Sanding and Painting

For the past few weeks I have working on restoring the Model T coil box. This is the box that houses four ignition coils . The original box I got with the car was in pretty rough shape. It was missing the lid and it didn't have a key. The wood backing was warped which was typical of these boxes. Warping was caused by water leaking in behind the firewall (usually from the windshield). I have ordered plastic to replace the backing to prevent future warping.

In the mean time I was able to purchase a lid for a "Chuck's Antiques" on eBay. He lives in Illinois, and sells used old car parts. The lid was rusty, but the metal was straight so it was perfect for restoring. I have sanded down the box/lid and repainted them in black. I also bought a key and a nice ignition plate.

Now ain't that a thing of beauty! This will be sitting just under the steering wheel when the car is complete.

The back of this box will have the new plastic backing installed. Inside this box is the ignition coils. I currently have three coils ( I need four). Two of the coils I have are rebuilt with new capacitors, and the other one needs rebuilding. I plan on just buying four new coils and keeping these as back ups. The wood on all these coils is in rough shape.

In addition to working on the coil box, I have been able to put more of the actual car together.  As you can see from the pictures below I have added the cherry wood firewall to the frame. The side oil lamps have also been added. The headlights still need restoring, I just added them to see what they look like on the car. I also added the brass horn to the firewall.

This shot just shows where the front seat area will be. You will notice the hand break on the left side. This is for parking and also puts the transmission in neutral. It's all screwed in and ready to go, there are two brake rods that attach to the rear drum breaks which engage the parking break. The round hole in the firewall is where the steering column will be installed.

Here is a shot of the rear end of the car. You will notice the battery box from the 21 Model T in my last blog post. I sanded this down and painted it black, it looks good.  

I am still working on the wheel's, they are taking a little longer than I expected. That being said I feel confident that I will be rolling this frame out of my garage in the spring.  Once the wheels are on I can place the wood body frame back on the car. 

Updates:

Engine Head - I sent the head out for machining last year. The head has been machined, but has really deep pitting in the metal.  I am in the process of trying to find a new one.

Radiator - I sent the rad out to Phillips Rad in Kitchener at the end of January. I am waiting to hear back, but it's not looking good. The rad has been modified, so I don't know if it can be restored. A brand new rad is $1200 usd. If I can't get my rad fixed for less than $500 I will just buy a new one. 

That's it for now, 

Tks Adam