What is the best way to set up a vacuum system for period 1920's vacuum powered accessories for such things as a Trico fan or a Trico windshield wiper. I assume there would be rubber vacuum lines from the source.
1. Where would the best vacuum source be found?
2. Would it be a nipple attached to the intake manifold or 6v vacuum pump connected to the battery?
3. If there were more than one accessory would it be necessary to have a junction valve box in order to route the vacuum to the accessory?
4. Can anyone provide pictures of an authentic 1926 era vacuum system with period control valves to illustrate how it should look, where the controls should be located and how the tubing should be routed to the accessories?
5. If the vacuum source was the engine, instead of a separate vacuum pump, is the Model T able to supply enough vacuum to operate more than one vacuum accessory at a time?
Thank you.
Jim Patrick
Might be a case of engine vacuum being sufficient on the flat but not when climbing a hill! Remember in the old days when ascending a hill in the rain with the vacuum wipers operating, you'd have to keep making the decision whether to keep you foot down on the gas or lose speed by letting up on the gas pedal just long enough for the wipers to make one swipe? I hated vacuum wipers then and I still do!
The Trico wiper will mostly be for looks and educational purposes to show what folks had to put up with back then. While not that efficient, they are far better than the hand wiper and I have always liked the sound vacuum wipers make. I don't intend on getting caught in the rain and if I do, the sun visor should protect the majority of the windshield from the rain as long as I don't go so fast that I run into the drops before they clear the windshield . Jim Patrick
Jim,
Here's an authentic Ford vacuum wiper system,installed by strict adherence to the instructions supplied with the accessory wiper. The wiper motor is a TRICO Junior, built specifically for the Ford closed car, with a Ford badge.
The rubber vacuum line crosses over the top of the engine and penetrates the firewall on the left side, through a rubber grommet. It is attached to the windshield pillar and to the header using nickel-plated brass clips.
The intake manifold nipple is just a piece of brass tubing, hammered into a specified hole made with a hand-held drill.
Wiper speed is continuously adjustable by slowly unscrewing the vacuum throttle. It is the most mechanically fragile part on the entire car, but it works well. Lubrication instructions for the wiper are a bit strange, but with regular maintenance and exercise, it seems reliable and useful.
Jim
Hi: Mercury Cougars in the 60s and some T-Birds in the 60s used a lot of vacuum items. They had a vacuum ball or vacuum can on the cars to give a vacuum reserve. I have a vacuum wiper on my 26 sport touring and Im going to add a vacuum ball under the dash out of sight. I do not know if it will help or not as Ive never tried it on a T but It seems like it should work. The vacuum balls I remember were about the size of a grapefruit and made out of abs plastic. The vacuum cans looked like they were made out of a grapefruit/juice can with 2 small pipe nipples soldered into the can.
I purchased a new 1980 F150, and pulled a 23’ holiday
trailer with it. The cruise control could not handle even
shortest hills, and the dealer could not find the problem.
I noticed that each time the cruise dropped out I would
get a blast of warm air at the windshield level.
As I always bought the factory manuals the few times that
I bought a new vehicle, a bit of reading revealed that the heater
controls assumed a hot / defrost position when no vacuum
was present. As most vehicles of that era had cable operated
heater controls, neither I nor the dealer had suspected a vacuum
problem. I had a light weight stainless steel aircraft oxygen
tank that was 6” in diameter and 48” long, purchased from a
war surplus store (remember those days) so I hose clamped it
to the frame and run a hose to the tomato juice can that the
factory had installed.
The longest of hills were no longer any problem.
Showed the Ford dealer and they were dumbfounded.
Turns out they had quite a few complaints.
I guess my point is that one could make a long skinny
tank of say 2” plastic plumbing pipe and hide it underneath
or where ever.
Regards
Art
Vacuum powered accessories......couldn't help but think of directional gyros and artificial horizons.
Sure enough, usually nobody thinks of, on a 1996
F350 my A/C delivery goes good & bad. Found the
bottom rust pin hole. To the convenience store &
bought pineapple juice. I drank the juice installed
the plastic in & out vac ports. end of problem.
For vac wiper cars this can is neccesary, bigger is
better, just remember you need a one way valve,can
get this valve anywhere, use the ones for the distrubtor from the typical 70s any FoMoCo car and
trucks. This can doesnt care where its mounted out of site somewhere.