Hello to all. I am Don Cavey (real name!) and I am in the process of moving from Maryland to Florida. I am retired 11 years now and 66 years of age. I hope to find and purchase a Model A Ford sometime in the Spring of 2015. I have a home in Florida already but have not sold the home here in MD. Long story and you don't want to be bored with the details.
Seriously, I am looking for a Model A. I am not up for restoring one since I have other projects and don't need to take on another one which may not get finished! I know me and as my son-in-law correctly observed, I "have too many interests". So, I know that I need to finish projects; not start another one.
My background is in communications having retired from Verizon which was Bell Atlantic which was C&P Telephone Co. of MD. My hobbies are aircraft especially WWII types. I do have a Private Pilot Single Engine Land license and have not flown much in the last few years. I intend to rectify that when I finish the move to Florida. Three of us are renting a hanger at the Fernandina Beach Municipal Airport and one of the guys has a Cessna 172. All three of us have licenses. But that is not why I am here.
I will ask for suggestions later on and promise to not start throwing out questions without doing research first. I will read the existing threads and try to figure out what is going on. One of the reasons for joining is that Dad had a Model A when he was a young adult and I always wanted to see it. Unfortunately, Dad is no longer with us. And, we don't seem to have any pictures of his Model A. I thought that he said it was a 1932 Roadster. But I must have misunderstood since my understanding is that the last year for a Model A was 1931.
When the time comes, I will ask for assistance in choosing a nice Model A. At the present time, I don't know what is original, correct, appropriate etc. I am very interested in owning a car that is essentially the way it came from the factory. In my '65 Corvair, I am not hung up on OEM NOS etc. But it must look like the original, work like the original etc., colors, interior fabrics, engine color. I also don't care a hoot about "all matching numbers" like the muscle car guys. For instance, the voltage regulator on the Corvair is still electro-mechanical and it works. Also, my M715 is slowly being brought back to the way it left the Kaiser-Jeep factory in 1969. Power steering is removed, key ignition etc. has gone away and it is back to 24 volt.
So, that being said, I will be asking for assistance in selecting a Model A that is original with a generator, not an alternator and mechanical brakes if that is what they had. I know that juice brakes are better but I am willing to accept them as they are.
I think that sums it up. Again, I promise to not be a pest and once I become an owner and have some experience under my belt, I will be forthcoming with my experiences so that I can help other members. I realize that we all have different skill sets; some of us are shade tree mechanics, others may be Bugatti engineers.
Thanks for your time and thanks for reading down to the end of this long and rambling post. (Sorry for all of the times the word "I" appeared! And I will not use dancing emoticons etc.; they are annoying.)
Seriously, I am looking for a Model A. I am not up for restoring one since I have other projects and don't need to take on another one which may not get finished! I know me and as my son-in-law correctly observed, I "have too many interests". So, I know that I need to finish projects; not start another one.
My background is in communications having retired from Verizon which was Bell Atlantic which was C&P Telephone Co. of MD. My hobbies are aircraft especially WWII types. I do have a Private Pilot Single Engine Land license and have not flown much in the last few years. I intend to rectify that when I finish the move to Florida. Three of us are renting a hanger at the Fernandina Beach Municipal Airport and one of the guys has a Cessna 172. All three of us have licenses. But that is not why I am here.
I will ask for suggestions later on and promise to not start throwing out questions without doing research first. I will read the existing threads and try to figure out what is going on. One of the reasons for joining is that Dad had a Model A when he was a young adult and I always wanted to see it. Unfortunately, Dad is no longer with us. And, we don't seem to have any pictures of his Model A. I thought that he said it was a 1932 Roadster. But I must have misunderstood since my understanding is that the last year for a Model A was 1931.
When the time comes, I will ask for assistance in choosing a nice Model A. At the present time, I don't know what is original, correct, appropriate etc. I am very interested in owning a car that is essentially the way it came from the factory. In my '65 Corvair, I am not hung up on OEM NOS etc. But it must look like the original, work like the original etc., colors, interior fabrics, engine color. I also don't care a hoot about "all matching numbers" like the muscle car guys. For instance, the voltage regulator on the Corvair is still electro-mechanical and it works. Also, my M715 is slowly being brought back to the way it left the Kaiser-Jeep factory in 1969. Power steering is removed, key ignition etc. has gone away and it is back to 24 volt.
So, that being said, I will be asking for assistance in selecting a Model A that is original with a generator, not an alternator and mechanical brakes if that is what they had. I know that juice brakes are better but I am willing to accept them as they are.
I think that sums it up. Again, I promise to not be a pest and once I become an owner and have some experience under my belt, I will be forthcoming with my experiences so that I can help other members. I realize that we all have different skill sets; some of us are shade tree mechanics, others may be Bugatti engineers.
Thanks for your time and thanks for reading down to the end of this long and rambling post. (Sorry for all of the times the word "I" appeared! And I will not use dancing emoticons etc.; they are annoying.)
