MTFCA Forum

Had the same thing today. I was going out to fuel up for a tour stating tomorrow, hit the starter switch and killed everything. Previously we had been chasing a slow starter problem, which was cured by taking the switch apart, cleaning all the contacts and re fitting same. When the ground lead at the battery was hooked up again, slow starter...

My 1913 T touring was bought from the original owner in 1954 for $450. It must have been in great shape because it still has the original leather. In 1960 my father offered me a 1911 Touring car if I restored it. He had bought it for $900 for Earl Leap, that was a hefty price because 5 years later he bought a 1931 Auburn Speedster for $500 after I...

Craig
If you don’t run the generator, then it shouldn’t be a problem. I have too many other projects so I won’t be doing it.
Have a great day

Knowing that steel has a memory, I'm curious to see if the bend returns?

Steve

I doubt that you'll find that to be the case.

Good job!

I own a 1926 fordor that came to me out of Pennsylvania, by way of Valdosta, Georgia. I don't know who restored it in Pennsylvania, but while the paint job is of nice quality, if I had chosen the paint color, it would have been gray or maroon; anything but green. While i have nothing against John Deere tractors (my Dad owned plenty and combines,...

I wouldn't use the expanding foam because it will be a b×#@&* to remove later if you or the next guy need to ever work on that coil again.

I do now! Thank you, Allan.

Too late Keith. I have just about worn them out. Right in fashion though, hole in the right knee.
Allan.

Installing the glass in your windshield frame is easy if you take the frame to your nearby glass shop and let them do it properly. It not that expensive. If you break it while you try to install it, you just doubled the cost.

There's another way too The 'DIY' >>>
Renovating a Period Correct Distributor

Thank you all - I think I have found his phonenumber and want to call him and see what his plans are. Today he may be out looking for the solar eclipse.

Thanks Steve for the detailed write-up on your page. Also hope your recovering well.

Thank you Allan B for those details. I had wondered if the trees might offer a clue.

I wanted to expand a bit on the notion of the speedster pickup . While not a commonly seen thing, over the years I have seen a fair number of era photos of what amount to speedster pickups . They are an interesting curiosity. Part sporty roadster, part practical...

I was 3 years and 3 days old, I was born on 4/4/44. Because Henry died, I thought there would be no more new Fords.

Art Mirtes

Hi Dan,
This will be of little help but if I remember correctly I have seen one in a 26/7 roadster that I looked at that had a A rear end, juice brakes
& 19 A wheels,with fiberglass fenders as well as the A trans. I did not realize that it also replaced the 4th main as well. Good idea all the
add on A trans setups I have found available are...

Dito on checking those wheels. Humble Howards Lucky 7 broke one of the spokes in those wheels.
Craig.

Instructions INSTRUCTIONS were men we don't need no instructions we go forth & do if it dosn't work then we refer to the corrections.
They look just like instructions but are not used untill it dosn't work! This is also followed by our favorite woman saying I told you so!!!!
Craig.

They may serve to limit side sway on the shackles, a bit like a panhard bar does. Hard to see it being as effecfive. Pig ugly though.

Allan from down under.

Unless.................

Ha ha :-) that is the best part of the T hobby !

Forget canvas! Classtique uses the almost correct Ford type material.

Looks like Mr. White, didn't want to lose his head .

Andy, I sent you a PM. Russ Furstnow

They sell what is beneficial to coil needs and performance.

Bill hauled my '37 Cadillac 70 Series Convertible Sedan from St. Louis, MO to my house in Michigan. Like everyone else here, he was on time, polite and professional. I would not hesitate to use him again.

We all have our opinions & I had posted one from the Battery Plus website that seems to have been ignored. Just to reinforce what Jeff has said here it is Battery Plus again...

Frank,

You are right that we all have opinions. Mine is based on extensive research and direct experience of LiFePO4 over many years, but I've already said my piece and...

