The Ford Barn

BILL WILLIAMSON · 01-08-2014, 02:08 PM

On an old Chev. truck, a friend suspended a hairdryer under the dash & one under the hood, ran the cords out through the grille. When parking, he'd just plug in a cord from a timer set to go on at 5:00AM & drive to work in COMFORT!
Bill W.

29Cabriolet · 01-08-2014, 02:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BILL WILLIAMSON

When I was young, it was common to have blankets in the cars during the winter. Even if the car had a heater, it wasn't very effective. Bill W.

Just as we wonder how folks tolerated traveling back then, they were grateful and surely must have wondered how the generation before tolerated travel on horse and buggy!

BILL WILLIAMSON · 01-08-2014, 04:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 29Cabriolet

Just as we wonder how folks tolerated traveling back then, they were grateful and surely must have wondered how the generation before tolerated travel on horse and buggy!

29,
Chief told me that not much happened down in the country & they'd walk or ride a horse for miles through the woods to a dance, in a cold old barn, over behind Pritchett's Store! If they got TOO cold walking home, sometimes they would build a fire, warm up, & go on again. That area didn't even have electricity until 1954!
BUT, them KRAZY folks would go Possum or Coon huntin' on the COLDEST of NIGHTS, go figger???
Bill W.

jrelliott · 01-08-2014, 04:57 PM

TDO get a Halogen bulb they put off a lot of heat. Use to do the drop light trick in my VW beetle engine compartment when it sat out in CO. Our son cooped two winters just below Deluth, MN and had coolant heater in his car that was plugged in at night and when he got to work at Potlatch. One morning there in Cloquete, MN without the wind-chill factro was -50 degrees. He said it was nippy.

steve s · 01-08-2014, 05:22 PM

When I first got my A in 1960 (see photo in "too cold" thread), on the coldest nights I needed to take the starter off and keep it in the house at night. Leaking rear main got oil on the bendix drive, which would then congeal and keep the gear from slinging out--just whirred uselessly. Then, a piece of cardboard in front of radiator to help motor stay warm. I can tell you it was darned cold fingers putting that starter on laying out in the snowy driveway bef0re I could drive to school. Especially, when a nut or wrench would get dropped in the snow!

Steve

29ModelA · 01-08-2014, 07:36 PM

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My dad tells me about lighting a small bonfire under the engine pans of the tractors in the cold winters. I would not be surprised if my grandfather did that to his A too.

markyb · 01-08-2014, 07:58 PM

My neighbor in Michigan on his way to the monthly club meeting about 8 miles away, too bad I have a bad cold and couldn't ride along (a perfect excuse maybe?) I think it was 4 degrees outside as I took this picture. Our streets are covered with snow and ice and the tires on the T never slipped a bit unlike our modern cars. By the wAy, no heater or roof on this car...

Dick Webber · 01-08-2014, 11:15 PM

Back in the day, about 1963 when my 29 tudor was my daily driver I lived in Menasha WI. Coldest day I ever saw was -35. My modern car (1960 Ford) wouldn't start, but the Model A did, and it got me to work that day.

QGolden · 01-09-2014, 12:08 AM

These were pretty popular here in Northern New England, still see them all over the place. They were placed under the engine to warm it. Probably burned down a garage or two.

southfork · 01-09-2014, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J Franklin

TDO, what will you do when you can't buy an incandescent 100 watt bulb anywhere?

There not still considering banning the 100W bulbs in the US of A are they???

29ModelA · 01-09-2014, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by southfork

There not still considering banning the 100W bulbs in the US of A are they???

Already been done, 60W and others that are not high efficiency are also done by October IIRC

a banger · 01-09-2014, 01:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by QGolden

These were pretty popular here in Northern New England, still see them all over the place. They were placed under the engine to warm it. Probably burned down a garage or two.

Looks like those old time road flares , I've heard folks used those too

johnsor · 01-09-2014, 01:25 PM

It was -28 in northern Wisconsin most of this past week. That, and this thread reminds me of growing up in northern Minnesota and getting my Dad's big straight eight 39 Packard started in routine sub zero temperatures. We brought the 6 volt battery in the house the night before and placed a 100 watt light bulb next to the engine overnight. You had to be careful how you pumped the gas pedal as you only got one chance.

BILL WILLIAMSON · 01-09-2014, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by a banger

Looks like those old time road flares , I've heard folks used those too

Worked part time in a friends garage, heated by a SMUDGE POT, used to heat orange groves, & fired with DIESEL-----COUGH, WHEEEZE, GAGAHHG
Bill W.

SeaSlugs · 01-09-2014, 05:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BILL WILLIAMSON

On an old Chev. truck, a friend suspended a hairdryer under the dash & one under the hood, ran the cords out through the grille. When parking, he'd just plug in a cord from a timer set to go on at 5:00AM & drive to work in COMFORT!
Bill W.

my coworker does this with his s10 and a space heater...so jealous haha i dont have a nearby electrical outlet to use...

