One Truck's Pedigree, Part 1

The story of my 1931 Model A panel truck begins in Dearborn, Michigan, at Henry Ford's expansive River Rouge complex.

Construction on River Rouge began in 1917 and was completed in 1928. Building B (the Dearborn Assembly Plant) was used to build boats during WWI. The first automobile built here was the Model A in 1927. (The Model T was made in Ford's Highland Park plant.)

It was purchased by a plumber from Detroit at the Robert W. Ford's dealership at 13471 Michigan Avenue. The plumber was my grandmother's uncle, Tom. From the original catalog that came with the truck I gather he must have debated between the "Model A Panel Delivery" and the "Model A De Luxe Delivery." These two trucks are found, respectively, on pages 14 and 15 along with notes in scratched in pencil. The De Luxe, it seems, was going to cost him around $655. The panel truck was $590, but from the notes, it looks like he got it down to $525. He also annotated the measurements, possibly considering plumbing tools and odd supplies as he jotted down numbers.

Whether or not the final decision came down to dollars and sense, or a careful weighing of the practicalities of each vehicle, can't be known for certain, but in the end the panel delivery won the day.

Who Is Victor W. Pagé?

My favorite Model A repair book is the impressively titled Ford Model A Service Manual and Handbook of Repair and Maintenance by Victor W. Pagé. The copy I have is a 1961 reprint published by Floyd Clymer Publications. The original was published by the Norman W. Henley Publishing Co. in 1929, subsequently revised.

Apparently Mr. Pagé was quite prolific and was one of the first people to make a living writing and publishing technical material. He published thirty-three books over his career. For the book I have, pictured here, he took content provided by the Ford Motor Company and shaped with his own organizational genius. Having read a half dozen of the Model A manuals out there, no one has much improved on Pagé's original work.

Fixing a Leaky Dash

Replacing the gaskets on the gas gauge turns out to be a very simple process. Once you remove the instrument panel (four screws), it's simply a matter of removing the gauge and replacing the worn gaskets with new ones (a set of gaskets can be found at Snyder's Antique Auto Parts). They have cork gaskets, but I chose the neoprene. They are supposed to last longer, and even though I like working on the truck, how many times do I really want to replace gas gauge gaskets?

Along with gaskets, I needed a set of tools specially made for the task of removing gauge itself. The shorter tool is for the inner nut while the longer tool is for the outer nut.

The removal went easy enough. Once the outer nut is removed, the whole thing comes out as one unit—cork, arm, and all.

Putting it all back together was straight forward, though it was a bit tricky getting the new gaskets in place. The old gaskets were much thinner. I am not sure if that's because the originals were thinner or these were compressed over time. In either case, there are two smaller gaskets that sandwich the round glass plate. Once they were in place, it was difficult getting the black plate to sit level while I tightened it down with the inner nut. In the end, I bent the plate a little and it all worked out fine.

Interestingly we've been working so much on the steering, now that the gas gauge is in place I haven't had a chance to fill up the tank to see if it worked. All the parts are in place to start 'er up this week, so hopefully I will be able to post good news on my first successful project a bit later.

Looking ahead blog-wise, I am hoping to share a little of the panel truck's pedigree, some Model A history, and anecdotes from our quest to straighten out our loose steering.

A Bit of a Gas

Last summer my wife's parents and grandparents were in town. It was finally my chance to show her dad and grandpa that I am not a complete slouch in the garage. One afternoon while everyone was napping, I started up the Model A and drove her up the street to the gas station to fill the tank. (No use showing off the car if there's not enough gas to take a turn around the block, right?)

The tank of the Model A is right up front and center. In fact, it is right there behind the dashboard. The gas gauge itself fits in a hole in the dashboard that opens directly to the tank. I learned on the drive home from the gas station that when the gaskets on the gas gauge wear out, the gas simply flows freely down the dash, and in my case, all over my legs. As I drove the block from the gas station to my house, getting a little heady with the fumes, I started thinking about how all that separates the driver from the engine is a half inch of plywood.

Anyhow, I got the car back in the garage and started looking for a piece of hose to siphon the gas. I've never siphoned gas before, but I have a gist of the concept (suck until you get a mouthful and then plunge the hose into a bucket, placed somewhat lower than the tank). It was about then that my father-in-law woke up and saw me hopping around the backyard. I had just decided to shorten my garden hose by six feet, and I was looking for a bucket when I turn to see everyone coming outside to see what I am up to. Not the impression I was hoping to make.

It worked out in the end. My wife's dad had plenty of experience with a siphoning hose, and we had the excess gas drained off quick enough. We were even able to get the truck out on the road for a little bit (once the gas is below the gauge, there was no more leaking).

I fixed the gauge earlier this summer. I will share more about that later.

The Model A panel truck has been in my family for years. Here it is before Grandpa had it all restored nice in the 80s. My sister and I are sitting on the fenders.