HI, I just joined your wonderful organization, and having quite an education reading problems and there cures, wondering if there is a model T book that every t owner should have, and where can it be found. thank you for your help Greg.owner of a 1920 leeping lizzy.

http://www.dauntlessgeezer.com/DG80.html

The Model T Ford Service Manual is a must-have for working on the car. Also look for Bruce McAlley's Encyclopedia for very detailed information regarding year-specific part changes and other useful stuff.

Bruce's Encyclopedia is the Model T bible.
There are other 2 do books but You have to get Bruce's book

Get an owners manual for the year car you have. They have a wealth if information in them too.
This is a good read;
http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/29/8538.html

I guess it depends on your definition of "Bible". Bruce's book is invaluable for checking the accuracy of a car and for dating specific parts. The service manual will tell you how to repair just about every nut, bolt, and scrap of wire on the car. The owner's manuals are great for driving advice and troubleshooting small problems with your car. Depending on how deep you want to get into the Model T, you really should own all three. Then there are the MTFCA restoration manuals, which can help explain some aspects more in depth than the service manual. These can be another invaluable resource. I guess there isn't really one book to catch it all, but there is a core library every Model T owner should have.

I am surprised and dismayed that one of the most frequently used books in my library has not made it on to any of these otherwise fine reading lists. The book I am referring to is Murray Fahnestock"s "The Model T Ford Owner". Fahnestock was a staff writer for "Ford Owner and Dealer" magazine, which later became "Ford Dealer and Owner", from 1914 through the 1920's. The book is based on the articles Fahnestock wrote, and covers almost every aspect of owning a Model T Ford.

For those who are wondering why I advocate the inclusion of this book, let me explain it this way. The Ford Service manual is very, very good, but was written for the benefit of a Ford Service mechanic. The underlying assumption is that the person performing the work has a fully stocked Genuine Ford Parts room only a few steps away from the service area. Oh, if that were true today. Most of us do not have a full line of New Genuine Parts at hand, Larry Smith being a possible exception to this, and when the Service Manual says to replace worn parts with new, that really doesn't help us a lot. For example, if the connecting rod journals on the crankshaft are worn, the manual would have us replace the crankshaft. Yeah, right.

Fahnestock often wrote with the typical Model T owner in mind, one who did not have immediate access to a dealer's stock of new Genuine Ford Parts at hand. He would often times describe fixes when a new part was either unavailable or difficult to change. This is the situation most Model T owners find themselves in when they have a broken or worn part. They will benefit as much from Fahnestock's book as they will from the Ford Service manual.

There is more than one way to fix a Ford.

Respectfully submitted,

Trent Boggess

Here's the book Trent refers to, although there's got to be cheaper copies elsewhere.

https://www.amazon.com/Model-Ford-Owner-Murray-Fahnestock/dp/1595920137/ref=sr_1 _fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473950473&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=model+t+ford+owner+fahnsto ck

I actually do have the Model T bible! I've seen three of them. They were apparently given out to high ranking Ford employees and possibly others, with their name embossed on it. They had a leather cover, and had the Ford logo embossed with gold leaf. The edges of the paper were also gold leaf. The upper and lower edges of the book are rounded also, just like a bible! I believe Trent Boggess has one of these too.

I got a CD with the encyclopedia, copies of many of the owners manuals, and other stuff from Lang's a few years ago.

I can't find it listed now.
I think it was published by the MTFCA.
It has tons of info --

When looking for a service manual find an early printing. The pictures in the later printings lack definition.
I recently bought an original hard cover service manual on ebay for less than $15.
The pictures are what a new member of the club needs.
Take it from me I am one.
The McCalley cd version is great. You can blow up the pictures and still have good definition.

Fred, info on the CD of Bruce's encyclopedia is in the link Mark posted above.

Trent, I agree on the Fahnestock book and I'm going to add it to my web page. OK if I quote you?

Yes - that's it.
The whole thing can be found in the link to the encyclopedia on the opening MTFCA page.

I don't think the CD is available anymore.

I have it on two computers and am thinking I should put it on a third one just for the garage!

It would be nice if I could get something like it for the Model A

Here is the T bible online: http://mtfci2002.readyhosting.com/manuals/Model_T_Service_Manual/mtsm.html

And here's the owners manual online: http://www.mtfca.com/books/21manual.htm

The CD is advertised in the current MTT, so I assume it's still available. It's much more extensive than the truncated version on the MTFCA web site. The best fifty bucks you can spend on your T.

There are nineteen Model T owner's manuals, from 1909 to 1927. All of them, plus Models N, R, and S, are on the CD. As I said, the best fifty bucks...

The CD is available from Bruce's widow. She advertises it here in the classifieds.

Barbara McCalley,308 Cottingham Court, Allison Park, PA. 15101
(412) 364-0561
gourmetbarbara2@verizon.net
$50.00 + $6.80 shipping.

The service manual and ford essentials. KGB

I bought a wonderful vintage copy of The Book of the Ford when I was in England this summer. Not a service manual ... but some of the best information I've seen in a consumer publication of the period.

Steve,

Of course Fahnestock's book should be on your list, and certainly you may quote me.

Thanks,

Trent Boggess

Model T Ford Owner by Clymer is available on Ebay and www.Abebooks.com for a much better price.

(Message edited by touringtom on September 15, 2016)

Trent, I couldn't agree with you more. The Service Manual is helpful, but Fahnstocks book is invaluable!

I bought my copy of FordOwner 40 years ago when I was about 15 and dreaming of building up a T. That is about the time I began dragging home bits and pieces.As I said in a previous post, if Al newbies had that book, a tremendous amount of bandwidth could be saved. And being young then, I wanted a speedster, too. So, Fast Ford Handbook and Model T in Speed and Sport, compilation of same author, should be in the list