MTFCA Forum

Erik Johnson

Note:

The huge, 68 year old ash tree behind my '17 roadster was condemned a few weeks ago due to emerald ash borer infestation.

The trunk is 10' 4" in circumference which makes it over three feet in diameter. That would make a lot of Model T floorboards......

Erik Johnson

The last time Blockley tires were discussed on the forum I did some casual internet research and, if I recall correctly, they are made in Vietnam. It would be great if the 30 x 3 and 30 x 3.5 Dunlop Cord chevron tread tires were being reproduced. They are true dimension, not oversize and look great ...

Erik Johnson

Contact Mike Francis at Classtique and order the pre-cut panelboards sans the leatherette material. He does sell items and material "a la carte" so it should be no problem. My dad made a set from scratch for his '17 touring a few years ago. Instead of buying a pre-made set, he bought the waterproof ...

Erik Johnson

Don't be afraid to clean and conserve the exterior of your box camera. Clean with a soft rag and mild soap and water Use Fiebing's black shoe dye on the leather strap. Follow up with Kiwi black show polish and buff with a horsehair shoe brush. Use Kiwi shoe polish on the camera body and buff with a ...

Erik Johnson

Here is a Brownie No. 1 with an embossed fish scale case that I picked up at an estate sale a few years ago. It is much smaller than a Brownie No. 2.

When you bought this camera, the viewfinder was extra. Otherwise, you used the two lines on the top of the case to line up your snapshots.

Erik Johnson

Tim Morsher:

In case you are not aware, the winding stem needs to be pulled out approximately 3/16" in order to slide open the camera.

The first box camera I bought at an estate sale when I was a kid had an undeveloped roll of film in it. I took it in and had it developed.

Erik Johnson

That chart is actually from the Victor Page book, The Model T Ford Car, Its Construction, Operation and Repair. It's Fig. 38 and the centerfold in my 1917 edition of the book. If you saw a full scan or had the actual book in your posession, you would see the following on the bottom: "Fig. 38. Chart ...

Erik Johnson

Neverout bicycle and motorcycle lamp but they were also used for other applications. That particular bracket, which is incomplete, is for mounting on the front fork of a bicycle. Don't know if the bracket is husky or large enough for a motorcycle fork. Six to the left on the picture below is same la...

Erik Johnson

Slight drift: I have a spare block in my garage and the serial number is only nine off from the block in my unrestored '17 roadster, both corresponding to May 26, 1917. Only the last digit of the serial number differs - 0 vs 9. However, the block in my car has a May 25, 1917 casting date while the s...

Erik Johnson

Somebody posted a video on YouTube of two of you going through an intersection:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82nxVajegbo

Like Edmonton, here in Minneapolis it's -9 F and we also have a Ghermezian Brothers megamall but we're keeping the Ts in the garage.....

Erik Johnson

Here is information on the photo including the ID of the passenger and the woman:

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/17 ... 1309904583

Erik Johnson

If you are talking IHC (International Harvester) highwheeler, for engine work, contact Wendell Kelch in Bethel, OH.

Erik Johnson

I believe I have solved the mystery. The car in question is a Success Auto Buggy. https://www.american-automobiles.com/Success.html Surviving examples - you'll also see how power is delivered to the left rear wheel (one wheel drive). https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1906-SUCCESS-...

Erik Johnson

The photo of Louis Armstrong in knickers was taken during his extended stay in Europe between July 1933 and January 1935.

Erik Johnson

That is literally a piano box horse buggy with a motor added after-the-fact.

Erik Johnson

From the factory, 1916 touring and roadster tops did not have the flap or windbreaker as some like to call it.

As was posted above, the flap came later - around 1920 according to Bruce McCalley.

In my opinion, a flap on a two-man top detracts from the looks of the car.

Erik Johnson

Prior thread regarding the same subject:

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/82 ... 1526784320

Erik Johnson

Relying on the brake lever to shift into high creates otherwise unnecessary physical motion by the driver: leaning forward, left hand on the lever instead of keeping it on the steering wheel, etc. It's an unnecessary complication.

Erik Johnson

The two most widely possessed yet never read books are the Holy Bible and automobile owners manuals. Read the Ford Manual. If you don't have one, you can read it online: https://www.mtfca.com/books/fordman/ As far as YouTube videos are concerned: the bad videos on how to operate a Model T and the mi...

