MTFCA Forum

Not counting the short trip down the road and back. I took my MAYden voyage today !!
Ruckstell rebuild, so far so good...shifts like a dream !! Made it about 10-15 miles and brought me back home.

Congratulations!

Took the 1915 out for her first run this year. Went to get some veggie starts... about 35 miles round trip. She looks like hell but never misses a beat!
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Looks good to me John! I took mine for plumbing supplies. Stopped by the Bison ranch on the way home.

After being all "couped" up, I fired up the 26 roadster and took it for a "social distancing" drive today!

Yep, like Dave & others...I DROVE them! 2 trips in the Fordor, then after supper a trip out in the country in the '13 Touring. Fantastic. Finally a warm day!!
Next week, definitely Fordor weather again.

After previewing I see again we're laying on our side! Uff. I've tried correcting it to no avail, so I'm sorry. You know to click on the pic & the view is normal. Thanks.

Tim, maybe, just maybe, possibly, I might have seen a speck of dirt on your Model T..... maybe it was my glasses!
In the meantime I drove my Model T to the bait shop to pick up leeches for fishing. The Walleye fishing opener is today on the St. Croix River which is the border water with Wisconsin.

The wife and I drove our 4-dr 25 miles today. I just finished putting a 10 tooth pinion bearing and it made a difference. Now I have to work on the timing and then we can do some local drives as we had to cancel out Sho-Me Tour because of the virus. Have a good weekend. Clyde

Dave, you put in a new Ruckstell and drove that car 55mph the first day? You could drive from Dallas's house to Tim's house in no time. You need to sign up for the Montana 500.

DHort wrote: ↑

Sun May 03, 2020 1:54 am

Dave, you put in a new Ruckstell and drove that car 55mph the first day? You could drive from Dallas's house to Tim's house in no time. You need to sign up for the Montana 500.

Dave, that’s my crazy Russian speedometer...
Pictured is about 40mph. The red mark is about 45. I did hit 50mph one time a little later.
I hope to head west sometime.

Changed choke return spring on the touring. Still trying to dig the broken nails out of the Centerdoor woodwork

Finished rebuilding my steering column... New post, 5:1 gears, control rods, springs, rebushed the odball steering bracket..... (19-25 'long' model , but with a 7/8" OD bushing.... Not a 1". Go figure). Now pulled 4 dip inspection plate off bottom of motor, and head, to check on overall shape.... Potentially adding high compression head.

With schools cancelled and people "sheltering in place" the streets are devoid of the usual traffic. I've taken advantage of the situation by driving some formerly busy streets and absolutely loving every minute. I particularly get a kick out of all the waves and smiles from the folks of all ages out on foot enjoying the fresh air.

Bill and his wife met up with me and we went for a nice small trip. Stopped first right down the road at Fred’s place and checked out his barn load of stuff. He was shining brass on his 14 when we showed up and he welcomed us and we shot the poop for a while.
Parking in a social distancing position....

Pulling a couple of rear ends down, bet this one ran real quiet even with chiped pinion teeth. It's going to have to drain for a few days before I can even start cleaning to see condition of ring gear. The lube in it is brown with green/yellow tint.

Got the head back on and torqued, manifolds next and re-built coils back in the box.

I was having trouble with high gear not solidly "locking up" so I adjusted my clutch. I gave each of the 3 finger set screws 1/2 turn to the right ( and didn't drop a single cotter pin). Great result!!!

And while Scott just torqued down his head, I just pulled mine yesterday...

Got tired of the lack of compression on Angel (the '15 T), and a general "Kerfuff" trying to start her. So I replaced the inlet hoses and started going thru the diagnostics...

Checked the compression, and all were low. Did the wet test, and the numbers were all over the place. Hmmmm...

So I dropped the coolant (just replaced as I had to replace a hose that cracked over the winter) and pulled the head. Carbon city... Yuck. Checked the plug gaps - they're supposed to be 1/32"... these were about .02 - or less. Reset them, but more Hmmm...

While I was there (oh, why not?), dropped the (also just re-installed) Carb (Winfield V) and darned if it wasn't crustified and carboned up as well... Popped the main jet, and cleared out the little holes with the help of (don't shoot me) a jet wire. Not bad, not gunky jelly, just... crusty. (While I'm here if anyone has info on setting up a 1" Winfield V... it looks like the jet tube has 2 parts?... I figure someone, somewhere, has a set up sheet going back that far) so got it all put back together. (BTW, I also have a 1 3/8" Winfield M that's G2G - I may prep it as a backup, but not sure how it would act with that much carb...) Also (finally) did a minor upgrade to the choke on said "V"... so it actually fits a 3/16 brass rod (it had an offcenter tiny hole on which the brass rod kept slipping out... Grrrr...) like a couple others I've seen... waiting on the linkage clamp to tie it to the innocent looking brass wire on the pull loop.... got it back together... and in.

