Farmer fixes

[John Duden]

My grandpa's 30 AA truck has a bunch of farmer fixes
angle iron welded from fender to the running board
light switch shutting off all power to car,
LOTS OF SOLDER
Fenders welded 2 dozen times
cowl held on by some make shift bracket
Some fixes look like they will never last
but some how they did?
Post some pictures of your discoveries and unique farmer fixes
John

[Colorado Greg]

I don't have a pic, but when I pulled off the radius rod I noticed the bolts seemed awfully small. When I got all the pieces out it seems someone had dropped a muffler clamp, u-bolt thingy thru the bellhousing and thats what the radius rod was bolted to. Lots of slop etc...I feel MUCH safer after I got all the proper hardware and got rid of the rubber ball as well. Doesn't even shimmy anymore

[Erskine48]

I think mostly trucks got these. My 29 AA had quite a few, a modified front axle too self steer behind the cornchopper,a fishplated crossmember in the frame, soldered up gas tank after removing column bracket, only real bad one is they torched the crossmember to get tranny's out for use in a 39. Bob E.

[Jordan]

Don't know if this counts....but my front seat is held together by JB Weld.

[Craig Lewis]

I went over to a clients house a few weeks back, to view a bunch of old car parts strewn about the property.
Some of the pics match this "farmer fix" topic. I wonder what was used to weld the head?

[ryan1929]

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Great Topic...Very Interesting

[Tom H.]

According to a Barner with more knowledge than I have, my 32 BB's fuel pump is a B model bottom with a 34-36 V-8 top. It did work.

[Modelakid31]

Interesting story's. Keep em coming!

[Tom Wesenberg]

Some farmer is missing his screendoor spring.

[Ray in La Mesa]

I bought a set of 4-21" wheels at the swap meet last year for $20, they look real straight and solid but I won't know till I cut the model T hubs out someone welded in for a long ago project.

[Rowdy]

The worst farmer fix I have ever seen was a cheaply fabbed draglink. It cosisted on a piece of pipe which they had ran several strands of number 9 wire through and tightly rapped around the spindle arm ball and the steering arm. I am not sure how far they drove it that way, but it looked dangerous to me. I wish I had my camera with me at that auction where it sold, but I left it home that day. Rod

[Tom Wesenberg]

Is this what's meant by "driving by the seat of your pants"?

[sidevalve]

LOL! Thats a good one Tom. A REAL farmers fix.

[Brentwood Bob]

Tom, Oshkosh by Gosh is my guess for the overall texture of the patches. Bob

[Tom Wesenberg]

Some farmer's Model T is missing part of it's running board.

[MALAK]

I was going to wait until I got my A running again (hopefully in a couple months) and post an album of the many farmer fixes/mods it has but here's a couple samples. The most obvious is the truck mod to the coupe body. Check out the intake manifold, those are castle nuts welded in there and it's setup to mount a Carter W-1 downdraft. The bottom castle nut is for a farmer made check ball that allows excess fuel to drain from the farmer made plenum. Since the Carter W-1 has an accelerator pump this check ball would allow excess gas to drip out of the plenum when starting and prevent flooding, after the engine starts vacuum pulls the check ball closed and seals the vacuum leak. While this looks like a total hack job (and it is) it actually ran quiet well. More to follow.

[bobpo]

Originally Posted by Tom Wesenberg

Is this what's meant by "driving by the seat of your pants"?

Jeff Foxworthy would love this one, I do too......

[1930artdeco]

I for one love these fixes. It gives the car a history and a personality. Plus it just goes to show you how versitile our cars are. Try these fixes on today's and see what happens.

Mike

[1931 flamingo]

Remember that when the majority of these "fixes" were done was before the internet, and probably before bratton's, mac's snyders, etc. A lot of them done during/after the depression when no one had any money and you did what you had to to keep it running.
Paul in CT

[sukhoi]

Originally Posted by 1931 flamingo

Remember that when the majority of these "fixes" were done was before the internet, and probably before bratton's, mac's snyders, etc. A lot of them done during/after the depression when no one had any money and you did what you had to to keep it running.
Paul in CT

Paul from CT is "right on". It is easy to be critical from our 2012 perspective. I grew up in a depression family and remember well when a family conference was called for a big expense like $10. Not trying to be preachy but it is good to remember when families had a very difficult time making ends meet.