Ah, yup. I don’t know exactly what I'm looking at, but it doesn't look great and something smells slightly burnt. Definitely going to need to be rebuilt

If anyone is interested, I will have a small amount in inventory here soon. I'll be selling them as a kit again, one kit = one Model T's worth (4 tires)...

What is the difference in capacitors with the same rating?

Capacitors are electronic components with the basic function being the the ability to store and release energy. They also have the ability to pass Alternating Current (AC) while blocking Direct Current (DC). These characteristics of a capacitor have a wide variety of applications in...

Everyone has their preference with good results. Engine modifications also affect selection. The original Ford specification was for a light oil, which has been equated to Today's 20w. One factor in selecting the engine oil is that it is also used by the transmission, often referred to as a wet clutch (as in some motor cycles & Diesels). Rotella...

While I am asking the previous question let me ask another, more important question. I have to haul a new T purchase home on Sunday and it will be about a 12 hour trip with the car on an open trailer. I am afraid of covering the car because of potential damage to the paint but I worry about the older top on the car. It is a closed car. I was...

Brent, my apologies if I have caused any offence.
I was not talking about aesthetics . T owners fit many kinds of accessories to their cars, and they are welcome to do so as far as I am concerned.

My point was that modifying a 1912 clamshell axle housing to accept a Ruckstell fitment does not make that fitment any more correct than using the...

Thanks guys. I bought my axel from Dan who makes the inserts. He straightened it and machined the ends. The spindles are NOS. I'll check everything but I betting that those will be ok. I just wanted to make sure that the Tie Rod adjustment was correct. Thanks for the input. I do think ai was getting two things mixed up.

Before a thousand 13/39 gears were made post WW2, those were the usual 3 to 1 gears. Yes, they are not exactly 3 to 1, but that was what people called them. There were also some other companies back in the era that made 13/40, 13/39, 13/36, ten tooth pinions, and even a couple other unusual ratios.

The Ruckstell 13/40 gears were fairly good, but...

I've never found any of the repro R.M. brake bands to be totally round & I've mounted up at least a dozen sets - set the adjustment tight enough so they don't get too hot to the touch after running down the road a piece !

This is an older thread. Did someone on the forum purchase the second tool in Mark's post? I asked Mark and he had sold it.

Keith, is it a top of the column switch held in place with two machine screws? The correct switch for 1915-16 cars has only one wire going to the switch. The switch has an inbuilt ground to the column. This ground is in the form of a thin brass piece from the switch terminal to the under side of one of the screw holes. When the screw is tightened,...

I wish that was my bed. My truck came off a farm without any bed. I am building a wooden grain/express bed for it.
TTBedProgress.JPG

Thanks everyone. I'm thinking I have the cart before the horse as the pan has not been on the anvil yet. And it will most definitely need to be
as I noticed the wishbone mount is bent as if someone pulled hard on the front axle. This pan may not be usable if it is twisted??? I'm reminded
that everything needs to be check multiple times to make...

Ahaaa thank you Erik, that's exactly what I was hoping to see (and what I hadn't been able to find by googling it myself). Well done!

Yes Terry, I had a Z head that blew the gasket at the narrow surface between the cylinders. An old stock-car mechanic had the fix.......using the same used gasket he cleaned the leaking section of the gasket and applied some soft solder to both sides of the gasket especially over the rolled over seam (fire ring) . He sanded the patch to be close...

Howdy Bert, … Loved the history and provenance of your family’s acquisition of your touring ! Do you know my Model T friend Don Vagaske there in Tucson? Hes real friendly and might be helpful. Anyway, welcome to the crazy fun of these wonderful old cars. Questions ??
Ask away !!

I do not know your friend Don, but I do recognize the club I saw...

Picture saved for the future.

I have sprayed a number of cars over the years. Many years ago I wanted to make a car look like a barn find so I used dark gray laquer primer and fogged some red oxide primer on it to make it look like old faded paint with rust. I also sprayed another car with several layers of Laquer and fine sanded between coats finally using rubbing compound....