Erik Johnson

The combination horn button/light switch was introduced early in the 1918 model year. I believe that John Regan has researched it and, if I recall correctly, his conclusion was the above occurred around October 1918. Also, my fathers July 1917 touring (last month of the 1917 model year) which he pur...

Erik Johnson

Owatonna, MInnesota - November 12, 2016:

Mark Cameron (L) and Ken Jones (R) discussing the finer points of early Model Ts.

We all certainly miss Ken......

Erik Johnson

The undated Wisconsin plates , aluminum numbers riveted on black enameled sheet metal and issued from 1905 and into 1911, typically go for good money. The undated plates can be broken down by year based on the number. For example, without considering condition, a number issued in 1905 is worth more ...

Erik Johnson

"Auto livery" meant that the dealer had vehicles for rent or for hire.

Erik Johnson

My dad owned an unrestored 1927 Hupmobile sedan for many years. This was a very pristine, low mileage original car. The original leatherette top covering of this car had no deterioration to speak of, i.e. no cracking of the finish of the leatherette material. For upkeep, he would clean the top with ...

Erik Johnson

Hasslers are incredibly ugly and detract from the looks of the car.

They are neither sleek nor sporty - they look cumbersome.

My unrestored 1917 roadster had a set of Hasslers that were installed by the original owner. I took them off after I acquired the car.

Erik Johnson

In addition to lubricating the bearings as others have mentioned, clean the commutator. I like to use a Q-tips sprayed with electrical contact cleaner to do this.

Erik Johnson

Just had a conversation with my dad. He said in winter months he used alcohol anti-freeze in his 1927 Fordor that he owned in 1948-49. Also worth mentioning: I did some casual Googling of photos of vintage methanol anti-freeze cans and it seems that some manufacturers included water pump lube (solub...

Erik Johnson

Unnecessary modification and uglification.

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/41 ... 1393734894

Erik Johnson

A late neighbor told me that he was still using methanol anti-freeze into the late 1950s because it was less expensive than ethylene glycol anti-freeze. However, while driving with his young daughters in the car, he experienced an engine fire which he attributed to a cooling system leak. After that ...

Erik Johnson

Did your grandparents live in Minnesota? That looks like a 1915-16-17 Minnesota license plate. They were aluminum with embossed numbers filled in with red/maroon paint. A high number like your grandfather's had "Minnesota" embossed on left and "1915 1916 1917" embossed on the right - no paint - so t...

Erik Johnson

Another unfortunate victim of poor storage.

The fact that it is currently sitting in a barn is neither here nor there.

Clean it up and get it running.

Don't worship dirt.

Erik Johnson

Instead of fabricating brackets/clamps, some folks use the clamps from running board pantograph luggage racks and bolt them to the bottom of the toolbox.

Erik Johnson

I might have a round bottom Yale lock available - I'll have to look.

I do have some Corbins available - not necessarily these as this a picture from last year but have some in my stash.

Erik Johnson

Any benefits of using motorcycle oil in a Model T are purely psychological.....

Erik Johnson

Your Yale lock is missing the spring-loaded hasp.

It allows you to latch the box shut without having to lock it. It allows serves as a handle for lifting the lid.

Erik Johnson

Picked up this wire wheel hubcap in south Minneapolis, not far from home.

National Wire Wheel Works also made accessory PASCO wire wheels for Chevy 490s and Model T Fords.

Erik Johnson

The other end of the Ford "Z" ratchet fits the pan oil drain plug and the differential plug.

Erik Johnson

It's a a T-1917 band/transmission wrench. It is the later style, approximately 1921-27.

Here is a group I recently sold. The three on right are an earlier style, approximately 1915 - 1920. They may also be correct for 1913, however, you'd have to ask the experts.

Erik Johnson

RE: running board cans The Evapo Rust label says it is safe on galvanizing, but that has not been my experience. My neighbor gave me some galvanized shelf brackets that had been sitting in his garage and they did have some areas of rust so I gave them a soak in Evapo-Rust. It removed 100% of the zin...

Erik Johnson

Here's a tip:

If you make your own top boot, use top material, not upholstery material.

Upholstery material stretches which doesn't make for a good boot.

Top material does not stretch. Factory boots were made from top material.

Erik Johnson

There was another one of those "Midgets" posted on the forum in the past but I have yet to be able to find the thread with the photos. It may have been posted in the classifieds under the pre-2019 format. If it was, then that post is gone. In any case, without being able to see better and more detai...

