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I believe in the parts manual they list the spring ratings and info by model.

Yes, they do list the ratings, so I have that. I just need to confirm if there are any dimensional differences between a 138 and 120.

A few of folks in Hershey were interested in my dad’s woodworking. I’ve posted pictures of the the Packard he built for me years ago before, but here they are again, along with my daughters bulldozer (pink seat) and my son’s low boy to haul his dozer. And…just like our Packards are meant to be driven, the toys are meant to be played with…and were!

Mr. Greene is not running 36 leaf springs and thought you needed dimensions on the 36 coil springs he recently posted pictures of. Mr. Greene is red with embarrassment that he misunderstood as he was on his way to watch the now historic space X launch. Mr. Greene has 37 138CD leaf springs.

No worries, Henry. If you get a minute will you make some measurements on your springs? Then, I can compare to the springs on a 120 to see if there is a difference? I suspect that the only reason for the different part numbers are the weight and rate ratings.

How was the launch?

Related to the question about dimensions of the 138 leaf springs compared to those for a 120….I also notice that the bushings for the shackles also have different part numbers in the parts list. What would be different about the bushings if the shackles are the same?

Door lock question. My front passenger door won’t lock. The cylinder will turn about 60 degrees and needs to go 180 to lock. I get the same results with multiple keys, including my original.

I’m trying to remove the cylinder to replace it with a NOS cylinder. I know I have the process down as I have successfully removed the cylinder from my rear door as well as the trunk.

The process:
1) have lock in unlocked position (full CCW)
2) insert pin/wire to depress spring and turn CCW about another 30 degrees
3) pull cylinder out.

I can’t get the front door to budge trying to remove. I’m guessing one tumbler is really frozen up…I’ve previously tried multiple rounds of PB blaster with no change.

So…I’m thinking I need to take a drill to it to get the cylinder out. Then I can put in a new one. Has anyone done this? Obviously, I will destroy the cylinder, but I want to make sure that I don’t damage anything in the handle. I just don’t know the process. Do I start with a small bit and work my way up until the cylinder will turn to come out?

I admit to not knowing precisely how the prewar handles are constructed or how the latch works in locking but based on postwar cars I would wonder if the problem is with the cylinder or the door latch mechanism. If like the postwar latches, there is a cam affair that needs to turn in the latch and could it be preventing the cylinder from turning full distance?

Everything in the latch seems to work properly. It’s just the cylinder within the handle that doesn’t turn. I’m not convinced that the issue is a stuck tumbler. It would seem like if that were the case the cylinder wouldn’t turn at all. If I put a different key in, it doesn’t turn at all.

The fact that it turns part way is what is the most puzzling.

Rust, warpage, or damage can all affect how cylinder turns in the handle casting. It's also possible that little metal tang that press in is mangled in some way preventing it from releasing.

One of my locks was really bad and the casting itself was bent internally. I ended up just finding another handle.

On my car, being a convertible, currently with no top, the lock is just decorative at this point anyways.