Thank you all for the discussion. My newly acquired Dec. 24 (model year 1925) Tourer has a nickel plated radiator shell and silver painted headlight rims. I will, at some time, replace the nickel with black. I want it to look like it rolled off the factory floor.
John

His email address was piewagon@gmail.com when he was working for Birdhaven a few years ago (I got it from them) but I wouldn't expect any response these days....

Jeff

Terry,
Are you thinking of JR Means (Hot4Cyl on eBay) from Dunnegan, MO? His website is: jandshotrodasylum.com and his card says that he does engine rebuilding, coils, transmission repair, machine shop, magneto, and rebabbiting work.

That's the Dude. I have one of his old parts sheets showing many more OF parts than his website shows. i bought...

Kinda looked like mine, Bob !

I think I have a contact of the folks / students that helped in selling some of Bob Scherzer stuff who use to reproduce those headlights if you’re interested.

If I didn't know better, the guy in pic #4 sure resembles Original Smith!! :lol:

Update - my local glass company called and said they had the plate glass lens ready for pickup, they had a scrap piece of 1/8 inch thick plate glass that was large enough to make one lens. Price, including polishing the edges, was eight dollars, a bargain IMO! It fit perfectly.

I asked them to obtain another piece of glass and make two more...

The earlier engine with the later coil box is more than likely sitting on a test stand torun it before installing back in a car

My condolences. Oldav8tor is right. Hang on to that T if you can. It's a great way to pass on a legacy in your family.

Go to Wal-Mart, auto parts stores, Dollar stores etc and buy their store brand 10W30 and rest assured it will work just fine. It’s a world of difference better than any motor oil that was used in the Model T era. Don’t spend your money on exotic brands that have this and that in it and try to please everybody else. There will always be different...

Last year at Luray there was a sample of the new reproduction Driven Plate that someone was working on making. Looked great, hope to see more this year. Dan

A discarded Model A shift lever is a good candidate for making the Ruckstell shift lever. It is tapered, gives a more factory like appearance and is easily threaded for a shift knob.

Thanks for the picture Kenny.

IMHO I have heaters on both my Ts that utilize heat from the exhaust pipe, not the manifold and have a fresh air pickup behind the engine fan. No danger of exhaust gas this way. Starting below the manifold connection there is a surrounding cover over the exh pipe that is sealed at both ends and open to a floor grate.

I bought two of the made in Argentina distributors in the late 60's. From a vintage parts dealer in Rosemead, Calif. They were $25 each ! They had an auto advance that I removed and made it manual. I am still running one of them. It's been trouble free all those years. The distributor head is an exact copy of the Autolite distributor (IAD-400)...

When I do a rebuild I replace the usual domed plug in the output shaft with a cup type plug. It cannot skew and let oil pass.

Allan from down under.

My guess is the smaller fibre gear is sacrificial. As they wear they can be easily replaced.

Allan from down under.

Indeed, He is risen, hallelujah! (like the red zone on my motometer in the summer!!)

Buona Pasqua / Happy Easter to everyone over there from all of us over here!!!!

Interesting; in photo #5 they are clustered around the car while the driver is blowing down the boiler...

Using the same height and width dimensions as the frame, I made one out of 2”x 4”s which served me well. Assembled using 2 1/2” drywall screws, I made it waist high so it made working on the engine very easy. Very sturdy and hardly cost anything. When I was done, I disassembled it and used the lumber on other projects. No storage room needed. Jim...

Tenon came in two sizes

You did good, Tom. From the photos it looks like new tubing. Thanks for detailing the steps. I havent yet inspected mine to reveal any cracks. Ill save tis thread for future reference if there are.

I suspect it was a bun tail light bracket, but think it is likely hand forged for the job. The light end of most factory brackets is round. The other end of this one is asymmetric and typical of hand forging. This would also explain why there is no part number on it.

Allan from down under.

