Failure to remove all the old gasket material would result in a bad seal once the pan is bolted back up to the engine.  Any little bit of old gasket material would leave a bump in the new gasket and the troublesome oil leak would follow.  In the photo below you can see a couple of pieces of the old gasket stuck to the pan that weren't evident until I wiped the pan with a rag.

Once the pan was bolted back in place it was time to add the oil.  The Model T engine is a "splash" system, since there is no oil pump.  The transmission is not separate, so oil sits in the bottom and when the engine is running it is flung around by the moving parts.  The cutaway internet photo below shows the transmission behind the main block (behind the flywheel). 

Because there is no oil pump, there is essentially no oil pressure.  Thus, it isn't crucial to have an exact number of quarts of oil.  Anywhere around four quarts is good.  If you plan to drive in a lot of hills, an extra quart doesn't hurt since oil runs to the back of the engine on hills.  There is no dipstick, so to check the oil level it is simply a matter of opening the upper petcock at the bottom of the engine case.  If oil drips out, then it is good to go. Sometimes the petcocks get plugged with gunk, so before I add oil I always poke something in it to clean it out.

Then it's time to add the oil.  Oil can be added using the spout on the engine, but whenever I have the transmission inspection cover off I pour it in there.  That way it adds extra oil to the transmission bands.

Once the oil is added and the oil gasket material is cleaned away, the inspection cover can be replaced with a new gasket.  

Anytime the bottom pan is removed and when dealing with oil, the job is messy.  The rest of the work coming up will be on the outside of the engine, so less mess.  And, the best part is I won't be crawling around on the cement floor.  It was a lot easier getting up off the floor in the years past when I was restoring Model T's.

Just one day more...

The first step is to remove the retaining nuts.  In the old days the caps were attached with standard bolts, which stretched over time.  When I restored Model T engines I would replace the factory bolts with aircraft grade bolts, which eliminated the stretch and one less problem of loose caps.  In the photo below you can see the gold colored shims before the cap was removed.  The cap ahead of it had silver colored shims, which tells me someone has gone through the same process at some time or another.  The cap in the middle of the photo below is one of the caps called the "main."  It attaches the crankshaft to the block and generally doesn't wear as quickly as the rod caps since it is fixed and doesn't go up and down with force like the connecting rods.

Once the cap is removed it exposes the crankshaft journal for inspection and the shims can be removed (I left them dangle for the photo).  It is a limited inspection, but is a good indication of any unusual wear patterns.

Each shim is layered and depending how much slack needs to be taken up, slivers of the shim can be peeled back with a razor blade.  Take off too much and the cap will be too tight when replaced.  Take off too little and the cap will still be too loose on the crankshaft journal.  Sometimes it is just a matter of testing and retesting for fit.

The Model T engine is very forgiving.  It lets you know when the connecting rods are too loose by making a knocking sound while driving.  Then, it is just a matter of dropping the pan cover, removing the caps and taking off a sliver of shim on each cap.  

Just one day more...

I don't necessarily need to know that the meat we buy comes from Nebraska, however I sure do like knowing what country it comes from.  No offense Canada (and Mexico), but I still have a right know where the meat we buy comes from.

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Once again we wrestled the behemoth to a new spot.  Being much older this time I was certainly glad we had a tractor.  Nonetheless, it seemed much harder this time.

Another project out of the way and I can't help but wonder what my wife will find next.  I keep telling her I'm too old for that heavy work.  She's not convinced.

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Also, today the Court announced that same sex marriage is a constitutional right which must be recognized in all 50 states.

I don't generally watch Faux News and, in fact, have it blocked on our channels.  But, in the case of these two Supreme Court decisions I tuned into Faux News for just a few minutes to watch how they twisted the facts in the decisions and the crocodile tears.

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Next, I check the timer.  The Model T timer acts like a modern distributor, adjusting the timing.  It is quite utilitarian, in that there is a rod that goes from the steering column down to the timer so the driver can manually adjust the timing.  Right away it was obvious that it was one of the less expensive and problematic timers.

