Thanks for the comments and suggestions. The bad news is now when I press the starter button nothing happens. Earlier it would crank over with plenty of juice but now nothing. The good news is my neighbor was riding by on his ATV and I got out a tow strap and he pulled me up into the garage so at least it's inside now. Could the starter button not working have anything to do with the other problem of it cranking over but not starting? I would really like to find someone in the Louisville area who knows Model A's to come over and take a look at it because my mechanical skills are somewhere between slim and none. Thanks again....
It sounds to me like you've got an intermittant bad battery connection--either the ground or the hot wire. If this is the case, the lights and everything will be dead too. Sometimes, vigorously rocking the car will temporarily reestablish the connection. But, you must remove floor and clean and retighten both ends of both battery cables. Don't just look at them to see if they look ok. Rarely is the starter button or the starter the problem. If the starter motor bendix drive is jammed on the ring gear, lights and horn should work and you should hear a hum as the motor tries to turn things. If so, put in 2nd gear and rock car as previously suggested.
Most of the time the problem is the ground; you may need to disconnect strap at frame and clean off the corrosion under/around the bolt. On a new restoration, sometimes too much paint interferes with ground conduction back thru the sheet metal, etc. to the frame. Then, the fix is to add a second ground strap from the battery to a bolt on transmission top.
Such bad connections are commonly intermittant and could have caused initial stalling. IN MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE, this is frequently followed by flooding the engine causing it to refuse to start again. OR, there may well be a second intermittant contact in the ignition circuit--could be anywhere, but common culprits are ignition switch, ammeter connections, and fuse (if one has been added).
Check MARC and MAFCA websites for local clubs. Join one and get to know folks who will be glad to help. BUT, this problem sounds like one you should view as valuable (if aggravating) learning experience for getting to know your car and one day being able to help others.
Meanwhile, let us know what happens as you try things. Be prepared for a bewildering array of suggestions. There are systematic approaches to the problem, and someone may post their favorite protocol. If you have not yet done so, you should purchase Les Andrews' maintenance guide.
Good luck!
Steve