Keith True · 01-09-2014, 06:55 PM

When I started working on equipment I would always get elected to do the nasty work getting machines started on cold days.I was the youngest,so I got to horse the 100 pound batteries around.I got to light the fires under the tractors,dozers,trucks and skidders.The old guys,(they were maybe 40 back then)would sit in the trucks and yell what they wanted me to do.More fire,less fire,more under the transmission,or if I got the engine started I would have to move the fire back to heat the rest of the machine up.I've been visiting a bunch of those old boys in the last few days where they have been hanging around a coffee shop during the cold snap.When I get there they start telling stories about how I used to shovel holes in the snow to get under the machines,light a fire,hook jumpers to a truck to give it a little boost.They said they would get tired just watching me.I'm still kind of doing it,but just a little more efficiently.I have an exhaust hose that I hook to the truck,poke at the side of a block and let run for a while.I have a generator and a torpedo heater that works great.I have a couple of magnetic block heaters that I clap on the sides of the pan that I run off the generator for an hour.Modern equipment starts much better than the old stuff.Old Perkins,Detroits,Internationals,Cummins,Budas,Ford s,Macks,and even some Caterpillars would just refuse to cooperate below 10 degrees.I had a gas Bobcat for 20 years that would refuse to start below 15 degrees.It was an air cooled engine,and just a little heat would wake it right up.I replaced it with a much newer Bobcat with a Kubota diesel in it.That machine started the other day when it was 1 degree outside.Of course the fuel jelled up after 3 minutes and would only idle,but I managed to load a few pallets with the forks.

QGolden · 01-09-2014, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 29ModelA

Already been done, 60W and others that are not high efficiency are also done by October IIRC

There are many exemptions to the new law. For instance specialty bulbs that produce heat or specific spectrums of light are excluded. Those 500 watt infra-red heating bulbs are here to stay. I use 300 watt incandescent bulbs in my shop, so I bought a bunch of them, only to find out that they are one of the exemptions, as are standard brass based "rough service" bulbs.

TDO · 01-09-2014, 08:24 PM

Keith, When I worked for CONSOL coal as a mechanic on the coal tipple, when the temp. got down to around 10 degrees we just left the dozers run, and any diesel engines run. just shut down to check oil and fill with fuel. Seen them run for months at a time.

BILL WILLIAMSON · 01-10-2014, 09:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TDO

Keith, When I worked for CONSOL coal as a mechanic on the coal tipple, when the temp. got down to around 10 degrees we just left the dozers run, and any diesel engines run. just shut down to check oil and fill with fuel. Seen them run for months at a time.

TDO,
Years back on them OOOOLD Caterpillars, it was a challenge jist to crank them FUSSY old 2 cylinder STARTING engines that cranked the BIG engine
Bill W.

Keith True · 01-10-2014, 10:33 PM

My old D6 has a two cylinder opposed engine across the back of the engine,over the flywheel housing.It has electric start though.The next size up,as in the D7's,have a two cylinder pony mounted on the side,kind of where a starter would go.(like you have pictured)There are still 3 or 4 of them in town here.I get them going when they decide to do a little land clearing.Those ponies start pretty good,but the cranks come up verticaly through the hood with a bevel gear to change the crank to horizontal.The problem is that crank is too that pre-cleaner on the air filter,I've sliced my knuckles a number of times on that thing.One thing they all did was to run the pony engine exhaust pipe right through the main engine intake manifold.Slick way of pre-heating the intake air.Also,once the pony is started,you can crank the main until the pony runs out of gas if you want.When it came to old diesels,Caterpillar was always head and shoulders above the rest at cold weather starting.Running trucks and equipment all night was commonplace around here in the winter.Both the tannery and sawmill ran their stuff all night during the winter.

01-08-2014, 02:08 PM	#21
BILL WILLIAMSON Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: FRESNO, CA Posts: 12,560	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days On an old Chev. truck, a friend suspended a hairdryer under the dash & one under the hood, ran the cords out through the grille. When parking, he'd just plug in a cord from a timer set to go on at 5:00AM & drive to work in COMFORT! Bill W. __________________ "THE ASSISTANT GURU OF STUFF"

01-08-2014, 04:57 PM	#24
jrelliott Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Pine, AZ Posts: 794	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days TDO get a Halogen bulb they put off a lot of heat. Use to do the drop light trick in my VW beetle engine compartment when it sat out in CO. Our son cooped two winters just below Deluth, MN and had coolant heater in his car that was plugged in at night and when he got to work at Potlatch. One morning there in Cloquete, MN without the wind-chill factro was -50 degrees. He said it was nippy.

