Packard Forum Index » Pre-War (1899-1942)

See if Joe can pop his horn button off and get you pictures of what's underneath.

Howard HH56 has posted exploded horn diagrams of the horn components.

Yes he has Joe, but they are for the standard wheel and the banjo wheel is different. I have looked closely at that parts explosion and cannot 'relate' it to what I'm dealing with. Can anyone even tell me if there is a large coil spring in the steering wheel cavity? And does that little sprocket spring even belong in the banjo assembly components?? I can't figure where it is supposed to go or what purpose it actually affects. There must be a published parts list/exploded view of that wheel innards somewhwere. Chris.

I remember seeing one somewhere years ago so maybe it was in a Motors or Chilton manual. I have both but not here although my Chilton may not go back far enough. It’s not totally clear to me that you need the cap either so I hope we can find a solution soon for you before I ship!

I appreciate that Don. I have poured over hundreds of 'banjo' steering wheels on Ebay and other sites and it seems the Packard '39 and '40 are very specific versions. The spokes describe a 'Y' and the upper strokes of the 'Y' are slightly bent in, giving it a directional orientation. There is one unit on Ebay that appears complete from the outside but I don't know if the innards are correct and complete, plus it is $700 USD which transaltes to well over a grand $CDN, so I'd much rather figure out the parts on mine. Hoping someone who has been through this before and figured it out will chime in. Mike Chirco apparently has one and I am trying to get some help from him but we haven't connected up as yet. I'd be willing to pay someone for the right info. Chris.

Don’t get discouraged as I’m sure an answer will come along soon!

Yes, you're right Don - I must be patient (not my strongest suit!) and I'm sure someone will have the answer. I did contact Quality Restorations in California to see if they had a parts sheet on it and also asked about a restored/reproduction banjo wheel. That would probably be shocking price-wise and with the horrible devastation they are going through down there, hard to say if they'd even be open. Chris.

I once got a quote to restore the wheel on my 1965 Imperial LeBaron which is clear over a chrome ring giving it a pearlescent look (it was all in a pile of plastic pieces on the floor after decades-long storage) but the cost was more than the value of the car as it sits now! I’m glad I didn’t do it as I’m in the midst of switching it over to a 1966 wheel with tilt and telescope so if I go the restoration route, I’ll have it done to match my original in spite some differences between the two years. The tilt-telescope wheel I have is black which will work too.

Yes Don, I expect somewhere in the $3000 range, maybe more, and my wheel, other than several shrinkage cracks/spaces is in very good condition so I am hoping to be able to get it back together and functional. Another option is just to wire the horn to a remote buttom mounted somewhere convenient, but I am a hard-over factory guy and will try to leave that as a last resort. Chris.

UPDATE: SUCCESS AT LAST!
I continued scouring the internet and contacting suppliers and wheel rebuild guys and eventually Fred Bruner of Max Merritt was able to send me a parts diagram on the 1939-40 Banjo steering wheel. Problem was - I had all the parts it showed. So, not thinking it was missing parts, I went back and looked more closely at the problem. Turns out I had had Yesterday's Radio make some parts for me, one of them being the horn button. There is a cavity in the back of the button that receives the copper 'cup' and then the chrome ring 'settles' around it when they are mated. I discovered that the ridge cast into the button to receive the cup was too thick and it didn't allow the chrome ring to seat properly, thus the little fingers on the inside of the ring could not make contact with the copper cup to complete the circuit and sound the horn.
With an abrader bit in the drill press, I was able to 'sand' the plastic down so it was the same size as the OD of the copper cup. That allowed the horn ring to seat properly and it now works as it should.
I have requested the okay from Fred to post the parts diagram in the hope that it may be of some help to others dealing with this issue and will do so if he permits. In the meantime: 'Case Closed'! Chris.