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Your wiper switch is starts the wipers by pulling down and adjusting the speed by turning or rotating the knob.

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Thanks for the confirmation. I thought that had to be what it was. I currently have know idea if the speed control aspect works since that is vacuum operated vs mechanical for on/off. The switch is out of the car and will be for a while.

Do you know how to bench test the switch and how to service it if it isn't working correctly?

I don't know how to repair it, if its not working. It is a diaphragm so if it breaks or becomes hard I don't know who can rebuild it, maybe someone who rebuilds vacuum advance units.

For now, the worst case scenario is that my wipers may may just be single speed. I don't anticipate needing the wipers often. At least not until I get to the point where I'm ready to take a long tour with the car.

You could probably hook the switch to a known good vacuum source (anothrt car, or vacuum pump) then check it the output side with a vacuum gauge.

I’m looking for ideas on how to “fix” my horn button. Over 88 years, the black around the Packard crest has been completely worn away. I know I can likely paint with a small paint brush, but that likely won’t leave a smooth finish (brush strokes).

Any ideas? It really doesn’t look bad the way it is, but I would like to ge it back to how it looked originally.

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I’ve also thought about trying to mask off the everything except the brass area so that I could spray it. But, I’m not sure how well I’d be able to mask off the crest.

Try the "negative" approach:

Get some liquid masking fluid like:ebay.com/itm/226630651943

Then use a small tipped throw away brush and cover the surfaces you want to mask (emblem, rings, etc)...you can do the fine feature items with the masking fluid. If you are doing the rings you can brush it up to and overlapping onto a larger masking taped area to mitigate overspray. Let the masking fluid dry/set per instructions.

Then spray the desired area per your usual surface prep, cleaning, paint method...take a Q-tip and roll/lift the rubbery masking off the protected area(s).

It should leave a clean edge...may want to do a mockup test on a simple piece of junk metal to refine your processes.

Take care,

Dan M.

Thanks, Dan. I hadn’t thought of a masking fluid like that. I’ve masked things with Vaseline before with some success, but that is difficult to be precise. I’ll give this a try.

A follow up question….should the area on the horn button around the crest be black or is it the very dark brown like the dash? If black, would it have been a gloss, semi-gloss, or satin finish?