MTFCA Forum

I would like to bring my 1912 commercial Roadster closer to original condition. However, the idea of using Calcium Carbide as a source of illumination gas seems daunting and messy. Are there any alternatives to the original set up? Is it possible to use either a Prestolite tank or Coleman camp fuel to serve as a more viable and workable solution?

Prestolite yes. Coleman no. It is possible to stay with the carbide cleanly by lining the tank with a plastic bag for that messy residue. For those occasional night trips, I have seen stick on , self contained led lights. Remove when not needed. My self, I put in halogen bulbs, wired thru the rubber line on the original burner base.

I love my Prest-O-Lite tank. No muss no fuss. If I were to modernize them I would look into the LED (not halogen) bulbs that screw into place of the original burners.
Bob has them. Snyder's has them. : ^ )

Keith

I mounted a small motorcycle prestolite bottle along the frame rail. It's not visible and while you have to get down and under to open it it's no harder to turn on than checking the oil. If you go that route you need to find a prestolite bottle with an offset valve and install it with with the valve at the highest point. Some people put them under the rear seat but I have never been comfortable with acetylene in a confined space. Modern bottles have a centered valve and are designed to sit up straight so they are not supposed to lay on their side. Before I found a bottle with an offset valve I made a bracket to mount a modern bottle on an angle so the valve was effectively offset.

I put in the LED lights in my 1914 and they are OK, but not as bright as you would like them to be. But then again, I have heard the original acetylene lights are not that bright either. It might be nice if someone could measure the brightness difference between the LED lights and the original acetylene lights. What I like about them is they draw almost no power and can be turned on and off easily...and most people would not notice the LED bulb in place of the original burner even it they looked.

The down side of the halogen is a lot of amps needed. I converted to led for a minute. Way too dim. The halogen are blindingly bright.
I make em work. I make sure the battery is topped off & dont run in the dark that much. If I do, I can unplug 1 light.(Christmas light tour) Hate the power drain.

I use the original carbide generator system on my '14. It doesn't make that much of a mess.

An additional upside to the Prestolite tank is that it was a Ford authorized accessory. Even some of Ford's sales literature showed pictures of early model Ts with Prestolite tanks.
Still, knowing that, I would really like to have and use a carbide acetylene generator on at least one model T. Maybe yet someday? I do have a 1912 roadster project pile I would like to put together.

My 1912 chocolate van has a modern acetylene cylinder standing out of sight behind the seat, complete with modern regulator. The regulator makes it very easy to adjust the flame. My son set them very low during a dinner on a model T run, and left them running. Helpful folks who reported he had left the lamps running were told they were in parking mode.

Allan from down under.

Easy peasy