So on today's list of fun stuff.. Cleaning the head and checking for flatness. Popping the valve springs (hopefully not losing the keepers) and checking valves with my old friend, the Blue Prussian (I swear, that guy must be related to Aunty Sieze... gets EVERYWHERE!) and doing laps to make sure they're sealing. Debating whether while I'm in it this deep whether or not I should go ahead, drop the inspection cover, and check the bearings... Whatcha think?

Ambitious? Maybe so. Still, why not? Spring is in the air... as long as the Spring isn't preceeded by "valve"... --lol-- And yeah, if you're an early Winfield guru... don't forget about me.

Susanne on the hill

I just need to finish a few magneto coil rings.

Andre
Belgium

I made a spare tire carrier...I could not get in or out of the door anyway...so took my spare out of the bed....

I installed my new radiator this week and restored the shell. I ditched the MotoMeter in favor of a simple cap from my stash. The probe on the MotoMeter didn't go deep enough to touch the coolant. The top of the overflow tube was lower. I don't want to damage the radiator neck with a heavy MotoMeter. I'll restore the old cap someday.

My car had a taillight housing but no bulb or socket. I installed a 2-contact socket and brake light switch. This is the first time in generations that the car had a working taillight. It was a farm truck for most of its life and didn't need one. My wife came out to the barn in anticipation of a first startup since I pulled the rear end and torque tube for rebuild. I proudly showed her the working light. She asked, "Where's the other one?"

We still have not taken the car on the road in the 2+ years that we've had it. It's not ready yet. But we took a drive to get the mail, about 3/4 mile round trip and the car runs well and we got into high gear for the first time. I still have a lot of adjusting to do on the new brakes and a few other things. We're getting closer to our first road trip.

Well, wish I could say "I did the work" but mostly it was my good friend Lloyd who finished assembling Barney's top bows. the main bow wood is made of some old pipe organ chest support wood that is (we believe) maple; HARD Maple at that. Lloyd replicated the original rivets and the curved tack strips are laminated wood. so the whole assembly is very strong. These bows were in pretty good shape to start with, but the wood was warped. I still have to do the body wood on Barney--after the house remodel, which is going um, well, but slooowly. And of course, Barney; in obvious need of wood!

The weather has warmed up in England. Time to get this old girl ready for the road when lockdown is lifted

We didn't have our annual St Johns (North Portland Oregon) parade this year so I did a bit of driving around the neighborhood.

Less than you guys!
Got asked today how long since the 24's been running. 2 years. But the carb is ready to go, had that apart and then the dizzy... Oops. Wrong answers. Head is wrapped around OT things...
Then I got asked when the 18 is gonna be here so he can take his little boy for a ride... Ya, son knows a T.
OK, OK. What do ya say for a barely two year old grandson that says "Grampa, brrrmm" and his dad. He had a short ride on a tracto... OT.
I NEED to get the 18 back here now! We got another one perhaps! I have two potentials! A and J!
He absolutely loves the old (OT) things here and wanted UP in the (OT!) Galion motor grader. Can't blame him. Me too, right now.
That little boy (I keep typing bot. No, he ain't gonna be no bot) scrambled out of the the 24 T and RAN to an OT to get up there with dad.
They rode around for a bit. He'll like the T's too when ya can go fast...

Mark...
What a great idea! Mine isn't driveabke right now, or I'd be out doing the same!!

I was shocked by the improvement. The Kingston L4 in my Runabout was leaking due to a sticky float valve. Even when it didn't leak, the engine never ran well. I installed a Ford NH that I rebuilt last year. Right out of the box with startup settings the engine idled smoothly. Really smooth! I made a quick trip to the road and back and was able to actually accelerate in high gear going up my driveway. The first 900 feet of my driveway are pretty steep. I can't wait to get on the road for a first drive and I'm getting closer each day .

My wife and have ridden the '21 touring some, just waiting for the guy to call saying he's ready for me to bring it to get the top installed.

Flushed a very plugged up radiator. About 4 hours of water on and off through both ends.

