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Sloth

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Everything posted by Sloth

  1. Hello Jeff, Your upholstery looks marvelous. First class job. I must say, as I did the upholstery for our 1932 Auburn Cabriolet my self (30 years ago 😊), that was not very difficult to do (just straight pipes). But tufting and buttoning is much a more challenging job. So thank you very much for your 'dissertation', its really helpful (and right on time 😀). Regards, Harm
  2. Hello Al, The problem is that the rear door pillars are mounted at the seat bucket. Readjusting the seat bucket by one or two inches will also shorten the door opening. Regards, Harm
  3. Today, I finished the passenger seat spring. It is 1" higher than the drivers seat spring, a bit more comfortable seating for Ann 😉. Left: drivers seat spring. Right: passenger front seat spring. This afternoon I washed the first batch of smelly horsehair. Last night, I watched an YouTube video from an English lady who recycled horsehair. She disassembled therefore old furniture, a bit of a messy affair. She used the laundry washing machine and a tumble drier. So I put the horsehair into a pillow cover, stitched it and threw it into the laundry washing machine with some 'fine laundry' washing powder. Water temperature 104F (40C), program "fine laundry". After one hour the laundry was ready for drying. I used the tumble dryer, program "Locker dry". The result exceeded my expectations. Nice and fluffy (with some small lumps), not smelly anymore, it looks like new. Really happy with it. This means that I can reuse the 'new' old horsehair. Bag of stinking horsehair. The result: nice and fluffy horsehair, ready to be used again for another 100years. Dear readers of this forum, Ann and I wish you all "A prosperous, happy and healthy 2022". Regards, Harm and Ann
  4. Hello Tom, I did look and tried to find some literature for the Clockwork Spring starter. But as the Oakland engine is a big 320 CI engine and also has a healthy compression, I soon gave up on that idea. It really needs an starter with a lot of torque. In my opinion the only solution, is a ring gear and electric starter motor. Using an serpentine belt and starter/generator for the Oakland is not possible, because there is just no room to mount it. Furthermore the flywheel must be oil free (to prevent the belt from slipping), but as this engine uses a total loss oil system, the flywheel and surroundings are not exactly oil free 😊. Regards, Harm
  5. Hello Terry, Thank you for your answer. That wheel is it, the perfect solution 😊. Never thought of using a "fat man steering wheel", the sliding model would be perfect. I looked at the Ford model T fat man steering wheel, but that one will add 2" and will interfere with the timing and gas handles. But the sliding model slides out of the way without interference. Regards, Harm
  6. Hello Joe, Thanks for your answer. As for modifying the seat, this it nearly impossible as the fuel tank is just 1" below the seat frame. Lowering the tank is not possible, because it will hit the body frame beams. Changing the thickness of the back cushion is a very good possibility, with some luck the back cushion springs can be shortened by about 2". Ann and I tried it this afternoon, and the seating is much more comfortable. But getting behind the steering wheel is still a problem. Regards, Harm
  7. Hello, Last week, Ann and I started with the upholstery job. Ann removed the upholstery off the front passengers side. Removed a ton of small tacks... I removed what was left of the leather from the seat cushions. Drivers side cushion appeared to be real leather and the seat spring was OK. The passengers cushion not so. Heavy artificial leather was used, the seat spring frame itself was welded and repaired with 1/4" round spring steel. So the whole cushion was a bit 'stiff' 😄. So I decided to make a new one, re-using the old springs, and for the borders, using 9/64" round spring steel (piano wire). I needed just one new spring, the old one was broken. The old horsehair is of a remarkable quality, still usable. I found on a website (forgot which one), an article to re use old horsehair (where I live, horsehair is very expensive, about $35 a pound). First thing to do, untangle the lumps and wash it thoroughly, just add a few drops of detergent to the lukewarm water. Rinse it a few times and then dry it slowly, but never use a dryer. So, I will do this as soon as possible and let you know the outcome. The upholstery techniques and methods I use, are described in two books: 1 - Essentials of Upholstery and Trim for Vintage & Classic 2 - Antique Auto Body Leather Work for the Restorer After cleaning the driver and passenger seat springs, I coupled all the springs with cord as was advised in both of the books. Then covered the spring