Re: Help a new Packard owner
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Home away from home
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There was a good reason for the soft top in the center of the roof. This was a common feature of all makes of sedans in the early 30s.
The reason was, the steel mills did not make sheet steel wide enough to make a whole roof in one piece. Some expensive cars had steel roofs laboriously welded together from small pieces and the seams filled with lead body solder then hand filed smooth. The Cord 810 sedan had a roof made of seven pieces fitted together this way.But this was too costly and time consuming for a mass produced car. It was in 1934 that the wide sheets were first made available. General Motors brought out their "turret top" models in 1935 but even then, their cheapest models still had the soft top insert. The car makers had to invest in giant presses big enough to make a whole roof plus the press tooling, so it wasn't just a matter of buying wider steel. The Cord mentioned above came out in 1936. The Cord company knew they had to have a one piece roof but could not afford the tooling so they were obliged to make the roof the hard way. The changeover took place between 1935 and 1937, by 1938 I don't think there were any cars with the soft top insert.
Posted on: 2010/8/14 10:29
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Re: Help a new Packard owner
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Forum Ambassador
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I believe 38 Super Eights and Twelves and 39 Twelves still had rubber roof inserts on the closed bodies. See enclosed photo of a 38 Twelve in Russia - photo either from Gusha or perhaps Mr.Ole Book c/o the Nordic Packard Club. 38 Super Eights shared the same bodies, and the 39 Twelves were really just a continuation of the 38 Twelve offerings.
Posted on: 2010/8/14 14:08
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Re: Help a new Packard owner
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Home away from home
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Hi
How did they piece seven stampings into a metal roof? Have a look! Steve Attach file: ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]()
Posted on: 2010/8/14 14:43
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Re: Help a new Packard owner
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Forum Ambassador
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Very revealing, thanks so much for posting those!
Posted on: 2010/8/14 15:29
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Re: Help a new Packard owner
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Home away from home
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Hi Owen
I ran across these Cord pictures on an Ebay listing. I had always wondered how the factory pieced seven stampings together for a solid metal top for such a low volume car.....lots of hand labor! If anyone has a similar picture of a '41 LeBaron Sport Brougham body showing the leading seams, I'd love to see it. Steve
Posted on: 2010/8/15 7:13
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