My brother's new project...

[Zaedock]

I helped my brother drag home his latest project: a 1940 Ford COE.

The kingpins and steering were freed up and the tires actually held air.

We dropped it back down with a forklift and I winched it on to my trailer.

My brother drives an older GMC, but it seemed more appropriate to have my Ford drive it home.

The plan is a full resto. He should have the cab off in a couple of weeks and I'll be rebuilding the engine this summer. I didn't have time to walk the yard (had to meet a guy to sell an axle), but he had a LOT of stuff and I'm looking for an older engine (maybe a Wisconsin) to power my log splitter build. The guy has a lot of industrial stuff and diesel engines galore. I could get in trouble with the misses VERY easily if I started shopping around. LOL!

 

[Coprolite]

Looks like he has a lot of spare time on his hands.

I'd love to see updates along the way.

 

[oilboy123]

Very cool. Hope the resto goes well. Yes keep us updated......

 

[JimPghPA]

Stoystown and Dons are two of the big junkyards here in Pennsylvania if you ever need hard to find parts. Stoystown has many people working for it, and they are very good at finding parts and shipping them out via UPS or what ever means required. Dons is big, and probably has older vehicles than Stoystown, but I don't know if Dons will pull the parts for you.

 

[JimPghPA]

BTW, is the original hydraulic or cable brakes on that 40 Ford? And will it be hydraulic or cable when it is restored?

And my guess would be that the steering is manual with no power assist.

I wonder how much slop is in that steering box, such as when you turn the steering wheel from one direction to the other how much slop in turning the wheel before the tires start to follow in the second direction?

 

[JimPghPA]

And is it going to be kept 6 Volt? And will it be equipped with a generator or an alternator?

I think the old voltage regulators for that era of vehicles consisted of a relay with a normally closed contact. The relay coil, spring tension, and gap that the magnetism works with are tuned so when the battery voltage is high enough the relay operates causing the normally closed contacts to open, so the generator stops producing power.

 

[JimPghPA]

The points of some of those old vehicles sometimes had a resistive wire in series to limit the current when the ignition is turned on and the points are closed without the engine turning.

 

[crazyoildude]

wow good luck that will be something very special one day

 

[daves87rs]

Very cool...tuning in for this one!

 

[Vikas]

You must be in Western Mass! Anywhere within 75 mile radius of Boston and something like this in the driveway means the neighbors would be on the phone to the town

 

[Zaedock]

Thanks guys!

Jim - I will pass the info along to my brother. Thank you very much! I did see a hydro assist unit plumbed in to the master cylinder. The electrical and such will remain 6V. I'll leave that mess up to my brother LOL. I'll be helping with rebuild and fab work (engine/tranny/body panels).

 

[Jarlaxle]

Ford went to hydraulic brakes in '39.

 

[SLCraig]

Awesome.
Brings a warm and tingly feeling to my heart seeing old iron get babied back to life.

 

[JimPghPA]

The concern about an older vehicle having a resistive wire is a general thing for old cars. I do not know if it applies to a 40 Ford. It may, or may not apply.

I saw an old DeSoda with a resistive wire in series with the points with a burning smell and a small amount of smoke coming from the resistive wire when the keys were left on and the engine was not turning. It scared the heck out of the owner (my dad), as he was not familiar with the way that ignition was wired.

The resistive wire is a big thing to know about. The resistance of the wire limits the amount of current that can flow when the ignition is on with the points closed and the engine is not turning, such as it someone put the key in and delays using the starter, or if the engine stalls such as running out of gas. If someone did not know about the resistive wire and they replaced that special wire with a regular wire, then if the ignition is turned on with the points closed and the engine is not turning, too much current will flow, and something will get burned up such as the coil, wires, or points burning up.

The resistive wire sometimes has to dissipate a lot of heat and will smoke some. Sometimes people think that the wire is burning, especially if that wire has not been heated up for a while and there is some greasy dirt on it.