MTFCA Forum

Rich Bingham

Nope. You're not alone, Burger. I think about it a lot, mostly from the point of view of a horse-powered world about to change, and a world without pavement about to change even more, since I've lived my life in what were those fly-blown mountain towns. What fascinates me is the extent those earlies...

Rich Bingham

:lol: I'm enjoying this thread for the opportunity to take all this "philosophically" :lol: As a self-accused "purist / brass snob" I'm amused by the fact that I'm currently restoring a restoration :shock: Explanation- a few years back, I bought a reportedly "prize winning" restoration that had seen...

Rich Bingham

Somewhere in my 60 years' gatherings I have a couple of editions of Floyd Clymer's Auto Scrapbooks. They are filled with ads for cars we've never even heard of, and from the earliest years, many that don't even have a surviving example in the present day. Perhaps this is one of them ? The Mitchell w...

Rich Bingham

Eastern Idaho State Fair, Blackfoot, Idaho 1921
Model T front and center !

Rich Bingham

Spot on with the location and the date Rich. This photo is a veritable treasure trove for the excellent view of the Bartholomew Street billboard display. One can see the beautiful illustrations and lettering created by Aldo VanPinksberg for a number of the tri-burg's popular products and establishme...

Rich Bingham

I guess you'll find out when you tear it down ? Please keep us posted. I'm mighty curious now !!

Rich Bingham

Steve, please add my vote of confidence as appreciation for your many contributions to the hobby and to this forum. I have never seen any of your posts as dogmatic, much less, confrontational. You are perennially enthusiastic and helpful. Pray continue !

Rich Bingham

Wendell "Fingers" Padislav, interim president of the Chugwater Pythagorean Society (February 16-29th, 1912) vigorously opposed dots, insisting that equilateral triangles be used instead. Successful in convincing the county commissioners to pass an exclusive "triangles only" resolution, the ordinance...

Rich Bingham

Photograph notes the location is Rexburg, Idaho, no date, but indicates the car may have been part of a tour or "auto parade".

Rich Bingham

"Dot's right !" -Heinrich

Rich Bingham

. . . I . . . don't care whether it's 100% authentic or not. Steve, there's your answer. I believe this is the "philosophy" most owners abide by. Personal gratification, followed by convenience / utility, followed by the difficulty of adhering to contradictory and elusive details will inevitably tr...

Rich Bingham

Interestingly, Steve's Spa evolved from his father's enterprise in the same location. Unable to settle on a particular line of goods and services, his emporium became known for the availability of practically anything a person could want. Around the tri-burgs, the word was, "you can get it from Stev...

Rich Bingham

Here's one from Australia. The poor quality of the photo just raises more questions. I love that "C cab" !

Rich Bingham

Rich, yup. Idaho ! I should have said so.

Rich Bingham

A bare bones TT.

Rich Bingham

Cuthbert's Model T Garage
Service & Repairs

Motto: "We may not do the best work in town, but we're slow !"

Rich Bingham

Dirt ingested via the carburetor will shorten the life of any engine. Very true. Not being a precision masterpiece of close-tolerances, nor an example of high performance engineering, the Model T gets along fine in adverse conditions, and lopes along like a trouper even when worn to the point of "p...

Rich Bingham

I could be dead wrong, but I think the photo Rich posted, middle in the bottom row is the same photo Herb posted. My dim remembries of derelict International trucks seems to agree.

Rich Bingham

My primary concern would be dust getting into the engine. I would not care to take a vehicle over long stretches of very rough road. We should enact legislation to outlaw washboards by 2024. Pat, I see you don't as yet own a Model T. With your concerns, perhaps it's as well. The T was conceived ess...

Rich Bingham

Thanks fellows !

Rich Bingham

So much of the car is covered up by the curious bystanders who are looking at their very first auty-mobile. Any thoughts as to make and year ?

Rich Bingham

Just slightly changing the subject, this photo sifted to the top layer of the trunk of values during last week's windstorm. Bartholomew is certain it's KD in the first version of his famous raceabout. Without his signature top hat we can't be certain, but it's been well documented on these boards th...

