MTFCA Forum

The photos here and in some recent posts illustrate what we owners of 1912's already know: things changed rapidly and dramatically across this production year. Somehow, Mr. Ford got a bee in his bonnet over "modernizing", making trying to be "correct" for this year agonisingly impossible. My 1912, e...

Here's a Model T song that I wrote many decades ago. It is sung to your favorite Beach Boys tune. Alas, never published or publicly performed, just for your amusement. Tom Loftfield Brevard, NC FOUR-BARREL ON THE OLD MODEL T Cruising down the highway doing ninety-an-hour Burning up the gasoline, oil...

Much depends on the vintage of the car. My two early (1909 and 1910) Buicks seep oil everywhere, they were designed that way. These cars have valve-in-head (overhead) valve trains, all external (makes a great show when running). Oil was intended to ooze up through the tappet holes, otherwise there w...

And then there are bonnets, boots, windscreens, carburettors, and calling down to the front desk in the hotel to be knocked up in the morning. As Winston Churchill noted, Britain and America are two countries separated by a common language.

Interesting to note that in English English, as used in Ireland, our carburetor is spelled carburettor. Because my email system was set up when living in Britain it now drives my spell-check crazy!

Mark Twain wrote words to the effect that when he was 17 he couldn't believe how ignorant his father was but that by time he was 22 it amazed him how much his old man had learned. In the late 50's/early 60's in my junior high school all the boys had to take a semester of home economics while all the...

Back when it was current, I wrote to ask what kemo sabe meant. The answer I got was that it meant absolutely nothing, It was only a word invented for Tonto to call the Lone Ranger. No "cultural" group need be offended.

Some of my T friends have all the "updates". Somehow, they also have all breakdowns. I think that many "updates" stress the original specs (plus added years and metal fatigue). The only modern update on my cars is safety glass in the windshields (no side windows in my open cars), and kevlar bands. I...

My grandfather was the head stableman on a great estate in England. One day Sr. Marconi told my grandfather that he seemed a capable young man, would he like to come work for him putting up some radio transmission towers. The reply, often repeated in the family lore was, "No sir, that radio thing is...

Those of us who are retired, or just tired, with time to burn can have fun, especially with the car warranty folks. If I am not busy, I often do click to talk to a human. I then ask them a set of questions: does your warranty cover engines, transmissions, etc, then does your warranty cover Fords, Ch...

Look. You live in Tennessee. I live in North Carolina. I know that you, like me, have access to seriously good moonshine at a good price. Forget the denatured alcohol that is poison. Get your moonshine, use that, and nobody gets sick. The only sadness is putting the moonshine into the Model T instea...

In earlier days of motoring when "roadside convenience" meant the nearest tree or shrub (for women), the oft used euphemism for making such a stop was "picking flowers". So delicate, so discreet, so innocent, so refreshing a term compared to the modern, liberated, vocabulary with which we are daily ...

I am not a complete anal-retentive purist, but I do like my cars to at least look original, and I avoid all the electronic gadgets that just couldn't have been there initially. It is just my attitude, but if you want a Model T to act like a modern car then just get a more modern "old" car. My brothe...

There have been Forum entries previously telling how to have fun with the expired warranty scammers. When I have time I string them along by ignoring their first question, which is always what make and year is my car. Instead, I ask them all sorts of related questions, such as "do you cover Ford?", ...

Solder is softer than brass, so judicious use of a buffing wheel with rubbing compound will slowly remove the solder. In any event, all that excess solder on the surface is doing nothing, what counts is the solder in the crack, itself, so you can polish away the external excess without damage to the...

PLEASE let me earn a speed photo ticket!!!!!!!!

On the Outer Banks of North Carolina, "I reckon" was always used instead of "yes". One day in court in Manteo, a lawyer asked a witness if he had seen the accused. The witness replied, "I reckon". The judge, from upstate and ignorant, then asked the witness if he meant "yes". Said witness replied to...

I grew up a Boy Scout in the home of an engineer, have carried a pocket knife my whole life (74 years). My preference is for the Buck knife sold at Lowes for $10.00, light weight, hardy, one blade, cheap enough to not cry if it gets lost, stolen, or broken, use it practically every day for a huge nu...

Of course brass will tarnish over time, and the more it tarnishes the more oxidised crud you have to remove when you do want a sparkle and shine. On the other hand, every time you polish you remove some brass, so at some point the metal can get thin, don't know how many lifetimes it takes to actuall...

