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The Early Ford Registry Newsletter

A Chapter of The Model T Ford Club of America

Early Ford 1903-1909 Register affiliated with The Horseless Carriage Club of America

Volume 7 Issue 4 Winter 2009

2009 1903-1909 Early Ford Registry Newsletter Volume 7 Issue 4 page 1

President’s Message – Winter 2009 by Carl Pate, EFR 91

As the fall deepens, leaves fall, the temperature gets colder and winter approaches,

we begin to put our cars to rest and start any repairs needed to get them ready for

next season. For those in the southern hemisphere, they are beginning to get ready

to pull their cars out of the garage for a new season.

It's time to elect three members of the Board of Directors. It is at this point that

members need to be reminded to get involved in the organization – it belongs to all

members not the directors. As more hands get involved in the organization, the

work for all gets lighter and more ideas are put forth to make the organization

better. Our goal is to make sure that the Early Ford Registry is the best antique car

organization. By helping owners and those interested in Early Ford cars, we expand the knowledge and

interest of all and indirectly the value of our cars (though that is not why we bought them or get

involved). In the past, people have thought that the Ford Motor Company started with the Model T and

Ford cars were not appreciated for what they are and did. Many of the early models were forgotten.

With more information available, those thoughts have been dispelled. Membership has increasing each

year and it is now at an all time high, many people want to “get on for the ride”. If you do not have time

to get involved in the organization, you can “get the word out” to kids and adults.

From location and repair of parts, solving mechanical problems, helping others find what they need and

want, and the collection and sharing of historical information, you will find that the appreciation of

others is greater reward than all of your own personal projects. Above all, remember communication is

the key to our success.

Due to the efforts of some members, membership in the club has increased considerably and the ability

to get and share information has grown world-wide. The organization is meeting its goals and will

continue to get even better with more people involved. The forgotten Fords are no longer forgotten …

Above all, get and keep your early Ford car(s) running ….

If you know of someone who is interested in joining the organization, we have a brochure on the website

that you can print out and it is possible for a perspective member to sign up on-line.

If you are entering winter, stay safe and save up for next year;

if it's almost summer , drive safe ….

Carlton Pate

EFR President

2009 The 1903-1909 Early Ford Registry Newsletter page 2

Volume 7 Issue 4

2009 The 1903-1909 Early Ford Register Newsletter Volume 7 Issue 4 page 2

Secretary-Treasurer’s Report by Dave Dunlavy, EFR41

It's interesting to note that 4 out of the last 10 new members are from outside the United States of

America. All ten have Email addresses so we can keep them up to date by Email and the website. The

Email addresses keep our dues low.

We are continuing the practice of mailing Board of Director's Ballots and

Dues Notices. A stamped return envelope is included to remit your dues and

ballot. The rate of voting and dues payment was over 80 percent last year. The

ballot must be returned by December 15th in order to count in the election. If

you write your check and complete your ballot when you receive it, it makes

everybody happy, especially the Secretary-Treasurer.

Please note, on the dues notice, we've added an area where you may make a

monetary donation to the Richard Oswald Memorial Restoration Project.

These donations are Tax Deductable because we have a 501(c)3 status. Just

check the box and we will send you a Tax Exempt Receipt you can file as a

charitable contribution on your taxes.

We are coming close to our goal of having a running Model N car owned by your Registry. Parts and

services are also needed. Please Email or call Jerry Van Ooteghem ([email protected] -

313.881.2813) or Norm Bolz ([email protected] - 313.881.0042) to see what they need.

Overseas members will receive an Email with instructions on voting and will vote by Email. We request

overseas members to pay their Dues with

PayPal. We don't charge them extra for that

service. PayPal may be used to send

momentary contributions to the Restoration

Project also.

We will be ending the year with the Treasury

in the black. The cost of printing the

approximately 40 Newsletters that are mailed

each quarter is less than half what Staples

would charge. All printing is done in my

office.

If you have an idea or comment, please share

it with any of the Officers or Directors. Our

Board is a great bunch of people and deserves

your input to help make The 1903-1909 Early

Ford Registry the best single marquee

organization in the world.

Keep „em on the Road,

Dave Dunlavy

In This Issue.. President's Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 1

Secretary-Treasurer's Report . . . . . . page 2

Hershey Meet & Greet . . . . . . . . . . . page 3

Ford in Britain before Model T . . page 4-10

Tours Swap Meets and Events . . . . page 11

The Technical Corner . . . . . . . . . . . page 11

Candidates Board of Directors . page 12-14

Ford Model B's . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 14

For Sale/Wanted . . . . . . . . . . . . page 15-16

We welcome member submitted stories, pictures,

technical and restoration articles as well as For Sale and

Wanted listings. You may send items either by mail or

Email. Photographs may be returned if requested.

This newsletter is published 4 times each year.

Publication dates are February 15, May 15, August 15

and November 15. Items submitted must arrive by the

first day of those months.


