1930 1931 Model A Ford Accessory Tool Box

[JayJay]

I picked up a used one of the square ones I got from a guy back east a couple of months ago. The fit was a bit fussy, but I eventually got it. I agree with nkaminar that it does sort of detract from the looks of the front end, but in this case function beats form. But it blocks the crank opening in the front, which I knew but never thought much about until I went to tune the car this week. I had been turning the engine over with a socket and ratchet, but now needed to use one of the special wrenches.

The one I have is the one with the straight handle. I hadn't used it much because I kept finding my knuckles banging into the radiator fins. I solved that by putting a slight offset in the wrench handle using a torch, a vise and a long piece of rod to bend with. Much mo' beddah now.

 

[Gene F]

I picked up a used one of the square ones I got from a guy back east a couple of months ago. The fit was a bit fussy, but I eventually got it. I agree with nkaminar that it does sort of detract from the looks of the front end, but in this case form beats function. But it blocks the crank opening in the front, which I knew but never thought much about until I went to tune the car this week. I had been turning the engine over with a socket and ratchet, but now needed to use one of the special wrenches.

The one I have is the one with the straight handle. I hadn't used it much because I kept finding my knuckles banging into the radiator fins. I solved that by putting a slight offset in the wrench handle using a torch, a vise and a long piece of rod to bend with. Much mo' beddah now.

I have heard that the work-around for this is to get the pointer on the rotor close before you start anything. Pull all 4 plugs, put the car in 3rd grear, and roll it back a bit. Right hand on the pin, left hand on the winshild pillar. Or, better yet, a helper.

 

[JayJay]

I have heard that the work-around for this is to get the pointer on the rotor close before you start anything. Pull all 4 plugs, put the car in 3rd grear, and roll it back a bit. Right hand on the pin, left hand on the winshild pillar. Or, better yet, a helper.

Yeah, I and I'm sure a bunch of us here have done it this way on the road. But in the comfort (?) of my garage I'd prefer to not be moving the car around, so some way to turn the engine without moving the car is indicated. And I rarely if ever have a helper, regrettably. There are other reasons to turn the crankshaft without moving the car, for example valves.

I've also found that with the plugs out I can sometimes rotate the crank by turning the fan.

And I just noticed a mistake in my post #41 above - I meant function beats form, not the reverse.