Garden Railway Forum

As you may have noticed, many of my posts lately have mentioned a car I've been working on.
Well, now that it's finally finished, I can divulge the three-year secret that had overtaken my life.

It's a 1931 Ford Model A. My first car. This is coming from the guy who made it a point to drive a steam loco at 18, before I ever got behind the wheel of a car, just to say I did it. I've never publicly told anyone until now.



I never wanted a car, but it was becoming clear that the bus simply takes too much time and energy to be viable.
For an antique car, they're relatively affordable - I was just lucky my great aunt and uncle left me enough to afford it.
"Fine, if I can't invest this money, I'll at least buy a car I like" I figured.
If restored properly, they're reliable enough that some people daily drive them, and fuel consumption isn't apocalyptically bad.
Just about every nut and bolt on it is reproduced for (mostly) reasonable money, so parts aren't an issue either.



After a year of scouring the country, I'd found 60+ hot rods and around a dozen unmolested cars - if they weren't unrestored wrecks, or overpriced (usually both) I just couldn't find the body style I needed for a daily driver - a "Fordor" sedan, a closed-cab ute, or a "Tudor" sedan. (by far the most common and what I ended up with)

To cut a long story short, I bought this sight-unseen (thanks to The Plague) from Melbourne. It came here from Yankeeland in 2019.
Half the neighbourhood came out of the woodwork when the truck arrived, on the 13th of January 2022.


More to come..

Absolutely stunning

That's stunning Aaron. What a way to arrive at garden rail meet ups

Wow! That looks most impressive.

I used Model A sound files as the basis for my Ford(ish) Rail motor Mp3 soundcard - plus a few extra sounds such as the gearbox whine and gear changes. I'll bet yours sounds a whole lot sweeter.

I never thought I'd get to know someone who actually runs the real thing.

Rik

Looks brand new! What an excellent choice too. I see one or two of them around town occasionally, but with car-dissolving salt on our roads they don't come out in winter. The oldest car I've driven as my primary transportation is/was my 40-year-old SAAB, and considering relative complexity and parts availability a Model A is by leaps and bounds a much more practical vehicle!

What a beauty!

In your first picture, the first car I saw was the white sporty number, which did made me think "well, that's a surprise..." Then I glanced across and it all made much more sense. Congratulations on a wonderful restoration job!

Absolutely gorgeous Aaron, you are a brave man but an example to all, a very proud moment for you.

I admire your choice Aaron, I knew it would probably be a Ford from the tail light. A friend down here in Melbourne has three of them (at last count!) so have seen plenty of pics, and yours looks superb. Hope you get to enjoy many happy miles in it.
Grant.

Cheers guys, but this isn't restored. It wasn't even roadworthy.

drewzero1 wrote: Wed Feb 21, 2024 12:56 pm The oldest car I've driven as my primary transportation is/was my 40-year-old SAAB, and considering relative complexity and parts availability a Model A is by leaps and bounds a much more practical vehicle!

Oh I don't know, my mother would be quite envious of your SAAB.

ge_rik wrote: Wed Feb 21, 2024 12:26 pm I used Model A sound files as the basis for my Ford(ish) Rail motor Mp3 soundcard - plus a few extra sounds such as the gearbox whine and gear changes. I'll bet yours sounds a whole lot sweeter.

I thought your railmotor sounded familiar.
Sorry to say, there was no sweetness at all in my engine..



I saw a video of it running before purchase, but that was taken in a cramped garage. Of course it was loud.
My plan was to buy it, get any roadworthy-preventing issues dealt with, and slowly improve it as I drove it a couple days a week.
It turned out to be your typical older restoration - nice paint and upholstery, but mechanically poor.

