Go Back   The Ford Barn > General Discussion > Model A (1928-31)

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 01-03-2019, 07:28 PM   #1
foxfire42
Senior Member
 
foxfire42's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: AZ and WA
Posts: 764
Default ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

I have an original fan belt. The seller said it was only good for display purposes since it is rather stiff. Is there any process that will soften the belt up enough to use it in the restored class of judging?
foxfire42 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-03-2019, 07:55 PM   #2
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Senior Member
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Eastern Tennessee
Posts: 11,485
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Barb, as you are probably aware, they generally can be soaked in boiling water to soften them. They were originally made out of natural rubber, -and not synthetic so maybe the stiffness is due to the glue that is adhering the cloth outer layer?
__________________
.

BRENT in 10-uh-C
.
www.model-a-ford.com
...(...Finally Updated!! )

.
BRENT in 10-uh-C is offline   Reply With Quote
Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)
Old 01-04-2019, 01:36 AM   #3
Mike V. Florida
Senior Member
 
Mike V. Florida's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: South Florida
Posts: 14,054
Send a message via AIM to Mike V. Florida
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Go to youtube and look up "Rubber Softening Experiment"
__________________
What's right about America is that although we have a mess of problems, we have great capacity - intellect and resources - to do some thing about them. - Henry Ford II
Mike V. Florida is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2019, 08:37 AM   #4
WHN
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Connecticut Shoreline
Posts: 1,815
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Rubber degrades with age. Bacteria and fungi along with drying out will make it useless. I think that it will break if given any tension.

NOS fan belt, hang it on the wall.
WHN is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2019, 10:45 AM   #5
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Senior Member
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Eastern Tennessee
Posts: 11,485
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by WHN View Post
Rubber degrades with age. Bacteria and fungi along with drying out will make it useless. I think that it will break if given any tension.

NOS fan belt, hang it on the wall.

Not really an option in this scenario.
__________________
.

BRENT in 10-uh-C
.
www.model-a-ford.com
...(...Finally Updated!! )

.
BRENT in 10-uh-C is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2019, 11:03 AM   #6
Bruce Remington
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Posts: 85
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)
I had an original NOS fan belt that I bought for my fine point 29 Town Sedan for fine point judging, at a swap meet that I paid $5.00 for. Never ran it on the car as it would have just exploded it was that stiff. Put it on before judging and took it off after. Hard to believe but I sold it for $500 after I was done with it, It is one of the hardest original parts to find if doing a fine point car. Bruce Remington
Bruce Remington is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-04-2019, 11:45 AM   #7
larrys40
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: St Charles , Missouri
Posts: 1,994
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Barb,
you might ask Arlyn Bieber... I know from personal experience he's done/tried various things to make them work and obviously has in his fine point experience.

I will never forget when his original hershey purchased radiator hoses fell out of his cooler from my van onto the ground and began rolling down the road on our hershey trip one year. We all had a good laugh ( all but him) and fortunately the hoses survived. OK to mention that if you chat with him. He will chuckle.
Larry Shepard
larrys40 is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2019, 08:01 AM   #8
BILL WILLIAMSON
Senior Member
 
BILL WILLIAMSON's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: FRESNO, CA
Posts: 12,560
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Some things are better STIFF!!
Bill Fun
__________________
"THE ASSISTANT GURU OF STUFF"
BILL WILLIAMSON is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2019, 11:36 AM   #9
Dutie
Senior Member
 
Dutie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2016
Location: Kingston N>Y>
Posts: 121
Wink Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by BILL WILLIAMSON View Post
Some things are better STIFF!!
Bill Fun
I can tell Bill is feeling much better, keep up the good work Bill...... Dutie !
Dutie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2019, 11:27 AM   #10
Tinbasher
Senior Member
 
Tinbasher's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Innisfil, Ontario Canada
Posts: 1,173
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Us a mixture of 50% Glycerin and 50% liquid dish soap, mix it up and soak the rubber part in it. It will soften up the rubber and make it easier to put on and off with less chance of the fan belt breaking. I still don't think I run it on this belt though. I'd keep it for showing. My father use to fly free flight rubber power model airplanes and this is what they used to lubricate the rubber ban motors. I've used it for years to bring back rubber parts that you can't get. It just takes time for the liquid to soak into the hard rubber. (3 to 6 weeks) Give it a try and see what you think. Hope it helps. JP
Tinbasher is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2019, 11:41 AM   #11
katy
Senior Member
 
katy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Red Deer, Alberta
Posts: 5,007
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by foxfire42 View Post
I have an original fan belt. The seller said it was only good for display purposes since it is rather stiff. Is there any process that will soften the belt up enough to use it in the restored class of judging?
I have heard that wintergreen oil is good for that.

Quote:
Some things are better STIFF!!
Bill Fun
__________________
"THE ASSISTANT GURU OF STUFF"
Wishful thinking?
__________________
If you don't hear a rumor by 10 AM, start one!.
Got my education out behind the barn!
katy is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2019, 11:43 AM   #12
foxfire42
Senior Member
 
foxfire42's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: AZ and WA
Posts: 764
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

I see Bill Williamson is back to his old self..............LOL.................