Volume 7 Issue 4


Hershey - Meet and Greet by Carl Pate EFR 91

The annual Fall Meet &

Great at the Hershey

Swap Meet and Show

was sponsored by Anne

and Carl Pate. 40 to 50

people attended to share

stories and enjoy

refreshments provided.

It was great to see many

old friends again and

share information and stories after a long winter and wet

summer (in the eastern US) … During one conversation a

member thought that his dues helped support the annual

Hershey event… The member was told that no money

from EFR has been used to support the Hershey Meet &

Greet. Since the two Early Ford organizations were

combined, the event has been sponsored by “The Pate

Family”.

This year all those attending were surprised with the

arrival of some other early Ford cars that made it to

Hershey this year … Tom Schell stopped with his 1909

Model T Touring (#7998). Manny and Neil Rein brought

their 1909 Ford Model T (2 lever #131) that they

purchased in July 2009.

Carl made some announcements –

There have been some requests on the internet

forum for the creation of a video on “how to”

especially for the 2 cylinder cars. Please let Carl

know what information they would like to be

included in the video.

Parts are for sale… two crankshafts for Model A

engines and a Model F engine / Paul (cell phone

number is 570 263 3044), Pistons / Don Tyler, and

other parts / Floyd Jaehnert

Dorothy Grace, who made the trip across the US this

summer, was there with pictures of her trip.

We had five members from England make the long trip

and we were able to confirm the correct serial number for

one owner‟s car and to determine who the car was sold to

in 1906. We hope they are all able to return next year.

Carlton Pate

The 1903-1909 Early Ford Registry, Inc.

Officers** President

Carl Pate EFR 91 (2007-2009)

Phone 860.633.2052

Email [email protected]

Vice-President

Paul Schaefer EFR 93 (2009-2011)

Phone 330.483.4128


Secretary-Treasurer

Dave Dunlavy EFR 41 (2008-2010)

Phone 563.387.3736 - Cell 952.237.9131


Technical Research Coordinator

Hap Tucker EFR 59 (2008-2010)

Phone 803.469.7792


2-cyl Technical Research Coordinator

Carl Pate EFR 91 (2007-2009)

Phone 860.633.2052


Chairman, Restoration and Preservation

Committee

Jerry VanOoteghem EFR 95 (2007-2009)

Phone 313.881.2813


Directors*

John W. Biggs, EFR 2 (2009-2011)

Phone +44.1844.343161


Richard DeCarli EFR 125 (2009-2011)

Phone 707.654.1932 - Cell 707.762.4511


Floyd Jaehnert EFR 34 (2008-2010)

Phone 651.776.9859 - Work 612.331.5512


Paul Mikeska, EFR 168 (2008-2009)

Phone 303.463.1987


Newsletter Editor

Dave Dunlavy EFR 41


Internet Web Design

Dave Dunlavy EFR 41


*Directors are elected by the general membership

for a period of three years.

**Officers are elected by the Board of Directors

annually.

mailto:[email protected]













Volume 7 Issue 4


Featured Article

Editors Note: John W. Biggs, EFR 2 and Board Member, sent us this excellent article. It is lengthy but

well worth the time it takes to read because it presents a detailed history of how Ford Automobiles came

to Great Britain. John sent the following introduction:

"The following article appeared in the May 2009 edition of “The Automobile” magazine, the only

British magazine that features cars from 1890 to the 1950s. Their website is www.the-automobile.co.uk

The article is reproduced here by kind permission of the magazine and the writer of the piece, David

Burgess-Wise. David is a respected motoring journalist and author who spent several years as the

Historian for Ford Motor Company in UK until that position was abolished. He was inspired to write

this article as a result of reading and reviewing Carl Pate‟s Early Ford Encyclopedia for the magazine."

Ford in Britain before the Model T by David Burgess-Wise

Though so much in the early history

of the British motor industry springs

from the activities of that plausible

rogue Harry J Lawson, it is still a

little surprising to discover that he

was - though he probably never

realised it - indirectly responsible for

the birth of Ford of Britain. One day

in 1896, the year in which he

founded the Daimler Motor

Company, he placed an

advertisement in the Birmingham

Post for a young man `willing to do

hard and useful work, drudgery if

necessary' for £1 a week at his

London offices. To an ambitious 18

year old named Percival Perry, this

offered an escape from the boredom

of his poorly-paid job in the offices

of local solicitors Rank & Co, so he raised the necessary 9s Sd (£0.45) to buy the cheapest available

railway ticket to London - the so-called third class `Parliamentary' that stopped all the way - by selling

his stamp collection.

His new employer was the British Motor Syndicate, based at 40 Holborn Viaduct, which Harry Lawson

had set up in 1895 in collusion with the notorious company promoter Ernest Terah Hooley and with

Martin D Rucker, manager of the Humber Cycle Company, in an effort to gain monopoly over the

coming motor industry by paying vast sums for `master patents'. The idea was that any firm starting to

make motor cars would be compelled to pay the Syndicate a substantial royalty. The first step in

Lawson's master plan had been the take-over of the Daimler Motor Syndicate, founded in 1892 by

Frederick R Simms to import Daimler engines from Germany, and its conversion into the Daimler Motor

Company - the first British company specifically organised to build motor cars - in January, 1896. (continued on page 5)

http://www.the-automobile.co.uk/


Volume 7 Issue 4


Ford in Britain before the Model T (continued from page 4)

Though Frederick Simms had advised buying an `oil engine' factory in Cheltenham as a base for the

Daimler Company's venture into car manufacture, Lawson had overridden his recommendation and

bought a former cotton mill in Coventry (which happened to belong to Terah Hooley) for £17,500.