in heavy Burlap. All the knotting and stitching is done by hand, using an assortment of different needles. Its a very time consuming activity, but not hard to do. Today, I finished the drivers seat spring, hope tomorrow to finish the passenger seat spring. Also made a template for cutting the leather. Most of the old upholstery removed from the passengers front seat . Restored passenger front seat spring. Finished drivers seat spring. Inside the driver seat spring. The old leather cover (driver seat) Template for the cutting and buttoning the leather seat cover. To uplift my sombre mood a bit (its grey and rainy outside), I took the driver spring seat and put a very thin cushion (1") on it and tried to sit behind the steering wheel. As I am rather a thin person and medium tall (6' 2") it took me a lot of effort to get seated. "Dismounting" took even more effort, my legs got in the way.... The distance between the steering wheel and the seat is a bit small, not at all comfortable. What to do? Gentleman do any of you experienced the same problem, and what was you solution? Mood did not improve 😒. Regards, Harm
  8. Hello, Got a message from the Ford Museum that my car could not be traced. The only 1910 Oakland Lauren could find, was a Roadster. But as there is a lot of documentation left to be researched, I just have to wait. After a lot of deep thinking 😉, and making a lot of drawings, I came to the conclusion that an belt and dynastart would not work, no room and need to much power to crank the engine. So the only way to add an electric starter, would be adding a ring gear at the flywheel, and adding a starter motor (thanks Andy). After reading all the answers I got at my question about lightening the flywheel, I was not so sure anymore that it would be a good idea (gentlemen thank very much you for your input) Furthermore, as most of the metal is on the circumference of the flywheel, that heavy mass is connected to center of the flywheel by just 3 spokes (see drawing below). I don't want to affect the structural integrity of the flywheel. So putting all pros en cons together, no lightening of the flywheel. The ring gear I used (20", 169 teeth) is used on DAF trucks and Mercedes MX trucks, and is readily available. The starter is used by International tractor (type 1566). Its a 3KW geared starter, strong enough for cranking the Oakland engine. Removing mass from the flywheel would in my opinion, weaken the flywheel. So I just made a small recess in the flywheel for the ring gear (3/4 of the height of the ring gear), 1/64" larger in diameter than the ring gear. Heated the ring gear and put it on the flywheel without any problem. After that, I milled a recess to have the bolt heads flush with the ring gear. (Just to prevent the ring gear will come loose) The screws are just temporarily put in, I have ordered 10.9 bolts. Put the flywheel back on the crankshaft for a trial fit. For the starter motor bracket I welded two heavy 1/4" steel plates. The bracket is bolted on the chassis with the same bolts as a part of the body is fixed to the chassis. As the engine is mounted at the chassis under a slight slope, it took some trial and error to get the bracket for the starter motor correctly welded at the steel plate. The distance between the teeth of the ring gear and the starter motor, should be 1/64 to 1/32. Milling the recess for the bolts into the ring gear (my lathe is to small for such a large flywheel). Flywheel on the crankshaft again. The whole starter contraption assembled and ready for firing. Yesterday (Sunday) I could not resist the temptation trying to start the engine. Last week I made and assembled a makeshift muffler. So after checking the oil level, and double checking the ignition timing (unknown car to me, retard up or down?), I gave it a try. Filled the priming cups, gave it a bit of choke and to the amazement of Ann and me, it ran at the the first try (totally unexpected by me 😲) . But, as it was very cold outside, I kept the doors of the garage closed, not a good decision. Within half a minute Ann and I could not see each other anymore , a smoky and stinky affair 😄. But starting the engine made my day. Things left to do, remove the flywheel and have it dynamically balanced, embellish the starter motor bracket and add some stiffening steel here and there, and paint the finished bracket. Furthermore I have to chamfer all the 169 teeth of the ring gear, I don't look forward to this.... Today (Monday) I cleaned the garage and machine shop. Made preparations to start with upholstery work. Repaired the leather sewing machine, and try to find all the stuff needed for the upholstery. Have to order some, but as we are in a partial lock-down, visiting shops is out of the question (again). So I have to order it by mail, and that can take some time as the parcel deliverers are overloaded. First problem, when I made the upholstery of our Auburn (30 years ago), horsehair was readily available, but nowadays not.... On the other hand, 30 years ago I could not find split pin buttons, nowadays they are readily available. Regards, Harm
