Tailgate instructions
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We now have four technical workdays a year - January, April, July, and September. See the 2024 calendar of events. This is a time we get to repair those vehicle and get ready for the next driving season.
Do not use grease in your steering box. Some early 2 tooth boxes had a grease fitting on top and some owners believed it was for a grease gun. Ford recommended 600 weight oil.
Watch those gas lines from the firewall to the carb. Like Henry built it is the best material from our understanding..
Are you looking for a easy way to remove rust?
Use a 50/50 mixture of water and distilled white vinegar.
I started with a cup of each and placed my rusty/dirty parts in the mixture. If the item was not covered I just added another cup of each. I left the item to soak for a day and then took a wire brush to it. You can see the results below. I have done the same thing with larger painted items that were pitted deep with rust. I left them in the solution for 1 to 2 weeks. Removed and wire brushed. The rust and paint came off and left the metal clean. I washed the solution off and painted. This has got to be the easiest job I have ever done with rusty items.
Here are 5 more good tips.
1. There are two tricks to a sure start and battery longevity: buy a good battery and keep it fully charged. I usually get at least 8 years out of any battery made by East Penn, sold as Deka, Duracell or Car Quest. And there are two ways to keep a battery fully charged. The best way is to run your engine to operating temperature at least every 30 days. Or, use a float charger. Not a trickle charger, but a float charger. A battery charger, even a "trickle" charger, left unattended will eventually boil out a battery. Keeping the battery fully charged prevents sulfation. Battery sulfation occurs at a specific rate at "X" temperature. Over time, sulfation reduces battery performance and eventually its effects are irreversible. Sulfation of batteries starts when specific gravity falls below 1.225 or voltage measures less than 12.4 for a 12v battery, or 6.2 for a 6 volt battery. Sulfation hardens on the battery plates reducing and eventually destroying the ability of the battery to generate current. Using a float charger significantly reduces sulfation. Your battery loses 33 percent of its power when the temperature dips below freezing, and over 50 percent of its power when the temperature falls below zero. A fully charged battery will not freeze until -76°F; however, a fully discharged battery can start to freeze at 32°F. So……keep the battery fully charged! If you have a digital volt meter, 6.03 volts on a 6 volt battery and 12.06 volts on a 12 volt battery is only a 25% charge! Deltran battery tenders have in-line fuses and can be hard wired to the vehicles.
2. Clean grounds & battery terminals are always important. Don’t forget to loosen the starter from the block and polish the block & all starter mating surfaces with sandpaper to insure a good electrical ground. Copper washers and bare metal on the positive battery cable connection to the frame, plus an additional strap that goes to a bolt on the transmission will help grounding issues. And, engine side pans not only help with engine cooling, they help with grounding.
3. If you can’t remember the last time you replaced the battery cables, it’s time to do it. If your terminals are corroded, there is a good chance that corrosion is under the insulation. And, this is another case where size matters. A small gauge 12-volt battery cable will not work properly on a 6-volt Model A. Use a 1 or 0 gauge cable to go to the starter (negative) and the OEM strap for the positive cable.
4. A charged battery, clean grounds & new cables aren’t going to mean much if the car needs a tune-up. Quality points are critical to performance. And, at a minimum, every fall, remove the cap, check the points for pitting or burning, re-gap them & put a dab of points lube on the cam. Not bearing grease or Vaseline; use the correct lube. (BTW, if you’ve wondered why some folks get years of use out of a set of points, this is one of the reasons
5. While each A has its own starting sequence, none of them will start well by just yanking out the choke rod & holding it out for 5 or 10 seconds while the engine cranks. This is a gravity fuel system on a low compression engine; it is easily flooded by too much choke. Key on, spark fully retarded (up) GAV out 1 turn, clutch in, move the hand throttle until you see the gas pedal move, press the starter button. Let it crank for at least 3 - 4 seconds before you pull the choke rod. Then, don't hold it out for more than 2 or 3 seconds. If you find out it will not start w/o excessive choking, you have problems.