[pick]

I'll have to admit I've been responsible for some pretty crude field repairs in the past. But, by comparison some of these Rube Goldberg jobs make me feel like a Master Mechanic.....lol

[John Duden]

Originally Posted by pick

i'll have to admit i've been responsible for some pretty crude field repairs in the past. But, by comparison some of these rube goldberg jobs make me feel like a master mechanic.....lol

me too!!

[columbiA]

A couple months ago,I did a *farmer fix* of sorts.I was driving along a country road when the engine died.The drain plug had fallen out of the carb& the gas was running out.I was beside an orchard so I looked around & found a small branch & shoved a piece of it in the hole & was able to drive home & get a plug from a spare carb.One of the great things about these cars is that it doesnt take much to keep them running.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Rube Goldberg, my HERO!
I wonder if Rube ever had to have his car towed? Bill W's Ghost

[Clem Clement]

I have a dissy shaft that has been brazzed and then turned back to true. A lotta work, but if that is the only one you have, it will have to do. ALso a model A wheel with a Chevy rim welded to it.
Clem

[Adam M.]

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These farmer fixes always look poor, but they are still there for us to find them!

I have a Model A cyl. head that has multiple passes of weld all over it and from one end to the other.

Also nails for cotter pins. I had one model A with a pin for the brake rods replaced with a very small nail! Yikes!

I looked at this yellow Tudor and it had a 3 rib tractor tire that is worn out on the front right.

The last picture is not a Ford, but look at the "Custom" brace to hold up the fenders!

[Mike in NRN IN]

Here's what I found when I started 'tearing down' the steering.

The column was broken, but the fix was to wrap it with heavy duty wire and secure it with the handle of a screwdriver.



Return spring on the brake is seen here:

[Karl]

I heard of one guy who had a piston problem . He knew of an old model A motor buried a few years previously on the farm so he dug it up. Pulled a piston out and replaced the one in his car . Bolted it all up and it ran well for years afterwards - Try doing that with a modern car !

[Fred K-OR]

This was my "Farmer Fix" back in the 50's. This is what I used around my fathers farm to pull trees.



It is now this.

[Reds34]

Fred K, how did you have those duals rigged up? Looks interesting.

Red

[Fred K-OR]

Originally Posted by Reds34

Fred K, how did you have those duals rigged up? Looks interesting.

Red

Red, very "Farmer" like. I think it was a 1 1/2 or 2 inch metal pipe stuck in the wheels where the hub cap are suppose to be, with heavy wire tied between the spokes of each wheel. Worked great(at that time). You did what you had to do in those days! Still using the same wheels on the Huckster. Had to straighten the spokes a bit and do some welding on the wheels.

BTW I had one h*** of a time getting that hole patched in the hood-still using the same hood on the huckster.

[Popeye31]

Originally Posted by MALAK

I was going to wait until I got my A running again (hopefully in a couple months) and post an album of the many farmer fixes/mods it has but here's a couple samples. The most obvious is the truck mod to the coupe body. Check out the intake manifold, those are castle nuts welded in there and it's setup to mount a Carter W-1 downdraft. The bottom castle nut is for a farmer made check ball that allows excess fuel to drain from the farmer made plenum. Since the Carter W-1 has an accelerator pump this check ball would allow excess gas to drip out of the plenum when starting and prevent flooding, after the engine starts vacuum pulls the check ball closed and seals the vacuum leak. While this looks like a total hack job (and it is) it actually ran quiet well. More to follow.

Is that the first consept extended cab pickup?

[Al Bass]

Originally Posted by Fred K-OR

This was my "Farmer Fix" back in the 50's. This is what I used around my fathers farm to pull trees.



It is now this.