Rich Bingham

Mine found me on this forum !

Rich Bingham

Any idea what it's been exposed to ? Looks nasty as if some chemical fallout gas eroded the zinc from the brass alloy leaving copper. Antifreeze will do that. Usually the brass items will respond to a good brass polish. You could start there and see how it goes.

Rich Bingham

Interesting that both photos show the trailer loaded with what appears to be bundles of shingles.

Rich Bingham

I noticed that too, Rich. Looks like an acetylene head lamp . . . As Steve J. would say, "parts salad" back in the day

I wonder who was driving the car ? The plowman very likely found his driver much less responsive than the horse he was used to !

Rich Bingham

A brass Ford at that !

Rich Bingham

An excellent observation, Leo. In a similar vein, Cuthbert had a Jersey milk cow who could count to 100 and solve simple mathematics problems. When dealing with calculations on the ranch, such as how much barbed wire would be needed to cross-fence a section, or the amount of seed required to plant a...

Rich Bingham

Talc (aka soapstone) is a mineral. Its lubricating quality owes to the plate-like structure of particles when pulverized. It used to be a common ingredient in bath powders and baby powder until inhalation was linked to cancer. (Isn't everything ?). Any road, "baby powder" if available at all is curr...

Rich Bingham

Um, Jack, if the slots are cut "wrong", Holley sure messed up a bunch of them from inception in 1914 through the last cast-iron bodied Gs. Every one I've ever seen is like this. The best advice is to make an adequate tool for the purpose. It's really not that difficult.

Rich Bingham

Guess I'm lost in the dust. I really fail to see any correlation at all between a Model T Ford and an advanced liquid-cooled aero engine such as the "Rolls Royce" Marlin (btw. Packard built most of them). About the same as arguing that a tabby-cat and a Bengal tiger are both "felines".

Rich Bingham

I believe that's the custom cabriolet, experimental in-line twelve cylinder Packard after its collision with the Bugatti Royale. The elephant eloped with the flying lady. See prior posts in this thread on circus personalities for more information. Annie Xochimilco was General Wormser's personal driv...

Rich Bingham

Barn find '13 ! I went out to the barn and found Lizzie right where I left her late last fall. I'm not planning a complete restoration, just clean up last summer's mud, and polish the brass to get ready for this season's mud. She needs a new top, that's on order. New brush in the TW timer, she fired...

Rich Bingham

I believe you're right Larry. In the main, oil based stains depend on suspended pigment for their color. More efficient, powerful stains are water or alcohol soluble colorants. Personally I have never seen raw cherry wood with a remarkable color. In the day, the '13 and '14 cars were often referred ...

Rich Bingham

Steve, I'm pretty sure that Ford logo is painted on the glass. Personally, I think that "winged pyramid" was the most elegant !

Rich Bingham

A big ol' sturgeon caught in the Snake River in the Burley area, no date given. Too bad we can't see all of this 1914 touring. The hood louvres indicate an accessory front end. Photo taken in front of a Ford dealership.

Rich Bingham

Thanks for that, Burger. An excellent example that illustrates the elegant simplicity of practically all of KD's mechanical designs. Note that the clock appears to be the same unit employed in the kaphistulator timing cycle.

Rich Bingham

Rosemary was a long time barnacle scraper from way back. Her youth was spent in the barnacle beds above Puckersville. Excellent amplification of this interesting thread. Wayback was a short-lived mining boomtown that was flooded when the Schist Creek Dam was built, forming Schist Lake where barnacl...

Rich Bingham

TXGOAT2 wrote: ↑
Wed Mar 24, 2021 9:40 am
Continual, 24/7/365 CO2 and methane emissions, no "off" switch... plus periodic emissions of toxic substances...

Just like us humans . . . (Toxic substances ?!?

)

Rich Bingham

Bartholomew found the Institute's copy of the photo of S. S. Klohooteny moored next to the Crosley. The Crosley is obscured by the pier, which is unfortunate, as accompanying notes indicate Rosemary was in a dinghy scraping barnacles off both vessels when the photo was taken. Heinrich added that per...