Daimler shared the premises with Lawson's other operations, the Great Horseless Carriage Company, the

Beeston Tyre Syndicate, the British Motor Syndicate and Humber. Young Perry obviously spent some

time in Coventry absorbing the intricacies of the Lawson empire, for a photograph survives of him

dressed as a clown aboard a tricar built in the Motor Mills on the back of a Daimler lorry in the

procession that Coventry held to mark Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897.

He was accompanied by another of Lawson's bright young men,

Billy Letts (the future head of Willys-Overland-Crossley),

disguised as a fairy. `A fool can drive the Coventry Motette' said

the signboards on the side of the lorry - but Perry was nobody's

fool.

He obviously saw that the writing was on the wall for Lawson's

house of cards empire, and by 1898 he was in business for himself

in partnership with Montague Grahame-White and Charlie Rush,

selling motoring accessories. Three decades later he commented

to Grahame-White: "We were considered to be not only young but

very foolish in offering our careers upon such an unknown altar as

motor traction. In those days I know we both claimed, and I

believe it was a fact, that one or other of us was personally

acquainted with everyone in this country who owned or was

practically interested in a motor car."

Before long, Perry was off on another tack, giving riding lessons

with a De Dion-Bouton motor tricycle which he then rode from

London to Hull to spend time in his uncle's printing works -though

the main attraction was courting his future wife Catherine Meals,

daughter of the local postmaster.

By 1903, Perry was involved with the Westrumite company,

which manufactured a patent road-dressing compound that was

used to lay the dust on parts of the course of the 1903 Gordon

Bennett Race in Ireland. "Unfortunately," he declared, "Owing to

the fact that the whole of the sprinkling had to be done in a very

short time, and with the crudest of accessories, it appeared that

one particular patch was not properly treated... The work had to be

done at night, and in order to keep our Irishmen up to the mark it

was necessary to use the best materials to hand, namely whiskey,

with the result that at the end of the track two of the men, wishing

to get to bed, deliberately dumped down a half-barrel of

Westrumite in the middle of the road..." (continued on page 6)


Volume 7 Issue 4



And since Westrumite was an oily

substance supposed to be diluted with

95 per cent water, all the cars `slipped

slightly' as they traversed it...

In early 1904, Perry was said to be

working as a `motor expert', though

his name doesn't appear in the

classified advertisements section

dedicated to such people in The

Autocar. It is possible he might have

been collaborating with his old friend

Charlie Rush, who was operating as a

motor expert out of premises in the

Gray's Inn Road. Perry claimed he

was present when a new and unknown

model from America known as the

Ford `Silent Petrol Car' was uncrated

early in 1904. Where that was remains

a mystery, though a 1909 letter to The Garage and Motor Agent refuting Perry's claim to have

introduced the Ford car to the British market revealed that it could well have been in the London

warehouse of the Shippey Brothers' American Manufacturers Direct Supply Agency, which handled

British sales of the Toledo and Milwaukee steam cars, Pope petrol cars and Merkel motor cycles.

The story had really begun in June, 1903, when Charles H Bennett, president of the Daisy Air Rifle

Company, called at his tailor's in Detroit to have a new suit fitted. As the tailor primped and pinned,

Bennett boasted of the new Oldsmobile car he planned to buy. A head popped out of a changing booth:

"Pardon me, but have you heard about the new Ford car?" said the stranger, one Frank Malcomson,

whose wealthy coal merchant cousin Alexander Malcomson was the principal backer of Henry Ford's

new venture.

Bennett was taken to see Henry Ford and try a Ford Model A on the road. With two cylinders and wheel

steering, it was a far more substantial machine than the tiller-steered, single-cylinder `Curved Dash'

Olds, and Bennett was won over immediately . He pledged $5000 to help launch the new Ford Motor

Company, and when Ford asked for help in marketing his car outside the USA Bennett recommended

New York export agent Robert M Lockwood, who handled overseas sales of Daisy air rifles.

A short while after, Arthur Shippey, in New York on the look-out for new products for his agency,

called on Lockwood, thought the new Ford car had potential, and took two back to England to exhibit on

the stand of a subsidiary company, the American Motor Car Agency, at the March, 1904, Cordingley

Show in the Agricultural Hall, Islington. It's said that he negotiated `an unrestricted, but clearly not

exclusive' contract to sell Ford cars anywhere in Europe for an annual fee of £50.