Had a front wheel fail once. Advice...Go see Mr Stutzman in Ohio and have your wheels rebuilt correctly for the next 100 years!

Henry Ford evidently made 2 Inches the standard instrument gauge.

You can buy the adapter ring used to replace the larger ammeter space used or 1919 to 1925 Model T Fords.

Then enlarge the inside are to a 2 inch circle and insert any gage you wish, ammeter, voltmeter, etc.

I have done several and inserted the Ford Tractor Ammeter and other...

The wrap on the intake took care of the carb and manifold icing up (on a 104 degree day!) long story that I won't go into here but 20 or so years ago that happened. I installed the wrap and it hasn't happened since. As for the other side of the engine, I don't have a picture of it but no great loss, not much to see just the exhaust header and...

Hi Andy,
I tested about 25 coils for different folks. Some needed adjustment which we did. Only one timer was tested which was a new New Day timer.
Larry

Would think the VFW would have photos from the past showing the car in action or the local newspaper.

Thanks for all the great info. It appears that I have a 26/27 frame, although the tank and brackets are round, that is what was on the depot hack when I got it and I will frame my ambulance body around it.
Thanks for confirming.

I'm thinking that was probably stock set up.

When I reline Rockies I clamp the band and lining to a drum, squeezing it together like they would when operating. After aligning the band and lining I drill all the holes. Disassemble, countersink the holes and the rivet lining to the band from the middle out.

Andy

looks like a flat rate small box is 10.60 and part is $4.95-so $15.55 total

It becomes a completely different excercise if you install a foot throttle. Probably way easier than fitting an extra cross shaft and mountings and bending levers this way and that. The foot throttle leaves your right hand free to make the change with the standard centre Ruckstell shifter.

Allan from down under.

Yes. It seems to be in good shape and shifts through the gears fine. I will open it up eventually and go through it first before using. I am one of those people that does not know how to resize photos to fit here so I cannot post pictures.

Just finished watching the second video - very enjoyable!

It could be one, but the ones I have seen have a canvas built in. I don't see any canvas.
Norm

There are a lot better rims out there. I can't see any circumstances where I would use those.

Wow! Be careful. It would take me at least 3 maybe 4 or 5 days to get from Indiapolis to San Diego, especially pulling a trailer.

Piece of cake ! thanks Humble J and everyone else .

If this is on your list, then do it! Unfortunately, the road to the top has now been paved and is no longer gravel, but I suppose that's progress .
Been up there twice- our #45 speedster and also our '14 Touring. 1st time, three of us took a day off from the MTFCA National Tour in Frisco, Colorado and made the trip to Pikes Peak. 2nd time the trip...

Thanks for the replies fellas.

Here's some detail of the Holley G float setting and gage.

IMG_0003 (720x502).jpg IMG_0002 (760x663) (680x593) (620x541).jpg

They look like T wheels to me. A model wheels are easy to identify. They have a raised ridge pressed outwards between each stud hole. This stiffens up the hub so the wheels do not crack between the stud holes like some T wheels do.

Allan from down under.

Ah, I see what you mean, I had never noticed that difference before, but that's very good...

And speaking of missing fun Richard B, I hope a few people notice your posting's address Pilgrim.

I better stop now, or the drift might be too deep!

Such devices that do this sort of thing are still availsble. They don't have exposed heated elements.

Art Mirtes

Art, I have seen the new load testers, but I have a soft spot in my heart for old tools. The new ones are the same design, but have pretty colored cases around the load element. Most are made in China, SO ARE THEY REALLY SAFER...

This is one photo example of a new ambulance and show factory shiny black on chassis, hood, and fenders, would think all the fasteners too are black painted as they were done on the assembly line and painted to finish.

And the rest of the wood body assembly is painted up military style, and you can see clearly the carriage bolt heads on the wood...

If you get one, be prepared to do some filing on the corners of the square part to get it to slide into the output plate. Luckily, I had an extra plate that I was able to use for trial fitting before installation. :)