In the midst of pulling the engine out of my speedster. It broke during the Labor Day 200 mile endurance run in Omak. 99% sure the rear flange is no longer properly connected to the rest of the crank. It's a shortened A crank that came in an engine I bought a while back that had been built up but never started. Owner had decided to go back to a stock motor in his speedster. Less than 500 miles on the engine and suddenly very nasty noises but when I backed off they quit. Some of these cranks had a history of problems, I think mine is in that bucket. I'm hoping nothing else got hurt but have another block and crank on my bench awaiting babbitt that will go in the car when completed. Broken crank motor will likely just gather dust until I need the pieces that aren't hurt. With no T, I've resorted to modern by taking the A out.

Seems what started out as 'tightening up' some noisy clanking rods in the new-to-me 1925 Coupe has now morphed into a complete rebuild of the front end.....

and installing a freshly rebuilt short block.....oh what fun to be in quarantine with a good garage project

Hunting down and fixing oil drips, missing bolts and changing out obviously incorrect bolts on my 14 Touring. Re-installed the windshield and adjusted it so I can now fold it down the upper windshield without pulling on the steering wheel. I am learning what it needs to start easily at last. Can't wait to take it on a real cruise again!

The wifes modern needed another headlight bulb. Its been cold so the T has been sitting in the shop while I remodel out main bathroom. It was 65 today and sunny and I needed a break. Soooo! Off to town to the auto parts store. Nothing major, about 15 miles round trip but I got my T fix.

First drive of the year here! Have a Hot Daye tomorrow with the bride, wink, wink, 28 years glued together!

First drive of the year here! Have a Hot Date tomorrow with the bride, wink, wink, 28 years glued together!

I stumbled across and purchased this 1919 Model T only 15 miles from me. Car fully painted but unassembled, interior half installed, no top but have irons. All mechanically rebuilt (yes!). It will keep me busy during these slow times.v

Well I started out going to see the grand daughter for her birthday. Grandma and grandson were relaxing in the T , I think he wants to drive. We took him for a ride and returned to visit. It wasnt long and the truck was full of kids driving and tooting the horn to smiles and giggles every time Ended up going out for supper with the whole lot. Just as we finished the fire pager went off! Structure fire at a resturaunt. I tossed the house keys to the wife and ran out, fired off The T and raced "well sort of" to the station. To my suprise I was the 1st one there ? I returned home about 1:30 am wet and cold in a car with no side curtians or heater. What a joy these little cars are. Wouldnt change a thing. As a side note, If you want to really get to know your T, drive it at night. I do so quite often. No visual timer setting, nothing but the feel and sound of that 20 hp flathead to tell you its happy. Get the out and drive em folks, thats what they are for!

Drove the T every day from beginning of April when I was on unpaid furlough to May when I was reinstated. Now I’m working at home ... and still driving it every day.

Made an adapter so I could mount a racing gas filler cap on my speedster. This addition should get me 5 MPH at least.

Drained the gas tank. Here in SW Florida the roads are flat and straight and I'm afraid of being rear-ended at 50 mph when I am doing 35. I don't drive it much. I made the stupid mistake of filling the tank before I moved here from Massachusetts, and with about three gallons left the gas went bad. Tomorrow I will put in 2 1/2 gallons of fresh ethanol-free gas and then will (in a few days) put another 2 1/2 gallons. I think that it will once again run well. I hate to say this, but I am considering selling it and getting an A; SW Florida roads are just not safe for a 35 mph car. Maybe I will keep it as a "display" car. I love it, but ...

Dallas Landers wrote: ↑

Fri May 15, 2020 5:03 pm

The wifes modern needed another headlight bulb. Its been cold so the T has been sitting in the shop while I remodel out main bathroom. It was 65 today and sunny and I needed a break. Soooo!20200515_152250.jpg20200515_152757.jpg
Off to town to the auto parts store. Nothing major, about 15 miles round trip but I got my T fix.

Good to see the RPU back on the road Dallas.

This month I have been driving my '26 Touring nearly every day. The big news though has been progress on my '13 Touring. Yesterday I met Mark Eyre and we removed the body from the chassis and removed a good chunk of the original interior. This is an original car and it was a hard decision to pull so much of the car apart. The problem is the car has the typical '13 Touring rear body sag and nearly all of the wood in the car is loose. Going around corners, one or more doors fly open and the car is scary for my kids to ride in. Gord Koll is going to do the woodwork then I am going to see what sort of condition the upholstery is in. Ideally I want to re-install the original material but it is very, very brittle so the car may decide upon a different path. It is also going to get a new top and at least one top bow as I broke one a couple years back. Here is the car as of 5:00 yesterday afternoon.

I installed some fresh gas in the T. I then started it and it ran horribly until it had used up the stale gas in the carburetor and the line from the sediment bowl to the carburetor. Then it was as if someone had snapped a switch - when the fresh gas reached the engine it went back to being it's normal, smooth-running self. I'm a happy camper!

