Projects My first build. 1929/31 model A

Disassembled the carb today and gave it a good cleaning. Gasket broke so I had to use silicone to get it back together. Proved to work just fine for the time being and I’ll try to find a new gasket somewhere. This is not a Zenith carb and it looks more modern cast in aluminum and the float bowl is a little bit bigger and more box like.

After some cranking and fiddling with the choke and ignition lever it finally came to life and ran under its own power. Had it running 20-30 seconds then I had to kill it and escape the exhaust fumes. There is a lot of stuff in and on the exhaust that burns and the smoke was thick in the shop.


Tomorrow I will reinstall the radiator and fill it up with coolant, then let the engine run again. My goal is to test drive the car on Friday to see if I have brakes.

Took delivery of my auction find today, a Lucas 4VRA magneto in really good condition. I’ll try to modify it to fit the four banger and it has both automatic advance and retard built in.

 

The car is now test driven a couple of times around the parking lot, and a trip around the block with my wife riding shotgun.

Brakes are binding a little bit but I intend to look them over anyway. The pedal doesn’t return as it’s supposed to, so that will be the first thing to check.

I need to make the engine run better as the whole car is shaking. Ignition seems to be close enough but I guess the carb could use some fine tuning. Making sure the exhaust doesn’t rest on the rear axle would probably make the ride a bit more comfortable .

No more blue smoke from the exhaust so all the Marvel Mystery Oil is now burnt away.

Replaced the terminal box with a new one and redid the only modern plastic cable with a cloth covered cable.



Headlights are back in place and working, oohgah adjusted and lubed and I have tried to reach the inspector to book a time for registration of the car. This will be the only time it has to be inspected since it’s more than 50 years old.

 

Got lots of stuff done on the project this weekend.

The car is test driven around the block. Everything is making noise and the whole car shakes, brakes are binding and the steering is heavy, but at least it was a test drive.

The radiator is back in place, headlights reconnected, the horn is working. Replaced the terminal box on the fire wall since the lid was missing and the base was broken. Made a new cloth covered cable to the coil and threw the only modern looking cable away.


Oil in the axle is changed, steering gear filled with oil and I have been trying to figure out where the brake mechanism is binding. All joints are now lubed but it’s still catching somewhere. Need to rebuild the pedals with new bushings and probably a new shaft. Question is how I replace the shaft, I guess from the inside of the gearbox?

Got a test drive in my friends ‘32 Roadster, and that was a huge difference! So much smoother and quieter than my rattle box..


I realized that the floor pans were loose, so tore out the seat and pop riveted them in place and gave them a coat of POR15 to protect them from the elements. Will go to the hardware store tomorrow to buy 12 screws to bolt the seat to the seat frame the seat frame will then be bolted and riveted to the subframe.



While laying under the rear I noticed that someone welded the rear shock mounts to the subframe, not next to the spring in the chassis frame. I’ll have to rearrange quite soon, my home town is filled with speed bumps and that will sooner or later crack the subframe. I have all the stuff I need, so it’s just a matter of getting to it.


It’s 10.46 pm and time to leave the shop, I just need to try to wake up the wife. She’s been keeping me company all afternoon while I’ve been working on the car, but the break room couch is too comfortable

 

I guess I double posted a bit, but it was late. Tried to remove the post but I get an error message that says I’m not allowed to take that action...


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A quickie today.

Riveted the seat frame to the floor and bolted the seat structure to the frame. Retapped the threads from inch-something to M6 to be able to find screws that fits.




Have been regretting that I gave away the parcel tray from the other body, but I got one with this car that I didn’t find until today. Will go and buy more screws tomorrow so I can bolt the seat frame to the floor and the parcel tray between the body and backrest of the seat structure.
Couple of hours spent on something that doesn’t look like much, but it always nice to have a seat that firmly bolted to the floor.

 

Looks good @Tobbe J! Glad you had your test drive, hope you get the brakes sorted out soon.

 

Just some small stuff done today.



Bolted the package tray in and luckily all the screws except one pulled nicely in the wood structure. I was expecting the package tray to bolt to the seat back, but there is a space in between. Seems like I’m missing a part.



Started fitting the door cards(?) and they seem to be in decent condition. Almost all of the clips snapped in place except the lower 2-3 in the corner close to the a-pillar. Seems like the material has been wet and changed shape.

Took it for another test drive today, and managed to engage the fourth gear. It would be so nice if the gears were synced but I’m starting to getting better at double clutching. The brake linkage is binding somewhere and I can’t really find it. I’ll put the car on the lift so I can get a better view from underneath. Need to pull the drums and check the condition of the linings and drums. Could smell some burnt friction material and I don’t think it’s the clutch slipping.

The engine is running quite rough and the whole car is vibrating a lot. I’ll try to eliminate the sources one by one, because unnecessary noise is something I can’t stand. I’ll see if I’m going to reinvent the wheel and fabricate new engine mounts, or I just buy the stuff that’s readily available for $200.

While I was looking for the window crank for the drivers door I found all the original screws for the package tray and seat structure. Bummer.