The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Does anyone know the history of production periods concerning these three body types?

They started in 1928 with the 60-A (Brown leather top), then the 60-B (Black leather top) came about followed by the 60-C (steel back) in 1929.

My question is this, were all three body styles offered in 1929 or did Ford drop the 60-A from the line in 1929 thus only having the 60-B and 60-C in production?

When the 170-A was introduced in July of 1929 (or there abouts)...did Ford drop the 60-B and C or were all three (or four if the 60-A was still being produced) body styles available throughout 1929?

What body style(s) replaced the 60-A, B, C and 170-A in 1930?

Thanks.

Pluck

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Steve,

I've been collecting data on 60-A's, B's, & C's off-and-on for about 13 years now and I've wondered about this question myself. According to p.80 of The Ford Model A as Henry Built It (DeAngelis, Francis, Henry), the 60-A was produced in both 1928 & 1929.

The goal of my project is to establish the production quantities and dates for the 60-A, -B, & -C by cross referencing the serial numbers on the Briggs body tags with the original firewall date and engine/frame number.

Unfortunately, the 60-A's and B's shared the same prefix of 190 on the Briggs body tag, so it's hard to tell when they switched from the A to the B. Furthermore, the Briggs serial numbers are continuous throughout A & B production (they did not go back to zero with the start of the 60-B). I would like to know if there is a definitive way to physically tell an A from a B other than the top material color, which cannot typically be relied upon since it can be changed so easily over the life of a car. The 60-C, on the other hand, had the unique Briggs body number prefix of "195" for which the serialization started again from zero.

The earliest A in my database is 190-22, with a firewall date of 5/10/1928. The latest A in my database has a firewall date of 12/8/1928 and a frame/engine number dating to 12/11/28. Unfortunately, the Briggs tag was missing on this car, but another late 60-A with a firewall date of 11/16/28 has a Briggs body number of 190-68853.

The earliest 60-B in my database is 190-99775 with a firewall date of 1/4/1929 (it's possible this could actually be a 60-A). The latest 60-B I have on record is 190-151957 with a firewall date of 4/8/1929.

The earliest 60-C in my database is 195-812 with a firewall date of 2/12/1929. The latest 60-C in my database is 195-17608 with a firewall date of 7/17/1929. This shows that production of the 60-B and 60-C did overlap.

Along the way, I have also stumbled upon a few 170-A's. These cars used a prefix of "197". The earliest car has a firewall date of 8/7/29 (no other numbers) and the latest has a Briggs body number of 197-6337 with a frame/engine number dating to 10/10/1929. It seems less likely that production of the 60-C and 170-A overlapped.

The above data provides pretty good brackets on the dates and quantities, but I would like to gather a lot more data, especially on these cars. There are still a lot of them out there that can fill in some of the blanks.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Steve,Russ, I don't know if this will help I own a 60 B that was built on 12-8 1928 I believe that this is the way that it came from the factory .Before I purchased the car I contacted Rodger Kaufman he informed me that what I had was a 60 B built in 1928 and titled 1929. The most interesting fact to me is from Your data base is the 60 A with the same build date as mine.If there is anything I can do to help with collecting of data such as pictures Please let me know.
Last week there was a new forum started on ford barn for owners of the Briggs 60A&60B I posted a thred on when was yours built a few member of this group posted there's and there are a few post most seem to be 60 A so far and build dates are very interesting .i hope this help Joe

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Guys,

Thanks to Joe and Russ above for your thoughts.

This could be a great learning informational thread...If you have an original 60-A,B, or C...Please chime in so we all can benifit the history of this body style.

Thanks.

Pluck

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Where was the body number stamped on the 60 B Sedans?

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Hi, I have a '28, built in June of '28, with a body # of 190-14561, engine # 221034.
Good luck

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Colby Kid, thanks for the info. Do you have a date stamped on your firewall? Also, does your car have a cowl vent? The 60-A's I have data for seem to have cowl vents through at least August of 1928.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

The body number should be stamped on the wooden frame rail to the right of the front passenger's legs (see photos).

The early tags (60-A's and early 60-B's) were long and skinny and had large letters. The later tags were rectangular with "Body Number" on top and "Briggs Mfg. Co., Detroit Mich." on the bottom - the number was stamped in the middle.

NOTE: they may also be on the side of the wooden rail, or possibly even underneath. Look for nail holes in the location shown in the photos. If you don't see evidence of a removed tag, get a mirror and look around on the wooden members.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Thanks Russ

I will have a look and let you know what I find .My 60 B is a May 29 car

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Russ, I have a 1928 60A but a different year frame. I will look at firewall and the plate you have pictured when I get home this morning.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

PS: No vent on mine,

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

12-17-28 no plate on wood. Could be under as I see nails. The car is in pieces so I will have to make room to get a better vantage point this week.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

No tags or nail holes on mine in that area will have a look with mirror tomorrow.

Firewall date 5- 4 -29

John Cochran

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Yes, I have the cowl vent, and an overdrive. I don't know where the stamping is on the firewall.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Straight up over the steering column and just above the gas tank seam where the tank flange and firewall bolt together. If someone repainted the area, it might have covered the numbers with thick paint.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Thanks for all the great information guys - please keep it coming. I'm starting to paint a good picture of 60-A, -B, & -C production.

The firewall date is on the lower driver's side of the firewall (front of gas tank). See attached picture. It helps to turn the lights off and shine a flashlight at a very shallow angle to the sheet metal.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Russ how many 1929 60 B do you know of built in dec of 1928 or even early?

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

jm28henry,

I've only come across one 60-B so far that was made in '28 (12/28/28). I am relying on the owners claim that it is a 60-B. I am interested in finding more '28 60-B's that can be substantiated by the color of their original black top, instead of the brown used on the 60-A.

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

No Luck finding the body number on my 60 B even with the mirror, I will keep looking.

I recently imported this car from Nebraska.There are only a few Leather backs in the UK Model A club, all of them imports from somewhere else.

Unfortunately part of the roof material blew off when it was being transported, The remains of the original material looks like the long short grain , but much flatter than what you can buy now. The Model A Ford as Henry built it book says Pebble grain was used a course vinyl I believe,
What do people recommend to replace it? I was thinking the vinyl roof kit from Classtique also would the visor be covered or painted?

This car still has the original brown paint on it though not perfect.
It has been been off the road since 1974 . Upholstery moused!!

I have dropped the oil pan on it to clean out the muck & sludge
It had an old replacement water pump that was frozen solid!
No place for Grease fittings on it

John Cochran

Re: The 60-A, B, C Fordor Sedans
 

Thanks for the info Russ, but my entire firewall has a heavy textured paint (probably from a significant restoration in the early '90s), and I cannot read anything.
Thanks, Jim