today. There was one lovely 1941 120 convertible there.

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Not a packard, but can someone please identify this car? My mom is on the historical association in Broad Channel, where my parents live, and asked that I id the car. Not a packard, but I can't tell more than that. Thanks everybody.

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It's an early postwar Ford but not sure of the exact year.

Mike,

Have reposted on the AACA Website in the "What is it?" Forum. Lots more eyes there and a pretty good success rate in identification.

Link

Identified on AACA Website as '41 Oldsmobile.