There are rival claims for being first to bring the Ford to Britain. In March, 1904, the British Duryea

company advertised the Ford at £195 as a cheaper alternative to their Coventry-built version of the

American Duryea `power carriages'. (continued on page 7)


Volume 7 Issue 4



They were still awaiting delivery of their car a few days before the Agricultural Hall Show; it does not

seem to have been exhibited there. It has also been claimed that a Liverpool motor agency named Bibby

and Donkin, which principally dealt in London-built Talbot cars, actually made the first sale of a Ford

car in Britain.

This claim is supported by a photograph published in 1928 of what was described as the first Ford car

sold in Britain, a 1903 pattern Model A with the Liverpool registration K-362. There persists an

unconfirmed legend that the first Briton to buy a Ford was a Liverpool doctor specialising in the

teatment of wealthy lunatics.

Though the Ford car was not even mentioned in The Autocar's coverage of the Agricultural Hall Show,

it apparently caught the attention of Aubrey Blakiston, who was establishing a new sales agency. He

ordered a dozen Model As and traded shares in his new company for a 16-year lease of the American

Motor Car Agency's showrooms in Shippey's Central Emporium at 117-119 Long Acre, a London centre

of the coachbuilding and motor trade.

Robert Lockwood came to Europe in the summer of 1904 and found `no foreign car selling at a

moderate price, a good low-priced car being looked on as impossible by foreign manufacturers. The only

opening wedge for an American car was a low price without sacrifice of quality'.

In the autumn of 1904 Blakiston, who had a hard time selling those first Fords (probably not helped by a

total lack of advertising), organised a lunch at the Albemarle Club in London to discuss the future of his

company. Among his guests was Percival Perry, who had been called in to give a professional opinion of

the Ford car. Others present were Herbert Marmaduke Stourton (a relative of Lord Stourton and

Mowbray), Anthony Hasslacher (a partner in the Deinhard wine company whose wife was related to

Blakiston), banker C W Russell and R A Houghton. The result was the formation of the Central Motor

Car Company, which was incorporated on 18th November, 1904, with a capital of £10,000 to take over

Blakiston's business as a going concern with effect from 24th September, 1904. Blakiston got £900 in

cash (plus another £500 for the unexpired lease) and 426 fully-paid £1 shares and 520 oneshilling (Sp)

`founder shares' in the new enterprise.

Blakiston remained on the board, which also included Perry, Stourton and Russell, and who was soon

replaced by Houghton. However, business remained uncertain. In 1932 Roland Philip, who was

appointed company secretary on 19th April, 1905, recalled that "the dozens of times when disaster stared

us in the eyeball, when the inconvenient dozen or so Model As (first edition) would not leave us, but

returned inevitably to be polished and placed in the white showroom for another day, would have

undermined the courage of the hardiest... Thumbnail recollections of visitors to the showroom conjure

up pictures of those who called to examine our only model and, never pausing in their stride, walked

round it and passed straight out into Long Acre. Again, a day when we sold a 14 hp Model F, or another

occasion when we had two genuine enquiries on the same morning, left us delirious."

(continued on page 8)


Volume 7 Issue 4



Perry was obviously the driving force behind

the Central Motor Car Company, and his

attempts to boost its feeble sales were

ingenious. In March, 1905, the new four-

cylinder Model B was launched at the

Agricultural Hall Show, but there was a

distinct lack of purchasers, and a Model B

entered in the 800-mile 1905 Scottish

reliability trials failed to finish, retiring at

Pitlochry on the fourth day. Perry's solution

was to fit three Model B chassis with

landaulet bodywork and put them into

service as taxicabs in the forlorn hope that

those who rode in them as fare-paying

passengers might return as customers.

He had better luck with Model C, an

improved successor to Model A (which had

been uprated from 8 to l0hp in the spring of

1904) that proved itself by going through the

same Scottish trials with only one involuntary

stop, driven by Central's H A Bate. But sales

were still disappointing, and a mortgage for

£1500 was raised in May, 1906. That

summer, Blakiston, who had had enough,

resigned and Perry took over as managing

director. He took a liner to New York with

the intention of seeking support from Ford in

Detroit. In New York he met Lockwood and

Bennett before moving on to Detroit, where

the Ford board was in turmoil over policy.

Perry learned from Bennett that opinion was split between Henry Ford, who saw the future in building

popular low-priced cars, and his main backer Alexander Malcomson, who wanted to build expensive

luxury cars. Bennett, scenting trouble, was anxious to unload his shareholding, and offered Perry his 50

shares for $4000, a discount of 20 per cent. Perry was either unable or unwilling to purchase the shares,

which were ultimately acquired by Ford and his deputy James Couzens. When Henry Ford bought out

all the other shareholders in 1919, those shares would have been worth more than $655,000.