Erik Johnson

That car appeared in a 2014 thread -

Click on this link and scroll down once the page opens.

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/41 ... 1393968104

Erik Johnson

More photos:

Erik Johnson

I had a complete, NOS Sears Roebuck Governor (instructions posted above) that I sold via the classifieds in 2017.

See photos below.

Erik Johnson

Saw that car on Minneapolis Craigslist.

Unrestored and a great candidate for cleaning and detailing.

The price listed in the ad was very reasonable so you got a heck of a deal, especially if you paid less what he was originally asking.

Erik Johnson

This may sound counterintuitive, but if the transmission is worn-out it, can be difficult if not impossible to get a free neutral when the oil is not up to operating temperature, even when the clutch linkage and the cam bolt are set "correctly."

Erik Johnson

RE: molasses - see this old thread from the forum http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/179374/223017.html?1310536193 It is feed grade molasses which is not thick like what is used in cooking. https://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/evolved-habitats-stump-likker-1-gal-liquid-molasses-deer-attractant/0000000...

Erik Johnson

There is/was also a place here in the Twin Cities that did wholesale dipping of car bodies and frames, etc. but that was using a caustic chemical, not Evaporust, that removed paint and rust. The fellow that owned it was in the antique car hobby and retired and sold the business to someone else. Don'...

Erik Johnson

I saw a Rustbeeter demonstration at the HCCA swap meet in Forest City, IA about ten years ago. I also use feedgrade molasses from Fleet Farm (it's actually in the hunting section) and water for rust removal. A lot of folks say that it doesn't cause problems, but it will start cratering iron and shee...

Erik Johnson

Evaporust is great but, unfortunately, it has doubled in price in the last five years, at least where I live. About 12 years ago, there was a rust removal business here in MInneapolis that catered to auto restorers. They had large open tanks full of Evaporust in which they could soak car frames, fen...

Erik Johnson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYc4DT18EJg

Erik Johnson

In my opinion, it does not matter which hand you use to crank your antique car as long as you do not wrap your thumb around the handle and you pull up. In addition to the above, I do think stance and overall technique also does matter as far as safety is concerned. You may be holding the crank corre...

Erik Johnson

Although there are many clues and features that can be used to differentiate between a 1915, 1916 and 1917 roadster body,I would definitely locate the body serial number that includes the date (month and year). If it has a metal serial number plate nailed on the seat frame or floor riser, you should...

Erik Johnson

See read what I posted on this thread:

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/82 ... 1516214731

Erik Johnson

I have an unrestored 1917 roadster with a known history. They're basically the same. However, there are some differences and if you posted pictures, we could tell you what you have. For example, 1915 Fords have low armrests. Early in the 1917 model year, a notch was put in the cowl above the coil bo...

Erik Johnson

George:

Thank you for letting me know that you saw my post. I had sent you a private message.

I asked my dad if he knew Melvin Illa. My father said he remembered him but he didn't recall him ever being member of the Minnesota Region of the AACA.

Erik Johnson

Minnesota Pioneer license plate 1995 shown on the front of one of the cars was originally registered to Melvin F. Illa, 320 W. 7th, Hastings, Minnesota, 1916 Dodge touring. I don't have a breakdown of Minnesota Pioneers by year but the plates were probably issued around 1960 (they started with numbe...

Erik Johnson

Lots of variations in script on band wrenches.

Three to the far right are approx. 1915 to 1920.

Rest are approx. 1921 to the end of production - large and small script.

Erik Johnson

I'm familiar with hand crank post drill presses with the hand crank 90 degrees to the arbor. Those are a dime a dozen. The only way this would work as a drill press is if it were mounted on top of and parallel to the workbench surface so you would drill horizontally. However, there are no brackets o...

Erik Johnson

I should have put a disclaimer in my first post. I only have experience with two-man tops. I should have realized that the mechanism/bracket is in the way on one-man tops which makes it difficult to fold the top inwards at the left and right sides without having it rest against the fabric as you hav...

Erik Johnson

There is a square socket (see photo) but I think it may be missing a part or two.

Erik Johnson

Is anyone familiar with this particular type of bar clamp and if it has a special purpose? Is it missing anything? The large crank and hand wheel/lock wheel has me stumped. It doesn't look like any of the varieties I have seen before. I'm helping a fellow who is going through his father's collection...

