Terry Bond

Victoria, I hope I've answered your question - was still typing when your response popped up. Terry

These badges first appeared several years ago and commanded prices in the hundreds of dollars, until word began spreading that first off, Ford never used a round blue background for their emblem, it was always oval. There was also a problem when it was discovered that Ford never actually had a plant in some of the locations identified on the badges. As I recall, the worst offender was the "Ford Guard" badge for "Belview." It's a small Michigan community with no Ford facility ever located there. There were also some well-known experts on Ford plant badges, etc and articles were published in some of the major hobby publications. Despite the publicity, they continue to appear, and folks that are not aware are still buying them. The one that sold for $52 drew five bids and sold for fifty bucks more than it was worth. There is another one currently listed on ebay (I provided the item number above) and the seller wants to get $199 for it. He apparently is willing to consider a best offer, so we'll see how many offers he actually gets. I guess it's like those fake brass taxi horns that proliferate. A seller would only have to do a little research on the item before listing it to see how many of them exist. Some sellers are honest-one is currently listed as a fantasy item with a buy it now price of 14.99. A prospective buyer would only need to also do a little digging before spending the bucks. Unfortunately, there are some sellers and indeed some buyers out there who just get sucked in. Wish there was a way to warn them. Here is a picture-

There is a sucker born every minute. Another one of these phony Ford Guard badges sold on ebay recently for $52. I see there is another listed - check item number 142334163797 I wish there was a way to warn bidders. Learned long ago emailing sellers does no good, and obviously ebay does not police things like this.

What a great meet! Annie, sorry we didn't see you this time. Really big thanks for all of the Hornets Nest Region folks for hosting another great event. The swap meet continues to amaze - it's a real treasure hunt out there! This has got to be the friendliest meet in the country, and whoever brought on the warm sunny show-day needs a bonus this year for sure. Robert, it was great to have dinner with you at the Speedway Club Friday evening and I hope you'll join out traditional Tidewater Region get-together. There were some amazing cars on the show-field that were being shown for the first time. I met first time judges, new members and old friends and that's what makes an AACA event such a great time. When does registration open for next year? Terry

Just don't forget to tell us where your spots are located so we can drop in and say hi. And-of course don't forget the antique spark plugs!!! Terry

It's her car too Marty. She lets me polish it. We've done the box and ship thing before while antique hunting on tours. I remember the box we mailed from Texas once - cost more to ship it than the stuff in it was worth. Trry

Thanks for the reply Daniel, your hard work is appreciated. I've subscribed since you could fit HMN in your back pocket and it was 90% Model Ts and As. Although I lament the now insignificant brass car section, the blame is properly placed on those who are brass car folks but have gone another direction for whatever reason. My method of digesting HMN has never changed - a quick look (even quicker now) at brass stuff, Model Ts, Model As, parts for them, then on to MGs and GTOs, then about third read I'll begin to wander around into the other sections. I still eagerly await its delivery and have passed copies along to many other old car folks who surprisingly have never seen one before. I consider it much like the Idiot-box in the family room - if you don't like what's on, just change the channel. I pass the vast majority of those silly ads inserted by auction companies, or car collections/dealers where no price is disclosed, and I'll occasionally just glance at the auction reports. I do miss greatly what used to be a strong "automobilia" section. It's been moved to the tail end of the mag and the definition has changed over the years to "modern toy cars." Still, that's business and I understand. Keep up the good work and may you guys never run out gas! Terry

Hey Bob, can I ride shot-gun on your adventure? Susan and I have contemplated cross-country in one of our MGs for a few years now. It may be my "retirement celebration." Only problem would be even if we take the MGBGT there won't be enough room for all the "stuff" I'd want to bring back! Ya gotta get some souvenirs along the way! Terry

If the first preservation was awarded just after receiving it's Senior award, it was probably still a pretty nice car at that time. What year did it win a Senior? You are right tough, a lot can happen since. I'd say the fact it won a preservation award in 2009 and perhaps nothing since could mean only it probably wasn't shown in a National Meet. It could still be a high quality car, but knowing it's history since restoration would be very important. Having those awards may not add value depending on how it's been treated since. If there is still a First Junior badge on the car it will indicate the year it won that award. Terry

I've thought about a liquor decanter, but it's quite large and hard to get a grip on to pour something out of. Full of hooch it would be a pretty weighty piece. It was also suggested it might be a tobacco jar, but again, small opening makes it difficult to reach in and take a pinch. Tobacco jars would have as lid that would have space for a wet sponge to keep tobacco moist. I have a number of automotive related humidors/tobacco jars like that and this one doesn't really fit in that category. I've seen the green and blue bottles before, both as after-shave bottles and booze bottles. Their shape makes them much easier to grip to pour from. Terry

Not 100% certain but it has more of a 60s feel to it. I know there was a plastic panel that slipped in where the light is and that had the name of the garage or parts store on it, or any other messaged needed (shop hours, etc). They were often hung in store windows. Not sure what other info you are looking for. Hopefully it still works. With a little cleaning it could be a nice addition to your hobby room. Terry

Got to see some demonstrations on this at the AGN in Williamsport PA last year. Amazing stuff. There was also recently an article in the HCCA magazine about how a 3d printer was used to make a pattern for a rocker arm assembly that needed to be made for an early brass era car. The medical industry is using it extensively producing artificial limbs, etc. The future is now and this stuff is pretty exciting. I understand 4d is on the horizon. Terry

