I am curious how many of us here have Driven a Stock model T Ford? I know this might be a little off base, but so many Hot Rods came from the "T" I think it is in line with the spirit of the HAMB. I have not driven one, but would love a chance to cruise a Stocker. Share your Driving experience with us that have not had the chance.
I restored a 27 T coupe in 1976 at Mosses Ford in York Ne. When we had it done we took it for a drive. A real challenge until you understand how everything works. About 40 mph felt like you were flying. Walter
I put many miles on my 25. Once you forget everything that you know about driving a car, you'll be just fine. Add a Ruckstell or a Warford and it becomes a real one man band. A guy in our club had a Ruckstell, a Warford and a modern O/D. 12 forward speeds. Lotsa fun and it really confuses the younger guys
I have been driving model t's sincc I was 12-13 yrs old, I am now 53 .My father has been restoring t's as long as I can remember. I now own his 27 roadster which he recently gave me as he doesn't drive it anymore. All original with some mods , magneto removed. Model a crankshaft and flywheel , high comptession pistons , downdraft Stromberg , bocsh distributor , ruxstell 2 speed rear end . I was going to hot rod the car ,even have my Dad's blessing , but this is the fastest and most memorable 60 mph you will ever remember.
My 1912 hasn't been out for many years, it's stuck in the back corner of the garage, this is my favorite T driving story. One day 27 years ago it was sitting in the driveway with our oldest daughter behind the wheel, "My feet can tough the pedals!" she said. That is the main deal with a T, she was six years old and a drive straight up the street to see Grandma seamed like the thing to do. Cranked it up and backed it out in the road, pulled the hand brake lever halfway back, that puts the planitery transmission in neutral. All she had to do was hold the left foot on the far left pedal and the cars moves forward in low gear. She gave a wave to two boys on bicycles as we drove by, made it to Grandma's and back home. Next day she told me it really impressed the two boys who had been giving her a hard time over the fact that she still had training wheels on her bike. Training wheels were in the scrap pile within days, driving a T gives you self confidence. Bob
A model T is a handful to drive , but it can be done LOL . Y control advancing and retarding the distributor (or timer ) with your left finger tips on a lever on the steering column and your right finger tips operate the throttle. The model T has a semi automatic transmission with 3 pedals ,the first peddle is high and low gear, the middle pedal is reverse, and the end pedal is a transmission brake . So you are taking off from a light while holding your high low pedal in between gears with your left foot and your right foot on the brake. now you are releasing the brake , pushing the gear pedal in, and advancing the throttle with your right hand all at the same time , now you need to get into high gear ,you are backing the throttle off with your right hand and releasing the pedal with your left foot to the top and advancing the throttle again all at the same time. Still no going fast enough back off the throttle again and shift the 2 speed rear into high range and increase throttle again once you are cruising you can play with distributor for ultimate cruising range .They truly are a fun car to drive , but in todays modern traffic , you must alway's be on the defensive , with a poor braking system , narrow 21 inch tires and a 1500 lbs car a model t will lock up its brake fairly easy and needs some room to stop safely , but I love driving the car .
Very good description of the coordination needed to drive a T Wood Remover. Now, throw in a high compression Fronty over head, a Winfield cam, and a side draft Weber carb, and you about double the skill required, and the fun! Throw an overdrive in with the Ruckstell 2 speed rear end for a possible 6 speeds, and you won't be doing any texting and driving!!
I bought a 23 Touring in 2012, we pushed it onto the trailer. Did a google search on how to drive a Model T when I got home. They recquire you full attention all the time, something not many kids these days could handle. I do want to teach my 9yr old nephew how to drive it.
Dean, With all the mentioned upgrades isn't there a fatal flaw unless the T rear brakes are made to function. I've never driven a T with a Ruxtell or accessory transmission, but read some were you can get in neutral and never have any brake. Bob
I drove a Model T one time back in the early 60's with my grandad by my side,with his instructions I did pretty good. HRP
I have a set of rocky mountain accessory brakes on my 27 , they are a band that go around the outside of the rear brake drum , better than the transmission brake but still need to be careful !!! You can see them in the photo if you look close Here is another T my father gave me. 27 TOURING V8 60 HP 3 speed trans , 39 rear end , hydraulic brakes , 39 front axle with Volvo disk brakes 21 inch model a rims
I have a 1909 model T. If you live in the Milwaukee area and went to the circus parade in the 80's, you saw it, it was the lead car that started the parade for quite a few years. I brought it at a car show many miles away from me but the owner lived only about 6 miles from me(never saw it before the show) so he hauled it back to his place and the next day I picked it up at his place. He gave me like a 20 minute demonstration on how to drive it. Drove it home and got caught in a sudden downpour when I got a mile down the road. should have seen the people looking at me driving this old car in the rain getting drenched but I had a big grin on my face anyways. He offered to trailer it to my house or store it until we got a better day but I really thought I could beat the rain, I really wanted to drive it but like I said no sooner I got started and it just poured. Once you get used to it, it is easy to drive but if you don't drive it a lot then I have to really think about it because the pedals are not like a normal car setup. Used to drive it around a lot but now the last few years very seldom and it should actually be gone through again and get rerestored or at least get a few bugs taken care of. When I first get it out, it is just easier to push it backwards by hand then to remember how to back it up where I keep it stored. Once it is out in the open and I can't hurt or damage anything then I refreshen myself on how to drive it. Doesn't take long.
If you are going up, or down hill, and miss the shift on the Ruckstell, you sure can wind up in total neutral. The key is to run aftermarket Rocky Mountain outside brakes on the drums. The Ruckstell 2 speed rear end is very unforgiving, and takes practice to up, or down shift properly. Glen Chaffin, in Corona, Ca. has every part, completely CNC machined, to rebuild a Ruckstell. The high precision of the new parts greatly helps the drivability of a Ruckstell.
A stock 23 roadster came in for a top and interior installation so the owner showed me how to operate it and did take it around the block a couple times,that was 20 years ago and would like to have one to putt around town in.
Cool thread! Never driven one but rode in a buddy's once and although it was a short trip around the show grounds it was still quite the ride. I gotta say i had a ball and i wasnt even behind the wheel! Tony
A friend who is slightly older than me says "owning a Model T is like being married to a ugly girl but she is too good in bed to get rid of". As kids we drove one and we lost the starter crank. We learned that two of us could lift the rear wheel off of the ground and when you spun the tire it would fire up, we never did get another crank.
Getting this Depot Hack running (20 years in a barn) and learning to drive it was my spring adventure. It was donated to a local non-profit group restoring a historic Southern Pacific Railroad Depot to an early 1920's configuration. Retraining my left leg to lift at a stop sign (high-neutral-low pedal) instead of pushing down (clutch) took lots of practice. I managed to drive it in our local midsummer parade without killing the engine or running over any other parade entrants.
you take anything you know about driving except turning the steering wheel and throw it out the window been driving T's since 13 years old started in a 1919 touring with Ruxtel getting close to 65
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