MTFCA Forum

Hi,
I've seen some 25 Touring cars with nickel plated (and some chrome) radiator shells. Question: did Ford put them on or were they all black when leaving the factory. Was the nickel an upgrade, or just a personal choice? Thanks,
John

NY John T wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 03, 2024 2:50 pm

Hi,
I've seen some 25 Touring cars with nickel plated (and some chrome) radiator shells. Question: did Ford put them on or were they all black when leaving the factory. Was the nickel an upgrade, or just a personal choice? Thanks,
John

It was an option

I'm not sure if nickel was an option in 1925, but I wouldn't swear that it wasn't. However, black would have been the standard finish. In '26, black would be standard for open cars, and nickel for closed cars.

Summer 1925 before the Improved Car offering, the nickel plated brass substrate shell was offered as an option for the customer.

Factory supplied nickel shell on closed cars for '26-'27. Extra cost option on the open cars. Never chrome, always nickel plate.


Dressed up with lots plus the nickel shell.

DanTreace wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 03, 2024 3:44 pm

Summer 1925 before the Improved Car offering, the nickel plated brass substrate shell was offered as an option for the customer.

I never should have doubted it!

Although the 1924-25 roadster shown above has a nickel-plated radiator shell and, possibly, nickel-plated headlight rims, they may or may not be
Ford issue.

Case in point: my unrestored '17 roadster had an aftermarket nickel-plated radiator shell and headlight rims (and a honey-comb radiator) when the second owner acquired it from the original owner in 1947 and when I acquired it from the second owner over 30 years ago.

Therefore, what is shown in the photo might be aftermarket.

Here in Australia, nickel plated radiator shells and headlight rims were distributor/dealer provided upgrades, especially on their up-market models like my 1924 Tarrant special tourer. There were even nickel plated brass radiators for early cars, and I once had a nickel plated Jno Brown brass tail light.
None of this was standard Ford production though.
The barn fresh tourer I am presently working on also has nickel plated windscreen posts and four plated kick plates, all this being a package provided by distributors Duncan and Fraser in Adelaide.

Allan from down under.

After-market nickel plating goes back a lot further than most realize. Fifty years ago, nickel plated brass radiators, headlamps and sidelamps would often show up at swap meets. A 1914 blacksmith built pickup I was restoring almost thirty years ago had one nickel plated sidelamp (acquired by a previous owner that had scrounged up the set of lamps for it). I had a tough time polishing most of the nickel off of that lamp.
Very few people in recent decades want their "brass era" Ford to have nickel plating, and I have only seen maybe two cars done that way. Discussions on the forum ten to over twenty years ago confirmed that other people were well aware that nickel plating was done in the brass era. However, I don't think it was ever resolved whether the sometimes dealer option was authorized by Ford or not.

In response to Wayne Sheldon's comment, I want to clarify my previous comment.

The nickel plated radiator sheel and headlamp rims on my '17 were aftermarket. In otherwords, they were not a Ford radiator shell or John Brown headlight rims (my car was equipped with John Brown headlights). There was no name stamped anywhere on the radiator shell.

From the MTFCA Encyclopedia

RADIATORS
1924
(Introduced about July 1923)
Higher radiator. Outer shell now had a skirt at the bottom, over engine mount area.
1924-1926
Some flat tube radiators used during this period. Beginning in late 1925 an optional brass, nickel-plated, shell was offered. During 1926 three and four-row round tube radiators were used in addition to the standard five-row. The bottom skirt was secured to the engine mount/spring clip with a screw. Skirts used with the nickel shell had a nickel trim strip.

HEADLAMPS
1923-1925
Same as 1923. Nickel-plated lens rims available as an option in late 1925 (before the 1926 models).

Thank you all for the discussion. My newly acquired Dec. 24 (model year 1925) Tourer has a nickel plated radiator shell and silver painted headlight rims. I will, at some time, replace the nickel with black. I want it to look like it rolled off the factory floor.
John