Hey guys, just wanted to introduce myself and pull out from my lurking cloud. I’ve been a car collector for about 30 years, mostly Cadillacs, mostly from the 60’s and 40’s, but sometime over the summer I was somehow smitten by the charm of the T. I don’t think I need to explain that to anyone here. Anyhow, rather than doing the smart thing I impulsively purchased a restored but “not yet broken in” 23 Touring that I am now having some fun with.
Please bear with me in my trials and tribulations as I break this horse, as it is unlike any car I have ever owned. After spending some time on the forum and reading of the horror stories of rear end thrust washers, floating rear axles, and transmission brakes (not to mention the great seatbelt, waterpump, and oil debates) I wonder what I have gotten myself into. Based upon what I have read, most of you are from parts of the world and the US where T’s can roam freely without molestation. As for me, I live in Northern NJ, about 20 minutes outside of NYC and I have a steep blind driveway that faces a well-travelled road filled with the most hell bent for destruction drivers that the good lord ever put on earth. My maiden voyage in the T included some guy driving 65 in a 25 zone flipping me off while my slowly dying (as it was warming) car backfired up the road. My goal is to use the T as my daily driving weekend summer car. (Last summer it was my 41 Cadillac Convertible…and even driving THAT in my area makes me nervous….)
If there are any other hobbyists in the local area I would sure like to hear from you and compare notes, as to a large extent, I am flying blind here (sort of, I have all of the books, and can google and search with the best of them…but there is, of course, no substitute for personal experience.)
Looking forward to the ride
Al Bradshaw

Al, welcome to the forum and the world of Ts! Can't help you much with being in NJ, but someone will surely chime in.

Dick

Welcome Alfred. As for the guy on your maiden voyage I think he has kin here in Ohio. I think all of us can tell this story. So be careful and have fun. As for other T owners in your area you can go to the home page on this site and look for a local club and maybe find others in your area. Most of us are fiendly and glad to help.

Tim

Welcome, Al.

I live in an urban area, off of a high-traffic road. People are fairly polite where I live, but I have encountered a few numbskulls that pass me in a no passing zone. This year's work was all about safety. I recently put on turn signal/brake lights and Rocky Mountain Brakes. I'm still breaking in the brakes.

I was worried about keeping up with traffic and came to the realization that it is what it is. I avoid the freeway, but I'll take it everywhere else and try to find roads that have two lanes going both directions, that way people can pass me.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Model Ts!
Can't help with the traffic problems, but brake lights and turn signals will help the other guys.
I had a guy give me a definate thumbs DOWN a couple weeks ago.
Everybody's in such a big hurry.
That's what is nice about a T...you don't worry about hurrying.
Have fun!
Jim K...nice to hear your brakes are up and running.

Al,

Welcome to the wonderful world of Model T Fords!

Yes, drivers in the tri-state area are not known for their patience.

If there's a big, high-school parking lot in your neighborhood, it'll be empty on weekends and that's a great place to teach yourself how to drive a Model T. If you can find yourself a qualified teacher at a local Model T club chapter, so much the better. Here are some New Jersey Model T chapters including one in your neck of the woods:

North Jersey Tinker T's - (MTFCA)
Gary Paulsen
790 Franklin Turnpike
Allendale, NJ 07401
201-327-7491
Email: Robert Miller Sr.

Rollin T's - (MTFCI)
John Jonas
301 Whittaker St.
Riverside, NJ 08075
856-461-5955

T-Bones Chapter - MTFCA
Jim Dowgin
PO Box 257
Dayton, NJ 08810
732-329-6729

B&W T's (MTFCI)
c/o Al James
360 Hendrickson Ave.
Woodbury, NJ 08096 North Jersey Tinker T's(MTFCA)
c/o Gary Paulsen
790 Franklin Tnpk.
Allendale, NJ 07401

T-Crank-Yankees of Central NJ (MTFCA)
c/o James Mitchell
1071 Lakehurst Ave.
Jackson, NJ 08527
732.323.3293

Again, congratulations and welcome aboard!

Bob

Welcom Al,
Looks like you have some future T drivers. Take your time and enjoy. Learn as you go.

Alfred,
Consider pulling over from time to time letting the folks behind you pass. It gives credit to you and the hobby. If no "pockets" are on the street (for Busstops for example) low traffic sideway intersections may be used. We have the same right to be on the road than everybody else, but we have choosen to drive slow that day so we might as well demonstrate some good behavior and give room. If you sit with a big smile, they may get the point: Hey - I'm stressing and my stomach gives me trouble. Here sits a guy in his T giving way to us and with a big smile??? What's his secret? :-)

Welcome to the T-world!