01-08-2014, 05:22 PM	#25
steve s Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Kalamazoo Posts: 1,656	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days When I first got my A in 1960 (see photo in "too cold" thread), on the coldest nights I needed to take the starter off and keep it in the house at night. Leaking rear main got oil on the bendix drive, which would then congeal and keep the gear from slinging out--just whirred uselessly. Then, a piece of cardboard in front of radiator to help motor stay warm. I can tell you it was darned cold fingers putting that starter on laying out in the snowy driveway bef0re I could drive to school. Especially, when a nut or wrench would get dropped in the snow! Steve Last edited by steve s; 01-08-2014 at 05:42 PM.

01-08-2014, 07:36 PM	#26
29ModelA Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Owosso, MI Posts: 673	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days Sponsored Links (Register now to hide all advertisements) My dad tells me about lighting a small bonfire under the engine pans of the tractors in the cold winters. I would not be surprised if my grandfather did that to his A too. __________________ 1929 Model A Barn find. California car, just a few more parts to find. Interior, steering box (rebuild), and I am sure much more!

01-08-2014, 11:15 PM	#28
Dick Webber Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Bowling Green KY Posts: 337	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days Back in the day, about 1963 when my 29 tudor was my daily driver I lived in Menasha WI. Coldest day I ever saw was -35. My modern car (1960 Ford) wouldn't start, but the Model A did, and it got me to work that day.

01-09-2014, 01:25 PM	#33
johnsor Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Spooner, Wisconsin Posts: 242	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days It was -28 in northern Wisconsin most of this past week. That, and this thread reminds me of growing up in northern Minnesota and getting my Dad's big straight eight 39 Packard started in routine sub zero temperatures. We brought the 6 volt battery in the house the night before and placed a 100 watt light bulb next to the engine overnight. You had to be careful how you pumped the gas pedal as you only got one chance.

01-09-2014, 06:55 PM	#36
Keith True Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Epping N.H. Posts: 2,990	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days When I started working on equipment I would always get elected to do the nasty work getting machines started on cold days.I was the youngest,so I got to horse the 100 pound batteries around.I got to light the fires under the tractors,dozers,trucks and skidders.The old guys,(they were maybe 40 back then)would sit in the trucks and yell what they wanted me to do.More fire,less fire,more under the transmission,or if I got the engine started I would have to move the fire back to heat the rest of the machine up.I've been visiting a bunch of those old boys in the last few days where they have been hanging around a coffee shop during the cold snap.When I get there they start telling stories about how I used to shovel holes in the snow to get under the machines,light a fire,hook jumpers to a truck to give it a little boost.They said they would get tired just watching me.I'm still kind of doing it,but just a little more efficiently.I have an exhaust hose that I hook to the truck,poke at the side of a block and let run for a while.I have a generator and a torpedo heater that works great.I have a couple of magnetic block heaters that I clap on the sides of the pan that I run off the generator for an hour.Modern equipment starts much better than the old stuff.Old Perkins,Detroits,Internationals,Cummins,Budas,Ford s,Macks,and even some Caterpillars would just refuse to cooperate below 10 degrees.I had a gas Bobcat for 20 years that would refuse to start below 15 degrees.It was an air cooled engine,and just a little heat would wake it right up.I replaced it with a much newer Bobcat with a Kubota diesel in it.That machine started the other day when it was 1 degree outside.Of course the fuel jelled up after 3 minutes and would only idle,but I managed to load a few pallets with the forks.

01-09-2014, 08:24 PM	#38
TDO Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Enterprise, WV. Posts: 460	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days Keith, When I worked for CONSOL coal as a mechanic on the coal tipple, when the temp. got down to around 10 degrees we just left the dozers run, and any diesel engines run. just shut down to check oil and fill with fuel. Seen them run for months at a time.

01-10-2014, 10:33 PM	#40
Keith True Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Epping N.H. Posts: 2,990	Re: ya its' cold but what about the old days My old D6 has a two cylinder opposed engine across the back of the engine,over the flywheel housing.It has electric start though.The next size up,as in the D7's,have a two cylinder pony mounted on the side,kind of where a starter would go.(like you have pictured)There are still 3 or 4 of them in town here.I get them going when they decide to do a little land clearing.Those ponies start pretty good,but the cranks come up verticaly through the hood with a bevel gear to change the crank to horizontal.The problem is that crank is too that pre-cleaner on the air filter,I've sliced my knuckles a number of times on that thing.One thing they all did was to run the pony engine exhaust pipe right through the main engine intake manifold.Slick way of pre-heating the intake air.Also,once the pony is started,you can crank the main until the pony runs out of gas if you want.When it came to old diesels,Caterpillar was always head and shoulders above the rest at cold weather starting.Running trucks and equipment all night was commonplace around here in the winter.Both the tannery and sawmill ran their stuff all night during the winter.