Features Who's Building a T?

Glad I missed the drama. Mine is progressing pretty well, see the link in my signature.

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Very nice I really can't wait to see this come together. What 'banger are you planning to run?

...count yourself lucky...at least you have a steel deck lid

 

Thanks Clayton

Banger will be chev 4 at this stage - maybe later on a T pan as per Gerber.
All parts pre 1930.
No front brakes
Rivets - no welds .
Have collected everything I need so assembly begins soon.

Kume

 

I am building a cool T...

 

Nah, you WERE building a cool T. Then you went on hiatus for six months playing with scooters!

 

I got my rear suspension tacked into place and now i'm on the prowl for some 16" tires to mount on my wheels and set this puppy on the ground.
I'd sure like to take it to the showdown but i don't think it'll happen this year. Again.

 

My latest..

 

One step forward....two steps back.....

 

Very nice! You could always run a T motor with a '28 Chevy crank (or the SCAT stroker crank and A rods) and a Oldsmobile 3-port OHV head ....that is just like a RAJO but far cheaper. Back it up with a Warford or a Muncie....food for thought

I can't wait to see how this will come together. What other little tricks you have planned?

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Claytons Droid device?

Yes yes yes I know!! I just cant find a good T motor down here. You would think they would be falling out of the river banks.

I am aware of your love of the T motor and its discombobulated interplanetary transmission but I have a shed full of chev 4s with wonderfully conventional clutch & gearbox interfaces so for now it is an easy option but I am tempted by Gerber's very successful hybrid modifications.

I figure if I use twin 1925 chev tappet covers I can (to use the words of one of your illustrious founding fathers) fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time that I have a roof head on a T block (see pick attached) - no?

As for the Oldsmobile three port head - I have only ever seen one for sale in NZ for $1000US!!! so if anyone has one gathering dust and doesn't want my sole for it - contact me and perhaps I can trade a kidney!

I love the look of the T front axle but there must be a limit as to how many horses you can stable in a 2 wheel brake chassis. How do you find your power to brakes ratio Clayton?

Any other little tricks that I might have planned will be largely influenced by Duchamp and a particularly subtle odor of victoriana sprinkled in the engine bay and interior just to make me feel at home.

Kume

 

That is right....Mr. ModelT has entered the 21st century

Well if you have a stable of Chevys....that seems like the obvious choice. If you are going to the trouble of building a Chevy/T hybrid....don't hide it, be proud of it.

The Chevy heads (2 port) do flow well...but the 3-port Olds head would do so far better. You should get plenty with the Chevy head....especially with a nice intake and twin Winfield SR downdrafts

How much horsepower are you planning to get out of the little Chevy? Ford's casting practices and alloy formulas were superior in the mid to late 20's, the chrome-vanadium alloy used in the "EE" series T cranks was one of the best and strongest ever devised. I have complete faith in the T front axle taking just about anything a moderate 'banger could throw at it. Keep in mind, these axles were used in speedsters, 16 valve race cars built by the Laural motor works and even the 125+ hp DOHC Fronty race cars that raced at Indy. I don't think they could handle a 427 FE motor....but a healthy 'banger...yes

For T's the Rocky-Mountain acc. Brakes are really all there is and they do work....yet still leave something to be desired. To that end, I am working on a project to adapt a complete set of Chrysler-Lockheed-Wagner hydraulic brakes to my T. They are outside contracting band style, but 4-wheel hydraulic. The system had a few flaws...but we are redesigning them to correct them.

You might think about adapting Model A brakes to yours....

You and I might just have to talk about you views on T motors....there is nothing "discombobulated" about that transmision

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Clayton's Droid

Yes I quite agree.

Having worked on 1920s chevs for many years and having only recently discovered the excellence of the pre WW2 Ford product the quality of ford steel is remarkable so and if i could find a good T motor and combobulated drive train I would probably go all ford.

The three port olds head does require some work on tappet fulcrum and valve diameter so once you fork out $$ for the head plus machining you might as well go for off the shelf ford A, B & T options.

Re axle - I may have put you crook but I wasnt questioning the quality of the ford front axle but the lack of front wheel brakes generally for a banger build. Chev didn't have four wheel brakes until 1928 and rear foot was external contracting band which is always a bit dodgy in the rain. I would go Model A or 28 chev brakes but I would lose the spindly front axle look that characterizes the insectivore look of the dirt track era not to mention your roadster. I sense from your repsonse that 4 wheel hydraulics would be most helpfull given the power your T motor is now exhuding.

Kume

Sent from Kume's desk top dinosaur.

 

I was just giving you a hard time is all . I agree that the lack of front brakes on a T is a little un-nerving, that is why I plan to modify my T spindles to accept the Chrysler-Lockheed brakes up front. That way I won't sacrifice the T front axle. You could modify the T spindles to accept A or early Chevy front brakes.

The Rocky's are a bit dodgy in the rain and the supplied linings are awful......so I had them religned with modern, bonded, water and oil resistant lining and now they work great! ....I can lock 'em up and smoke 'em if I want to

I like the 2-port chevy heads....have one myself from a '28 "Bowtie". Was originally going to fit tit to my T block with a jern kit.

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Here's my combo of t cowl and frame. The banger is a 54 lotus/ford unit.


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check out the stunning 1927 gowjob T roadster for sale on ebay at the mo -

I think this is almost as good as Mr model Ts if it wasn't for the weta workshop patina.

Hands up who wants to strafe it with louvres.

Kume

 

Finally got the motor/transmission back in, seems like its been a long winter.

 

I couldn't find it!! Link?

 

Here ya go... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1927...4738506?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item2ec6db06ca

It would appear my T has a "doppelganger"

Kume is right....almost dead on ringer for my car. I think I may have been in contact with the builder at one point....got an email a few years ago asking about details on my car, think he was in the Wisconsin area

 

Wow, good looking car. Thanks for the link, Clayton, and more importantly for spreading good taste throughout the land.

 

It is...though it does have a few things that don't fit proportionally. The steering column is a bit too high for my liking and I have to agree with Kume that the patina is a bit much. Other then that, it's a nice looking rig!

It looks like he lowered the front similar to "Multi's" T and Z'd the rear cross-member...so the body stayed in it's original location on the frame and they used a stock hood.

I can't take credit for anything here, just my own car. I don't know if I was in contact with the builder, but it sure looks like my car had some sort of influence on it...and that I think is pretty cool

 

Yes it is pleasing to know I am not the only one cloning your T Clayton. History will show that all roads lead back to Mr Model T's creation.

 

I had my roadster out at the Detroit Autorama and it was the first time I've been able to stand back and look at it a distance...



of course I didn't mind showing some of its finer points...

 

Mine's moving along pretty well...

 

Yes it is, faster than mine

I should take a whip to the guy building mine .

I just don't get the time I need.

 

mine

 

I've been hired to build a original looking 26 with upgrades for modern traffic.

 

I am planning on putting Model A engine trans forntend and rearend. This will give me something to build on that will still work with the original wire wheels. If anyone has any feed back regarding this or any other conversion (possibly chevy S-10 components) please share.

 

Whip him, whip him good!

And no you can't borrow Bob until my car is done!

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Here's the 26, coming along...