Packard Forum Index » Project Blogs

I have actually thought about this on my Clipper because it's so worn looking, how when I repair things it can't look too nice. For example, imagine removing your radio to repair it but not cleaning or polishing anything on it while it's out. Exactly what I'm doing LOL.

Then on my 400 it's the opposite, like Kevin here I am removing things to polish them because no one did it in the past 70 years; the paint and trim is quite nice so the brightwork needs to match.

Making some progress in the evenings after kids go to bed. The back of the dash was covered in surface rust, which I think is pretty standard.




I wire brushed all the loose stuff off, cleaned it up, then coated the whole interior with Ospho. I left it for 24 hours and all the rust had been successfully converted.




Then I sprayed a coat of rattle can primer




Lastly I hit it with a coat of rattle can white. I'll probably do one more for good measure. If I ever find myself in the unfortunate situation of digging around behind the dash, the white paint should make it much easier to see. I'm pretty sure I saw someone do the same on these forums before. I will need to clean off the metal where things need to be grounded.




Also cleaned up and painted the steering column. Looks much better now

Hi Kevin,
I also have my interior partially out, not nearly as much as you are doing, but I plan on using DEI undercarpet light on my floors before putting the carpet in.
I remember you were not happy with your aluminum bubble wrap stff.
DEI website

That seems like a good material to use, in case you are looking for an alternative.

I'll have to check that stuff out. I would love to replace the bubble insulation so it doesn't sound like I'm stepping on trash when I get in the car. Thanks for the recommendation.

Not much progress this weekend. Too busy with other things. But I did get a few side jobs done to keep things moving forward.

I added a metering valve onto my sandblast cabinet. It had become nearly impossible to use with the siphon tube, and was incredibly frustrating. So it mostly sat against the wall for the past year or so. The metering valve made all the difference. Now I can blast comfortably at 35-40 PSI, have way less media in the hopper, and get much better results.



A quick test piece cleared of paint and corrosion. I have lots of fasteners to clean from the dash.



I also bought all (hopefully) of the paint supplies I will need to do the interior trim and dash.

Finally had some free time today, so I got to work prepping all the interior bits for paint. The dash and window trim weren't terrible so I sanded them down with 400 until they were smooth. Might have a bit more to do. The steering column and upper door trim was in much worse shape. Large amounts of paint had flaked off over the years. So those pieces I stripped down to bare metal so I could start fresh.
At this point I have most of the pieces ready for paint.







The steering wheel is next. Over all not in bad shape. Only one out two cracks showing. The trim pieces pulled out with their retainers still attached. But they should still hold in there well enough.







I'm not sure what I should do to prep this thing for paint. It was repainted back when the body was painted (same color as the body, which is different from the color on the dash and steering column). I don't know what they did for prep. There is one small area of flaking paint, and the paint is rubbed off the finger knobs all the way around.

Checked in with SMS to see if there was an update on the cloth for the seats, since it's been a month. Back when I ordered the fabric I had the lady check to make sure they had the fabric in stock, which they did and said there was at least 10 yards available.

When I talked to them today a different lady said they have to make more fabric and there is no estimate on time. So that's great. Somebody doesn't have the right info, either the first person or the second.

-Kevin

Question. Does anyone know what the original colors were for gear shifter and turn signal knobs? Mine are both cracked (I have the other half of the turn signal) and obviously very faded. I can't tell if they were originally blue like the rest of the interior, or if they were always a bit of a green tint. The plastic on my armrests are pretty much the same greenish color, but the plastic is also super old and brittle, so not sure if the color just leaches out over time.

On that note, anyone know if the '54 Clippers ever had ivory steering wheels? I'm planning on painting it the same color as the dash, but ivory might look okay....

You can see the difference in color based on parts that were exposed to the sun. I plan on using epoxy to repair these

I painted all mine at the same time I did the dash, steering wheel and window moldings. So everything is the same paint.

I don't know how successful your epoxy repair will be long term but if you need a replacement knob Lavine Reproductions has the shift and turn signal knob repros. Those can be ordered cast in any of the standard Packard plastic colors and if you click on the knob the available colors chart can be viewed.

There is a chart on page XVII of the intro section to parts manual showing which interior colors were available in the various models.

Historically over the years, the Deluxe steering wheel was available as an option in all models and the same wheel is listed in the parts book as used from 48-53 but is not listed for 54. Packard did go all out with interior color co-ordination in 54 so conceivably the only official wheel was the painted one to match a specific interior trim. I seriously doubt a dealer would turn down a sale if a customer wanted a Deluxe wheel so even if not officially approved expect there were some installed.