The Journey Begins!

Last week I stopped at the service centre in Ingersoll, Ontario for some lunch. It's a big place with a Wendy's, Mr. Sub, TH, and an Esso Station. So I'm sitting there about to bite into my sub and I just happened to look up and low and behold the above picture was just staring me in the face. You could have knocked me over with a feather, my exact words were "oh my god that's my car". This came as a bit of a shock to the few people who were around me eating their lunch because I was sitting by myself. I quietly wrapped up my lunch and went over to take a picture. As you can see from the photo this mural is quite high in the air and doesn't really catch the eye unless your looking up. I start taking pictures, and next thing I know I have a small crowd of about two or three people also looking up trying to figure out what I was taking a picture of. I thought I would share this story because since I have started to read and learn about this Model T I find myself having more and more moments like this. 

Let's talk Lights and the Henry Ford Museum!

The 1914 Model T was equipped with five lights to my knowledge. All the lights were in brass cases for this particular year. The two headlights on the front attached to the rad were powered by a small gas generator that sat on the drivers side fender. I don't have the generator, but I have found the original head light brass cases (with no lights). 

The top of these lights say"Model 66" which is actually a set of lights. They were used on the 1913 & 1914 Model T. As you can see from the picture they look a little rough, but in reality they are not to bad. They seem to have some black paint and what looks to be lacker on the outside. The plan is to just buy some heavy duty brass cleaner and hope for the best. I have priced these lights online and they can range anywhere from $200-$600 for the pair depending on the condition. 

The above picture isn't the greatest, but you get the idea. These are the oil lamps that go on each side of the windshield. They have wicks, and basically you just fill them up with oil and light them up. You will notice these lights are square, most Model T's have round oil lamps but in 1913/14 they were square. These lights are in better shape than the headlights. The square part will be repainted black and the top and bottom will be cleaned with the brass cleaner and hopefully will shine again.  I have priced a pair of these between $500 - $1000. They are a little more rare because they were only used for two model years.

The above light is the last of the five, can you guess where this goes? Believe it or not this is the tail light. It is also has a wick and is powered by oil. This light is probably in the best shape of the five. It has a red lens and a green lens. Not sure what the green lens is all about. It's a really good thing I have this light because they are rare and expensive. Same as the side lamps I will repainted the square part of this lamp black and the bottom and top will be cleaned with the brass cleaner. I have priced this one light between $500 - $1000. 

I'm not 100% sure what these lights are. I believe they belong to a late Model T or even a Model A. All I know is they are too high tech for my car! 

Henry Ford Museum  - Dearborn Michigan 

Back in 2005, I had the chance to take my family to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn just outside of Detroit. I am thinking it might be time to go back. The place is truly remarkable to say the least, especially if you like history. 

A few of the highlights that stick out in my mind are seeing the US presidents limos. Beginning with FDR  right up to Bush. They even had the limo that JFK took his last ride in. I got to sit in the "Rosa Parks" bus, see the "Wright Brothers" glider, Thomas Edison's lab,  and I could go on and on. One thing I did miss was the Model T building class. They have a class that is free with admission where you are given a Model T in pieces and they show you how to build it. Here's a link:

http://www.thehenryford.org/events/buildAModelT.aspx

That's a picture of Quinlan my oldest son in front of JFK's limo (yes that's the final ride). That roof does come off to allow it to be a convertible. 

This picture is of my younger son Carleton with me in front of FDR's limo. I must say this one was my favorite. It's a beast to say the least, and you can guarantee it's probably 80% steel.

Ok well that concludes this weeks blog post. I will be back next week. From now until the new year, I will keep posting blogs like the above. Right now I am really just in the search and discover mode. The more I learn, the more I will post.

Tks Adam