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

I believe that the trunnion block was added with the 6th series, but don't recall that narrower shoes were specified then.

Jim Wayman
640 Pheaton

It appears from the specifications that the narrower linings on the front left began with the 10th series. I've not seen any service recommendations indicating that the change should be made retroactively when relining older models, though it may exist.

After studying Dave's instructions and last e-mail yet again, I decided to have one more check over.Everything seemed ok but the left hand cable although appearing tight on it's cable run, showed when I pulled it by hand still had excess free play until the wheel locked up. After removing the clevis pin and pulling the cable until the wheel started to lock up I found at least nearly a 0.250" gap between the clevis and brake lever hole. After adjusting this up so that the pin went in with just a bit of friction,locked everything up at that and went for a trial run. Guess what success As You can imagine I am now a very happy bunny. Thanks again Dave for your help and patience on this subject and it shows how careful one must be when setting up this brake system.

Terry

Hurrah Terry! Happy motoring.

Dear Traum:

One item that is very important are the cables. They need to be lubricated with graphite grease. This is a big job, but binding cables will cause pull.

In the olds days they had Asbestos linings and drive on machines to evaluate equalization. Brake performance problems were common even with cars serviced by the dealer. However, there were 95% fewer cars on the road in those days. On a car with mechanical brakes a pull should be considered as causing a control problem.

Flat spots on wheel bearings will also cause control problems.


Good luck with your car.

Quote:

Tim, most curious and would like to hear more from you about this condition. Thanks in advance.

(o[]o)

Dear JW:

I dealt with a case where the complaint was violent shimmy upon braking. The car was trying to go out of control.

The problems found were as follows:

a) Loose right front spring anchor u-bolts
b) Seized vibration damper (read accessory bumper)
c) Sticking right front brake cable
d) Large flat spot on right front wheel bearing race
e) Non-functional shock absorbers

So what would happen here was when you stepped on the brake the wheel bearing would hit the flat spot and amplify the duo-servo action of the primary shoe, which would then advance the sticking cable into lock up, which would then jerk the steering wheel out of your hand. Somewhere in there the loose u-bolts and dead shocks would throw in their symptoms as well.

It was bad.

This is not an isloated case because I spoke to someone else who had the same problem.

In this case I think the car hit a curb way back when which brinelled the bearing and subsequently wore a chunk out of the race.

Another cause of this problem is if a vehicle is stored after a long run in hot weather the grease melts from the load bearing rollers which then rust. This happens to mobile homes that are parked after vacation. The solution is to roll the vehicle a few feet a day later the protect the bare spots.

Hope this helps.

Tim, that is one of the most complicated problem solving efforts I have heard in a long time. I too get concerned about the pressures exerted on wheel bearings when left in the same position for a long time (especially ball bearings). I never considered the hot grease condition you described. Thanks for taking the time to share this experience with us.

(o[]o)

Put the car on jack stands while in storage.