The roof of the car has a wooden frame, with chicken wire, padding and vinyl stretched over the top.
This was built in that transition from "wood body with steel panels nailed on" to "all-steel bodies".
Whomever restored this car in the US, (thought at the time to be 20 years prior) used straight-shank nails to hold the roof trim strips on.
Through vibration and the spring action of the (badly hammer-battered) rear trim, these have pulled right out.
Besides a single bead of bathroom silicone in the wrong place across the front, there was zero sealant to be found. Also small holes in the vinyl.
Muppet who owned it before me drove it in the rain without a second (or first, looking at his other work) thought.
I'm lucky the interior isn't water-damaged.



Underneath wasn't too bad, just surface rust and a complete lack of any protection for the 3/4" plywood floor. Nothing damaged.
The car had no shock absorbers on it, and the previous owner said he had it up to 50mph/80km. That tells me the springs aren't doing their job.
If they were, the car would be uncontrollable over 20mph. You can see they're rusted stiff. They groaned louder than the brakes when you got in it.



03/02/22
First order of business - make the thing controllable. Backing out at 10mph/16km isn't pleasant.
Flogged throttle linkage machined and bushed. Idle is slightly improved, still dies under 900rpm. Engine is gutless and car lurches violently when moving between side yard (former garden line) and garage.



The amp meter in the dash tried to burn the car down with a loose connection. Very common problem, lucky I caught it. Model As had an "always live" electrical system and no fuses whatsoever. Nor an oil filter, you were changing it every 500 miles. Yes, I'm adding these things.

Yup, those manifolds were cooked.


Not one of those ports was sealing. Cheap and nasty muffler (installed wrong of course) didn't help either.
Interestingly, this is an aftermarket heater manifold. There was a hot air outlet in the floorboard. Won't be needing a heater in QLD.
It's not all bad though, might take a leaf out of Peter Jones' book, and use it on a 16mm sugar mill..



23/03/22
"Enough parts including new manifolds, exhaust, wiring and misc. bits to get it roadworthy."
How wrong I was..



25/03/22
Daunted by Parts Mountain, I started with the easy job of wire wheeling, cleaning and epoxy enamel painting under the rear wheel arches.
3 of 5 Rear RH wheel studs are loose in the drum. Looks like I'm going to cast irons now rather than down the line.
You can really see how the front end sags when the front spring gets weak and stiff. Crooked, adapted 1928 headlight bar too.



Behold, this marvel of electrical engineering, Featuring 3m of electrical tape. Daisy-chained from the handbrake cross-shaft - which turns.
Last guy's work. He also put those cheesy plastic indicators in the bumpers, to the same standard.
Why you would put a battery shut-off in such an inaccessible place is beyond me. The corrugated conduit over the cables was to protect them from rubbing on the service brake rod, because buying a longer cable and routing it sensibly is too hard, apparently.

A proper cut-off is on hand, and will be fitted through the floor so I can switch it under the driver's seat - on the ground side, unlike this thing.



29/04/22
New manifolds and exhaust fixed the exhaust leak, but problems persisted. With the millimeter-thick coating of hard carbon removed, you can see No.3 is scored from overheating, the others aren't much better. Water jacket's full of rust, fibre timing gear is loose, valves are burned to hell.



Main bearings have tins of shims - but they haven't been taken up in years, now the centre main is hammered out. I didn't bother checking the rods.
This engine is thoroughly ruined.


At this point, all my money was gone. My hopes to get on the road, find some work and put my life back together (it's been a very hard decade for me, and modelling is how I've dealt with it) were dashed. On a disability pension, a short block rebuild would take 5 years so save for.

My parents offered to lend me the money, as they had been left more than enough for their house deposit. I argued against borrowing that much, but they talked me into it. In hindsight, it was the right move.

Plenty more to do in the meantime, I'd bought all those (badly needed) parts after all. No longer a "slowly spruce it up as you drive it", but rather a full-blown re-restoration. If I wasn't working on this, I'd be working on something else. Bring it on then.

More on the engine later, we won't be using that one..

So, I paid full price for a dog. I'd made my bed, time to lay in it.
It would be some months before my new engine kit would reach the dealer in Western Australia. Plenty of time to overhaul the car.
I went into my usual depth recording the work over on the Vintage Ford Forum, but this site ain't about cars, and I don't want to bore ya.
Here's the (relatively) short version..

