What fun I had yesterday as I helped build a 1919 Ford Model T automobile from scratch.
What, you might say?
When did I get into the car building business? Well, I didn’t.
Yesterday I visited the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan where I strolled through the many historical exhibits of innovation and design.
I love to explore museums (I used to work in one) and just around the corner from the main exhibit walkway I discovered the hands-on activity to build an authentic 1919 Ford Model T.
With three museum staff explaining what to do, I followed the checklist on the chalkboard (along with several other museum visitors) and helped assemble an authentic Model T from scratch. It was easy to install the gas tank, front tires, and hood for the car.
I learned the Model T:
- Weighed around 1200 pounds
- Was the first automobile mass-produced on assembly lines. For the first time, workers stayed in one work area as they completed their tasks on the automobile.
- Gas tank was located under the front bench seat
- Tires didn’t last long. Roads weren’t built for cars, rather for wagon and horses. Nails, rocks, and other items on the road would quickly cause problems. Flat tires were common.
I had a wonderful time talking with the museum staff about the Model T, learned about unleaded vs. leaded gasoline (the addition of Tetraethyl lead (TEL) and found out how one of the staff manages to run his 1964 Comet, which runs on leaded gasoline.
Here are a few more photos from assembling the Model T.