Not a really rare item. I think about $75-100 would be tops in this condition. If for use on a car it needs some work, and for a show-car, even more, like pitting filled and replating. Not a cheap undertaking. It's worth less for someone who needs to spend a lot for restoration. Terry

Congratulations Joe, I'm sure you'll have a load of fun with it. Terry

Not sure how common this is but we've seen it occurring more often recently - first was a guy who collected antique fire engines. Nice, popular and well received, except one neighbor complained they were not appropriate in a residential community parked along the street. So, the guy had to move them to a friends farm. Now, we have a story in the daily newspaper about a Veteran who decided to collect military vehicles - big ones. Although properly licensed as antiques, these vehicles were too big for the neighborhoods they were in. Apparently zoning laws take precedence, and it doesn't matter how patriotic, kid-friendly, or whether it's antique or not. Seems odd that we have two incidents so close together and am wondering if there is a trend elsewhere. It could bring unwanted scrutiny to our hobby. Terry

Here is a link to an article about the Jones Live Map, which appeared in the brass era. I believe this is what Steve is referring to. Interesting device, and they do occasionally show up for sale at Hershey. While not really "GPS" it was an early effort to help motorists find their way. http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2012/02/04/history/post-perspective/gps-1909.html Terry

Nice looking car but those "small dents" have the potential to hide some expensive damage. Terry

It's a nice looking car in the photos. Of course there are a few items that stand out to me as not authentic, and I note it has an aftermarket transmission fitted - can't tell if it's a Ruxtell or perhaps a Warford. That horn mounted on the driver side is not Model T, and someone has jazzed it up a bit with a natural wood finish steering wheel rather than the correct black painted one. Aftermarket water pump fitted and I'm curious about that fat red wire strung up on the firewall (which should be painted black). I'm sure some of the other T guys watching could find some other items of concern, but it does have the correct wheels and I like the aftermarket spare tires. May we ask how much money is involved? Of course if you've done some homework you'll be able to come up with a pretty good idea. OldFord is right-there are darned few of them that are 100%, and it all depends on what you intend to do with it. If you are going for awards there is one set of criteria you'll want to look at, but like has been said before, if it's what you've been looking for and it runs well, buy it and enjoy. This weekend has been pretty nice here and the local Model T club had a mini-tech session at a members home where we learned how to check clearances on bearings and how to deal with some common problems. There was a good turnout and among the group was a fairly new member who had recently acquired a 1915 T and had been anxious to talk with other T guys to diagnose some problems. He got a lot of good advice and now knows how to proceed to make the car run great so he can enjoy it. That's the beauty of having a T - there is a great support network. Terry

October 15 date code on the block represents the casting date, and that probably doesn't make it a 1915. If you provide the engine serial number we can more precisely date the car for you. An October 15 cast engine would probably have sat around for a couple of months before actually being numbered and put into a car. By the time the engine was used, the 1916 cars were out so most likely the car is a 1916 model. Still, the early ones were not much different than the 1915s. Most likely the car was titled as a 1915 because that's the date that was stamped on the engine. If the car was USA made, it was probably issued a Canadian title when it came into the country, and rather than go to the trouble of checking serial numbers, the date cast on the block was easiest to use. See if you can post some pictures and don't forget also to post something on the Model T Ford club discussion forums as well. Lots of help available. Terry

The signature could be Mallard - an interesting thing I've learned, and it was the late Bill Williams who first told me - even back when these things were new and readily available to early motorists, a neat mascot would be copied. I've seen "knock-offs" of some great mascots and they were produced in the teens and twenties. So, it's certainly possible to have a genuine old mascot that's a reproduction of an original (does that make sense?). The lack of detail in this one though causes me to lean towards reproduction. I can remember the London street markets being filled with reproductions of all kinds of thing. Markets that were popular tourist traps like Portabello Road were full of reproduction stuff, but off the main path markets that were not frequented by tourists were a real pickers paradise. Perhaps we should start a thread to talk about our adventures antique hunting. Maybe somebody should make a TV show out of it!!!!!

Us Dodge ram fans stick together!

It's actually a pretty well know accessoryi mascot, but may be a fairly recent reproduction. Originals are French by the sculptor C.H. Millard. It would be circa early 1920s and came in two versions, this one with the stylized "butterly" wings and one without wings. A lot of different mascots were available and you could put any of them on any car you wanted. It's not a mascot for a specific car. Too bad it's been filled with brass. Perhaps someone thought it would make a nice paperweight and the mounting stud wasn't necessary? There have been a lot of these early French mascots reproduced and sold on ebay in the past several years, carefully aged to look old, and this may one of them. It is a fairly crude casting and lacks the detail and definition of the originals. There is one pictured in the reference book "Accessory Mascots" by Dan Smith. Terry

My guess is its made to hold a mirror or maybe a spotlight. Many of them have a clamp that goes onto a windshield post for an open car as the example below is, and for a closed car, the bracket screws on over a stud, the large nut would be to lock it on to the stud so it didn't vibrate off. The rest of the mirror goes into the open end, and the thumbscrew tightens everything down. Here is an example in brass with the clamp mount. Cant seem to find an example that is mounted on a stud. Terry

This is what will hurt those who do abide by the law. Terry

Thought you might enjoy this pic that my wife Susan sent to me-supposed to be the first Dodge Ram.