09/05/22
Interior stripped, cleaned, Penetroled and painted with epoxy enamel.
Fuel tank removed, cleaned and resealed into the cowl to keep the rain out.



The cowl lights needed rebuilding and converting into indicators. Or I could use them as headlights elsewhere.





17/06/22
Insulation followed after paint. Rear window resealed properly, no more bathroom silicone.

Blimey! That's one heck of a job you took on there Aaron.
I don't know if you get to see "Car SOS" over there, but this reminds me of some of their more challenging restorations - but without their workshop full team.

Rik

Keep this coming please Aaron. It's in 'off topic' so it's in the right place
(BTW, I genuinely thought that was you laughing about the mismatched and loose manifold bolt )

The headlights looked decent in the video at least... until you honked the horn...

Lonsdaler wrote: Thu Feb 22, 2024 2:26 pm Keep this coming please Aaron. It's in 'off topic' so it's in the right place
(BTW, I genuinely thought that was you laughing about the mismatched and loose manifold bolt )

It certainly was in my head, when I saw it!
Pleased to see it's of interest. I know it's the off-topic forum, but this is waaay off-topic.

I just wish I could've driven the car further than around the tiny block. I want to know how bad the car truly was to drive, so I have a comparison for the finished product. Anyway..


18/07/22
The generator was a mess. The previous owner damaged the armature and brushes in a botched bearing replacement. A member of the QLD Model A Club very kindly gave me a complete genny he had lying around. A quick skim of the copper commutator on the lathe, checked for shorts and measured the bearing surfaces (which are hardened and unworn) along with new bearings, brushes, beside the usual bare-metal repaint, saw this 6V generator made new again.



10/08/22
Having a mechanic for a father can be very helpful. Someone had their diesel car towed in after filling it with petrol. What was syphoned out to be disposed, I put to good use degreasing parts for inspection and further cleaning. He can't offer any advice, he hasn't worked on anything pre-2000 in twenty years.
But as an extra set of hands who knows his way around a workshop, that's invaluable.

I do of course keep a fan blowing the fumes outside. Found kitchen gloves lasted longer than nitrile mechanics' gloves against the fuel.
With the parts degreased, I could see what sort of shape things were in. Most of the moving parts in the front and rear brakes had been replaced, but are now just barely starting to wear. I think I'd get away with re-using them for now, but if it's all apart, I'd rather have a perfectly fresh rebuild to stay on the road longer. Will keep most of these for future spares.



11/08/22
So after having cleaned up all the brake parts, instead of finalising the list of new stuff to order, (and ordering it) I got distracted and had a go at welding up the wear in one of the brake roller tracks. I was surprised at how well my 3rd-hand cheapy welder with included cheap and nasty rods worked!
A dremel with sanding and cutting disks was used to grind the welds back to the correct level. A 20c coin makes for an excellent barrier between track and backing plate.



Removing the rear axle involves pulling the rear spring for overhaul. They call these "widowmakers" because you need a very beefy and specialised spring spreader to remove it safely - some people don't bother. Those people watch a spring punch through their shed roof and get 50ft of air. If they get to see anything at all..

You then clamp the leaves together with big "G" clamps. Remove the rusted-stuck centre bolt (usually cut off the head with a grinder and hammer the shaft out) then replace with a length of threaded bar and nuts. Remove the clamps and gently back off the nuts to allow the spring leaves to relax and separate.



Each leaf was thoroughly wire wheeled and checked for cracks. No issues found, but as you'll see later on the front spring, each leaf wears into the leaf below it over time. This wear needs to be ground smooth, and the ends of each leaf need a relief ground underneath, so they don't dig into their lower leaves again. The worn shackle bushes in the eyes at each end of the bottom leaf, were replaced.
The underside of each leaf was then painted with special graphite paint to lubricate them, so they can slide against each-other in operation.