Today I made some carburetor tools. I have never gotten a Holley G all the way apart after attempts over 50 years until today. The tools made it quite easy. I want to try this one out. L4s and NHs have always been good to me but I'm expanding my horizons.
Rich

Mounted the wheels on the Colonial Roadster. The scuttle is the original 100yr old local made part.
Rims are locally made (and exported widely to the USA) galvanised finish - just like the Kelsey originals.
The fuel tank is to be moved rearwards as the seat is lower than the standard T. A Stewart vacuum fuel pump was likely used (per pictures of another existing unrestored car), however, I may just put a low pressure pump inside a Stewart tank if I struggle getting the vacumm to work... time will tell.
Installing the coils will be interesting given the lack of clearance.

This is a similar car in 1925:

I have been putting together a touring with a 14 runningear and a 21 body for close to a year now. Used up most of the parts I have been gathering for a couple of years, parts from friends, eBay, parts stores, and now it’s a Johny Cash special. Been getting frustrated, so a month ago I rattle can primed the whole thing and rattle can sprayed three coats of black on all the fenders and soforth to start making it look like a car. In the last week all the fenders, runningboards, splash aprons, doors, and lights got installed but it looks terrible. Got several scratches on the fresh paint, some places there are dull spots and runs but I was intending to respray everything again to make it look nice. Up to now I used close to twenty five cans of primer and paint and it is going to take at least a nother twenty to finish. Then the wife came out and asked what was wrong with my paint brush that I used to paint the frame. A light went on in my nogen and today I decided to simply give the whole thing a light sanding and brush and roll the whole car as a final coat. If you stand ten feet away, it looks like a nice expensive paint job. Why didn’t I think of that in the first place. Appearantly we need the input of the girls sometimes, even if We don’t like it, or like to admit it. Now to install some moving blankets for seat covers and ready for touring. Frank

Mounted the engine, gas tank, had the steering parts nickel plated, and put it on the ground for the first time in two years.

Richard i have to make some of those tools for the G also. Today drained the water out of the 25, leaking freeze plug. No it is not getting an Indian head nickle.

Gs are fun. Good luck Mark.
I will say the retainers for the strangling tube didn't survive well. A dentist pick helps dig them out. Lots of penetrant helps too. I was using the "rocking the carriage bolt" trick on the tube that is mentioned in the carburetor book. I was marring the "jet" so I made a plug to rock against. Also a carriage bolt with texture or ribs under the head worked better than one without. So far so good.

"Later that same day" This cover plate had some damage. I rounded the hole with a punch. It seemed worthwhile to make a fixture for polishing these as I probably will do some more. Sacrificing wood screws to act as pins I chose not only Phillips but abused Phillips head screws previously used as temporary to save slotted screws. Ajax and a period tooth brush seemed appropriate.

The last couple weeks I have been getting the old T back to where she is a reliable and safe daily driver. I installed an E-timer, adjusted the rear brakes and adjusted the tranny brake. Now it starts good, runs smooth and stops when I need it too. And when I park, it's in the same place I left it when I come back! I also sealed up some gaskets and tightened some fasteners so she doesn't leak like a sieve. In fact, after a 10 mile drive there was one tiny spot and one spot about the size of a sliver dollar. The biggest safety feature I repaired was the front window regulators. Now I can put the windows down to signal other drivers AND I can release all the exhaust fumes from the horribly leaking exhaust manifold.
A new manifold and complete exhaust sytem is ordered and will be the next course of business.

Needed some lumber to build door jambs for the bathroom project. Not a problem with my trusty pickup.

Some more garage time on taking apart the '25 Coupe's engine.

Removed the Bendix, and its in good shape, then the starter.

Noted when I removed the switch-to-starter cable carefully, as always using with two wrenches, one held firm on the lower lock nut and one used to remove the cable nut..... the post twisted some

Funky insulator with a round opening, fitted into the T starter square opening....why in the world that was used? That's some poor mechanic. Good grief

Yep, with poor insulator retainer...the buss bar is cracked in the middle..........

I haven’t driven any of my Ts since I returned from Death Valley tour on Feb 28. However I have driven a customers T after I reworked his Ruckstell axle. Also I had the 09 on jack stands and was able to crank it. At last. I have a video which I’ll add a link to in due course. I’m now working on those hundreds of details such as hood clips and various leather straps which have suffered somewhat over the last fifteen years.
So virtually no driving but got lots of jobs completed

Today I made 2 new hinges for floats I have coming. Holley G.

Started a refresh of my TT which I bought April 1980. I restored it by 1987 as shown in the first picture, but the engine compartment was getting old.

