Larry held work parties on two consecutive Saturdays, March 2nd and 9th.
Work continued on Bruce’s 1926 coupe. Vernon and Bruce concentrated on adding body trim and Larry and other club members focused on getting the engine going. The engine had run when Bruce first brought it out of storage last year. When Bruce bought the car, the coupe was largely disassembled, but the engine was complete and had been rebuilt. On this Saturday, March 2nd, the engine was cranking but it wouldn’t start. Larry suspected the battery was discharged and the engine was starved of fuel. After charging the battery and adjusting the carburetor, the engine ran smoothly!
Ken brought some coils for his 1926 roadster to test and Larry demonstrated how to check and adjust the coils. Joe brought his 1923 runabout to flip the front axle. For years, Joe hadn’t liked the way the runabout steered, and it turned out that the front axle was backwards! It only took an hour or so to reverse the axle.
Mark had been looking for a 1925 engine/transmission for a pickup truck project inspired by Larry Smith’s article in the May/June 2009 issue of the Vintage Ford. Fellow club member Brian Dean had an extra engine made in early June 1925 that fit the bill. Brian transported the engine from its storage location in Colorado, and brought it to Larry’s that day for Mark to purchase and haul home. Mark built a wood engine stand the night before and had recently bought an engine hoist to lift the engine out of his pickup bed. The engine stand worked great and the hoist made the task of unloading the engine at home possible.
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13On Saturday, March 9th, Jeff O’Brien (Neil and Mary Ann’s son) was visiting from Colorado Springs and assisting with a wheel overhaul. Work continued on Bruce’s coupe with Vernon and Bruce making progress on the body, while our master welder Bob, reassembled Bruce’s radiator. He also worked on the non-Model T task of repairing a East Indian made toy alligator in need of brazing. Dave Merewether brought a 1927 engine that he had purchased on Ebay to run on Larry’s test stand. The engine is destined for Dave’s 1917 pickup that currently has a non-starter engine. With some adjustments, the engine ran smoothly and will be switched soon. Joe Kraft brought his plasma cutter to help Larry cut out a rusted section from a 1940 truck frame (yes – Larry does have other collectable cars other than Model Ts!). Larry has two truck frames and will cut out and patch the serialized frame with the corresponding piece from the donor one. The plasma cutter worked like a charm and got many of us thinking that a plasma cutter would be a great addition to the resources at Larry’s garage!
Thanks Larry for these two productive and enjoyable work days!
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