On arrival in Detroit, Perry called on the president of the Ford Motor Company, John S Gray, head of

the German-American Bank, who told him: "I guess you'll have to see Henry." Perry did just that,

arriving at Ford's Piquette Avenue plant by trolley-car. He found Henry Ford "a rather complicated

person with a streak of genius," whose vision of building `a car for the great multitude' appealed to the

English visitor. Ford invited Perry to stay with him and his wife Clara in their home in Harper Avenue,

where Perry had to race young Edsel Ford for the bathroom in the morning. (continued on page 9)


Volume 7 Issue 4



Perry and Ford became great friends, despite the 13-year difference in their ages, but no extra finance

was forthcoming. However, Perry did visit the Ford of Canada headquarters at Walkerville, a stone's

throw from Detroit on the opposite side of the Detroit River, where its boss Gordon McGregor, who had

bought the exclusive right to `make and sell automobiles within the Dominion and British Colonies',

waived his claim to a share of the United Kingdom market with the immortal words: "The rest of the

British Empire is enough for me."

Back in England, the Central Motor Car Company, boosted by a cash injection of £2500 from Perry's

friend Eric Byrner Schreiber, struggled on, selling the more expensive Russell and SCAR cars alongside

the new four-cylinder Ford Model N.

The company's stand at the 1906 London Motor Show attracted the attention of Scottish motor agents

Alexander & Co of Edinburgh, as Henry Alexander later recalled: "It was at Olympia that we first saw

Model N... There was a big ticket upon it proclaiming the high power and the low price ...We must

confess that from British pre-conceived notions it looked a dangerous proposition to take up, nor did it

appeal to us as by any means a model of beauty; but the more we looked at it the more interesting it

became.

Four cylinders. high power, light weight, the strongest and toughest of steel, no sliding gears, simplicity

of construction, etc, gave us talking points, and we then and there fixed up as selling agents for the

greater part of Scotland."

Three months later Henry Alexander helped organise the Scottish Cycle and Motor Exhibition in the

Waverley Market, Edinburgh. "A vacant place on our stand was waiting for Model N, hourly expected,

when there arrived outside the show in Princes Street two wearied and mud-bespattered travellers. They

had come on Model N, which was to be exhibited by us in the show. Before us stood he cheerful Bate,

now assistant manager of the Ford Motor Company (England) Limited. No sleep closed his eyes till duty

was done and the vacant place on our stand filled with the car. There it was after ploughing its way

through the slush of 400 miles without the slightest mishap."

Perry, Schreiber and Bernard Thornton put Central into liquidation early in 1907 and formed a new

company, Perry, Thornton & Schreiber Ltd, which operated temporarily out of the old Long Acre

premises before transferring operations to Westminster Bridge Road. The new company had just seven

employees - Joe Alexander, Fred Mitchell, Coppin, another man and three boys (one of whom was

named Blower). The change came at precisely the right moment: the Model N, which sold in England

for just 145 guineas (£152.25), proved popular, and Perry, Thornton & Schreiber sold 50 in the new

company's first year. At least one Model K - the big six-cylinder car that had been put into production at

Malcomson's behest - made it to England, where it gave a mediocre performance in the 1907 Scottish

Trials, overheating badly on the hills.

That year, Perry, Thornton & Schreiber took a stand at the Royal Dublin Show, where their `modest

exhibit' of a polished chassis, a standard runabout and a special-bodied two-seater painted crimson

attracted a young Irishman named R W Archer. "They looked marvellously light and slender, but a

closer examination revealed a solidity which, combined with the excellent design, proved to any wide-

awake mechanic that there was an ample margin of strength... An invitation to `sit on the tip of the wing

and see if you can bend it' from the stand attendant helped to dispel my doubts, and his assurance that


Volume 7 Issue 4



the whole car was built from vanadium steel (just then coming into use, and gaining a good reputation)

converted me. From that moment I was keen to get the agency, and rosy vistas of large sales to impatient

and enthusiastic buyers filled my brain, but - Ah, me! - I was young and sanguine, and it took many

years of uphill work before the Ford came to its own in Ireland."

And that despite Perry's excellent performance with his special-bodied two-seater in the Irish

Automobile Club's reliability trials, where he won a gold medal for the best performance in his class.

Nevertheless, Archer sold nine cars in his first year.

One reason for the initial sales resistance was that

the Model N, as shipped from America, was only

available with a two-seater body, so Perry

astutely offered British buyers four-seat and

landaulet coachwork on the N chassis. The Ford

British leaflet for the N range states that these

models were built on an extended 93in

wheelbase, which was certainly the case with the

four-seater N that Perry, Thornton & Schreiber

entered for the 1907 Scottish Reliability Trials.

Alexander of Edinburgh also offered a four-

seater, but on the standard 84in wheelbase. The

only surviving fourseater N, discovered in the

mid-1930s doing duty as a garage hack in Horley,

Surrey, is built on the standard wheelbase. It almost seems as though the long wheelbase N, not available

in America, was a sort of dummy run for the Model T, with its wheelbase of 100in, which was on the

drawing board in Detroit in 1907.

Whether or not the British Ford operation was being used for field trials of the Model T concept, Perry's

go-getting methods must have impressed his friend Henry Ford. For when the famous Model T went into

production in October, 1908, eight of the first cars to be built were shipped to London, where the new

car made its world debut at London's Olympia show. Perry sold 65 cars at the show; at the Paris Salon a

month later, the Parisian dealer Henri Depasse took deposits for 98.