Amazing what a little paint will do

[[email protected]]

Not necessarily a model A but I remember dad shimming under the inserts on his 1945 flathead with newspaper. He had to do this to keep the old truck running so he could run a couple loads of logs into the mill so he could afford a new set of bearings. A few weeks later everyone was fascinated by the fact you could read the print that was imbedded into the insert. Of course you had to hold the inserts up to a mirror to read them. My dad was 9 years old when the depression hit and everything that had to be fixed was repaired with whatever was on the farm. I always felt so sorry for Mom because that depression style of living still needed to go on until the mid '60's. Our yard was always full of throwaway junk that had to be held onto just in case he ever needed something. Wearing the hand me down clothes and eating food that came from the people who were on welfare because the govt gave them free food called commodities that we couldn't get because the Dad was working was tough. We had our own chickens, milk cow and raise beef calves and hogs to feed ourselves. And I watched Dad make everything work. I watched him pull the rod and piston out of a 216 cu in engine out of a '47 chevy and pound a stick of stove wood into it in order to run it until he could find a '39 engine to put into it. He'd fix radiators by dumping pepper and raw eggs into it. We use to build a fire under the old F14 tractor to get it to run in the winter time. He used the rear end out of a ford car to make a winch on the logging truck and used the brakes to hold the spool so the cable wouldn't unwind and drop the log until you wanted it to. The lever for the brake came off of an old horse drawn sickle mower. He drove the winch with the power take off on the truck. Cracks in the fenders were welded up and broken windows weren't replaced. Stumps were taken out with dynamite that you bought at the hardware store. And it's time for me to quit or i'll be here going on forever. And yes those were the good old days.

[dumb person]

[Roadster Rich]

How about a real farmer. I have had my 30 Roadster for 44 years so I knew the car well. I bought a 9N tractor that had the same Model A engine. When I got it, I looked and the four spark plugs had coat hanger wire wrapped aroung the distributor tips and then around the spark plugs. I got such a kick out of that, that I left it that way for the four years I owned and used it.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

garrison89,
Are you Chief's long lost brother that disappeared in the woods a long time ago?? Bill W.

[[email protected]]

Originally Posted by BILL WILLIAMSON

garrison89,
Are you Chief's long lost brother that disappeared in the woods a long time ago?? Bill W.

I don't quite know how to answer your question. I had a cousin that died on the Gunflint Trail about 25 years ago. He was Ojibwe and died when his car crashed. We called him "Chief" for years. He was my cousin but he seemed like a brother. He was from Minneapolis MN but ended up working on the Canadian border as an honest to God "Indian guide".

[TK in LA]

Missed this link the first time around so I thought I'd add in one of my finds.
This was a home grown Float a Motor attached to a recent motor.

[TK in LA]

A couple more items. One looks like a door popper. Helps the door to open? That's my thought. The second is a picture of the steering column. Spring loaded support so some of the tension when pulling on the column to enter is distributed to the springs. The rubber support has dissolved over time.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

I don't quite know how to answer your question. I had a cousin that died on the Gunflint Trail about 25 years ago. He was Ojibwe and died when his car crashed. We called him "Chief" for years. He was my cousin but he seemed like a brother. He was from Minneapolis MN but ended up working on the Canadian border as an honest to God "Indian guide".

garrisonm89,
Chief was my dad, I asked the question in jest, as Chief grew up in Oklahoma, in similar hard times that you describe. Interesting story about your cousin, Ojibwe. Chief was my Model A mentor. Bill W.

[40 Deluxe]

Originally Posted by Roadster Rich

How about a real farmer. I have had my 30 Roadster for 44 years so I knew the car well. I bought a 9N tractor that had the same Model A engine. When I got it, I looked and the four spark plugs had coat hanger wire wrapped aroung the distributor tips and then around the spark plugs. I got such a kick out of that, that I left it that way for the four years I owned and used it.

No, you did not have a 9N tractor with a Model A engine! There is no such thing. The 9N engine is completely different-distributor in front, not the middle of the head-much smaller than an A and uses the same pistons as the 239 flathead V8, etc.
Maybe you had a homebuilt or some kind of conversion using the A engine. But not a 9N.

[montanafordman]

Alright, I'll take a stab at this. Since I got my 31 coupe from my grandfather, who actually was a farmer in Montana I guess they would qualify.

First off, the frame at one time was bent or damaged, and this was the resulting fix:



There was some evidence of collision damage that I'm sure happened before my grandfather aquired the car since it was in my grandpa's garage for 30 years before he restored it and got it on the road. Whether he did the repair I don't know, but the guy he bought it from was also a farmer so there you go!

Now here are the radiator support rods. You can see the end had broken or bent, and was replaced with a welded on peice with different size threads.



