The legend of the Paxton superchargers dates back to the inventor Robert Paxton McCulloch. The original McCulloch supercharger began production in 1937 for flat head Ford engines. Over 5,000 units were sold in the late 30s. The early 1940’s shifted production to wartime endeavors and supercharger production was discontinued. The idea for new supercharger capable of quiet operation, low-end boost and self contained lubrication emerged in the late 1940s. In 1953, McCulloch released an all new supercharger to the public.
The new McCulloch supercharger utilized a planetary ball drive that offered a 4.4:1 step up ratio from the input shaft to the impeller. It was lubricated with a mechanical oil pump and a self contained reservoir of transmission fluid. The supercharger offered a maximum of 5 psi and significant bottom end power with the aid of a variable rate input pulley. The V-belt system allowed the pulley diameter to essentially change based on engine RPM and power needs. The McCulloch ball drive supercharger was used on a wide variety of vehicles at the time including the Kaiser Manhattan, the Packard Panther (five show cars built), the Studebaker Golden Hawk, the 1957 Packard Clipper (4,809 produced and rebadged as Studebakers) and the 1958 Packard Hawk (588 produced).
The McCulloch later became Paxton, and was used by Studebaker at the time that Andy Granatelli was president of Paxton. There is a website for paxton. it's
www.paxtonauto.com I'm trying to find out if they are offering kits that were made at one time. I heard you do need to get someone who knows these and has rebuilt them before. I know this doesn't answer all your questions, but just a start. I am interested in adding one on my 53 manhattan as well. Well, I'm just thinking about it, I like my cars all original, and that really wasn't until 54 for kaiser. Does anyone know if it was an option for 53?