Michael Deichmann
Blistrup - 40 miles north of Copenhagen
Denmark, Europe

PS: Its not NYC vicinity - Copenhagen is just 1/10 of NYC in size, but I do actually drive to work occasionally - even on freeways/highways:

What the heck - its queue and 15 mph anyway most of the time <grin>.
PPS: OK - you have seen mine, now - lets see yours! We LOVE seeing pictures here.

Alfred,

Welcome aboard. Getting a few minutes of driving lessons can save you a lot of frustration and wear and tear on your T. And practicing in a “empty” area (the school parking lot etc. recommended above) will help you get things down so you can start & stop without stalling, and be a little “less slow” for the folks behind you. Also it sounds like you may need to consider the time of day you take your car out for a drive. Here there are clear times when the major roads are much busier and other times (Saturday and Sunday Morning least busy, 9 AM – 10 AM relatively slow etc.) We all make an impression on others when we drive our Ts (or other cars for that matter). The question is will it be generally a positive or negative impression? And when and how I drive can make a big difference in how much joy or frustration I bring to the other drivers. In my own neighborhood I have given out lots of rides – so I have lots of “green stamps (I guess that dates me again)” built up with the neighbors. I could easily change that “good-will” to anger if I got on the single lane road that doesn’t have any passing areas and backed up traffic for all 3 miles of that road on Monday morning as folks tried to get to work and they were already running a little late. Or I could take the other route or a different time of day and things would be fine.

There is great photo of Alfred's car and I would assume his sons or grandsons on his profile picture see: http://www.mtfca.com/cgi-bin/discus/board-profile.cgi?action=view_profile&profile=caddybuyer-users . I don’t want to post the kids without his permission, so below is a cropped version of that picture.



From looks of the photo and the level of detail such as the metal valve stem covers, if the mechanical features are done at the same level – it should be in great shape. If you have not verified with the previous owner the status of the rear axle thrust washers, I would recommend you ask about that one. They should be able to tell you “they don’t know” or “they were replaced with brass or babbit” etc. They have nothing to loose by telling you and it could save you sometime and effort.

It sounds like you have read several of the previous postings. If you do not remember reading some of the ones on safety – please see:

Safety Glass is nice: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/50893/72116.html

Use safety wire and not lock washers or cotter pins on the two studs holding the wishbone to the underside of the engine. http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/29/47898.html

Lots of safety items – looks like I’m behind on writing that safety article… http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/50893/69429.html

Over center steering – shouldn’t happen on the later Ts – but if someone replaced your later teens steering gear housing or rebuilt it without the lock pin – it might happen: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/80257/86345.html

Types of safety wire: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/29/41859.html

Example of loss of brakes caused by drive shaft failure: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/29/47804.html

Top T tips – many of them are safety related also: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/80257/85208.html

Tour safety check list: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/29/44331.html

Your T is much slower than most vehicles on the road now days – watch out and help prevent a rear end accident.

And if you have a gas hot water heater in the garage – be very very careful. The float in a Model T Carb will sometimes stick (or trash in the valve) and the carb will leak gasoline. Not too bad if there are no sparks – several homes, garages and cars have been lost when a gas hot water heater was near by. (Also if you enter the garage and smell gas – do NOT use the automatic garage door – while gas fumes are heavier than air and settle to the bottom of the floor – enough gas fumes and there will be some by the motor that opens the garage door.)

Finally – depending on how close you are to the border – you may find that one of the T clubs in the state next to you is closer than the ones in your own state.

There is a slim chance that there is a body number stamped into the right front floor board riser. If you open the front passenger door and look down on the slopping channel that holds the top two floor boards you might see a letter and numbers stamped into it. Probably not -- but if you do -- please let me know what they are. Below is a photo from Doug Hauge of his 1921 roadster right front floor board riser:



Again welcome aboard and it is a great hobby for families. It looks like those two boys on your running boards are “Happy Campers.” And that is great.

Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off

Welcome aboard Alfred! Looks like you've been stealing some safety parts from your chimney (noting the wheel chock) <grin>. Nice looking car!