Here you can see the steering column had cracked and was welded up with some metal scraps for reinforcement.



Here it looks like my crank pulley had broken and was welded back together.



My grandpa had a AA radiator in his garage and when he found it wouldn't fit the radiator shell it looks like he cut out the top to accomodate the thicker AA radiator which has the filler neck placed slightly farther back.



I saw this picture in an Ebay auction and thought of this thread. It looks like someone put a water spigot in the fuel line to solve a leaky fuel shutoff valve. (For what its worth I had an extra petcock on my fuel line just outside the strainer for the same reason on my car)



While these things can be a source of frustration when fixing an 81+ year old car they can also be entertaining! You can't help but appreciate what sort of use these cars have seen and the hardships they've endured over the years. Some of us are afraid to drive them in the rain yet they were just tools to the generations that originally bought them and saw some hard times and hard use. You can also appreciate the ingenuity of those that did what they could to keep it working, either from a lack of parts, time or lack of money.

[TK in LA]

More fixes!? The welder is my friend! First is the accelerator lever with a slight(?) modification. Same shot is the cotter pin in the firewall to hold the return spring. The second is the spark advance rod. Two long rods cut and welded together. Third is the hi speed idle rod that was worn and re-welded back into shape. Last is the choke lever at the GAV valve. Wood screw does the trick.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Someone removed the door insulation packet and stuck in a piece of wood and 2 screws to fix a crack by the door latch. Even worse, they welded the latch to the door.

[meandean]

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Roadster pick up door.

[norson]

Got a '29 Chev roadster out of Montana. It had been made into a "pickup" in war years style. One of the pieces that came with it was a wire wheel and hub. Got to looking at it about a year later and found that the hub was welded to the wheel. Then I looked closer. The hub is a Chev six hole and the wheel is a ford five hole. Evidently Ford wheels were easier to find and to take the wheel off you now took loose one nut.
On a similar note last year I bought the remains of a very old time trailer with a '29?? Chev axle under it ($10). I wanted some parts for the roadster and it had a pair of 700x16 tires to use as rollers. When I tore it down I found that it had five hole wheels. They were 16 inch Ford wires ... Mounted on ford hubs and drums and on the Chev spindles. I didn't know that could be done. I had been trying to figure out how to loose the 6 hole wheels on the Chev. Now I know how.
Norm

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Lived behind a blacksmith shop in Valliant, Oklahoma and I spent hours watching the smithy. He could "eyeball" where a fender brace was missing, shape one out, and it fit perfectly almost every time! Arc weld it to the frame, bolt it to the fender, and say,"Well that dude won't ever fall off!"
With a torch he welded up horribly cracked fenders, hit them with a wire brush, brushed them with black paint while hot, and would say, "NEXT!"
Out back, a corn grinder, powered by a hit & miss engine, Aaaaah! the smell of freshly ground cornmeal, combined with the smell of the black paint on a HOT fender! Kinda' smelled like a hot patch burning!
Life was good, and still is! Bill W.

[[email protected]]

$(KGrHqJHJCQE8+1edTTpBPV!Ui65c!~~60_58.jpg

Saw this on an Allstate Model A Carb being sold on EBay. Pretty ingenious carb float replacement.

[VWJoe]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

Attachment 77021

Saw this on an Allstate Model A Carb being sold on EBay. Pretty ingenious carb float replacement.

Whet a great fix, wish I would have thought of it.

[John Duden]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

Attachment 77021

saw this on an allstate model a carb being sold on ebay. Pretty ingenious carb float replacement.

oh dear lord!!!!

[[email protected]]

Can we get a discussion on which bulb would be better for this carburetor? 6v or 12v.

[Milton]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

Attachment 77021

Saw this on an Allstate Model A Carb being sold on EBay. Pretty ingenious carb float replacement.

This fix belongs in the hall of fame. What a totally astounding concept. Wonder if it is the same light bulb that appears in the little cloud over the head of a person that has an idea as grand.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by [email protected]

Attachment 77021

Saw this on an Allstate Model A Carb being sold on EBay. Pretty ingenious carb float replacement.

What a BRIGHT idea!

[CarlG]

Wonder if it would work better with a dual filamant bulb?

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Originally Posted by Tom Wesenberg

What a BRIGHT idea!