Borax will do the job, but getting octaborate is much better (several online sources or your exterminator store). A very good anti-termite, anti-powder post beetle spray can be made with octaborate and polyethylene glycol (NOT ethylene glycol anti-freeze). The polyethylene glycol is used as an anti-...

The advantage of vinegar, beyond being cheap, is that acetic acid cleanses corrosion, but does not touch uncorroded metal. I use it for cleaning anything rusty, such as old tools, nuts, bolts, etc. I think that if you put it in the car and run the car, and you then get leaks at freeze plugs and othe...

Loose spokes create one of the most dangerous conditions, a wood spoked car driving down the road with loose spokes. Pictures of cars with collapsed wheels are never pretty, and the outcome for folks in those cars is rarely pretty, either. First, examine the wheels and wood rims (felloes) to see if ...

If your timer timing is "correct" try advancing the spark lever down five to six notches. I hand crank, have for the last forty years, and have never had a kick-back. The little bit of advance allows the engine to "catch"

Just installed a set of worthless Viet Nam tires out of desperation, the old ones were 1979, fused to the rims and dry rot well-advanced. 30x3 on the front (1912 ). I will let the Viet Nam trash wear out, but have already emailed Blockley asking when the 30x3's will be available.

Yup! First car I ever owned was a 1924 Model T Fordor. Came home on my 16th birthday (1962) in pieces on a trailer. Cost $100. After restoration (with a lot of help from my dad) It was my "ride" for a couple years, then I sold it to move up to a 1915, been a brass man ever since.

Did you store your T over the winter in a heated garage? You seem to be on the border of wet and dry Texas, has your weather been hot and dry? When my 1912 T first came to me it had sat over winter in Ohio in a heated garage. Heated air is dry air, wood shrinks. Loose spoke problem was solved by let...

Query: My brass T's do not have starter or generator (Armstrong starter only) but I keep a lead/acid battery for starting. Will these devices keep that battery charged? Will the battery be over-charged?

Tim,

I will take the goggles.

Tom Loftfield

Fantastic ode to love of Model T. So how many of us wimpy North Americans put up our cars for the winter?!?!?! In 1968 when I was yet young and immortal I drove my 1915 roadster from Northeast Ohio to Williamsburg, Virginia, in January, no modern car following. Once was enough.

Definitely keep it as is. Just how many museum-perfect cars do we need? How many barn-finds are left out there to be enjoyed as such? You can enter the car in AACA HPOF class to get your trophy. Historic Preservation of Original Features.

1912 engine seized, stopped, then could be turned a little later. Professional rebuild showed that the wrist pins on aluminium pistons had not been honed properly, causing the #2 pin to seize. Heat caused the aluminium pistons to begin to melt, pretty scary!

I also remember a post from a couple years ago that discussed dynamometer tests showing that the T lost 10% of its power when using a manifold heater. Because I am just wimpy I don't run my T's when it is THAT cold outside, also don't enjoy the hand crank with nearly solid oil in the transmission ho...

I understand. My Model T career started in 1962 with a 1924 Fordor in an unheated garage in northeast Ohio. There was a small electric heater that kept the tools warm enough to not freeze to my fingers. The best part of the video shown here is that car and garage LOOK right, no anachronisms, everyth...

I try to sequester the work area of my shop from the car storage area. Not only does this approach save $$$$ for heating, but I have found that heating the car storage area results in shrinkage of wooden parts, especially wheel spokes, as heated air is dry air. From the mountains of western North Ca...

We visited the Henry Ford this summer. It is worth driving far more than eight hours. Over many years the staff has managed to turn an eclectic assortment of things that amused Henry into an excellent display of American ingenuity, invention, and industry. Of especial interest to the Model T folks i...

My 1912 engine, restored before I got it, seized suddenly. Wrist pins had not been properly honed, melted piston aluminum from the heat.

In 1968 when I was 22 (and yet immortal) I drove a 1915 Roadster, no side curtains, from Cleveland, Ohio, to Williamsburg, Virginia, in early January. No idea how cold it was, but one overnight in Pennsylvania it was jack up the rear wheel to crank it in the snow the next morning. I can attest that ...

Thanks to Mr. Horlick for explaining the finer points of hand crank positioning. I now know why so many Model T's have that kinky leather jock strap, and the bells (balls?) suspended from the front axle on those cars that are more anatomically complete and correct.

Imagine, being blocked from passing by slow cars in the left lane while driving your Model T.....just dreaming.

The comments on this thread run the gamut from "if you even look at my car cross-eyed I will have to kill you" to "These cars got their first paint chip the day they drove off the lot, so just enjoy them". If your car is a museum piece, a 1910 whatever with original paint, upholstery and dry rotted ...