Sounds like I have a couple options. I have some hard rubber parts laying round in junk boxes so perhaps I can experiment with those first.
foxfire42 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-06-2019, 01:13 AM   #13
Anthony1955
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2018
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 1
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Where can I get a Red fan belt for my 31 coupe?
Anthony1955 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-06-2019, 07:33 AM   #14
Steve Plucker
BANNED
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Walla Walla, Washington USA
Posts: 6,066
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

If there was only a way to dye a black belt red, then you would have it!

Barb...Try some WD40 on those hard rubber parts.

Pluck
Steve Plucker is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-06-2019, 11:30 PM   #15
Mike V. Florida
Senior Member
 
Mike V. Florida's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: South Florida
Posts: 14,054
Send a message via AIM to Mike V. Florida
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Plucker View Post
If there was only a way to dye a black belt red, then you would have it!

Barb...Try some WD40 on those hard rubber parts.

Pluck

There is, From fordscript.com


If one looks closely at available factory photos taken in
the Model A era and compares the shading of the engine fan
belt to other rubber components, etc, he can not help but
conclude that they were different colors. Fortunately we have
been able to find enough documentation, photos and NOS belts
to develop a special color agent to change your black, post-war
service (or modern replacement) fan belt to the correct brown.


B-108-P
Special fan belt coloring agent (it really does the job one that normal paints can't do)
$ 24.95/half pint


The color might be right but the materials used in the making of the belt would still be wrong.




__________________
What's right about America is that although we have a mess of problems, we have great capacity - intellect and resources - to do some thing about them. - Henry Ford II
Mike V. Florida is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2019, 01:37 PM   #16
oliverguy
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Reading PA
Posts: 241
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

I know it's all in good natured fun. Some day though the judging standards is going to have to be changed to except repro hoses and belts. There is no deduction for reproduction tires. Can you imagine what these belts and hoses will look like in another 50 years? Dryer than King Tut's loin cloth.
oliverguy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2019, 03:18 PM   #17
Mike V. Florida
Senior Member
 
Mike V. Florida's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: South Florida
Posts: 14,054
Send a message via AIM to Mike V. Florida
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by oliverguy View Post
I know it's all in good natured fun. Some day though the judging standards is going to have to be changed to except repro hoses and belts. There is no deduction for reproduction tires. Can you imagine what these belts and hoses will look like in another 50 years? Dryer than King Tut's loin cloth.
When no one shows up with them on their cars for judging then it will change. As long as some still have originals the rules will not change. (ie. tires)
__________________
What's right about America is that although we have a mess of problems, we have great capacity - intellect and resources - to do some thing about them. - Henry Ford II
Mike V. Florida is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2019, 03:29 PM   #18
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Senior Member
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Eastern Tennessee
Posts: 11,485
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by oliverguy View Post
I know it's all in good natured fun. Some day though the judging standards is going to have to be changed to except repro hoses and belts. There is no deduction for reproduction tires. Can you imagine what these belts and hoses will look like in another 50 years? Dryer than King Tut's loin cloth.

Playing Devil's Advocate with you, ...Yes, reproduction tires can & do get point's deductions. Show up with a set of Lesters or Universals and see what happens. Even Firestones.


50 years, if no one has the correct hoses or belt, then everyone in competition that day will lose the same amount of points in those two areas. In 50 years from now, I would expect someone will be able to take a regular fan belt and glue cloth onto it and dye the fabric where it will mimic the original. The same with hoses. Look at how far we have come within the past two decades on camouflaging reproduction parts where they will pass in F/P adjudication.
__________________
.

BRENT in 10-uh-C
.
www.model-a-ford.com
...(...Finally Updated!! )

.
BRENT in 10-uh-C is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-07-2019, 05:13 PM   #19
California Travieso
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Moreno Valley, CA
Posts: 940
Send a message via Yahoo to California Travieso
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by oliverguy View Post
I know it's all in good natured fun. Some day though the judging standards is going to have to be changed to except repro hoses and belts. There is no deduction for reproduction tires. Can you imagine what these belts and hoses will look like in another 50 years? Dryer than King Tut's loin cloth.
Maybe the Judges will just be like the referees in the NFL and NBA, e.g, pretend they didn't see it.

Wayne Carini on the Velocity Channel (now Motor Trend) found a Stutz Bearcat in an old garage, cleaned it up, took it to the Peeble Beach Concourse d' Elegance and entered it in the Presevation Class. I'm not sure if he changed the fan belt but I think he ran it with the original tires and won. They did cheat because they didn't want to take the gas tank off to clean it so they hid a fuel cell where the judges couldn't see it.

David Serrano
California Travieso is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-08-2019, 09:57 AM   #20
BRENT in 10-uh-C
Senior Member
 
BRENT in 10-uh-C's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Eastern Tennessee
Posts: 11,485
Default Re: ORIGINAL FAN BELT restoration?

Quote:
Originally Posted by California Travieso View Post
Maybe the Judges will just be like the referees in the NFL and NBA, e.g, pretend they didn't see it.

Funny thing David, that seems to be a mutual prayer amongst all Fine Point entrants on 'Judgment Day'.
__________________
.

BRENT in 10-uh-C
.
www.model-a-ford.com
...(...Finally Updated!! )

.
BRENT in 10-uh-C is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements)


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 11:34 AM.