Remember when Ford's advertising slogan was, FORD HAS A BETTER IDEA!" AND THEY USED PICS & REPLICAS OF GIANT LIGHT BULBS I should put one on my radiator cap. Bill W.

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Why are poor welding jobs called Farmer Welds?? My farmer friends are VERY ACCOMPLISHED WELDERS!! Bill W.

[Farrell In Vancouver]

This was a bit of work found on a four speed AA shifter, the good on the right, the bad and ugly on the left

[Milton]

Originally Posted by CarlG

Wonder if it would work better with a dual filamant bulb?

The extra filament weight might sink it.

[John Duden]

ok Fellas, You'll like this one,
Flywheel puller for my indain dirtbike, could not buy the right tool so i had to make my own, made this way since the threads on the flywheel are finethreaded
KINDA CRUDE!!!

[Cool Hand Lurker]

This brings out a lot of questions, like:

Is a "rough service" bulb necessary?
Do you need a carburetor fuse?
If the bulb burns out will it cut off the gas flow?
If the bulb is too big should you add a resistor?
Does the bulb make the gas lighter for better combustion?
With a round bulb, how do you know which side should be up?
Would an LED work just as well?

[Roadster Rich]

I saw the message about my comment on a Model A engine in a 9N tractor and I knew I wasn't that old to be so wrong. I guess the 9N memory was wrong, but I know I drove the tractor for long enough with an old sickle bar to mow.

Here is a link that I got from a forum on old tractors that shows one.

http://www.ytmag.com/cgi-bin/viewit....oard&th=762775

[40 Deluxe]

Wow! Unreal! Hard to imagine that there'd be more than one of these in existence. Why someone would go to all the trouble of converting a Ferguson over to Model A power? Especially since this would have been done sometime in the '50's or even '60's. The oldest this Ferguson could be would be a 1947 TE-20; more likely a later T0-20 or TO-30.
Sure would be neat to know the history! Did someone make adapter kits, or was it all hand fabricated? The gas tank mount, throttle linkage, etc. looks pretty cobbled; definitely not factory.

[van Dyck]

The front mount for the front axle does not look substantial enough to handle the forces applied to it during normal tractor duties. Perhaps the OHV Ferguson engine was too expensive to rebuild? And the Model A engine was started with a crank?

[ctlikon0712]

The Ferguson I used to plow and cut hay with as a boy could be hand cranked..... here is a current picture.

[Paul from Maine]

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Originally Posted by Roadster Rich

I saw the message about my comment on a Model A engine in a 9N tractor and I knew I wasn't that old to be so wrong. I guess the 9N memory was wrong, but I know I drove the tractor for long enough with an old sickle bar to mow.

Here is a link that I got from a forum on old tractors that shows one.

http://www.ytmag.com/cgi-bin/viewit....oard&th=762775

I WANT THE "CRUISE CONTROL" mounted on the front connected to the carb! Are governors for the industrial Model A motors available? I think it would be a neat accessory for driving on the interstate!

[40 Deluxe]

Regarding the comment about the expense of overhauling the Ferguson engine: I remember going with my dad to a Tractor Supply store in 1954 or '55 where he bought an overhaul kit for our TE-20 Ferguson. It had pistons, rings, sleeves, main and rod bearings, valves, valve guides and gaskets. Cost was $50!

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by 40 Deluxe

Regarding the comment about the expense of overhauling the Ferguson engine: I remember going with my dad to a Tractor Supply store in 1954 or '55 where he bought an overhaul kit for our TE-20 Ferguson. It had pistons, rings, sleeves, main and rod bearings, valves, valve guides and gaskets. Cost was $50!

Yep, and that's what made them the "good old days". In the mid 60's my boss at the service station bought a 1953 Chevy dump truck and changed it to a wrecker. He bought the rering kit from Wards for under $10. This included the rod bearings, piston rings, and gaskets. I liked it when Sears and Wards had an antique car section in their catalogs.

[ctlikon0712]

Me too Tom, the tires on my model A are Allstate/Sears. They are still in decent shape except for some minor cracking. They state their size as 4.50/4.75/5.00/5.25/5.50-19". One size fits all!

[Barry B./ Ma.]

Originally Posted by ctlikon0712

The Ferguson I used to plow and cut hay with as a boy could be hand cranked..... here is a current picture.

