oldford

Steve, I don't mean to be difficult, but read the large sheet that was sent with the windshield stickers. This is the one with the map on the back and is headed with "HERSHEY '05" Under "Traffic" "Vendors are permitted to leave field after 3:00 PM to return at a later time. (Dinner - Visit - Etc.) A filed pass MUST be secured to regain entrance after Flea Market is closed by security. Passes will be assigned to vendors by security police stationed at exit gates and surrendered to gain admittance at the field gate. This note has been on every set of instruction that I have ever received since I started as a vendor in the original blue field... Frank

Temporary Permit??? This sounds like the field pass that one is supposed to receive when exiting the swap meet in the evening to go to dinner. Every year for the last 25 years, I have tested the rent-a-cops at the gates by asking for a field pass to return to the swap meet and every year I get the same response, "What field pass???" They tell me every year that they never heard of a return pass. Every year they let me leave and return without the pass (if, and only if, I am driving an antique car to dinner.) If I'm in a modern car, it MUST have a flea market sticker or I'm not allowed back in. In light of my experience, my guess is that the gate keepers will not have a clue as to what a temporary permit is and will deny entrance to the swap meet. Give yourself plenty of time to get to the meeting on time.... Frank

I'll have many parts that fit the Bix Six President (1927) at my booth in Hershey. CM18-21. email me for a list.... Frank

I sent you an email. I have several engines and you won't have to go all the way to Hershey to get them.....

This IS a good thread.... I think the Ford is a 13, not a 14. The 14 had a front fender with a bill on the front. The 13 was plain. Also, I think if you look closely at the center piece of the windshield, you'll see that the top half of the windshield will not fold forward. This was unique to the 13 windshield and was changed in 14 to allow the windshield to fold all the way forward. Frank

If Steve and you can't get together, you can drop it off at my booth CM18-21. No need to set it up ahead of time, just stop by if you decide to use my booth as the meeting place. If you need to call ahead of time, my cell is 845-988-6076. We arrive Tuesday and leave Sunday. Frank

Thomas, The lubrication is a splash system. The oil rests in the deepest part of the sump at rest. The flywheel has 16 horse shoe shaped magnets that are set around the perimeter and act as a paddlewheel to pick up the oil and throw it in all directions. As the engine gets hotter, the oil turns to a mist or fine droplets to fall on all moving parts. The oil falls against the cylinder walls and all internal parts and then falls back to the sump to be recycled. If you had your engine rebuilt recently, it may be that the rings and bearings have not fully seated. Try running at low speed for a while to see if it runs in a little. Another thing you might try is to run it a idle with the oil fill cap removed. As it is running, slowly pour some oil into the oil fill hole to see if the squeak goes away. If it does, then you know it is most likely in the front of the engine. It might be that the timing gear it not meshing properly with the crank gear. The oil hole is directly above the timing gear. You don't have to worry about over filling a Model T engine until you have more than a quart too much oil. It takes 4 quarts normally. You can even drain some out the sump and start again. As far as the outside oiler is concerned, the easiest way to tell if you have one is to look at the magneto plug on the top of the bell housing. If there is a fitting with a copper or steel tubing coming from it, then you have one. If not, then you only have the internal one. I'll try to take a photo of mine and post it. Frank

If you have a definite 'scratch' sound you should drop the pan and have someone turn the crank while you inspect the moving parts. There should be interference some place to make the sound. If the oil added to number one eases the interference, then I would look for a broken ring or something similar. Before you go and start tearing things down, though, carefully inspect for signs of wear. If it is a broken ring, you should see a wear line on the cylinder wall. The added oil may just be masking the problem, not fixing it. It's hard to diagnose a problem from a computer screen, good luck.

Thomas, I probably will start an argument here, if anyone is reading this, but I don't believe in rod dippers on Model T's. There should be enough of a space between the front surface of the bearing and the crank shaft throw to let enough oil feed the bearing. Most Model T connecting rod caps are not drilled to match the dippers anyway. How do you know that number 1 is not getting enough oil?? Either way, I would install an external oil line from one of the after market suppliers. The magneto plug is replaced with one that has a flare fitting. It is connected to the front main via a length of copper line to let the extra oil feed the front main bearing. I would not run a Model T without one... Frank

I'm not sure if the chrysler cars in the 80's were the same as the 60's, but they were notorious for failures of the ballast resistor in the distributor circuit. It should be on the firewall someplace and is a block of ceramic material with 2 or 3 terminals. To test, short out the two that are farthest apart and see if it starts. We ALWAYS carried a spare in the clove box when we drove those beasts....

You have lamps on the living room end tables that look like this:

A little help might be in order here.... What is the wheelbase length (center of front axle to center of rear axle)? What is the tire size? It has mechanical brakes and that tell-tale six lug wheel. I can't be sure, but it looks like it might be similar to my Studebaker Big Six. Mine was a 1927, but anything from about 1924 through 1927 would be just about the same. If it is, it would have either a 120" wheelbase or 127" wheelbase.