Erik Johnson

When folding down the top, fold/push the material inward on all three sides.

Basically, the opposite of what you show in your photos (don't have the top material hanging out the back, past the bows - push it inward).

Erik Johnson

When my father first starting tinkering with Model T Fords as a teenager in 1948, he would put used oil from my grandparents' Cadillac in his Ts. A 94 year old acquaintance of mine in the antique car hobby told me that in the early 1940s he would obtain free used motor oil from the neighborhood gara...

Erik Johnson

No-Ko-Rode battery terminal protector.

Erik Johnson

To add what Phillip Lawrence posted, the magneto has an IHC logo (aka International Harvester Co.). It may be a type-E4A.

I don't believe the rest of what is shown is IHC as they used direct drive on their tractor magnetos, not chain drive.

Erik Johnson

From the factory, 1911 Fords never had a windbreaker or rain flap on the front bow.

Erik Johnson

Those are Coker Classic Bias Ply, Sawtooth tread.

I have a black set on my '17 roadster.

Erik Johnson

I would try NAPA, O'Reilly and Advance Auto Parts websites. You should be able to order it online and have it delivered free to your nearest store if they already don't have it in stock. According to O'Reilly's website, I can order a 1 lb. can tonight and pick it up after 3:00 pm tomorrow at the sto...

Erik Johnson

That's a Carter carburetor cabinet in case you are not aware. That's why carburetor is misspelled as "carbureter" and the "CAR" and "TER" are large prominent while "BURE" is smaller. I have seen a number of Carter carburetor cabinets over the years at estate sales. However, it has always been the ca...

Erik Johnson

Dave - the photo of my dad's touring that I posted shows what I call a "wind-breaker" on the first bow of the top. I don't know what Ford Motor Company called it if they called it anything at all. Click on the photo to enlarge. Tim Juhl's photo shows what looks like a loose, rectangular vertical fla...

Erik Johnson

In my opinion, you would be better off removing the rain-flap installing a "wind-breaker." 1917 Fords had neither but, later, two-man tops did eventually have a wind-breaker starting around 1920. Here is an example of a wind-breaker on my dad's 1917. He made and installed the top himself in 1951 usi...

Erik Johnson

In my opinion, putting a straight edge on the hub and measuring the distance from the rim to the straight edge is meaningless. To see if the wheel is true: - remove the tire - bolt the wheel onto the axle - put some sort of reference on the floor near the outboard side of the rim such as a block of ...

Erik Johnson

1917 roadsters and tourings have round top sockets. After the wood bow is inserted into the socket, there is a single nail that goes through the socket and into the wood bow. I have posted photos in this thread: https://www.mtfca.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=11380&p=85110&hilit=roadster+nail#p8511...

Erik Johnson

In my opinion the moniker "Rip Van Winkle" should be reserved solely for the 1917 Rip Van Winkle touring. That car was purchased new in 1917 by Oscar Peterson of Center City, Minnesota and driven 5.9 miles from the dealer to Mr. Peterson's homestead and parked in a garage where it sat unused, on jac...

Erik Johnson

Slight drift but still appropriate for the topic at hand, considering the discussion that has already transpired above. A while back, someone was selling a wicker Hawkeye Refrigerator Picnic Basket on Minneapolis Craigslist. In the listing, along with photos of the actual basket being sold, the sell...

Erik Johnson

Thank you for all of the replies. Here is a photo of the set screw that is available from Langs. I'll have to see if my dad has any NOS or used in his parts stash. PS: I also realize my mistake in measuring the diameters of the holes. Instead of using drill bits, I should have used my thread gauge a...

Erik Johnson

I recently acquired this 5Z314 clutch drum puller at an estate sale of an elderly Model T enthusiast. Can anyone tell me or post photos of the correct bolts for the puller? It came with two 3/8" bolts and corresponding castle nuts as shown in the photos. However, these bolts are too small for the th...

Erik Johnson

Let your motor idle down before turning off the ignition.

Erik Johnson

According to Motor World volume 31, page 31 (1912):

"The Smith Hardware Co., Pine City, Minn., has entered the automobile selling field; it has secured a Ford Agency."

Erik Johnson

That body style is called a cloverleaf or cloverleaf roadster.

The front passenger and driver seat are separate (space between) so you can access the back seat.