Early in 1909, Thornton and Schreiber fell out with Perry, who left the company. Along with the former

Central salesman H A Bate, he seems to have been involved briefly with the pioneer aviator E Keith

Davies's Bedford-Buick operation, an anglicised version of a product of the recently-formed General

Motors combine. Both were entered for the May, 1909, Irish Reliability Trials with 15/18hp Bedford-

Buicks. Meanwhile, Henry judged that British Ford sales were now at a level to justify the opening of a

London branch agency and sent his company secretary James Couzens to London to withdraw the

agency from Thornton and Schreiber. At the same time he invited Perry (who happened to be in Detroit

at the time) to head the venture, which again started with a staff of seven - Perry, his secretary Vera

Howard, a works manager named Fred Mitchell and four boys. Ford (England) opened for business in

September, 1909, and H A Bate was recruited as salesman a few weeks later.

Only two years later, sales of the Model T had grown to such an extent - 570 in the 1910 model year -

that Ford opened its first factory outside North America at Trafford Park in Manchester in October,

1911, soon to become Britain's leading motor manufacturer. It was, said Perry, "the dawn of a new era".


Volume 7 Issue 4


Tours, Swap Meets and Events

HCCA Annual Convention and Route 66 Tour for 2010 will be in Laughlin, Nevada February 21-24.

The Avi Resort Casino's room rates for this are $25 to $41. Motor home hookups on site. Four days of

meetings and touring including the HCCA Annual Meeting, the President's Reception, the Regional

Group's meeting, Old Route 66 and the Route 66 Museum, a car collection, the Old West Town of

Oatman, seminars with interest to both men and women, Lake Havasu City and the original "London

Bridge". Check the HCCA website for complete information - www.hcca.com

March 18-19 2010 20th

Chickasha Pre-War Swap Meet in Chickasha, Oklahoma. Contact Mike Ersland,

P.O. Box 562, Chickasha, OK 73023 – (405.224.9090) The EFR will have a get together in the North

building upstairs at 4 PM on Thursday March 18th

.

April 15-17, 2010 Horseless Carriage Club's 18th National Bakersfield Swap Meet and Tour at the Kern

County Fairgrounds. co-hosted by the Kern County model T Club Greg Remmer (661.325.2840)

August 11-14, 2010 – The 24th

annual New London New Brighton Antique Car Run in Minnesota.

Warm-up tours start on Wednesday, August 11th

. An EFR Meet & Greet get together will be held at

4:00pm. Warm-up tours continue on Thursday, August 12th

and Friday, August 13. The 120 mile Grand

Run will occur on Saturday, August 14th

, 2010. Entries are limited to vehicles with any number of

cylinders built through 1908 and one and two cylinder vehicles built thru 1915. See the website –

http://www.antiquecarrun.org

September 9-10, 2010 - Lansing to Dearborn Run - Contact John Grace for details

([email protected]) - more details will appear in upcoming newsletters.

September 11-12, 2010 - Old Car Festival at The Henry Ford, Dearborn, MI - Details may be found on

http://www.thehenryford.org under events - Old Car Festival. Also more details will be available from

John Grace.

If you have an activity of interest to EFR members, please let us know by Email or mail.

Do you know where Model B Fords are?

We believe there are 5 known Model B automobiles.

They are:

Nr 1 Larry Porter Trust (AACA Museum)

Nr 52 Mrs Cecil Ralston

Nr 166 The Henry Ford

Nr 373 Towe Ford Museum (was sold to?)

Nr 401 Harrah's Auto Museum (was sold?)

If you can confirm these or know of other cars, please drop Dave

Dunlavy an Email ([email protected])

http://www.antiquecarrun.org/


Volume 7 Issue 4


Candidates for Board of Directors

It's time to vote for three members of the Board of Directors. They will serve the 2010- 2012 term. A

ballot is being mailed to all members in the USA. We ask members out-of-country to vote their choices

on Email ballots being sent them. Please vote for three (3) candidates of the 5 running - no more. Ballots

marked with more than three (3)will not be counted. The candidates biographies here and their names on

the ballot are in alphabetic order. We thank all 5 candidates for their interest in your registry.

Richard Emery

I was born in June 1940 and raised in rural Nebraska, my first car was a 26

Ford in 1954 and that started my love of cars and all things dealing with

mechanics. I spent my adult life in Aviation and did the antique car hobby on

the side. I have restored several cars including five T‟s.

About 10 years ago I started collecting parts for a two cylinder Ford and five

years ago found a project AC Ford. The AC is my current project and should

be on the road in a couple years.

I married a Nebraska girl in 1963. We parked ourselves in Texas in 1965 and

have enjoyed life here in the south. I have belonged to the MTFCA and

HCCA for 30 plus years and joined the Early Ford Registry as soon as it came

to my attention.

It is always a privilege to work with car enthusiasts and I would look forward to being a part of the team

on the Early Ford Registry.

Paul Mikeska ( incumbent)

Paul and his wife Abbie live in the Denver, Colorado area. Paul is the

Director of Maintenance and Construction for Elitch Gardens Theme Park.