It is problematic because it has a roller system, (which you can see in the photo below after it was removed) that after time wears and eventually bounces, rather than making good contact.  When they are new they work fine, however they don't last long.  The alternative is a timer with fixed contacts, rather than a flapper or roller method.  That chintzy thing will be replaced.

Then, onto the transmission.  The Model T transmission was one of the first "automatic" transmissions, known as a planetary transmission.  It was two speeds forward and one speed back, which was activated by two bands.  The third band was a braking band.  The Model T did not have brakes, except for parking brakes on the rear which were activated by a hand lever.  I removed the transmission inspection cover to take a look and didn't see any problems.  The Model T transmission is generally trouble free if maintained, however when I restored my T's I also rebuilt the transmission.

Finally, underneath the car to remove the bottom pan cover.  

Removing the pan cover allows you to get a look at the pistons, crankshaft and rods from underneath, albeit somewhat limited.  The primary reason for the the pan cover though was so the connecting rods could be adjusted.  Unlike modern cars which have connecting rod bearings, the Model T had a bottom cap that attached the rods to the crankshaft. These caps, as well as the connecting rod had babbitt, which over time wears.  To take up the slack there are shims.  Back in the days of the Model T it was not uncommon for the engine to make a rattling sound, which everyone knew meant the rods were loose.  Some of the old timers would just advance the timing to make up the difference, until they finally concluded that the rods needed to be adjusted.  Sure enough, when I checked these rods, they were way loose.  I didn't notice any scoring in the cylinder walls, but no doubt the rings are worn and without removing the head I won't know for sure.  My friend doesn't want the head removed though.

I've given my friends a list of minimum parts that are required, which are also relatively inexpensive. There is still plenty to do to get this T running again, but I'm making progress.

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The first thing to get started is to get the radiator and headlights out of the way.  The radiator that is on the car is shot, so my friends provided a new(er) radiator to replace it.

Once the radiator is out of the way a closer inspection shows the amount of years of rust in the block. At the very least I should flush this rust out since chunks of it might plug the new radiator.  

The other concern I have, aside from the bad wiring, is the amount of carbon on the pistons.  To do the job right would require removing the head and scraping the carbon off the pistons.

I've sent an email to my friends to let them know of the concerns I have.  If it was up to me I would pull the engine and do a complete rebuild.  But, my friends want to have the car in a car show in August since it is 100 years old this year.  They are also way cheaper than I am (and, according to my wife I'm a bonafide tightwad), so no doubt they will tell me to just put the other radiator on and call it good.

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The Model T was a relatively easy car to work on and I took every part off the cars and rebuilt the engines /transmissions.  I really loved working on these cars and there was a sense of pride after taking them down to the last nut and bolt and putting them back to original condition.  I was very careful to restore them just like they left the factory, without modern conveniences like distributors. 

Back to the story...

Today my friends brought over a 1915 Model T that needs work to get it running.  It is what is called a "brass era" car because of the brass radiator and trim that was used by Ford on the early Model T's.

The car is now tucked away in our barn, waiting for me to give it some repairs.

It's a good feeling to have a Model T sitting around again.  This 1915 Model T Touring car is 100 years old and needs work.  We'll see if I still have the skill to get this jewel running again.

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After the step plate is removed the upper trim has to be removed and the vent has to be loosened from the belt cover.

Once all of this is out of the way the belt cover can be removed to expose the drive belt.

The belt appeared to be in reasonably good shape, however it is likely original to the ATV.  

While the belt wasn't extremely worn and wasn't cracked anywhere, it did show some wear.

I decided to spin off the belt to inspect it closer.

Some would just put the belt back on, figuring it was good enough to go a few more miles. Considering it is likely original to the ATV with 8000 miles on it, I decided to replace it with a new one and keep the old belt as a spare.  I phoned to the local Polaris dealer and the cost for a new belt is $70.  A little pricey, however that's better than being out in the boondocks with a broken belt.

It's a bit of extra work, but more preventative maintenance that should pay off in the long run.  Just another retirement project here on the farm.  Thanks Tom for reminding me to check it.

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