Rich Bingham

All of the 1912 cars have their "fore doors" in place.

What a great thread !! Thanks for the wonderful photos!

Rich Bingham

For one thing, it's not a '23.

Rich Bingham

The Crosley proved to be a reliable, tireless performer. When Bing teamed up with Ben Happless' younger brother Bub, their travels took them on the road to Singapore, Zanzibar, Morocco, Utopia, Rio, Bali and even Hong Kong, always in company with some stunningly beautiful women. Early on, the Crosle...

Rich Bingham

Sure is fun to speculate on these old photos ! Good points, Terry ! I wonder about that drag mark in the middle of the road. A Model T crank doesn't hang below the front axle; about the point of having to plow mud with the front axle, the T would definitely be "hung up". I don't believe this driver ...

Rich Bingham

Chewing gum and friction tape ! Wait ! They don't make friction tape anymore, do they ? :o Seriously, whatever glue one prefers, make sure it's "fresh". Better to buy small quantities than use something that's been around for any length of time. Aliphatic resin glues tend to degrade in the container...

Rich Bingham

Sharp eyes, Rich ! It's definitely a "hack" body, in rural Iowa on a bad road, most likely a school bus. I wonder if Iowa kids got "mud days" out of school ?

Rich Bingham

11+ inches of road clearance and he's at the limit ! If he runs into a low spot, he'll need the horses. Right now he's churning along OK. For all you T drivers who have never driven through deep mud, sand or snow, I recommend it !! No better satisfaction than conquering harsh conditions, and builds ...

Rich Bingham

Thanks, Norm and Scott! Yup. My "motor" seems strong and happy indeed. A 1913, she has a low head. I see now my misconception of "air", the difference pressures at altitude make.

Rich Bingham

Just wondering if it's really possible to reach those numbers cranking over by hand. I have several non starter T's that run and start well but I have never been able to get readings over 35-40 and that was with considerable effort. I have hand-cranked compression read-outs at 50-55#. Altitude here...

Rich Bingham

Rich Eagle wrote: ↑
Sun Mar 21, 2021 6:05 pm
Zipping is an important activity for commandos to remember.
Rich

Very true Rich. However, I tend to abide by these words from my grand-dad:
"I don't trust zippers. I saw a man get his necktie caught in one once, and they had to cut it off to get it out."

Rich Bingham

Herb, I believe that's definitely an insinuendo !!

Rich Bingham

Yup ! Hudson's Shoes had a store in Pocatello too, also a corner location. It would be interesting to know if they succeeded a Douglas's Shoe Store. Yup again, they sold Buster Brown shoes. Apparently you can still buy Buster Brown shoes, product of Brown Shoe Co.

Rich Bingham

I like it !! That ol' Ford is just winking at the snowfall on the "first day of spring" according to the calendar. Here in Idaho, we had our "fool's spring" last week.

This week is "second winter" followed by "mud".

Rich Bingham

Thanks Rich, a trick of lighting, the radiator didn't look like a White to me. You sure nailed it ! This may not qualify as a truck, and I'm sorry the quality is so bad, but it's pretty unique. I've never seen a Model T sheep camp before ! The source claimed the boss didn't like it - it made it too ...

Rich Bingham

W. L. Douglas Shoe Co. of Brockton, Massachusetts was one of the largest shoe manufacturers in the world from the 1890s well into the 20th century. W. L. Douglas passed away in 1924 at the age of 79, having established a nationwide chain of shoe stores. Doubtless there was a store in Idaho Falls as ...

Rich Bingham

NHUSA wrote: ↑
Sat Mar 20, 2021 6:54 pm
If I hit a telephone pole . . .

Telephone pole ?!? What's that ?!?

Rich Bingham

Running the tabulation as an inverse of the hypotenuse we can readily see the average was superlative. Thanks for that, Rich.

