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On the antenna bezel, both Max Merritt’s Fred Bruner and Steele’s Don Neil say that the oval pad with the bezel inserted into its shallow recess goes on top of the round grommet inserted into the fender’s hole but how can that be when the pad is so much larger?

Please someone tell me what I am doing wrong!

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Are you meant to insert the grommet first then insert the insert into the grommet?

The larger piece is just a pad while the round one is the actual grommet that is inserted into the fender. In order to install the larger one first, it would have to be stretched considerably to go over it. Also, the oval pad has a recess for the plastic bezel to nest into so obviously needs to go immediately below the bezel.

I have a piece of a very old, brittle pad from my parts car and it is definitely like the thinner oval one EXCEPT that is has a slot for holding it in the fender. Remnants of the rubber are even stuck to the flange on top of the antenna tube. Both Steele and Max Merritt say they've sold a lot of the two-piece type and if so, I would love to know how people used them!

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I would also love to know how the replacement rubber is being used. Mine is missing, so buying from Steele/Max Merritt has been on my list.

-Kevin

Although I am primarily trying to focus on the 1951 Henney-Packard military ambulance, yesterday and today I did take few more things off of the Patrician parts car, mostly because the ambulance needs them and that's what parts cars are for.

One part removed was the parking brake equalizer which I managed to remove and the others are the two clamps that hold the parking cable sheaths to the frame and those are resisting removal. Before doing either of those things I had to lift the car higher on the dolly as I couldn't really fit under it as it was but now there is plenty of room.

While there I removed the gas tank as it had only one strap connected anyway and the ambulance needed the other nut so I disconnected the line and took off the nut. Usually I support a tank with a jack but I got here a week and a half ago to find mine dead. What I didn't realize was that the tank was nearly full - of something - and it came down suddenly dumping dirt right in my face and, worse, into my ear!

However and after all that, the main reason I'm posting this is to ask about the tiny muffler or resonator behind the main muffler. I've owned many 1951-1954 Packards and have never had one with that. Is it stock and, if so, what is its purpose?

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When I got to my shop the last time, the Patrician wouldn’t crank so I put the battery on the charger and tried again the next day where it started right up and it started again a couple weeks later when it was ready to go back inside.

This time, not so lucky. Putting it on the charger, it quickly showed full charge but still would not crank so I had to replace the battery which is a Napa commercial type.

Almost time to put it back inside again but early yesterday evening it got snowed on. Here it is just beginning, but by this morning there was about 2”. Completely clear now, though and no more snow in the immediate forecast so my flight home on Thursday should be unencumbered by weather.

As odd as the car looks with the multiple colors, this is how it looked when it used to be an every day car and on many PAC tours although it had its wheel covers and parking light lenses then.

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Looks good!

Thank you and easy to get running again after its decades-long hiatus.

While spending the morning in my California storage getting some junk outside to haul away this afternoon, I was surprised to find a box of Packard parts that never made it to my Oregon shop! Besides this NOS trunk emblem was an NOS windshield washer (the basic non-pulsing type), what appears to be a new or rebuilt 1940 front shock and a pair of rear footrests.

I also found another set of parts books back to 1935 and a 1955-1956 service manual along with a 1948-1950 Henney parts book. I’ve been looking for the latter for a long time so glad it has finally appeared but I had forgotten I had the emblem!

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