Model Ts have been a part of Paul‟s life from an early age. At 10 months old,

he learned to walk hanging onto a Model T block. As a child, Paul spent

summers with his uncle who is an avid Model T hobbyist. At the age of 13,

Paul learned to drive a Model T and drove it well before a standard car.

Paul is a member of the Model T Ford Club of America, Model T Ford Club

International, and the Early Ford Registry. He currently owns a 1926 Model

T Coupe, which makes weekly runs around town and down to the local ice

cream parlor.

Also in his collection and being restored are a 1917 Model T Speedster, a

1907 Model R, a 1923 Model T Roadster, and a 1924 Model T Touring. (continued on page 13)


Volume 7 Issue 4


Candidates for Board of Directors (continued from page 12)

Carlton O. Pate III (incumbent)

Carl lives in Glastonbury, CT and is a retired banker, professional model

builder, model railroader, and collector of antique cars since 1970. With his

brother and father, the first car that he purchased was an unrestored 1924

Model T Tudor sedan. Carl belongs to the Antique Automobile Club of

America, Horseless Carriage Club of America, Model T Ford Club of

America, and he is President of the Early Ford Registry. He started the Early

Ford Group (early 2-cylinder Ford cars) and he is the administrator of the

Horseless Carriage Club of America Century Old Plaque program that honors

vehicles that are 100 years old. His antique car focus is on the research,

gathering, sharing of early Ford automobile historical information; assisting

and promoting communication between owners and those interested in the

early Ford cars; and teaching others about the different early Ford cars.

Carl's book, Pate's Early Ford Automobile Encyclopedia, is the result of years of collecting, research

and work that have resulted in a high appreciation for early Ford cars. Though the Model T is the best

know Ford and has been rated as one of the best 100 cars ever made in America, it was the forgotten

Ford cars before it that allowed the Ford Motor Company to gain the knowledge and experience to

create a “Universal Car” that changed the world.

Francis Ransley

I am 71 years of age, married to Elayne, with 3 daughters, and 3 grand

children. I conducted my own electronic engineering business for 35 years,

retiring in 1996.

My hobby during my early life was hydroplane racing, and flying

aeroplanes, but this came to an abrupt halt when I turned 40, and had major

heart problems, which I still have. I lost both license's on the same day, but

managed to coax my doctor to let me have one more run in the boat, and on

7'th May 1983, I set a new Australian and Tasmanian 7.5 litre water speed

record of 230kph, which still stands today. And so started veteran cars, I

have restored over 65 cars and have 22 currently, including 9 Fords. I have

made everything from radiators to transmissions, and have driven most of my cars with Elayne, all over

Australia.

I am a life member of the Veteran Car Club of Australia, (president five times), was awarded the lord

Montague trophy in 2006, for services to veteran motoring, and in 1999 I was awarded the Medal of the

Order Of Australia, for services to motoring heritage.

(continued on page 14)


Volume 7 Issue 4


Candidates for Board of Directors (continued from page 13)

Jerry VanOoteghem (incumbent)

I grew up in southeast Michigan and was born into the antique car

hobby. Some 44 years later I have several Model T Fords a 1912

Overland and a 1924 Buick. Approximately 8 years ago I was

fortunate enough to stumble across a 1907 Ford Model N, which

my father and I restored.

Along with my father, we have a nice machine shop in our

basement which has produced many a Model N part as well as

antique phonograph parts, (another hobby). Just one of my current

projects is overseeing the restoration of the 1906 Model N Ford,

donated in pieces, to the Early Ford Registry. We're hoping to show

some real progress in 2010 as the chassis is nearly complete and needing only assembly.

I am currently employed as a mechanical engineer for a small manufacturing company just north of

Detroit.

The EFR Technical Corner by DDD (while Murray F. is on vacation)

What is the best oil for early Ford transmissions?

Answer: Anything that will lubricate property and not run out as fast as you put it in. Whatever you use

must flow to lubricate the triple gear shafts. However, it must be viscous enough to stay in place.

In 2006, Richard Hood brought his 1908 Model S to the NLNB run and on to the Decorah tour. He

advocated using John Deere "Multi-luber" (Part Number AN11100). Deere says on the bottle, "Pours

like ordinary oil, yet thickens into a heat-resistant soft grease to provide a good seal when forced into

bearings under pressure."

We've had several years of using it with great success. I have never heard of a case where it didn't work

well.

One of the nice features about it is that it can be put into a good hand grease gun. Many owners have

changed out the 1/8" pipe plugs used as filler caps on the two locations on the transmission. I have has a

tendency to over fill the transmission so quite a bit gets slung out on the splash aprons and fenders.

Every year I force myself to use less. I'm now at the stage that after a full day of hard running (120

miles in country and city traffic), I give the tranny a few "shots" - 5-10 pumps with a pistol grip gun that

takes about 10 pumps to give an ounce. I'm still throwing out grease, so I must have some in the case.

You can grease the tranny from below, without removing the floorboards and optional splash shield.

