Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 12:12 am
Page 1 of 1
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 12:13 am
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 12:14 am
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 12:16 am
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 4:23 am
Last photo: Rare example of all brass painted black. Thank you Tom. These are jewels.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 8:54 am
And in my not so humble opinion, that's a shame. To each his own again. Is it me or does the driver slightly resemble Original Smith? Nice looking '13 otherwise, and too bad the view isn't from the driver side so we can check if the horn is mounted correctly! Great indication of a correct top boot too!George House wrote: ↑Sun Jan 04, 2026 4:23 amLast photo: Rare example of all brass painted black. Thank you Tom. These are jewels.
And the lady....bet she was a stern school marm!! And ran THEIR house! Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 10:51 am
While we’re “picking on” the last photo, those square-nose front fenders seem a bit odd. After-market ?
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 11:12 am
The last photo was taken in 1917 when brass was long out of style. Besides, in 1917 everyone is getting fun paint jobs —
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 11:40 am
While I agree that it is a shame to paint all that beautiful brass, painting brass was not un-common in the past.
I personally dislike polishing brass myself (even though I have 2 brass cars). Maybe I was tasked with too much polishing as a kid?
For religious reasons, not having to polish it, or just to modernize the car painting brass parts was done back then.
See the 1912 Menonite owned Torpedo in the Encyclopedia for example.
By the teens brass was becoming less and less desirable.
Interesting that they left the crank handle as aluminum and did not paint it!
For the parts manufacturer brass was easier to work (less pressure) and wore out dies and tooling slower than steel.
So as the brass era faded the parts makers were still making parts from brass and painting them to make them "new".
Brass material at the time was not nearly as expensive as it is today.
Tastes change, opinions change, what we like today may not be what people like in the future.
This is an example of a historical sidenote.
Would anyone restore a car today and paint the brass lamps today?
I don't believe it is common but I have seen it before.
The car in question is a 1913 roadster with a 1917 plate.
The front fenders do appear to have a more square front end like a "1912" front and "1913" rear
For 1913 there are 2 documented front fenders possible, maybe there was a 3rd type for a while?
Ford was still buying from multiple sources and the aftermarket was making "spurious" parts also.
My 2 cents worth and my opinion
Mike
I personally dislike polishing brass myself (even though I have 2 brass cars). Maybe I was tasked with too much polishing as a kid?
For religious reasons, not having to polish it, or just to modernize the car painting brass parts was done back then.
See the 1912 Menonite owned Torpedo in the Encyclopedia for example.
By the teens brass was becoming less and less desirable.
Interesting that they left the crank handle as aluminum and did not paint it!
For the parts manufacturer brass was easier to work (less pressure) and wore out dies and tooling slower than steel.
So as the brass era faded the parts makers were still making parts from brass and painting them to make them "new".
Brass material at the time was not nearly as expensive as it is today.
Tastes change, opinions change, what we like today may not be what people like in the future.
This is an example of a historical sidenote.
Would anyone restore a car today and paint the brass lamps today?
I don't believe it is common but I have seen it before.
The car in question is a 1913 roadster with a 1917 plate.
The front fenders do appear to have a more square front end like a "1912" front and "1913" rear
For 1913 there are 2 documented front fenders possible, maybe there was a 3rd type for a while?
Ford was still buying from multiple sources and the aftermarket was making "spurious" parts also.
My 2 cents worth and my opinion
Mike
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Sun Jan 04, 2026 2:36 pm
I suppose the paint would wear off of the crank handle.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Mon Jan 05, 2026 8:15 pm
Judging by the matching scuffs on the side and doors of each car, pictures 1 and 3 are of the same car and the same girls.
- IMG_9564.jpeg (191.83 KiB) Viewed 1371 times
- IMG_9565.jpeg (179.66 KiB) Viewed 1371 times
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Tue Jan 06, 2026 12:54 am
Mary Pickford fans!jiminbartow wrote: ↑Mon Jan 05, 2026 8:15 pmJudging by the matching scuffs on the side and doors of each car, pictures 1 and 3 are of the same car and the same girls.
IMG_9564.jpegIMG_9565.jpeg
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Tue Jan 06, 2026 4:39 am
Yes, and fairly unusual windwings
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2026 7:34 pm
I wanted a brass radiator car- preferably one with 'wings' signifying a Piquette build- until I worked at Greenfield Village. That gave me my fill of polishing brass.Mike Silbert wrote: ↑Sun Jan 04, 2026 11:40 amWhile I agree that it is a shame to paint all that beautiful brass, painting brass was not un-common in the past.
I personally dislike polishing brass myself (even though I have 2 brass cars). Maybe I was tasked with too much polishing as a kid?
For religious reasons, not having to polish it, or just to modernize the car painting brass parts was done back then.
See the 1912 Menonite owned Torpedo in the Encyclopedia for example.
By the teens brass was becoming less and less desirable.
Interesting that they left the crank handle as aluminum and did not paint it!
For the parts manufacturer brass was easier to work (less pressure) and wore out dies and tooling slower than steel.
So as the brass era faded the parts makers were still making parts from brass and painting them to make them "new".
Brass material at the time was not nearly as expensive as it is today.
Tastes change, opinions change, what we like today may not be what people like in the future.
This is an example of a historical sidenote.
Would anyone restore a car today and paint the brass lamps today?
I don't believe it is common but I have seen it before.
The car in question is a 1913 roadster with a 1917 plate.
The front fenders do appear to have a more square front end like a "1912" front and "1913" rear
For 1913 there are 2 documented front fenders possible, maybe there was a 3rd type for a while?
Ford was still buying from multiple sources and the aftermarket was making "spurious" parts also.
My 2 cents worth and my opinion
Mike
I have been converted to the 'holy black' now.
jason
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2026 1:11 pm
Brass became scarcer and more expensive during and after WWI. In some cities, industrial smoke and emissions would have probably tarnished brass overnight. I suspect a lot of people quit polishing brass after the "new" wore off, or during winter or if they drove on muddy rural roads, which most people did. Wax or lacquer can retard tarnish, but once the coating begins to fail, you have a job on your hands to get rid of it and start over.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2026 3:27 pm
James, I was thinking the same thing.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2026 5:18 pm
Can we imagine how the brass T owners in the T era felt after a few months of driving their T’s to work, around the farm and in everyday life on roads that weren’t the best and having to polish the brass and wash the nice shiny paint jobs? Think about it.
The photos of the T’s that were being used in daily life show what that thought about it.
The photos of the T’s that were being used in daily life show what that thought about it.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2026 6:20 pm
I'd think a T that shared a barn with livestock would have tarnished brass almost overnight.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2026 8:13 pm
Is the girl in the first picture missing an arm and a leg?
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2026 8:29 pm
Poor lighting, I think ... what about the ghost in the back seat?
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Thu Jan 15, 2026 8:53 am
Pat, she has both arms in photo 3. You can see the "ghost" face there too.
Re: Girls with curls.
Posted: Thu Jan 15, 2026 10:01 am
The Ectoplasm must have been stronger in photo 3....