MTFCA Forum

Can anyone tell who made this body? Is the 7 14 a date?

Paul

Pretty sure the 7 14 is July of 1914. The body could have been installed anywhere from late July into early 1915. However, usually, bodies in that timeframe went onto chassis quickly, most likely before the end of August.

As for the "R"? I will probably hit me upside the head and say "DOH!" when I read the answer, however off the top of my head I do not recall who that could be?
What I find really interesting, is that it appears someone scratched out the original letter, and replaced it with the "R"? This could be an example of a body built 'in the white' which means an unfinished body. It could mean either paint or upholstery or both along with other detailing that would be done by another local supplier. Ford was using bodies faster than the body suppliers could finish them. So sometimes lesser builders would be used, or even the usual major builders would build an unfinished body and then send to to one or more smaller companies to complete the job. Sometimes this resulted in delays, which could make your body installed a month or more later.
The change in the letter could also mean the body was somehow defective, and set aside to be repaired by someone else before it was installed onto a chassis.
Ford was doing what nobody had ever done before! They were building so many cars so fast, that keeping all the needed pieces flowing was a major problem. A lot of short term solutions were needed before Ford built enough manufacturing facility to do most of it inhouse.

So. More questions for you to ponder. And a really interesting model T!

I'll shoot some close up pictures of that mark above the R. Possibly its just some sort of damage.

Paul

Look at the top center of the "heel kick panel" metal stamping, front and rear.
Sort of tucked up under the overhang of the seat frame.
The letters are often stamped in the metal, "B" for Beaudette etc.
Herbert, Hayes, Fisher, Monroe, Ford, Pontiac (Beaudette), Wilson....
Maybe HR for Herbert ?

I had a look at the steel heel board in front with a good strong flashlight but did not see anything. I'll check the rear one latter.

I did shoot a few more pics of the stampings in the wood. Its not clear of the mark above the R is a stamping or just a mark from some sort of damage.

The body is in pretty good shape with a lot of wood that looks to be original.

Paul

FROM MTFCA posted 2013.
George John Drobnock on Sunday, April 07, 2013 - 09:35 am:

If the information on Beaudette bodies was presented before - sorry.

This may answer my own question about the manufacture of the 1922 Coupe Body. The number I found on the Coupe (B 21 3663) is very possibly a Briggs and not that of O. J. Beaudette. O. J. Beaudette supplied Ford with well over 2,000,000 bodies from 1910-1922 when the firm was purchased by Fisher Body Co. http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/b/beaudette/beaudette.htm

"Auto Topics," 15 July 1922 (page 767) discusses the sale 1 July 1922 to Fisher Body Company. For 16 years Beaudette manufactured bodies for Ford.

Within the forum there is a discussion on the body numbers and Beaudette Company. Is this discussion about open cars?
http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/50 ... 1227817825

The following indicates Beaudette manufactured roadster bodies.

"Auto Industries" of 12 October 1922 (p 748) carried the following story, ' Rouge Plant Builds Most of Ford Bodies (Detroit 9 October).' The article states Ford is now building all bodies for its models (cars?) at the River Rouge Plant. The reason was the termination/sale of the Beaudette Company, Pontiac, Michigan to Fisher Bodies. The Beaudette Company, according to the 1922 article, built roadster bodies for Ford.

The Rouge plant now (1922) build 800 bodies daily in house. The Phaeton and all two-door sedans are built at Rouge River. The phaeton bodies are built in numbers of 3015 daily, with an average of 2650 daily. Sedans (bodies) are manufactured at 900 daily.

Bodies for Coupes and the new four door sedan bodies are manufactured by the Briggs Company and not by Ford. These two styles are low production (1922) cars averaging 5000 daily. The Ford Company is manufacturing 400 to 500 light trucks daily.

I do apologize for this questioning, just trying to understand the relationship between Ford and the body manufactures-- who did open? - who did closed?

George John Drobnock