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My father just handed a '38 model A down to me. with issues

S

Stewart Brewer

New User
I'm not sure where to start. I'd like to restore it and drive it in parades and show it.

When he bought it over 20 years ago it ran very well. The steering wheel and the exhaust and intake pipes were slightly bent during a tornado. I'm confident that I saw it a few times without anything covering the exhaust pipe. Lately it has had a soup can on it. The flywheel will not move at all. He had filled the cylinders with oil and they are still half full. I tried to look inside them with a cheap little ebay USB endoscope and got a few pictures I'll try to post but I couldn't tell much.
I opened the radiator cap and saw pine needles inside (how?).
The fuel caps fit very loosely. The fuel selector is frozen. The shutters for the radiator are also frozen.
The rear tires look new and the front tires are the worst dry rot I've ever seen but they hold air decently well.

Cosmetically it the paint and decals are faded.
FAA21CD4-213F-467E-A695-543BD70AF478_zps40tqwux8.jpg
 
You say the cylinders are half full of oil but flywheel will not turn. I'm sure you have tried opening the compression relief cocks on side of cylinders to see if it won't turn because of them being full or if rings are stuck. Being you got it for free you may as well at least get it running and then decide how far to go after that.
 
Just fix it you will never be sorry. I have brought back to life a few that were in a lot worse shape than that one. My wife told me one day that I was insane to bring home a junk pile and get it running.
 
I found a '43 hand start the owner said was parked in his woods when he bought the place 8 years earlier! He never got it to start. With a couple hours of work I drove it out of the woods. Ran absolutely terrible but it moved on his own power headed for a new home! It still looks way worse than THAT & has Ricco Baldinni rear tires! I've yet to regret buying the old beast! Take the plugs out, take off the valve cover & make sure the valves are free & see if it's actually stuck or if it's hydrolocked. Like RandyB said.... the price is right!

You could even leave the dents, dings & bent parts in it as witness to it having survived a tornado!
 
before I did anything I'd pull that valve cover off and pull the rocker shaft...see if the valves are free in head....I'd then pull the plugs then take a jack handle and small chain and see if I could walk the flywheel back and forth...if you and get it to go full circle, I'd then put a puller tractor and loosen it up...be sure it has oil...you would have to try to start just pull around loosen up then put the rocker back on and adjust valves then fire it up...you'll be surprised the rest just looks cosmetics....some diesel fuel will make the old paint come alive....wipe down thoroughly
 
I don't know where that tractor is at but I would love to buy it off you just the way it is if I didn't have to travel too far.
 
I have an US A that was stuck so I I popped off the valve cover and gave the valves a tap with a hammer to make sure they were loose. I then made a tool out of I believe 1 1/2" pipe, whatever size that would fit into the 2 holes on the flywheel. It was 5' long with two short pieces welded on it to fit in those 2 flywheel holes making it look sorta like an F. I opened the pet cocks and pulled the plugs out and then put the tool on and using the leverage gained by it, I tried rocking it back and forth. I didn't get much at first but slowly it started to come free and once I got to to move a half a turn I took the tool off and was able to move it by hand.
 
RandyB, yes i tried to move the flywheel with the spark plugs out. I know about the oil because I tried to use an inspection camera and it kept getting oily and I could see how far up the cylinder walls the oil went.

Thanks everyone for the pointers and hints.
 
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