Rich Bingham

Yup. Tucked away inside a tire, they seem to survive. Here's one I had the pleasure of discovering a while back.

Rich Bingham

Yessir. They are definitely a different material, being made of real gum rubber, the kind Henry was hoping to harvest from the "Fordlandia" plantation in Brazil. I believe red rubber tubes began to disappear before WW II, but real rubber (as opposed to butyl rubber and other synthetic "rubbers") was...

Rich Bingham

My by-line sez it all . . .

Rich Bingham

Most folks don't fully realize how tough things were at the Institute in those early pioneer days. This photo shows the Institute's main hall rebuilt as a log structure after Wendell burnt down the original wattle and daub building. The marauders found the paper napkins made excellent kindling when ...

Rich Bingham

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Cuthbert's nephew Troutmont Maddox adopted an orphaned burro foal he named Rutherford. Cuthbert generally eschewed any interest in politics, but was more of a Tilden man, who often berated what he referred to as Troutmont's "wild ass ideas". More will be revealed on thi...

Rich Bingham

Licensing was pretty loose in those days, and the European market posed enough supply differences that the Duck Squeeze recipe varied widely from region to region. Missy turned a blind eye to the lack of standards, being only too glad to receive any royalties at all. In this case, substituting Carpa...

Rich Bingham

Trucks and bridges make for interesting pictures. Can anyone identify the make ? How about this one ? A big load of lumber !

Rich Bingham

Looks like a lot of fun !

Rich Bingham

Neat picture Herb, thanks ! I wonder what's going on there ?!?

Rich Bingham

More wool-gathering- Top on my 13 runabout is now about 20 years old. Needing some work done on it, I find many tacks rusty and loose, and fabrics not exactly rotten, but fragile and compromised. I find myself wondering how long the original tops lasted in service ? Many period photos of "old" Fords...

Rich Bingham

Ridiculous.

Rich Bingham

I'm not at all "up" on the TT. I did think the cab on that one was especially elegant ! I love the compound curves we see on so many of those old commercial bodies. Wonderful craftsmanship. Thanks for looking, Rich.

Rich Bingham

Dick, thanks for the response. Unfortunately, the photo was un-dated, but I could hazard a guess that owing to the rather run-down condition of the TT, the dress of the sheepmen in the photo, and the overall look, it's probably from the mid-to late 1930's. Rich, thanks for your post, I shouldn't fee...

Rich Bingham

No comment ?

Rich Bingham

No date, half of the year's wool clip from Ames Sheep aboard the truck, just out of Dillon, Mt.

Rich Bingham

What with difficulties with Ernie, backsliding workers and a mercurochrome shortage, Cuthbert sensed the Duck Squeeze venture was headed downhill. He sold his interest in the works to Skippy Spaydaford for a used Menea saddle and two Smithfield hams, then set out for the Veedawoo with Kalamity Dick....

Rich Bingham

The Duck Squeeze venture was another unfortunate incident that had Cuthbert at odds with Ernie. As the new tipple became more popular, more customers would approach the bar and demand, "Duck !" This usually sent the barkeep and several patrons diving for the floor, causing a general uproar and distu...

Rich Bingham

Wayne S. Yup that's the one !! Thanks much for posting.
And thanks to everyone ! Dang ! Now they're ALL my favorites!

Rich Bingham

All pix of Model Ts are worth the look !
I don't have the one I really like (best ? Maybe?)

It's a period photo of a collie wearing goggles behind the wheel of a 1914 touring. Maybe someone could post it here ?

Rich Bingham

Not everyone appreciates yodeling.

Rich Bingham

Herb, KD most certainly knew Howard Huge, shown here in his salad days before he gained a lot of weight. Actually, that's rather a mis-nomer; Howard never ate salads. However, once he was reduced by severe hunger pangs to consume an entire bale of grass hay at a single sitting. Howard was single-han...

Rich Bingham

A descendant

Rich Bingham

Good on you for noticing that, Perry. Wiggins' dog Methuselah was the first pure-bred elkhound imported into the states. By the time breeding pairs began to enter the country years later, the Norwegians were raising polled elkhounds exclusively. The reason was lack of demand for the antlered variety...