Once assembled with a new centre bolt and clips, the complete spring could be primed and painted. Once refitted to the car I'll fit dust covers with oil-soaked felt pads, to keep the springs cleaner and better lubricated.

Oh, and the brake shoes had their old linings removed and repainted, prior to riveting new soft linings to suit the cast iron brake drums.

03/09/22
The main brake cross shaft resembles the reversing weighshaft on a steam loco. Ford stuck with mechanical brakes right up till '39.
Mechanical brakes work just fine, as long as you overhaul and calibrate them right. Admittedly a ton of work, which most can't be bothered with, so they get an undeserved bad rep. Hydraulic is more effective, I won't argue.
But if you do your mechanicals right (And look after em!) they'll do you right in modern traffic for years to come.



11/09/22
The original cross shaft bushes were steel shells with a brass-wire-reinforced, graphited-cloth lining. You don't oil these.
And to replace it, the end arms need to be de-riveted and removed.
Most people (myself included) replace these with a two-piece brass bushing. I've added a grease nipple to the clamp and cut lubrication grooves with the dremel.



03/10/22
The weakened, fatigued front spring has sagged, compared to it's replacement behind. I might've had this one re-arched by a truck spring shop, but the lowest spring was so badly worn by the leaf above it, that I decided replacement was the better option. The local dealers of course didn't have any of the good quality springs, so I coughed up $450 for the cheapy. This is usable but needs nearly as much work as restoring an original.

The nasty grit-filled paint needed stripping away (ordinary paint between the leaves will stop them sliding properly) and it's ends needed that relief ground underneath. The tapered sides of each leaf end were poorly shaped and inconsistent, these needed trimming before I could do much else.
It then received the same graphite etc. treatment as the rear spring.



03/10/22
Local butcher bird supervises the refitting of the rear axle. Been advised to leave the assembly alone for now, it'll start making funny noises well ahead of time, to kindly let me know when it's ready to die. Dulux overhaul for now. I picked up a virtually-new rear end for cheap.
Already ordered all the new bearings, seals etc, just a little machining by a friend and I'll be able to swap out rear ends over a weekend.

Rear spring/axle assembly refitted after stripping, treating and painting the underbody. Oh! And new spring end shackles fitted.



05/10/22
Front axle was bent from the centre, as they always are. Someone tows them out of a ditch or barn at some point, the axle just bends.
Press at Dad's work took two attempts after it sprang back in a few weeks, but it's straight now.

Wasn't able to remove wishbone to check for twist, but looks very good otherwise.



08/10/22
The brake rods are the usual dangerous mess. Worn halfway through where the flat return springs bear on them.
Nothing the electric glue stick and some files won't fix..





29/10/22
Can't skip the little things. This is the cheaper reproduction brake light switch that was on the car. When you hit the brakes, the shaft down the centre of the switch is moved by a linkage.
Brass bushes for the switch shaft were made on the lathe and soldered into the switch body, as factory originals had.
If you don't have bushes in your brake light switch, it tends to be noisy, wear out and stick "off" - a recipe for getting rear-ended.



03/11/22
Weird to see "Minnie" back on it's wheels again, if even only for a few days. What isn't weird, is how high the front stands on new springs and shackles. So much vertical travel now, and zero whorehouse noises from the suspension when you step on the running board. Very pleased.
With an engine crane borrowed from Dad's work, No.A3818810 was removed. I'll be stripping it for the clutch, flywheel & housing along with a few other parts. The remaining "short block" will be donated to the Club's parts shed.

It's fun watching this unfold so much faster-than-life... you really turned that car inside out!

Corr blimey! Incredible attention to detail. Very much a case of, if a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well.

Rik

It's a new car... superb.

'Ang on, I thought, 'oo's this? Don't look like the Old man Aaron that I thought I knowed?

And then I looked at your profile picture again... And knock me down with a feather, you aren't as old as you look!

You've certainly had me fooled with your username and photo
The work you've had to put in on the car is incredible. We'll done, and keep it coming - I can't wait for the test drive video