Holes on panel between front & rear door on 25 touring car

[MikeC5]

The photo is looking at the top of the narrow panel between front & rear doors. The hole is about 3/8 diameter and is on left and right side of car. I can't figure out what goes in here...

[keiser31]

Side curtain posts, maybe?

[MikeC5]

Possible although I have scrutinized photos I have of 3 other 24-25 touring cars and I see no such hole (while they do have the sockets in the door tops for side curtain rods). I'm thinking they must have been drilled for some sort of aftermarket accessory. A little welded patch will take care of them...

[keiser31]

It does have that home made drilled look.

[MikeC5]

It does. If only these cars could talk...

[R.White]

You have me stumped! What would those holes be used for?

My first thought was a popper fastner for a side curtain corner but the hole is too big for that.

There is little point in having a lock fitted to a touring car is there?

An odd place for indicators these days but remember how the trafficator arms were deemed adequate with one in the middle on each side?

Perhaps there were originally some brackets for night lights?

As a child I remember my Dad had a paraffin dome lantern with red lenses which he hooked over the door of a winter's night because where we lived there were no street lights and we often had smog/fog in those far off days. With the arrival of street lighting in the '60's the lantern became redundant (along with the smog thanks to the clean air acts.)

I guess we will never know for sure but I would be inclined to blank them off with a couple of blind grommets as a nod to it's history...... then again, maybe not.

Ray.

[keiser31]

Some early Chrysler touring bodies had these little side marker reflectors/lights. Although, these are mounted lower. This is a 1928.

[JayG]

Any chance that at some time in its' life it had the back cut off to use as a pickup and someone put a roadster top on it?

[MikeC5]

I suppose some sort of lights could have been mounted there but there was no electrical going to these areas (and harness looked original). As for a re-born touring, I don't think so. I would expect some evidence of cobbling the back end of a body back on there. The rust under the rear seat sure looked original...

[Pete K.]

"Don't weld up those holes"!!! Judging the originality of my '25, there are these brass fasteners in those holes. They are presumed to be for the curtains, I haven't fitted the original ones I have for the car onto it yet since I am missing the 4 upright rods that go in the door sockets.. These "fasteners" I photographed for us don't seem to have any flare to them, as I photo'd one from above to show the straight sides of the little guy. They have a screw slot in each one, they are blind from the inside of doors.

[Pete K.]

OK, A little bit more investigation tells me these are not side curtain snaps, as I mentioned there was no flare on them to join to a female half. These things are TENSIONERS. They get turned with a screwdriver to lock in the upright curtain rods. If one looks down the rod socket, there is a split in the metal tube where it acts as a space to open and close a tiny bit to hold the side curtain rods in the sockets! Who would've figgurred? I don't know why your doors seem to have the sockets away from them?

Edited June 29, 2013 by Pete K. (see edit history)

[R.White]

I suppose some sort of lights could have been mounted there but there was no electrical going to these areas (and harness looked original).

I'm with John Keiser here. There would not have been lights/reflectors originally so your wiring harness would not necessarily have been tampered with. Perhaps a later installation could have been removed without any trace...but the holes. Unless you wish to re instate the lights you might as well fill in the holes.

Ray.

[keiser31]

The lack of wiring suggests to me that they were reflectors......

[Guest occrj]

I wonder if it might have had a lift-up mechanical indicator "arm" there at some point? I bought something like that for my Oz ute a few years ago, and have pondered about finding a way to fit it to the passenger side of the tourer, so long as I can do it without having to drill anything. It's basically a hinged pole, on the end of which is a metal hand to do the "indicating" before turning a corner.

RJ

[Pete K.]

Do I have the only '25 Dodge with these clamp screw dots? They would be the same size as Mike's holes in the doors. I know of no wiring in the Dodge doors in that era, also "turn-a-cators" were never required in this country, unless car was imported with them. I doubt this is the case.

[MikeC5]

My car had what I thought were snap bases for button type snaps (they look like what you show in your photos Pete) but they were only on the rear door and were held in by a short screw that didn't engage the side curtain socket. After 80 years+ of undocumented ownership (unavailable to me at least), there's no telling what aftermarket modifications were made to 'improve' things. Reflectors seem like a good bet and I like the trafficator idea which might be interesting if I could find a pair and no further drilling was required.

[Hubert_25-25]

I know this is an old post, but those holes in the side of the car are for "side curtain sockets".  The side curtain metal "rods" go into a holder on the top of the door at the rear end.  The side of the car will either use a snap or a side curtain socket.  Model T sites carry the side curtain sockets.  The side curtains have a pin that fits into the socket.  On my 1925 Buick, they used the snaps on the doors, and the side curtain sockets on the panels adjacent to the doors.  The "side curtain sockets" hold a little better than a snap.  I just wanted to help set the record straight.  In the second picture, you can see the hole when there is no side curtain snap.  There is a screw that sticks thru the end of the side curtain socket if you have a wood frame.    Hugh

http://www.macsautoparts.com/ford_model_t/model-t-ford-body-side-curtain-socket-set-open-car-6-pieces-fits-7-16-hole.html

http://www.macsautoparts.com/ford_model_t/model-t-ford-side-curtain-fastener-with-backing-plate-ring-nickel-plate.html