  9. Hello Gary, Thank you for the links, I will order the 3 disk insert set soon. I also think a little back pressure will do the engine some good. Today I removed a very rusty remaining exhaust tube end (took me the whole afternoon, I thought it was brazed on, but on the end it appeared it was just rusted heavily inside the exhaust main tube). Also removed the cut-out. When I looked inside the cut-out, two rusty plate screws could be seen, preventing the cut-out to be closed fully shut. The cut-out could be closed about 60%, I removed the screws and the cut-out closed 100%. Don't really understand what the function of those screws have been, just screwing maybe an ornamental chrome tube? It baffles me 😄. Regards, Harm
  10. Hello, I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving . Today, I spend figuring out what kind of exhaust muffler should be used. A previous owner removed the muffler (and threw it away), and so the car came with an open exhaust pipe (2 1/2"), much to noisy for me. I have no solution found for the muffler proper. Although its a big car, there is not much room left between the bottom shield and the gearbox / drive line. The best muffler I found is a muffler of an International Tractor. We have a dealer for antique/old tractor parts, just some 50 miles up North. Maybe Ann and I go visit him and see what he has in stock. Regards, Harm
  11. Hello Jeff, Thank you for your reaction, very interesting I must say. Till now I have not decided what to do, but adding some starter gear and mounting hardware for it, makes the already heavy fly wheel heavy ++. So a bit lighter could the improve changing gears. As I live in the Netherlands, our country is extremely flat, no mountains and here and there some slight wrinkles into the landscape, we call them hills (but really, our hills are not much to shout about 😄). Our roads are well maintained, even the smallest country roads. Where I live, we have some nice mud roads through the woods, but I must admit Ann and I used them only for walking. I don't fancy cleaning the under side of my cars, after having used the mud roads 😊. Lightening the flywheel by 20 Lbs, will in reality be 10 Lbs or so. The other 10 Lbs is added by the ring gear etc, I think that would be acceptable. And after lightening have it dynamically balanced (even with no lightening, this would be a good idea). Regards, Harm
  12. Hello Joe, Thanks for your opinion. You mentioned dynamic balancing, that is a very good advice. As I add the ring gear and some iron work to make it fit on the fly wheel, dynamic balancing after lightening and mounting the ring gear seems necessary, lightening or not.. At my former job, we used a company specialized in dynamic balancing heavy industrial equipment, tomorrow I give them a call, see what they can do. To be continued... Regards, Harm
  13. Hello, Shopping day, we got the paint, the steel bar and ordered the Linoleum (Terracotta color) for the floor boards and running boards. When we came home, the package with the corks arrived also. Not a bad day. Gentlemen, what is your opinion about lightening the fly wheel. The fly wheel of the Oakland weighs 100 pound + 6 pound for the ring gear, makes about 106 pound. I read in the book (page 41) written by Harold Sharon that lightening the fly wheel will do a lot of good for shifting gears. Removing 1/2" from the circumference will lighten the flywheel approximately 22 pounds, which is about 20%. Would this be worthwhile? Regards, Harm
  14. Hello Joe, Yes, first a punch mark, then a center drill, and then a small hole. Then I knock them of with a small cold chisel. That is the only way, there is no room for using an angle grinder. After the bracket ends came off, I cleaned the flanges a bit (removed chisel marks). Regards, Harm
  15. Hello, Today I ordered 8 saw blades to replace the worn clutch disks (thanks Joe 👍). Called the Water Cutting Shop, and asked if they cold cut them, no problem as long as they are not 3" thick 😄. Furthermore I TIG welded one of the cut off running board brackets. First I removed the remaining bracket ends from the chassis. Drilling out the rivets, took more effort than I thought, very good steel they used in those days. Welding was not much of a problem, low to medium current and slow feed, that keeps the heat down. I hope to weld the second bracket on Friday. Welded running board bracket. To be welded on Friday. Tomorrow Shopping day! As the running boards are covered with Linoleum and are beyond repair, new Linoleum of the right color is needed. I found an interior flooring shop who sells it, the right color is named Terracotta. Tomorrow Ann and I plan to visit the shop and have a look. As we are on the road, we also plan to visit the steel yard, they left a message that the 42CrMo4 I ordered has arrived. Further more we need some green paint, to touch-up the scratches and small chips on the body. I hope the paint shop can scan an mix the right color. Will be a busy day tomorrow. (We are in a bit of a hurry now, Friday evening our PM will announce more and strict COVID measures. Maybe a lock down again?) Regards, Harm PS Applied for membership of the Oakland Owners Club International
