Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

When rebuilding an engine, it is possible to install hardened exhaust valves and seats so that the unleaded fuel will no longer burn up the exhaust valves?

If so, can anyone suggest a source for the valves and seats?

THANKS ALL!!!

Valve grind jobs were not unexpected, even with leaded gas, on most all makes of engines of this era at perhaps 50,000 (+/-) mile intervals. Even without hardened seats, assuming proper air/fuel mixture, valve adjustment and engine tune, you really should expect at least that life even with non-lead gasoline with normal driving; abusive constant high speed operation will greatly shorten that interval. Any new stainless steel exhaust valves you get, for example from Egge or Kanter or Max, should alone be quite adequate for normal speeds and conditions. Hardened seats if you want to go that way to are just common items in the engine rebuilding trade, ask any decent engine rebuilder for a source.

The hardened SEATS are not needed unless u plan to place the engine into somekind of heavy commercial, industrial, Ag or extremely high heat SERIOUS competition service.

I would prefer NOT to haave the hardened seats in any engine for usual normal passenger car operation for fear of cutting to close to the water jacket or the seats comming loose.

Note that hardened seats require a very precice interference fit that might very well vary from engine to engine depending on manufacturer. Unless somekind of high volumn use of hardened seats has been established i just would n't chance it. NOT likely that 10,000 packard engines have haad hardened seats installed for a good test bed. If it were an SBC then maybe a different story because there are literally millions of SBC's that haave already proven what works and what does not work.

One NON packard engine that i am familiar uses hardened seats as OEM DESIGN. Requires .002" interference fit. Only so much as just a little under or over WILL cause the seats too fall out. I haave no idea what the interference fit is for the Packard engines. My bet is that so few haave been modified with hardened steel seats that there are NO experts on it.

In the debate about unleaded vs leaded gasoline everybody forgets Lead Free Amoco. That was sold as beneficial for your motor because it didn't contain any lead. The Hemi crowd used to swear by the stuff because those Chryslers were racking up 200,000 miles using Lead Free Amoco. I wouldn't worry about those things.

Just to add, the only time I'd consider insert exhaust valve seats is if the engine has had so many valve grinds, or the seats had been ground so aggressively, that the seats are now very deep in the block, leaving little or no room for any future valve seat work.

To allay PackardV8's concerns, I've seen dozens of L-8 Packard engines with hardened seats installed with no problems, it's nothing more than a routine operation for a qualified engine rebuilder. And never seen a loose one. One concern with the 320 and 385 engines is that there isn't a lot of excess "meat" in the valve area so inserts should be depth-sized accordingly.

THANKS ALL!!!

This forum is great. I guess no need for the seats.

Does anyone have a good source for the hardened exhaust valve?

Does anyone have a good source for the hardened exhaust valve?

As mentioned previously in this thread, you can get stainless steel valves from Egge, probably the largest manufacturer of engine valves, or from Kanter Auto Parts. Max no doubt has them as well. Stainless valves are pretty much the standard these days, better metallurgy than the austenitic alloy used originally. But if you ran across some OEM NOS Packard valves, I wouldn't be reluctant to use them either.

I used hardened seats with ss exhaust valves and nos Packard intake valves.

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I bought SS valves for my 56 V8 from Kanter some 8 years ago. Still running strong after 30K miles. And no i did NOT install any hardened seats. The SS for my 56 V8 are Eaton valves so it is a good trustworthy mfg'er.