Erik Johnson

What you have pictured is a 1915 touring tail lamp bracket. It's missing the license plate holder/bracket. The license plate holder bolts onto it via a threaded prong that goes through the hole and it is held in place with a castle nut. The 1916 touring bracket is also a two-piece bracket except the...

Erik Johnson

Correct me if I'm wrong. A while back didn't the vendors also carry a Gates brand three piece radiator hose set in black?

I remember a friend of mine installing them on his 1912 touring (however, that was 25 years ago).

Erik Johnson

Dayton Rubber Mfg. Co. (embossed on the tool in the second photo) manufactured tires. I found some references to and ads for airless tires. I have found that searching period trade journals via Google Books is a good source. Sometimes I set date parameters - January 1, 1900 to December 31, 1930. I w...

Erik Johnson

My father's '17 touring and my '17 roadster both have their original front mats, which is the tapered mat that was introduced (I believe) in the 1915 model year. I picked up another original mat, same as above. My main reason for the original post is I am trying to determine if the above mats are co...

Erik Johnson

Any takers?

Erik Johnson

Does anybody know when the long "notch" on the front rubber floor mat first appeared? Did it coincide with the "pie plate" firewall shield that was introduced sometime in the 1919 Model year? Are the 1919-22 floor mats the same as the 1923-25? In other words, is the following correct? - 1915-1919 = ...

Erik Johnson

Your seat cushion and seat back upholstery are not factory original. For one thing, the configuration of the of the seat cushion upholstery is incorrect. The pleats never went down the front like that. The exposed stitching on the armrest is another clue. Also, the grain of the material is too prono...

Erik Johnson

I have higher resolution versions of the photos (I also cropped the second photo).

In my opinion, it's rust.

Erik Johnson

Here are the original hoses from the 1917 "Rip Van Winkle" Ford touring. This car has a June 1917 motor serial number and was most likely assembled at the Minneapolis plant. Click on the first photo to enlarge. Click on it a second time to make even larger. Note that the inner and outer layers of ru...

Erik Johnson

Asked my dad about the three red rubber hoses on his 1910 IHC roadster. (I should also ask him if any of the original was on the car when he bought it 70 years ago and if he kept any samples of it.) He said back in the 1950s and 1960s, antique auto restorers used red rubber beer line air hose and th...

Erik Johnson

The photo was discussed in the past on the forum: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/822076/895984.html?1536492537 Worth mentioning: just because a photo of what appears to be the same car and gentleman is in the possession of the Minnesota Historical Society does not necessarily mean that the MNH...

Erik Johnson

The original photo is in the collection of the Minnesota Historical Society and identified as, "Ed Killmer in Automobile. Osseo." Osseo is about ten miles northwest of Minneapolis. http://collections.mnhs.org/cms/display.php?irn=10789193&return=brand=cms Large view with zoom-in capabilities: http://...

Erik Johnson

1915 or 1916 Ford roadster tail lamp bracket. It's missing the license plate bracket.

Erik Johnson

Here is an original key strap. Ignore the arrows - I used this photo in a prior thread a few years ago. If I pushed the key all the way into the hole, the strap wouldn't sag as shown in the photo and it would lay flat against the socket. There isn't any slack to speak of, although the strap could ha...

Erik Johnson

Those leather straps are ridiculously and unnecessarily too long.

Cut them so they are just long enough with with little or no slack, keeping in mind the leather should project 1/4" past the screw hole as described by R.V. Anderson.

Erik Johnson

The notch for in cowl for the radiator rod first appeared in the 1917 model year. There were town cars produced in the 1917, 1918 and 1919 model years (only 17 for 1919). The radiator rod was higher up on the firewall in 1917 than it was during the brass radiator years due to the higher radiator. Th...

Erik Johnson

The late Louis Seekon of Minneapolis, MN had a 1924 touring that he dolled-up with a number of accessories including a radiator stone guard. He was a talented fellow. Instead of being a period accessory, he may have fabricated the stone guard himself in the 1950s using off the shelf materials. The m...

Erik Johnson

Reminds me of an old joke. Sven decided he wanted to get in the used car business. He parked two completely rusted-out 1985 Lincoln Town Cars on a vacant lot, painted "$50,000" on both windshields and then sat in a lawn chair next to the cars. A couple hours later, Ole walks by and says, "Sven, dere...

Erik Johnson

You can make your own shims from a tin can or piece of sheet metal, etc.

Do not use aluminum pop or beer cans or brass.

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