Chris Bamford

Sorting out steering, shifting and seating for this 1916 American LaFrance speedster.

Saved, printed and already in the workshop. Great post! Thank you Jon, a good education for me and will be useful ongoing.

Really? I'm 400 miles north of Montana and it's 4°C / 37°F this morning and warmer yet near the border. I've been driving my '26 T all week. I had a heart attack 22 months ago... into Emergency at 8 pm, had my bed at 5 the next morning with any angiogram scheduled for 11 am. Back in the ward by 2 after that test and inserting a stent. Home the next morning. Six weekly rehab classes and some testing. What were my out of pocket expenses, deductible, co-pay, etc. and how many times did I pull out my wallet? $0. Never. At that time I was covered by my bride's work benefits (she has since retired) but here's the thing... even without her benefits, my cash outlay would still be $0. On the other hand, the kids maybe spent $20 on hospital parking when they came by to visit, so there's that. I dunno what bad health care experiences you've had or what you like for weather, but a blanket statement like yours does Canada a disservice.

As of 16:45 Mountain time, there are 21 threads on the General Discussion 1st page on my iMac, not including this poll and the three permanent items. By my reckoning, all are but three threads deal primarily or totally with 25+ year old autos and related topics (rust removal, club dues, old photos etc.). That's about 85% On-Topic of which I follow less than half plus two of the "modern" threads. I say we have it pretty darn good now and let's not mess with success without very good reason. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Also want to put in my thanks for the Speedster sub-forum and their peaceful coexistence with the more original crowd. Yes, not factory original but as 12Staver and Wayne Sheldon often point out, speedsters — factory and otherwise — have been a part of automotive history since the early 1900s. For me, they are about the most fun "vintage motoring experience" I can imagine. My well-travelled '24 T Speedster has shown a lot of the general public that really old cars can be practical, reliable and a whole ton of fun.

I didn't check Box #2, although I essentially agree with JV's comments. Confusing matters further, this forum is somewhat akin to a buncha buddies hanging around in the garage — most of the discussions are around our old, mostly original, cars but invariably the conversation includes some interesting new car technology or whatever, and that's fine too. This can't be policed with hard and fast rules, we just need to have faith that the moderator(s) will make required content/attitude decisions using their best judgement and that's that. I have that faith.

Here is the 1912 KisselKar tractor conversion I purchased in 1993. Note the tractor wheels rear, Buick rims front (all KisselKar hubs etc, fortunately) and second transmission. The rear springs and brake hardware had been discarded and the rear end moved up to mate with the second transmission output shaft then bolted hard to the frame. The brothers I bought it from had purchased this relic at a farm auction around WW2 for the princely sum of $35. 50-HP four, 373in3, four speed factory overdrive.

Grandma just reminded me that Mateo also had this go at steering the '12 KisselKar a few years ago...

Mateo's first drive was today in the '26 T Touring.

That’s a 1912 KisselKar 4-50 (4-cyl 50-HP). 124” wheelbase, 37”x5” tires, 373 in3, 4-speed transmission. 4th gear is 25% overdrive.

Thanks guys.

Photo from a local friend...

I own one car with heavy "patina", every flake, scrape, tear and hole of it earned honestly over the years, and another that went thru that sort of a phase and has since been tarted up. My cars the way I like them (or are moving towards that state) and the reactions of others are fun to observe but not my motivation. 1924 Model T Speedster: assembled from a big pile of somebody's left-overs in the early '90s and modified/improved from time to time since. There was a phase from 2003 to 2010 when it was a stripped-down "barnyard cruiser", single seat, bare bones, and looking at first glance like it had been that way for decades. I drove it regularly over that period and got lots of thumbs up and positive comments, and, remarkably, not a single pull-over-please from our local constabulary. It's my avatar car and a favourite for long-distance touring. Here's an example how the general public felt about it vs the T street rod on the right (the pallet to the side held all the supplies one needed for a day at the track — lift it off for racing, put it back on for the drive home): 1947 Dodge sedan: Owned since 1992, repainted 1975, mechanicals stock but maintained, original engine rebuilt 2011/12, regular driver, outdoors year 'round and the closest thing I own to a truck. This too has been a good long distance car. We've driven this car through three provinces, two territories and 35 states, been to Hershey, Pikes Peak, the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, the Pacific, and Coast #4, up the ice roads to Tuktoyaktuk NWT on the Beaufort Sea, the furthest north once can drive in mainland Canada. I'm pretty sure none of these wonderful adventures would have occurred had this car had been a cherished original or nicely restored. Car people tend to get the appeal and the general reaction is "right on — cool car", the general public not so much where a common sentiment is "sure going to be nice when you fix it up" or "why would you ruin such a nice car driving it in winter??" In fairness, my car club friends tend to be nice folks, so many might hide their true thoughts until I'm out of earshot. Cosmetically, the Dodge is not nearly as nice as it appears in the photos. The interior is as bad as you'd expect but fortunately no rodent damage. Driver's floor is rusted through, along with many of the lower edges. Chrome and paint were already shot 25 years ago (and that's the good thing about Patina — if you actually like the look, then the move you drive it and park it outside and drill holes for the roof racks, the better it looks. Try that with yer Pebble Beach pretties!) To those interested, I explain this car was never worth "restoring" not even when I bought it. So I am using it up, wringing every last bit of fun and utility out of the old heap until there just isn't enough left to drive more-or-less safely. Not much different than the many comments we read here about cars too far gone to restore so they continue to rot in the back 40. Mine rots in the driveway but pays regular dividends of utility and enjoyment. It's not for everyone, and my other oldies aren't like this but for me, this car, in this condition, with this philosophy, is exactly right. Besides, what does the general public know anyway? The other day at a stoplight a pedestrian came over to say "wow, great car! You did an awesome job on it — congratulations!" I don't do a lot of car shows with any vehicle, but this is a fun example of the appeal of two nominally similar Dodges:

Hey Ben, nice to see your name pop up... hope you had a good ‘19 and best wishes for a great ‘20!

That looks like it! Thanks, Keizer... 29 minutes 🙂