Dug the rest of the mouse nests out of the car as I was making the rearmost windows function.

Took the 09 touring out for a drive around town for the first time since putting on the new top.

A couple days ago, I discovered my heat stove was dislocated and holding my choke from opening all the way. I adjusted it and drove it that day and it was like I put a supercharger on the old girl !!
Yesterday I went for a short ride and about 4 miles from home......putt putttt blahhh....dead !!
I called the wife before I even looked and had her bring some gasoline, bone dry she was !!
I assumed there was plenty of gas, I hadn’t driven that much since a nearly full tank. But that choke being closed part way must’ve shot my mileage all to heck.
I had coasted into the entrance to a park off the main road and after maybe 50 cars went by...after I’m pouring gas in the tank. Someone finally asked if I needed any help. Lots of waves, but nobody asked. I certainly would have.

Built this for a lonely '10 in Michigan.

RV, that is absolutely gorgeous.
Took my touring for a ride yesterday. Went a little over 60 miles. Drove north, then east, etc. Eventually ended up at Lake Michigan and couldn't go east anymore. Waves were too high. I was only dressed in a T-shirt and there was a cold wind off the lake. If you are from the east side of Wisconsin, there are just times when you have to see the lake. All that fresh water, the smells, the sounds. All part of the psyche.

Memorial Day I went for a ride and saved an MG. The owners wife got a ride in a Model T and I made some new friends.

Drove the T home and returned with a trailer. We think the power went
out to the fuel pump. Trying gravity did not work.

All because my son wanted a latte.

May has been a slow month for me. With the pandemic going on I've been wary of going out for wood supplies. I'm one of those who have multiple " underlying " conditions so going out is a bit scary. I finnaly broke down and made the run to Home Depot. 4 days later I had a fever that lasted a few days. I don't know if it was "the" virus, to get tested I'd have to go to the town next door or pay 300.00 out of pocket. I'll wait.

Anyway, I finished making the side panels for my Delivery/Hack. These slip into brackets at the bottom and will clamp at the top when done. These are chalk blackboards so the sign can be changed depending on mood or taken off for children to drawn on.

Trying to fit the new Magneto on my 1913-14 engine More work than expected.

My wife is spending the month in the south with my daughter and grandkids. I couldn't think of a better opportunity to stink up the garage. Since my favorite DuPont Centari is long gone, I tried Acrylic Urethane and am happy with the results.

Nice paint job Thomas!

Thanks Mario.

This is my first go at painting with Summit Racing paint. I was surprised and delighted at the results. I'm also glad my wife wasn't here to witness the smell.

still fighting a misfire in my Canadian '23 center door. I'm going to do one more seafoam treatment. if that doesn't show signs of improvement, the engine needs to be opened up. Since there are no head gaskets available, it just means more waiting.

I went for a ride on Sunday and when I got home my window wouldn't roll up, so Monday I got a chance to take a look at it. What would cause that? Where did that screw go? That solved the problem. Time to celebrate and go for a ride.

My wife and I have been taking advantage of all this downtime by seriously cleaning the garages and workshops. I just cut up a lot of cardboard boxes that had literally ben around for 20 years. I saved lots of clean pieces to put under leaky cars (NO! REALLY?) if I wanted to work under them. The rest needed top go to recycling. Sooo-o-o-o-o-

I cloned my 1925 Coupe.......in one sixteenth scale for my first grandson, aged 15 months.
The radiator, spring axle and back of the headlamps is cut and filed from one piece of 5mm steel. It has to be robust!

Removed, repaired, relined, cleaned and reinstalled gas tank on a 26 TT. 94 years of build up on the outside. Looks like upholstry is the next job.

I worked on bathroom remodel all day but managed to drive both today. Any reason I can find to drive them.

Went for a ride with about 7 other Model T's today. Drove around the city of New Berlin. Started with lunch in the parking lot of the Historical Society, which of course was closed for COVID. Full belly and ready to go.

I started my 1927 roadster pick up for the first time in 60 years!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Anq1gK9gtw

Scott, it looks like you hand cranked that car for 4 1/2 minutes. Do you lift weights every day? Good thing the engine is not too tight. Good to hear you got her to start. Now you can social distance with it.

Went for breakfast this morning in the TT. Being sunday morning the church traffic was heavy.

Took the Roadster up the river a few miles to check out the spill at Noxon Rapids Dam. Worked there for 30 years. The Clark Fork River is running pretty big this week.

I told Lizzy, 1926 touring, good morning and patted her on the fender. I do that every morning, what doesn't everybody do that?