According to the Guinness Records: The largest-ever car was the Bugatti Royale Type 41, also known as the Golden Bugatti, which was first assembled at Molsheim, France, by the Italian designer, Ettore Bugatti (1882-1947), in 1927. It is over 6.7 m (22 ft) in length. For the highest production numbers of a single model: By December 2000, more than 24,986,607 Toyota Corollas had been produced worldwide. The Corolla was first produced in 1966 and was introduced to the US in 1968 as a two-door subcompact car. By 1970 the Corolla was the second best selling import in the US and by 1988, 10 million had been sold in that country alone. By 1997 the 20 millionth Corolla rolled off the production lines. In the decades since its introduction the Corolla has built up an enviable reputation for reliability. Of course, us Model T guys like to think old Henry had them all beat with over 15 Million cars, but that was almost 80 years ago.... Then there is the Volks Beetle...

By the way, the reason you don't get a jolt from the spark at the points is because the points are in the primary circuit, not the secondary.....

Tom, The condenser on that distrubutor was a large disc type that was about 2" across and located on the outside of the unit about 3" down from the distributor head. These are not available, so simply mount a modern one in the same place and fish the wire up to the points from there. There should be a small tapped hole in the side of the housing shaft that will allow you to mount the condenser. Frank

When you come to Rhinebeck next month, take a look at the steering box that I'll have there. It's a typical hot rod steering box with the frame bracket, so I'm told. I was going to use it on the fronty speedster, but went with the chevy box instead. We'll be behind the grandstand again.

Tom, glad to hear that Carl treated you right. I timed my big six statically. There should be marks on the flywheel that correspond to 'intake valve opens' and 'TDC'. I think I did it by setting the flywheel at top dead center. The distributor should have a manual advance tang that I set fully advanced. Next, with a small test light, I set the points to where they were just opening. With it set like this, it would not start, since it was too far advanced. I then moved the advance lever ever so slightly retarded in several steps to try to find the spot that would allow the engine to start. Then it was a matter of driving the car and getting it to run well without overheating. It took me several hours. When I simply set the flywheel at TDC without advancing the distributor, the car would overheat terribly. This may have been because the timing was retarded. Good luck. Frank

If it still has the factory top, it would be 1923 or later, due to the one-man top. Most likely 23-25. Certainly a Ford T.

Typically, the timing gear and the crank gear will have alignment marks stamped in them. One wil have a single punch mark on the tooth and the other will have a single punch mark on the valley. Since both gears are keyed to the shaft, the rest is easy. You will have to mark the old gear with a mark that aligms with the key and then, if the cam alignment mark is on the missing part, make your own marks. If you have all of the pieces of the broken gear, keep them until you have the new one installed. Frank

From the "Histomobile : The complete online car specifications database." I found this gem: 1929: Chrysler adapts the more efficient downdraft carburetor. Now I don't know if this was the first use of a downdraft carburetor, but this indicates that this was the first year tha Chrysler used the downdraft. Frank

Let's see.... looking at this page, go to the upper left, just below 'Participating Clubs' and click on Antique Automobile Club of America and you're there. Te age of Electronics....

Send me an email....I have a few oldford@frontiernet.net

I forgot to mention::: mark the cam gear and a corresponding spot on either the crank or on a bulkhead somewhere. Just in case the camshaft spins, you'll be able to relocate it in relationship to the crank. Frank

First, remove the crank handle nut. THis is the large nut that engages the crank on the front of the starter pulley. It is standard right hand thread. You may have to put the transmission in low or reverse to keep the crank from spinning. Next, remove the starter pulley, this is obvious once the crank nut is off. I think there are four standard bolts that hold it on. Then, remove the front cover and expose the cam gear. the small cap scres that goes through the distributor ger is all that holds it on. then a puller and you're set. Good luck...... Frank

Tom, I checked my National Service Data and your 1917 Stude is indeed positive ground. I had a '27 Big Six President and at one time had the front of the engine apart because of a stripped pot metal distributor gear. I used a 45 degree bevel gear from Boston gear and it worked fine. I had to mill the hub off the gear on te cam shaft, but all was well after that. If your four is like my big six, the cam gear runs off the crank gear and the generator is run off the cam also, but is a helical gear. I also beleive the water pump gear runs off the other side of the crank. It sounds like the crank gear is not spinning with the crank, since it would be unlikely that both the cam and the water pump gear would break at the same time. The gear is held on with a large key and two things come to mind. Either the crank gear is stripped (unlikely, since it is iron) or the key has broken and damaged the key way. either has the potential to be a big fix. Keep us posted. Frank