Rich Bingham

He does, doesn't he ? My kind of pup.

Rich Bingham

Aunt Samantha Higgins claims "Crazy Ollie" was Cuthbert's third cousin twice removed, although he persisted in returning. However, it was no use asking anything of him; he only talked to the coyotes. Speaking of which, "Coyote Soup" was something of a joke played on tenderfoot tourists, like "Rockym...

Rich Bingham

Not the best angle, but this 1913 photo kinda shows the fun and excitement over a brand-new Excelsior !

Rich Bingham

Thanks for great posts fellows !

Rich Bingham

No comments ?

Rich Bingham

Very true Rich. In spite of Dick F.'s unassailable mathematics, there's much difficulty connecting the Canarys to the Klamitboffer family. KD himself was violently allergic to feathers, for one thing. Another hurdle is reconciling the various shades of meaning between calamities and catsasstrophes. ...

Rich Bingham

Dick, your logic in this instance is air-tight. Thank you for this valuable contribution to the history.

Rich Bingham

Probably dust-bowl era, or perhaps last year ?
Seems everyone's coming here lately.

Rich Bingham

Burger, your dedication to pure research into the topics relevant to the life and times of Kalamity Dick has made your contributions invaluable. Heinrich and the entire Institute staff wish to extend their grateful appreciation, and as well to all who read these annals and have generously contribute...

Rich Bingham

Perhaps it was a subconscious choice Horner Klamitboffer made based on his given name, or perhaps the night wrangler pulled a prank on him by giving him a bum steer ? In any case, Perry, it was NOT a lot of bull. Two left stirrups made it possible for Horner to mount from either side. Only problem w...

Rich Bingham

Kalamity Dick's extended family was pretty much scattered around the country from Mexicali to Nome, and Skagway to Smathers Beach; Bathurst to Lompoc. This accounted for their not exactly being a close-knit tribe. KD was elated to receive a telegram from Horner Klamitboffer, nephew of his third cous...

Rich Bingham

Identify ? Photo notes say the building houses The Wood River Times newspaper.

Rich Bingham

Here's a TT from 1927 (photo date). Eames Trucking

Rich Bingham

Hooey was one of the first to adapt a carbide lamp to his miner's helmet, but the method (shown in the above photo) did not shed a lot of light, and had the unfortunate side effect of scorching his ears. A benefit, however, was that he never had to pay for a haircut. Errata: Bartholomew just placed ...

Rich Bingham

The pickled ferret craze actually started with the barrel of ferrets KD and Cuthbert brought back from Washington, D. C. When baggage and freight was unloaded at the Medicine Bow depot, the barrel of ferrets was mistakenly delivered to Ernie's Saloon. The ferrets got loose in the cellar, and thirsty...

Rich Bingham

That explains the two friends' absence during that period in '03. Thanks, Rich. It also explains Cuthbert's subsequent penchant for saying, "Bully ! Bully for you !" in situations where previously he would have most likely said, "Aw, horseshit." Apparently the delicate diplomacy required to defuse t...

Rich Bingham

Great news ! Thanks for posting that, Steve. I'm sure more information will follow as to how we colonials can order them, expected delivery times, and the actual cost, delivered.

Rich Bingham

Does anyone know the story of how Kalamity Dick came to impersonate Teddy Roosevelt ? Bartholomew excised this from the Trunk of Values on Ash Wednesday. That's Cuthbert Maddox driving the team, or I'll eat your hat.

Rich Bingham

Great pix Herb ! Thank you. Looks like seven brand new 9-N Ford tractors !
"Cook by wire" seems an odd slogan now but maybe made sense when electrification was a novelty ? Is that a Packard ?

Rich Bingham

Herb, others may know for sure, but I'd be willing to bet the Pope Toledo coach work was wood. I recall reading that Pierce Arrow was remarkable for having cast aluminum body work, and I believe that was a bit later than '05.

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