A weekend full of smiles

[Bryce S.]

I just wanted to share my experience with everyone that may care to hear. Friday was the day. I took an entire day of PTO time to just relax. I've been very slowly getting a Speedster my father had built over 22 years ago back in working order. Since I have taken possession of it I have had to do a lot of learning on how to get it running properly. Finally got the corroded and rotted old Texas T pump on it and installed the "new" one I had bought off a gentleman here on the forums. A new carb was installed and took care of the fueling issue. I got ready and went to where this is stored. Keep in mind I've DRIVEN less than a quarter mile EVER in a model t.... Lots of riding though. I changed the oil and put in Rotella 15w-40 and filled the fuel tank with some fresh fuel. I had fired it up and it ran as smooth as could be. Off I went on my journey. Within a quarter mile down the road I had a grin on me that was ear to ear. My eyes teared up with excitement. I felt 10 years old again as if I was riding next to my late father whom made my childhood fun and exciting. I took it around my town and was learning how to use the bands. The whole day I dreaded going into high gear because the excessive chatter. Come to find out I was throttling up and not down when it came to letting the pedal up and going into high gear. Hopefully the Kevlar bands live to tell the tale. I drove many county roads at a blistering 35 mph. I went to my buddy's farm and showed him it in good running order. I made my journey back home and put it up for the night. I woke up next morning and immediately was excited to take it out on another cruise. I got it fired up and told my lady that it was finally road worthy for her to ride in. She hopped in and off we went. She looks to have just as much excitement riding in it as I do. She was taking all sorts of pictures and asking me a million questions which I of course was glad to answer. It's nice to have someone who is interested in what I like to do. We went to our local apple orchard and picked up some things. I will be enjoying some apple cider for the next week. We wrapped up and and drove to have lunch with some good friends and when that was over it was time to put it up for the weekend. I've never seen so many people smiling and waving because how unique a "T" is. Later that day we were heading to dinner with my parents and we decided to take a country route to the place. While driving we passed a T pulled over on the side of the road and I looked at my lady and said I have to turn around and see if he needs help. She said of course. I turned around and parked and walked up to the 26' T. Asked if there was anything I could do and he stated he just ran out of fuel and his son was on the way. We ended up talking for half an hour about our T's and the world we live in and how important it is to keep this hobby alive. I realized I needed to get going and asked him his name and told him mine and was genuinely happy to have met him and swapped stories. He thanked me for stopping and we agreed to look for eachother at car shows in the county. I left with a big smile on my face. Today came and we went to church. After church got out the wife and I decided to go grab it again and cruise around. We can't seem to get enough of it. Total mileage count for the weekend was just shy of 90 miles. May be off a little since a couple of hours ago I lost the gear to the speedometer and no longer know the mileage count for the trip. This was a VERY wonderful and fulfilling weekend and gave me just the feeling I needed since the passing of my father 2 years ago.

[Scott_Conger]

Bryce, that is a wonderful story. Thank you for sharing it!

[Norman Kling]

Sounds like a lot of fun! The Kevlar bands are only for low, reverse, and brake. The high gear clutch is a multiple disk steel clutch which runs in oil. Sometimes people put in aftermarket clutch disks and they might not take to slipping as much as the original type disks. So if you have a more modern replacement high speed clutch, it might have caused some damage.
Here is a good way to remember how to set the gas when shifting. You want the engine to go the speed it will be after the shift. In low the engine at a high idle when you start out and revs up as you pick up speed. When you shift to high, the engine is going slower, so you throttle down when shifting from low to high.

The opposite is true when shifting from high to low. As you bog down going up a hill, you need more power, so you shift back to low. The engine runs faster when the car is going the same speed as it was before you shifted to low, so you advance the throttle when shifting down to low.
Norm