Wow, nice one! What's it doing just sitting there collecting junk?

[Aok]

Looks like a house light switch was used here

[John Duden]

anymore?

[George Miller]

Battery box. Easy to get to.

[binkbee]

As for the question on the type of "weld on the head"---99% of welds, in fact, any weld that held on cast iron, was bronze, put on by hand with a torch. Torch welding, even steel welding on things like fenders, was used a whole lot back in the days. It had a lot of worpage on the thin goodies but the repair was always more important than the looks years ago! I'm near 80yrs now and still use bronze some---it's a good weld!

[columbiA]

From the rust on the welds on the head,it looks to me that it was gas welded with cast iron rod rather than brazed

[Craig Lewis]

Just an old truck in the woods but does anybody recognize the contraption welded to the upper cab corner?
There's a pulley sandwiched inside the rusty straps.

[Chris in WNC]

Originally Posted by Barry B./ Ma.

Wow, nice one! What's it doing just sitting there collecting junk?

amen on that Ferguson- air up the tires and get it running again!

I'd love to have one of the old AC tractors I drove as a boy but they're long gone.
the Model C was sold in the 70s and the WC in '85. so far unable to track them down.

[Growley bear]

MALAK,
In a point of Model A and/or WWII history, those pickup beds were actually in some cases commercially available. People would install a pickup bed in their car in order to obtain a commercial rating in order to obtain more ration stamps for fuel etc.
I have seen these on more cars than Model A's.

[SSsssteamer]

Originally Posted by Craig Lewis

Just an old truck in the woods but does anybody recognize the contraption welded to the upper cab corner?
There's a pulley sandwiched inside the rusty straps.

From what I have seen on many old trucks, a turn signal arm was mounted to the outside of the truck. A pull cable was hand pulled by an inside lever activating the outside turn signal arm. Our 1930 AA truck still has a signal arm mounted on it with the cable pull hardware still working.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by SSsssteamer

From what I have seen on many old trucks, a turn signal arm was mounted to the outside of the truck. A pull cable was hand pulled by an inside lever activating the outside turn signal arm. Our 1930 AA truck still has a signal arm mounted on it with the cable pull hardware still working.

That would make a neat antique car accessory, an arm that flips up and is lined with flashing LED's on both sides of the arm, and one for each side of the car.

It could mount to the door hinge and flip up by use of a small solenoid.

OK, who was looking for a retirement project?

[Rock Hornbuckle]

Originally Posted by columbiA

A couple months ago,I did a *farmer fix* of sorts.I was driving along a country road when the engine died.The drain plug had fallen out of the carb& the gas was running out.I was beside an orchard so I looked around & found a small branch & shoved a piece of it in the hole & was able to drive home & get a plug from a spare carb.One of the great things about these cars is that it doesnt take much to keep them running.

I was driving 'ol' 29 Nellie home from a parade when the flange on the tail pipe broke off and the entire exhaust system hit the pavement. I had a roll of tie-wire used for tying rebar in the trunk. I was able to tie things up and drive her home. I had learned alot during my penniless teenage years about keeping my old Ford Coupe wired together.

[oldmanandakid]

Originally Posted by 40 Deluxe

Regarding the comment about the expense of overhauling the Ferguson engine: I remember going with my dad to a Tractor Supply store in 1954 or '55 where he bought an overhaul kit for our TE-20 Ferguson. It had pistons, rings, sleeves, main and rod bearings, valves, valve guides and gaskets. Cost was $50!

It wasn't too long after that I was working as a cowboy at $40. a month plus board and room. Fifty bucks was a lot of cash then. I still cringe when I have to break a $50.

[Shadetree]

When I was a youngster my neighbor had a 1942 Chevy pickup. A rod started knocking so we straddled a ditch with the truck and pulled the oil pan. The engine had Babbitt bearings so we found the culprit that was knocking and removed the cap. With a file we took off enough metal from the cap for a good snug fit. While we had it apart we figured it would be worthwhile to do the other five rods. We put it all back together and the engine wouldn't turn over. We towed it and it would scoot the rear tires in 3rd gear. So we straddled the ditch again and removed the pan. We shimmed all of the rods with tin from an evaporated milk can.

It lasted a few days...

