MTFCA Forum

I'm sure they exist, but I don't recall seeing one. Was vanadium steel all that rust-resistant?

Bodies and fenders were made of wood and mild steel. They would rust like any other. The frame and many mechanical parts and some structural parts were of vanadium alloy steel. It does rust, but seems to be more rust resistant than mild steel.

Yes. Big time. When I bought my 1926 coupe in 1970 at the age of 16, though it was complete, it was completely rusted out with that kind of deep pitting rust, with bullet holes in the sides, all the glass shot out and all the wood, upholstery and rubber rotted, but with on the job training and my trusty Model T books, I was still able to restore it in 2 years. Jim Patrick

I’ve seen several rusted down Model T’s since I’m 75. In the 60’s and in high school seeing Model T’s in all kinds of conditions was fairly common.

Going to farm auctions you would usually see T parts and remains. The Model T frames were used for farm trailers and etc. The bare chassis of T’s and the engine would survive in the weather and in fields but not the bodies in decent shape.

Lots of decent T’s literally rusted away in the weather down to the chassis. After years and years outside Model T’s bodies would not survive. Those days they are now few and far between. If a T was stored inside it was a lucky day if you found it. They are still around but not anything like they use to be. The steel parts would survive but the tin and wood structure bodies would literally rot down in the elements.

Even Ford’s best steel can’t repel the elements.

You’re right about that Dan!
I’ve got lots of T parts that came off rusted down engines and frames that are still “usable” but not much past that!
I’ve been thinning them down recently. There comes a time to do it eventually.

Naaa!

While they do rust, they dont seem to turn a powder like modern cars.

Here is mine as it arrived home.

If I remember Model T Haven had piles and piles of T body parts, rims and wheels, and etc. The owner saved the best or so and scrapped the rest. Seems like he moved the rest and went to another location. Haven’t seen it advertised like it use to be. Maybe I missed it.

Chris: Your roadster looks really straight compared to some that were pillaged and plundered. Looks like it was just left to sit pretty much untouched. The body is straight and the fenders aren’t crumpled up! That’s amazing!

When I built up my 1919 Roadster I bought the empty middle body section hull for 25.00 that was in a ditch and started from there with a frame and rear end I later picked up. It took around 8-10 years to restore it 25 years ago. Still have it but it’s in my garage!

Mark packed up and moved to Florida !

Where I grew up, Model T era cars and trucks were scattered all over
the woods, fields, and ravines, dumped when new cars were just so much
more "advanced" that they got hauled out to a forgotten spot and left to
the elements. By the 60's and 70's, they were crumbling hulks. A few
managed to get tucked in sheds and barns and those were the ones that
got found and restored, the hulks out back pulled out of the hedgerows
and such for hard parts.

legendary...............

I believe that most all body sheet metal was 22 gauge from around 1918 +- onward. Many cars had fenders made of 20 gauge, and of course, running boards were heavier gauge.

No doubt the fords were made of nicer, heavier sheet metal than almost anything after them. All of the farm fresh A’s and T’s I’ve built have been pretty rusty though. Mostly in the pockets where moisture and dust collect together and settle. Both of the CCPU’s had hard lives and sat outside for many years rusting all over, especially the bottom of the cowl, and in the beds. Both the touring and roadster sat outside in the dry western climate and only rusted in these body pockets, but all the way around the bottom. Sneaky little places that didn’t see sun will even have paint still. Id guess a lot of Ts we’re fixed up and put into service as novelty or collector cars almost (in car years) as soon as they were parked, so most of them that made it to shows, or got driven were already salvaged or rebuilt by the time they were seen. I suppose cars from out east that did rust badly were simply not held on to like the western states. There is plenty of room to let things sit around out here too, so no one really had to get rid of the cars, so I assume thats where a lot of currently usable Ts and As were originally sold and driven. The street-rod boom definitely had collectors scouring the farms and ranches out west through the eighties and nineties, so unless you go way out in the boonies, we rarely see cars that are not dedicated yard art sitting around farms any more. Of course they are still out there, but the classic barn-find gets less common all the time.

Hey John, where is that nice project car you just posted? That's more T than I ever started with!
I can't believe someone is letting a brass era car sit out in the weather like that beside a gas pump?whats the story on that?

Hauled this TT home in 1968. 8 months later I was pulling the hill at the Long Beach Hill climb.

After seeing this post I wish I would have kept a photo record when building my 1919 Runabout years ago and my 21 Touring a little later. At least I had a rusted down body less the frame for my 21 and not just the empty center hull for the 19.

Both of my two open T’s aren’t pristine perfect and around 95% correct. That’s good for me. I have to think there are more put together cars out there than we think.

I’ve kept boxes of borderline parts just in case but it’s getting time to thin things down. After over 50 years the border line parts are getting to much. I went to many meets and pastures to drag home this and that when they were fairly plentiful. Now I would have to drive all over to find them now. Love this post!

Some time in 2025 when i start getting my full retirement I am going to take a road trip,along that trip I hope to gather some parts because they are not as easy to find around here as they are out towards the west.