Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

I would take the oil pan off and see if you can disconnect the con rods from those two pistons and see if you can then spin the crankshaft.

A long time ago my father and neighbor and I unstuck a Kawasaki 400 S3 motorcycle that had been left sitting behind an apartment building for 20 years or so, by taking off the head and, using a wooden block that was placed against the piston crown, hit the wooden block with a small sledge hammer and dislodged the pistons. We didn't disconnect the rods (roller bearings). Those cylinders were Nikasil (sp?) or somtehing like that, and the thing only required new rings and ran and ran until we sold it to some collectors for what now seems like a pittance.

Whether this method is applicable at all to a Packard I leave to the opinions of the experts.

I did try giving the pistons a whack with a wooden block and a hammer, to no avail. Of course, I was pretty gentle with them, not wanting to destroy anything.

I do like the sticky crankshaft idea, but since it's not running very thin oil past the rings, I'm still inclined to think the issue lies there.

BTW, this is a 9-main 327 I bought "on spec". Likely it goes back for sale in light of more recent acquisitions. It's worth more unstuck, or at least is more usable.

Good Morning...Vibration is also quite useful in attempting to free stuck piston rings...Keep at it...the rings will finally come free...Ernie in Arizona

Thank you for the hopeful spirit.

In other news, I'm pulling the head on the '47 gray car I picked up last month, the 356. Didn't break any head studs and they all stayed in. But the effing head seems to be seized to the gasket and block.

If'n it ain't one damned thing, it's another.

The head stuck to the block is pretty standard, far more common than not, especially if gasket sealant was used on the installation. Just use a thin blade like a putty or spackle knife and light hammer and gently work your way around the perimeter, gradually penetrating between the gasket and the head.

If you feel lucky, you might first just crank on the starter with the plugs installed but all other fasteners and attachments removed. Sometimes just the compression pressure will break the head free.

I have a spare 1.25" wood chisel I was thinking of using.

One of the spark plugs broke so there's no way I'm cranking anything because bits of it dropped into the hole. I doubt that cranking would be an option anyway. What do you want to wager that this engine is stuck tight as a drum? I doubt that it's run or been turned in the last half century.

So the crank snout bolt looks to be 1.75". Bloody huge.

If it was an engine I cared about, I wouldn't be using a wood chisel.

Something thin like a stiff putty knife or scraper just to get in there and break the seal around the edges.

The engine is (largely) the point of the exercise. So is getting it done before the snow flies.

I have pondered getting a couple of machine screws with thread to match the plug holes, threading them into #3 and #6, say, with washers, putting a piece of lumber across the fenders (which are beyond hope) and using a bit of chain and a bar to link them and take the out the slack, putting a but of upward pressure on the head. Granite top guys use a method like this to hold undermount sinks in place while the sealant dries. Then when it's getting pulled, put a 2x4 against the head and give it a whack. We'll see.

Another point to remember: US-made cast iron engine parts and Chinese-made "steel" tools attacking it. I think we can all agree which is softer.

Good Morning...This might be a bit much, but I saw it work in my youth with an old Chrysler marine engine...the head would not come off, so the mechanic made four spark plugs into hangers and hooked them with a bit of chain to a bar and hung the engine from an engine hoist...about one inch from the ground, pan still on, and then backed off the head nuts flush with the top of the head bolts and tapped them with a big hammer...about the third time around, the engine dropped the one inch and the head was loose...fresh coffee all around...Ernie in Arizona