[Craig Lewis]

Originally Posted by Shadetree

When I was a youngster my neighbor had a 1942 Chevy pickup. A rod started knocking so we straddled a ditch with the truck and pulled the oil pan. The engine had Babbitt bearings so we found the culprit that was knocking and removed the cap. With a file we took off enough metal from the cap for a good snug fit. While we had it apart we figured it would be worthwhile to do the other five rods. We put it all back together and the engine wouldn't turn over. We towed it and it would scoot the rear tires in 3rd gear. So we straddled the ditch again and removed the pan. We shimmed all of the rods with tin from an evaporated milk can.

It lasted a few days...

Awesome story! I say we need more of this stuff

[Farrell In Vancouver]

Dems the Brakes:

[Fred K-OR]

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Another "farmer" type fix. This is what I found on my 29 std coupe. The angle iron was welded to the front of the already well welded front cross member. It then went under the front spring to hold the spring to the cross member. Had to cut it off with a torch to get the axle out.

[dumb person]

i was told this picture fits this threads theme.

[Rich in Tucson]

How many can you spot?

I know at least one guy who resets his timing before every drive in his car but the guy who owned this one must have really been obsessed with it.

[Growley bear]

Brake drum field repair.

[Tom Endy]

Farmer fixes

Tom Endy

[400A-64]

This is not a farmer fix, but "Get the job done NOW".

On the World tour(1982) I broke an axle in Syria!! We had everything to do the job EXCEPT JACK STANDS !! WE gathered rocks, Set the wheels on them (Two high) to gain enough space to pull the rear end out. We laid out a blue tarp under the car so I would stay out of the dirt. I asked to guys to grab my ankles so the could pull me out if the car shifted too much!! I was jerked out from under three times !!! 6 hours later we finished up .This was done in the darkest of nights with flashlights!.
Bruce Davis
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[Ted Duke]

I don't have pictures, but when I was a kid way back in the forties and fifties my family had a friend who had a Model A pickup, 29 I think, and as the years went by and he dinged it around the farm (or once a tree fell on it) he made quite a few patches with expired Maryland license plates attached with nuts and bolts.

P. S. I tried to buy it several times until about 1985 when his wife told me she gave it to her nephew.

Ted

[TK in LA]

The latest acquisition had an interesting breather pipe on it. It was made from a sink drain pipe that was plugged and a hose leads under the motor just far enough to remove the vapors.

[SeaSlugs]

lets see, headlight switch is out of picture but over on passenger side, horn on dash, knife blade and key switch.


battery tray in engine compartment, check out the massively welded head.

All was done by my great grandpa whom Ive never met or my grandpa who will be missed dearly. Both were very creative with what they had. I didnt find many mechanical scary things, occasional nut and bolt instead of pin and cotter or most creative was a square nail, spring, washer and cotter pin as a emergency brake pin...took me a bit to figure out what everything was!

[Tom Wesenberg]

Here's another farmer fix, and of all places it's a cobbled up fan. Two blades were cut off, then the cut area was welded to the hub.

[jeep44]

reviving this thread-here's a "fix" I found on my recently-acquired 31 CCPU-it's a cable clamp, and a couple of bolts, making a sort of spring shackle. New shackles are sitting in the bed, waiting for me to tackle them.

[califfarmer]

All these posts show just how "Out standing in our fields" us farmers. I'm going to have to remember some of these ideas. When your out working you make do with what is at hand.
Go Farmers!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lona]

My parts car in 1956 was an A running roadster with no top or hood or trunk. It had two transmissions mounted in line which I would think was fairly common in the farm community to provide extra pulling power for their home made loggers.

Also had a friend traveling across country (not an A) and threw a rod through the side of the engine. He replaced the rod and used a flattened oil can and perma-tex to plug the hole and drove it home. Don't know if he screwed the tin to the block or not.

Glen

[BILL WILLIAMSON]

Not really a farmer fix, but Chief described a PILE DRIVER, built by the W.P.A. It was a rear end, mounted on an "AA" flatbed, run by the P.T.O, brakes operated by hand levers, reels mounted to the drums & cables up to a tower, with a HEAVY driving weight.
In the '50's, I saw similar designed rigs, used to stack HAY, using LETHAL looking BIG PRONGED FORKS. It was AMAZING to see the operator in ACTION!!! He could throw hay bales atop a HUMONGEOUS TALL STACK! Wish I had pics.
Bill W.