Welcome to the hobby. I live in the Trenton NJ area and I know what you mean about the crazy drivers here in NJ. Even on slow roads you have to keep an eye on all four sides. I remember once I was driving my TT on Olden Ave which is a slow 4 lane with stop lights every other block. This lady pulled along the left side of me and was not watching what was going on ahead of her. I came to a complete stop before she rammed the car in front of her waiting to make a left turn.
I like to stay on slower 55mph 4 lane roads like Rt. 206, Rt.29 and roads that have clean shoulders so I can pull over to let traffic by.
There is a small car / farm show in a place called Vincentown this coming weekend if your interested. It draws a nice crowd. I know that some of the guys from south Jersey go there. I’ll be there but with out a car as all my toys are in northern NY at my summer place.
I’m here till around May 5th then I’m off to the summer place so if you need anything before that send me a PM and I’ll give you my phone number. Will

Welcome Alfred.
Just remember that the Golden Rule of T ownership is to have FUN!!

BTW – NJ does not have the corner on aggressive – impatient drivers.

A few weeks ago my wife and I visited my son in Beverly Hills.
After a drive thru Franklin Canyon Park and passing his friend’s home that was clinging to a canyon wall, we were in a line of folks on N Beverly Drive that were slowing for a series of speed bumps.
It became apparent that a jerk in an Escalade was becoming increasingly aggravated that we were not going faster.
As we slowed at a speed bump he sped past two of us and stuffed himself back into line.
When we got to Coldwater Canyon Drive he stopped to turn left and we all passed him as we continued right on N Beverly.
My wife sarcastically said, “That stupid move sure got him way ahead of everyone!”


Ever since I put the following sign on the back of our T people have stopped tailgating me and now wave and laugh as they go by!

Hap is right. Even if your carburetor doesn't have a "runny nose" (like most do), it will eventually develop one. Therefore, make a strict habit of shutting off the fuel valve(s) whenever you park your Model T for any length of time.

My car has two shut-off valves; one right under the gas tank and a one that is much more conveniently located at the carburetor. When the car is in my garage, both valves are kept shut. The fact that your gas tank is gravity fed from the bottom is a definite safety consideration and if your garage is attached to your house, the added safety of that second shut-off valve can prevent tragedy.

Back in the day, the brakes on these old cars were just as lousy as they are now, but traffic was non-existent and the uniquely awful condition of American roads kept speeds way down. We, on the other hand, are operating Industrial Revolution technology in the context of the 21st century and though our century-old Model T's are designed to outlive any new production car in the world, they simply cannot traffic-jam with them at highway speeds. I guess it's kind of a trade-off.

There are very few cars in the world that can hurt you, standing still, with the engine not running, but the Model T is one of them. Fortunately, there is no shortage of advice on this forum as to the safest way to hand-crank and otherwise operate a Model T.

Bob

Hello Alfred, and welcome to the Forum. Lessee what you've gotten yourself into:

1) What you've gotten yourself into is a lifetime of fun and memories (and probably some repairs too).

2) Your friends and family will admire you and your T-ing adventures.

3) Some strangers will think you're a high-falooting execytive since you own a $100,000 Model T.

4) Typical day-to-day folk on streets and sidewalks will elbow their family or friends and then they'll wave at you.

5) You'll learn of the relaxation (found probably nowhere else) in just laying under it mending this and that, and you'll probably catch yourself smiling a bit more often too - even when you're not driving or working on it.

Yeah, yer in a real mess now Alfred!

Regards,
Garnet

Welcome to the forum.
I am also from NJ right next to the G. W. Bridge the contact for the Tinker T's has changed if you need help contact me.
TMan
Joe

# North Jersey Tinker T's
c/o Glen Barbi
790 Franklin Tnpk.
Allendale, NJ 07401

Thank you all so much for your kind advice and comments. I am totally overwhelmed by the generosity and fellowship. Never experienced that sort of response from any other car club I have ever joined. (and I have joined alot) Please bear with me guys, as I pick your brains and try your patience as I'm sure you will quickly tire of me with my questions. Yes, those are my kids in my profile...the guy I bought my T from told me that he was so happy that some younger folk were getting involved in the hobby....now I am pushing 50…but what the heck. 30 years of car collecting from everything from Plymouths to Packards and I have never had so much fun as I am having now with my T. Thank you all, and more to come (pictures too, if I can figure out how!)

Alfred,

It is OK to pick our brains and try our patience.
It is also OK to try our brains and pick our patience.

But please refrain from picking our noses and trying our underwear!

Did we mention that it is OK to have fun?