Your problem may be related to timing. Newly rebuilt (professionally) engine in our 1912 was hard to start, acted just as your does, had to jack up rear wheel in warm weather, until I advanced the spark lever a very few notches before cranking. Now starts each and every time with first pull, often e...

There are almost 125 different kinds of asbestos in the world, only three or four of them cause health problems. Asbestos in roofing and siding shingles is essentially innocuous, won't harm you at all unless it is shredded, like drilling or sanding, and even then it isn't all that bad. The asbestos ...

Here in the Southern Highlands of North Carolina we measure the gradient of roads in gallons. We yet do not have any definitive empirical data on just how steep a hill is required for any particular gallon designation, all more or less by guess and by golly. In my 1912 I have to have three gallons i...

First piece of advice: Move South! Second piece of advice: Leave a lot of green rodent poison pellets around, don't trust that you can seal your place against them...they always win. I don't know why green pellets work best but they do. There is nothing more disappointing than finding small rodent h...

You can buy repros, or you can go for originals. We have now bought four original linen dusters (two for us, two for passengers) at not much more than the repros cost (sometimes less). Try eBay and Etsy for originals, but you do have to look as prices vary widely. Since you have an "original" car, n...

In response to Jugster's comment about the T being easiest to drive. He is correct. I always tell folks that the Model T is easy to drive if you have five appendages, but that the 1910 Buick Model 10 that I drive requires six.

Not to worry. After many years working for and with numerous museums, national trusts, etc. its as always a commonality to bemoan the ageing of the membership, with concomitant worry over how to get the younger set involved. Here are the facts: young people are only interested in sex. That sex gives...

I go to shows, pay or not, if the show is in support of a group or idea that appeals to me. I always go to shows put on by the local club, again mostly to support the group. I drive either a 1912 Model T touring, or a 1910 Buick Model 10, depending on my whim. I have not, and never will, win any pri...

One other consideration. When pulling up the crank with the right hand the head faces away from the crank. When pulling up with the left hand the face looks at the crank. My grandfather lost his front teeth while hand-cranking a Dort. Admittedly he was a short fellow not long off the boat from Norwa...

It is said that Harry Sinclair required his stations to pre-fill the glass globe at the top of the pump so that the sunlight would heat the gasoline, expand it, thus giving the purchaser a little less gasoline than would be the case is the gas had come from the cooler tank. I don't know if this stor...

All of you idiots living in the ice and snow need to move South. North Carolina does not inspect any vehicle over 35 years old. No worries!

Tom Loftfield
Brevard, North Carolina

Just ate at Ford's Garage in Dearborn, Michigan. This one did have Model T on display. Napkins were Ford blue wipe towels in stainless hose clamps. Food excellent!

Thomas Loftfield
Brevard, NC

From a news clipping, Chardon, Ohio, 1970. Amish man in Middlefield, Ohio, went to town in the buggy. On the way home he died of a heat attack. The horse delivered the buggy (and the corpse) to the front door of the house." Poignant, but true. The REAL trouble with self drivers is that they must be ...

Oil is cheap! The standard Model T has no oil pump and no filter other than an aftermarket sieve under the transmission inspection plate. Change oil often. I wouldn't hesitate to change after 300 miles, and certainly wouldn't go more than 500. My theory is to get any metal filings and band threads o...

Thanks to you all for the concepts. I wasn't there when the pin was fitted, but the guy was a helicopter repairman, and as he phrases it, you can't fix it on a cloud. My experience with him has been that he is an ace mechanic. However, I take the points raised and will share them with him for this f...

Two days ago a friend who parlayed his Vietnam crew chief experience into a lifelong job repairing helicopters found that he no longer had any slow speed. Removing the floorboards revealed that the slow speed pedal turned on the shaft a bit, but then caught and would engage the band when fully depre...

But Ford did make the trimotor. The vehicle pictured above looks strangely like a Ford trimotor without wings and two engines.

Top up whenever possible. Avoid shrinkage, folds setting, and rubbing. Too, for winter I put a lot of rat/mouse bait around, in, and under the car. Not only tops, but seats full of horsehair make wonder nesting places. I never heat my car area. Heated air is dry, dry air shrinks wood, body wood, and...

A little logic here! If the thrust washers are gone then you won't have low speed, reverse, OR high speed engagement. Very easy to tell if the problem is in the differential or the transmission.Very good advice above, don't tear things apart until all avenues of non-invasive investigation have been ...