[JAKEFORD]

Most of these are very ingenious and to me display the determination of the people involved. They never gave up.

[katy]

The oil return tube on our '31 CCPU has a piece of hose over part of it. I suspect that some previous owner had a short tube and needed a long one, so just cut it in half and extended it w/a piece of heater hose and a couple of clamps.
Now I just need to find a proper tube for it. Of course my spare is a short one.

[Willie Krash]

Done right !

[DJ S]

My newly acquired Tudor had tons of farmer fixes that drove me up a wall. One of them was an old manifold heater that had fallen apart numerous time in multiple spots. The previous owner used pieces of sheet metal and screws to hold it together .

There is also the crude do-it-yourself interior that was thrown together in the early '70s.

Oh yeah, and all the body filler that is basically holding the body together!

[dpson]

Perhaps this is an urban legend, but I recall hearing a story about a guy who bought a model A that ran, but ran poorly. He found there was no compression in one of the cylinders. When he pulled the head, much to his surprise, the piston and connecting rod had been removed and a round wooden post driven into the cylinder.

True or not I don't know, but it sounds plausible back in the days of "use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."

[crock]

These are 2014 farmer fix's ( did not want to spend the money for horn rod and wire harness ) alum. Plate holds headlight switch, turn signal flasher and indicating lights , as well as a 12v recpt. For gps. Horn works with a button mounted to the steering wheel with a wire run up the steering column.

[Charlville]

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My Sport Coupe has a hydraulic brake conversion done by a previous owner, here's the master cylinder fitting which is a bit farmerish

[TK in LA]

What are these? I think OJ concentrate cans. Now used as grease caps. Also a carb float for a gas float.

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Originally Posted by Craig Lewis

Awesome story! I say we need more of this stuff

Many years ago, I seem to recall a story that someone broke down with a main bearing issue on the drive to a National MARC meet. They dropped the pan and used their leather belt cut up to fashion a "babbit" bearing that worked good enough to get them there.

[captndan]

I don't know if a farmer did this or not. But I did see a Pierce Arrow with a carved wooden piston and a tin can lid on top nailed on. Honest!

[Domino]

Too many families still have a hard time paying rent, buying groceries, and getting necessities. Many of these folks are willing to physical work but the jobs aren't there. A few weeks ago a guy I know didn't have the money or credit to purchase a battery for his 18 year old only transportation car. he was stuck at Autozone so I made a deal with him. I'll buy you a battery and you come do some things around my house. I did and he did. Sad this happens in America. Most of us are blessed.

[Hoogah]

Radius ball socket bolts made with a welder and angle grinder, extracted from my Phaeton on the weekend, with their replacements.

[30 Closed Cab PU]

Originally Posted by Rock Hornbuckle

I was driving 'ol' 29 Nellie home from a parade when the flange on the tail pipe broke off and the entire exhaust system hit the pavement. I had a roll of tie-wire used for tying rebar in the trunk. I was able to tie things up and drive her home. I had learned alot during my penniless teenage years about keeping my old Ford Coupe wired together.

I saw a junked out A, exhaust must have had a hole or split, large tin can ends sawed off, can cut in half lengthwise, can wrapped around the exhaust, can then tightly wrapped with barbed wire, and each end wrapped tight again with barbed wire at the edge of the can to prevent the can from moving.

[Jwilli]

Originally Posted by sukhoi

Paul from CT is "right on". It is easy to be critical from our 2012 perspective. I grew up in a depression family and remember well when a family conference was called for a big expense like $10. Not trying to be preachy but it is good to remember when families had a very difficult time making ends meet.

In those years in the south it was what we called make-do. Use what you have and hope it works.

[Terry, NJ]

Sorry, I'm not seeing it The Banjo fitting is stock for that master cylinder and the mounting on the firewall looks like a pretty clean job. The guy probably didn't have access to another transmission mounted pedal and used the hanging style in place of it. Stock? no way! But it seems like a very professional installation.
Terry

Originally Posted by Charlville

My Sport Coupe has a hydraulic brake conversion done by a previous owner, here's the master cylinder fitting which is a bit farmerish