  16. Hello, Today I cleaned the bronze clutch plates, they came out very nicely. Inspected the steel disks, some of them are blue and a bit warped. That means they became very hot, asked the seller if he used the clutch dry? Yes he did, so I guess I must replace the steel disks. Not too difficult, just make a drawing and have them water cut. But I am curious what quality of steel plate should be used. Anyone have a suggestion? We also went to a leather wholesale. We choose 3 full hides of a very nice quality black buffalo hide. I really like upholstery work, I foresee a pleasant job. Disassembled one front seat (got rid of nearly 1.5 pounds of duck tape layers 😄, a dusty and messy affair. The springs came out like new, we even found a small label stating a job number (998) and a date March 1910. We also found the same number on the body. Matching numbers....😆. Left original undisturbed clutch, right cleaned clutch plate. Regards, Harm
  17. Hello Terry, Thank you for your kind words. I guess disassembling and finding some bodged parts, is the most depressing phase. So from now on it only can go better -did nor start the engine yet, so I am not so sure ....- 😀. No, I did not join the Oakland club, but one of these days I will. Regards, Harm
  18. Hello Joe, Thank you very much, this really helps me. I read it very careful, it reads that the buttons should protrude 1/16". So I measure the 'left out and unharmed' plates, and indeed the buttons on these plate protrude 1/16". One plate showed some wear, those buttons are slightly less than 1/16". So I ordered a bag of new wine bottle corks. Will be a fun project to turn them from 21 to 14.5 mm. Regards, Harm
  19. Hello Mike, I have to make the gears. They are DP6 18 teeth 2 pieces and one 14 teeth, for which I have the gear cutters already ordered. Also ordered the 42CrMo4 steel. When I make them I will publish pictures. Regards, Harm
  20. Hello, Today I disassembled the gearbox and clutch. What I found did not help to improve my mood 🤬. The seller told me that the clutch was repaired and the clutch plates covered with a modern material. But he had problems with it as the clutch was very 'grabby' . And right he was! After disassembly it was clear that the clutch plates were covered with Kevlar friction material. As the Kevlar is thicker than the round cork pieces which are inserted in the bronze clutch plates, they let two of the five plates out to compensate for the grater thickness. The results of this 'improvement' are a broken main gear (missing one tooth), a fractured main spindle and a damaged second gear (took care of the missing tooth), and some bearings are shot. First thing I did was the removal of the Kevlar. As the Kevlar was glued on the plate, removing was easy. Just heat the plate on a small electric stove (outside the shop, with the wind in the right direction! Oh boy does that stink and smokes! ) And with some scraping the Kevlar came right off. The bronze plates are undamaged and ready to receive new cork inserts. Clutch plate covered with modern Kevlar friction material. The clutch as it came out of the housing. Fractured main shaft and bearing with some dents, did not rotate anymore without a lot of grinding noise.... Main gear with missing tooth. Gentlemen, I have a question, can you tell me how much the cork inserts should protrude through the bronze clutch plates? Regards, Harm (who goes pouring himself a very stiff Gin-tonic 😒)
  21. Hello Walt, Yesterday I contacted the Henry Ford Museum. This evening I got a nice email from Lauren of the Benson Ford Research Center. Yes, they have 2 folders of Oakland one 1910 and one 1911. Lauren will let me know what she find in the folders. But due to Covid restrictions it will take some time before she has access to these files. So i am very excited, and have to wait. Regards, Harm
  22. Hello Terry, Thank you very much, that's really fast! After reading your explanation, it seems to me a to be kind of 'snake oil device' 😉, but it is a very attractive design. I wonder what kind of 'magic' fluids they used. Anyhow I will leave it on the dashboard, it will be a nice conversation piece. I am pretty sure not one of my old car friend have ever seen it, let alone what is it used for. Regards, Harm
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