Steering arm sticks thru the spindle about 2inches why??
Speedometer,Bob
was it part of a odometer geardrive?
I thought the speedometer was on pass side
I have a T with the spindles on the wrong sides, so these parts must be interchangeable in fit even if not in function.
That whole thing is wrong.
Set up like that the speedo drive would turn CCW.
As Richard said, "That whole thing is wrong".
Interesting front spring arrangement as well. Would maintaining caster be a problem with the springy perches wanting to flex and torque?
I'll get a better picture in a couple minutes this is on my 1925 TT just got week ago
On a TT, it could have been anything from a mount for a scrape blade to clean chicken houses, to a holder for left handed widget repair. If restoration had begun, it could have been put there just to fill the hole so people wouldn't ask what the hole was for.
Ronnie, When used, the speedo drive extension replaced the castellated nut on the back of the spindle arm. Most logical answer is the previous owner didn't have the correct Castle nut so he improvised. If you don't like the look, you can replace the speedo drive extension with the correct nut and cotter key and be done with it.
It's not just the spindle arm that's odd. The spring and perches are also non-Ford.
I have an after market spring similar to that. The spindle orientation does need to be checked before driving much, wouldn't be the first time they got swapped around. KGB
As mentioned, the extension is a special nut on which the speedo drive can be mounted. It is not part of the spindle, and can be fitted on either side spindle arm.
There are speedo drives which run in the opposite direction to standard T fare, so this extension nut could be used on the opposite side and still be part of a functional speedo set-up.
Hope this helps.
Allan from down under.
Yes, I have one T with the full set up on the left and another with it on the right.
It is just an extension nut for a speedo perch, which can be used on either side. As far as the spring perch it appears there is a longer spring for some reason, likely not Ford.
Ronnie,
The part is called an "extension nut" and is part of the Stewart swivel mounting bracket. While most Model T's having a speedometer were driven from the right front wheel, it is not uncommon to have the speedometer driven from the left front wheel. The only thing necessary to make the speedometer drive from the left front wheel is the Model 1959 Stewart swivel joint and a longer cable.
I hope this helps,
Russ Furstnow
Maybe the guy couldn't find a Ford castle nut, so he put that on there to do the same job.
Ronnie - that home made spring perch extension and spring mounting could be very dangerous since the original spring perch is what sets the "tilt" of the front axle and establishes the correct amount of "caster" adjustment. If that strap arm slips and rotates a bit or bends a bit it could end up causing a very dangerous steering condition of the front axle having "Reverse Caster" which can cause the vehicle to dart left or right suddenly. I would strongly suggest you replace that setup with an original front spring and a pair of correct spring perches. They are not rare items typically.
I don't think that front spring set-up is home made. It looks like one of many available accessories of that type:
I have a set of these long spring accessories. Mine have a much stronger looking piece that connects the spring to the axle. The picture shown looks like bend pieces of springs.
It may not be home made, but I'm with John. I don't like it.
For the record the devices that caused the demise of Ken Meeks were not home made either but they were not engineered for the job. These things looked home made and I stand corrected on that score but I still think they look scary to me since it seems the arm only has to rotate a few degrees about the perch replacement bolt for the front to then have altered caster adjustment since the lower part of the axle is secured. It doesn't take much wear on the shackle bushings for there to be slop in the front end to allow that.
Lots of people back then wanted to get into the blooming automotive aftermarket parts business but many of those items didn't stand the test of time. I have said my .02 and so I am satisfied that I have brought attention to it. It is ultimately up to the car owner to decide what is safe.
John, perhaps you weren't the first to bring attention to its potential problems. Just saying...
Thanks guys I'll be looking at my frame out back to see what it is like its a reg t not tt hopefully it will interchange
I toke a second look at the long spring accessory I have and the part connecting the spring to the axle is cast (Very strong looking) and is for an earlier car with the wishbone connected to the top of the axle. The under side is somewhat V shaped and sits over the axle and looks like it gets locked to the axle. It will probably go on an earlier car project.
Steve,
This post is for you, being a good photographer like you are you really need a simple photo editing program. This photo was edited with Photoshop Element that is the little brother and a lot cheaper then Photoshop but sill does most every thing a photographer needs. The photo was edited to lighten only the dark areas (Lighten Shadows tool) and not the light areas. Digital photos can almost always be improved a little with the lighten shadows tool.
Jim
Good to know. I'm just learning Gimp (It's free). I'll see if it has a lighten shadows tool.
It does have lighten tool. Check "scales" somewhere.