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Since my previous post I've been corresponding with Terry (Traumjaegercat) by email concerning the shock links and associated hardware. Reproduced below are edited copies of his last email and my reply thereto together with his pic's and a few from me.

Terry's email:

When I took the shocks off I didn't take any pictures of the links but I did make some sketches of them.......plus the shocks which I did take photos of........it's ok to put them on the website. Anything to help other folk get over their problems etc. This problem even had Dave Czirr (Owen_Dyneto) guessing.

My reply:

Looking at your pics and drawings some queries come to mind, and I'll also present these on PackardInfo for comment, they are:
1) The centre to centre measurements on your shock links are 7" for the fronts and 8" for the rears while Wades shock links are shorter in the rear than the front by about 1/2". Sorry I didn't measure this dimension on Wades links when I did jot down a few measurements. I'll take more measurements after Easter to try and enlighten the situation
2) The pic you have of your shock would appear to be for a rear shock, is that correct? I base this on my observations of Wades shocks which have a basically straight arm for the front and a bent arm for the rears.
3) If it's a front we're probably "stuffed", to coin a phrase, but if it's rear there also could be a problem.
4) Wades rears, while having a bent arm, also have a kink in the arm just before the mounting to the shock link.
5) Are your shocks the correct ones for your car? The experts on Packardinfo should be able to help here.
6) And are 1101 shocks(Wades) and 1103 shocks(Yours) the same?


Sorry I don't have better pic's of Wades shocks and shock arms but I was concentrating on the shock links at the time.
I will take pic's of Wades shocks and shock arms after Easter.

EDIT - By clicking on a pic a larger version will load in a new window making it easier to view or read the drawings. Has to be done for each pic individually and you'll need to close each new window opened.

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I will be visiting my 34 this weekend. I will take some photos and measurements. Mine is an 1104, so it might not match perfectly. Odd to have this much variation!

Tom

Without consulting the parts book, I believe the Super Eight shock links are different.

Another email from Terry (Traumjaegercat)

Happy Easter holiday thanks for the reply. I've amazed myself by getting the info to you. The picture as you said is for the rear and I took it off because it was jammed but after a good clean up and some new oil it freed up a treat. The front ones do have a straight arm. The rest of the info I'm not to certain on. They are Lovejoy Delco's. The other difference is that they have tapered holes in the link fixings and when I took the car for it's MOT the links were picked up as needing attention. I feel that this system is a weak design and is the reason that I want to change them for the correct ones. I hope that this gives you some idea of the situation as it is an odd one.

The situation with "link fixings", which I think means the lever arms on the shocks, is a concern. However I'm sure a little bit of engineering would rectify that. Whether the shocks are the same I also don't know because of my inexperience with them. I'll check Wades for numbers and markings on them and post what I find after Easter. Could you check yours for numbers and markings and post those too?
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Tom,

Thanks, any light you can shed on this will no doubt help.

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And Dave,

Thanks too, if there is a difference can you give some further info as to what it might be? I think Wade may have a parts book but I'm not sure if he does.

Per the parts book:

1100-1101-1102 front link is 202013, rear is 209708.

1103-1104-1105 front link is 98653, and rear is 98652.

1933 (except 1002) and 1935 are different.

Though there are no pictures, the 1934 Super Eight links have different grommets and cite use of ball nuts. So I'm beginning to suspect the links in question are Super Eight. Easy enough to tell, ask Tom to snap a picture of his. If that is so (and I didn't check the #s) then the 34 Super Eight shocks or at least the arms would also be different to take a tapered shank rather than a rubber grommet with steel sleeve.

#s in the range of the 34 Super Eight links go back to the 7th-9th series.

See page 147 of the 1933-36 Eight and Super Eight parts manual for details.

I'm heading there later today. I will take some picts.

Dave, any idea why they varied the shock set up so much from year to year and model to model?

Tom

Dave, any idea why they varied the shock set up so much from year to year and model to model?

Some ideas. 1935 was a significantly revised and updated chassis so that's kind of obvious. As to 1001 and 1002 being different from each other, the 1001 was in some ways a continuation of the 1932 Light Eight, using up the left over bodies with new nose clips, but the 1002 was essentially the same as 1934. This could be kind of apparent if you check wheelbases, in 1933 the 1001 was 127 inches, but in 1934 the 1100 went back to what the 1932 Eight was of 129 (plus a fraction).

But why the difference (if the assumption is right) in 1934 between the Eight and Super Eight, I don't know. Checking the Twelve parts book might be revealing but I don't have one handy.

Here are the photos of the front and rear shock links from a 34 1104.

Tom

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Very interesting indeed, they are quite different than those on the Eights, and different again from those that Terry has which we suspect to be incorrect. I think we're going to want to see another 34 Super Eight or two as a kind of "referee". I suppose it's possible that export cars had a different arrangement, export cars often had more robust suspensions, but the parts book doesn't show that, at least as far as I've browsed it thus far.

I'll be at the CCCA Grand Classic next weekend and I believe there will be several 34 Packards there. I'll try to take notice of which models have what, but there is no question that those that Wade was shown us are correct for the 1100-1101-1102.

Guys,

Here's what I think we have:

Wade's 1101's. One built for export the other for the US market both have the same shock links with compression rubbers and a "U" upper bracket.
Terry's 1103. Built for the US market. Terry's Owner Registry entry cites "Purchased from the states late 2008" and has ball type links.
Tom's 1104. Built for US market. Has compression rubbers but the upper part has NO "U" bracket. Doesn't appear to have ball type links. But the rear shock arms appear very similar to those of Terry's 1103.

I'm learning as I go here about '34 Standard Eights and Super Eights, so bear with me.

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From Dave's info all Standard Eights had the same setup by part number. While for the Super Eights all had the same setup but different from the Standard Eight. Although I'm confused by this "the 1934 Super Eight links have different grommets and cite use of ball nuts" because Tom's pic's appear to show, to my untrained eye, compression rubber type fittings and not ball joints. Is this so? Or have I misidentified the fittings in the pic's? And Tom, thanks for the pic's they are great.