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1929 Franklin 137 Sedan


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I am going to begin working on the restoration of my '29 Franklin 137 Sedan. The short story is this car is a twin to the car my dad had in high school. I bought the car about 6 years ago but only now have the finances to really go through the car properly. My goals, in order, are to 1. Make the car run, 2. Make the car stop, 3. Make the car drive and 4. Make the car pretty. Here is what I am starting with.

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May the force be with me on this one. So far I have obtained a new set of wheels (wire), new tires (black wall of course) and new brake shoes. I have rebuilt the generator, fuel pump and carburetor. So now I am on to the next step, getting her started.

Eric

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Here are a few more photos of the car. As you can see it has had a horrendous and oddly cool re-upholstery job that was done in the 1950's. I may enjoy it as-is for a little while.

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Another significant challenge is a rod went all the way though the crankcase some time ago. Fortunately I have another crankcase so I plan to change that...which likely will lead to a complete engine rebuild in my future.

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The last big issue is the condition of the body around the rear fenders.

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Here is the car overall as it looks today.

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I appreciate the views so far.

Eric

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Wow, Eric great looking car. A friend of mine has 1930 Franklin that is an older restoration. I understand they have a great car club that supports it's members with lots of good stuff. Keep us posted with pictures as you progress, we all like to see what everyone is doing. I'm in the process of doing a complete frame off on my 1928 Durant four door sedan and understand the long long process and complexity. All I can say is take plenty of before pictures at every angle, bag and tag all the parts and try to work on it as often as you can but at least weekly. If no you loose interest and life takes you elsewhere and before you know it it's one of those projects that just sit uncomplete forever. Good Luck!

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Hi Eric,

Join the Franklin Club and come to the Trek next month. It will be worth the trip, I promise! Please feel free to post any questions on the Franklin Forum. Good luck on your project, it will be a great car when you are done.

BTW, I love the upholstery.

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Thanks for the support guys. When I did my last restoration I followed a rule which I intend to implement with this car. In short the rule is "turn one bold every day." Now, we all know that nobody turns just one bolt (although I spent one full afternoon getting one bolt back in a hole, but who has never been there?), so with such a rule I usually allow momentum to take me through the process. I actually am already member of the H.H.Franklin Club, but I really appreciate the suggestion. I am actually the co-director of the Air Cooled Gathering at the Gilmore Car Museum that is hosted by the H.H. Franklin Club and have been for four years...but I have never been able to bring my own car. I am hoping to address that problem! Tonight the goal is to get the engine pan off and see what we have up in there.

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Guest 246gts
Thanks for the support guys. When I did my last restoration I followed a rule which I intend to implement with this car. In short the rule is "turn one bold every day." Now, we all know that nobody turns just one bolt (although I spent one full afternoon getting one bolt back in a hole, but who has never been there?), so with such a rule I usually allow momentum to take me through the process. I actually am already member of the H.H.Franklin Club, but I really appreciate the suggestion. I am actually the co-director of the Air Cooled Gathering at the Gilmore Car Museum that is hosted by the H.H. Franklin Club and have been for four years...but I have never been able to bring my own car. I am hoping to address that problem! Tonight the goal is to get the engine pan off and see what we have up in there.

Interestingly enough over here in UK I was not familiar with the Franklin make until last week when I saw an auction catalogue with a very nice model for sale. The auction is scheduled for next Wednesday.

http://www.classic-auctions.com/Auctions/23-07-2014-ThePavilionGardens-1368/1928FranklinAirmanSeries12ASeven-PassengerSedan-38293.aspx

Regards and good luck with the resto

Dave

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I have not done a lot this week. So far I have been tossing around do I get the engine running as is or go ahead and replace the crankcase as I will be part of the way there anyway. I recognize the second choice will likely take me down the rabbit hole like Barry Wolk did with the Ruxton in another posting. I do have the wire wheels ready to go to the sandblaster soon. Here is a photo of the car with them loosely attached to the car.

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  • 2 months later...

I thought I would give an update so I don't let this thread die an untimely death. Since the last posting I have been busy...spending money! I sent out all the wheel cylinders and master cylinder for re-sleeving and rebuilding. They came back and look very good. I also ordered the brake hardware and brake lines and received them. Then I got derailed. I received and offer to buy my 1926 Model T Touring on the condition that I repaired a few things (like an oil leak) before delivery. It got pretty involved, eventually leading to me taking the transmission apart for a proper repair and adjustment. That work is complete and the car has been sent off to its new owner so I can again get busy with the Franklin work. There are a lot of little things to do right now but I am planning to do a frame-on restoration but will be trying to make the entire car very high quality. I will post some photos in a day or two and you can see what I am doing.

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It was restored a while back by a 90 year old gentleman from West Virginia who had a car collection. He would just stare at the cars before he finally succumbed from their beauty. My buddy & I plan to pick her up in a couple of weeks, store her during iceboating season & then get her running next spring for Cazenovia. I suspect that she will smell OK...

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