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I'm probably jumping the gun by quite a bit but SMS had a really good sale which is now over but on the last day I was able to take advantage of it by ordering a full interior for the Clipper Custom. I put down a deposit only so far as they need the original in order to proceed and based on the fabric samples that they sent it will be nice!

A question though. I'm adding power windows and they said that they are able to accommodate that too but on the rear door panels, are the power window switches in the same place as the cranks and on the fronts, are they in the same place in the steel panel as the cranks?

I'm not sure if I can afford to go this route but what is a good place that can rebuild and restore the chassis if shipped to them by itself?

Anyone on the chassis restoration? Anyway, in the meantime, I ordered a new fuel tank and sender even though I've not yet pulled out the old tank. Based on the rancid odor that came out of the filler when I blew air through the line at the fuel pump, I would rather replace it than deal with whatever muck is in it!

The last time I was at my shop was in March where I took the Clipper outside while a lift was being installed. After getting it off the stands that it was on for the last 12 years, I found that the tail was nearly dragging and the TorsionLevel Ride wouldn't work. However, after putting it back into the shop, it seemed perfectly level and now, after moving it over using wheel dollies, the rear is quite high! I wonder how it is doing than when there isn't even a battery in it.

Not the best of photos and it's still on the dollies but the rear is clearly up.

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Good Morning Don...I do believe that you have a big strong ghost in your shop and she/he is messing with you by lifting and sitting on your Packard! Most likely best to make friends with she/he! Ernie in Arizona

One of the descriptions of the TL system said to think of the body as being on a teeter-totter with the driver at the midpoint or the center of balance. Without the short bars being powered and able to compensate, I would surmise that with all the movement in and out of the shop the weight or maybe a final push in the front managed to overpower the center of balance slightly and gradually the teeter-totter effect won out allowing the rear to raise.

Ernie, I suspect you're right! It's not the only mysterious thing going on in there.

Howard, I believe that the crank arm has gotten reversed which is what made it seem so odd to me to have it change positions so dramatically from the rear bumper nearly dragging to it being high in the air! However, your suppositions make sense and I suspect they are correct.

If the crank has indeed gotten reversed, how can it be put back to the proper position?

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You can do it two ways. The safest would be to remove the motor and hand crank the compensator so the bars are back to their proper sides. That way you are going slowly and forced to be watching where things are going. You can get an idea if something has been damaged in the box by any extra force needed at some point. Downside is that method would take a good deal of time and some muscle tiring arm action.

Less safe is to do it electrically because of the speed and power of the motor moving things and you having no feedback. If you are not under the car watching you could also do some or more damage that way.

If you do want to do it electrically and the car is safe to power make sure the TL on/off switch is in the off position. Go under the car and bypass the limit switch by grounding a wire at the control switch using one of the outer terminals which connects the wires going directly to the solenoids. Just touch one of them quickly to see what direction it wants to go and be prepared to let off if it looks like it wants to rotate the wrong direction and try to move a bar thru the compensator. Once you are confident it is rotating the proper direction to move the transverse bars back to position then finish the process.

If the car's electrical system is dicey or you don't want to power the whole car you could also use an extra battery and a pair of jumper cables. Connect one jumper cable to the frame and touch the other cable to one of the terminals on the motor. The same quick disconnect action and careful watching of what is happening applies.

Thank you, Howard! That's exactly what I needed to know. I think I'll do it from underneath once I've had the chance to get it up onto the lift, then use a remote starter button to do it under power. That way I can also confirm that it actually is reversed but it sure looked like it when I climbed underneath.

Is the business end of the door handle removable tool flat or is in notched to fit around the shaft? If the latter, what does it look like and are there any dimensions available?

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