Got a Tip? Send it to [email protected] - We need all the help we can get.


Volume 7 Issue 4


For Sale and Wanted Items

For Sale

1904 Model A Ford Tonneau

(#1467 – June 1904)

Asking Price $85,000

John Garrett

Cell 256.761.1228

Home 256.362.1228

For Sale:

Walker Clamps (clips) reproductions for 1908-09 Model T water pump engines P/N 554 & 555. Set of 4

$75.00 + S/H. Walker Clamps for 1909 to 26 July 1910 thermo-siphon engines P/N 554. Set of 6

$115.00 + S/H Note: Authentication at the Benson Ford Research Center with engineering drawings

(blue prints).

Donald Shanabrook, 2050 W CR 52, Tiffin, OH 44883 Phone 419.447.5254 Email:

[email protected]

For Sale:

Original Model T Ford Advance catalog. Near perfect condition. 12 pages. 4 1/2" by 10 1/4" printed

March 1908. Mack (I assume Mack Avenue). $500 includes insured priority shipping. Would also trade

for an interesting Model N or Model F literature that I don't have.

Will trade: a nice 1906 Kingston brass carb for a 1907 Holley type. I would also take a reproduction

Holley and some $$. Please refer to the online parts books if you aren't sure what these look like.

Tim Morsher Email: [email protected]

For Sale:

Two cylinder Ford, repro leak proof water pump, water tank stands, fuel tank brackets, carb. Linkage,

fender stars, muffler ends, tonneau sill plate, tonneau step. Email me for a complete list and prices.

Richard Emery 940.464.7662

Email: [email protected]





Volume 7 Issue 4


For Sale and Wanted Items

Wanted (to borrow for pattern):

Model C Ford mounting brackets for running boards.

John Grace Email: [email protected]

Wanted:

Model NRS transmission and/or linkage parts, complete or not, original or recast, any condition. Any

leads appreciated. Certain NRS parts are also available for trade,if required. Please contact John

Lukkarinen at [email protected] or call 604.9008.1354

Wanted:

Model N parts, including transmission parts, emergency brake tooth ratchet and lever, step plate support

and rod, rear radius rods, wishbone, spindles, rear spring perches and grease cups, 28 inch rims or

wheels, hubs, drive shaft, universal joint ball housing, tie rod, idler arm, intake manifold, proper

Kingston or Holley carburetor. Splitdorf or Heinze coil box, starting crank, radiator cap, fender irons,

hood, muffler, or what spare or fabricated parts do you have?

Can trade flywheel, fenders, camshaft and other parts.

Jack Lennart Email: [email protected]

For Sale: Parts for Model NRS Fords - Model N Fenders

Brackets for the undersides of the fenders – straps and clips

Fender irons from frame to fender

Side lamp brackets (specify which model) - Tail lamp bracket

Coil box switch – (square Splitdorf)

Trunk lid handle

Timer complete with roller and cover

Exhaust pipe – muffler – muffler brackets – muffler nut

water pump impeller - water pump gears

gas tank – gas tank sediment bulb

crank handle – crank holder, fork

radiator cap

transmission fiber disc set (#664, 695 & 696) - band lining – original type fiber

brass tube between cylinders

nuts for the water pipes between cylinder & tube to radiator

spark plug wire holders

brass plates around the pedals, complete with emergency brake holder

water manifold #465

pressure oiler one way valve

caps for oil filler pipe, pressure oiler & mechanical oiler

Glenn Rand 4626 Paradise RD, Seville, OH 44273

330.725.4069 call in evening


Volume 7 Issue 4


About Us...

The 1903-1909 Early Ford Registry, Inc. (EFR) is a Chapter of The Model T Ford Club of America

(MTFCA) and an Affiliated Register of the Horseless Carriage Club of America (HCCA). You must

be a member of the Horseless Carriage Club of America and we encourage membership in the Model T

Ford Club of America. Contact the Secretary for specific information regarding furnishing your

membership number. We welcome anyone with an interest in Ford automobiles manufactured from 1903

through 1909 (those were generally manufactured in the first manufacturing plant that Ford Motor

Company built, the Piquette plant). You do not need to own a car of this vintage to be a member of the

EFR. Annual membership dues are $10 US payable in US funds and may be paid by check or PayPal.

We are a 501(c)3 Non-profit tax-exempt corporation. The corporate office is 2895 Bluffton Road,

Decorah, Iowa 52101-7802. The web page is www.EarlyFordRegistry.com The Email address is

[email protected].

The 1903-1909 Early Ford Registry, Inc. is not responsible for any incorrect technical information

contained herein. The opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the authors and are not

necessarily those of the editor or EFR.

For Sale and Wanted Items are listed as a free service to EFR members. The editor can not be held

accountable for unclear or misleading statements in listings.

If you have any questions regarding our organization, please contact the Secretary-Treasurer by Email at

[email protected] or write to EFR Secretary, 2895 Bluffton Road, Decorah, IA 52101-7802.

http://www.earlyfordregistry.com/



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