The biggest problem with car shows is that they remind us of our own mortality. I do brass cars so I always stand out, have lots of lookers, and I always let the youngsters squeeze the rubber horn bulb, gets them interested. However, across time the hobby has changed. "Antique" cars are now the cars...

To all those who are excited about driverless cars: just remember that the Titanic couldn't sink and the Hindenburg couldn't burn! When you get into a driverless car you let somebody else, who knows where, take responsibility for your traveling down the road at a high rate of speed. It will take onl...

How many times have you been approached by John Law who only wanted a better look at your Model T? The 1899 policeman followed the electric vehicle on his bicycle, which had a speedometer, noted the speeds involved, and then pulled over the electric simply so he could get a first-hand look at an ama...

It is pretty much essential to close the throttle when letting out the clutch pedal. At low rpm with low torque from the engine the high speed clutch discs will engage. Once high "gear" is engaged, then open the throttle for desired speed. As a small note, it is also very helpful to retard the spark...

At a recent tour I saw a man with a tee shirt that said "6 Volt Guy Living in a 12 Volt World".. Says it all.

One reason nobody smiles in old photos is that many older films were slow, exposure times were lengthy, and it is easier to hold a frown than a smile for the time needed to get the picture. Subjects in photos were told to frown so that moving facial expression didn't blur the picture. Of course the ...

I will take the 1912 steering column. LOFTFJELD@GMAIL.COM

OK, now for a dose of reality. I own two 1912 Model T's, have been a Model T man from my 16th birthday, (now 73). I also own a 1909 and a 1910 Buick Model 10, Buick's offering to compete with Model T. Buick outsold Ford in all the years referenced above. The Buick Model 10 cost 10% more than a Model...

Except in Britain where carburetor is spelled carburettor

Part of the appeal of the "steam" era is that it was La Belle Epoch, the beautiful time period, when Western culture reached the top of its influence, power, prestige, and inventiveness. Things, items, from that period are beautiful to behold, i.e. not only were items useful, rational, and well-made...

Be sure to use YELLOW teflon tape. It is sold for use on natural and lp gas lines. It is thicker than the white plumbing tape and doesn't degrade in petroleum products.

Tom Loftfield
Brevard, N.C.

My winch (not wench, alas) is mounted on the side of the vee-nose, always out of the way. There is a D-ring installed in the center of the floor, to which I attach a snatch block as fairlead for the winch cable. Rather than having to move the winch, I simply remove the snatch block which then lives ...

I just had to have the flange of the cast aluminium intake manifold on my 1910 Buick welded. The item is exactly what you have. Before you drill a hole to ruin a scarce piece of history, please contact me and we can exchange intake manifolds. Since mine is already "ruined" by the welding, drilling a...

For the New Purist: words said many times before: If it doesn't leak something it is NOT a Model T!
For everybody when the fight between purists and non-purists gets hot and heavy, the phoney Latin: Non Carborundum Illegitimi!

People did not smile in old photographs because the slow film required long exposure times. It is easier to maintain a still image for the camera with a straight face. Smiling tires the face muscles. Just a little historical postscript.

Move to North Carolina. Vehicles over 35 years of age require NO annual inspection! Well, if you moved to North Carolina your vehicle(s) would require one initial inspection to ensure that the VIN matches the title, to ensure the car is what it claims to be, done by an inspector who comes to your do...

If you walk into a house and there is a light flashing on the front of the media centre it means a teenager does NOT live there! I know how to use about 5% of what my cell phone can do, because I don't need the rest. On the other hand, we older folks have available a secret code that the younger set...

There are many misconceptions in this thread. Whether the nuts are castellated or not has very little to do with reproduction of Model T's. Instead, it is necessary to review earlier posts dealing with the placement of bells on the front axle, something that some owners of Model T's do based on old ...

I just had a cracked cast aluminum intake manifold from a 1910 Buick welded, tedious job finding a person who was willing to do it but it was done and done well. My 1909 Buick also has a cast aluminum intake manifold, as do both my 1912 Model T's. Anybody know why cast aluminum intakes were used on ...

On Labor Day the engine in my 1912 Model T touring froze up. I took the engine to Jack Putnam in Bluffton, Ohio. The engine was back in six weeks. A previous rebuilder had failed to hone the wrist pins in the aluminium pistons (covered in earlier fora). The rebuild was extensive as the engine had be...

WTB: One Prestolite tank strap. OK, I'l take two if necessary.

My log-in problem is fixed. Many thanks, Jeff!

The hat is available from Historical Emporium, a tall derby. Admittedly the H-E hat isn't quite as tall as the one in the photo, but pretty close. Being properly attired is half the fun of driving a T.

Search found 82 matches