elijahbird7's Tbirds!

[YellowRose]

elijahbird7's Tbirds!

Jim sent me this information and picture regarding his beautiful '56 Babybird.

"Hi Ray,
I've been driving the 56 at least a few hours a day to break in the rebuilt engine. Today I drove it about 5 hours because my mechanic wants to have 500 miles on it to do a final valve adjustment, and check everything out one last time. After one major problem with the gasket that goes behind the spin on oil filter base to the block...two gaskets failed. I got in touch with the Tbird parts supplier, and after some testing, they realized the gasket was not oil compatible!!! My mechanic made his own gasket out of a different material, and no problems since. The Tbird parts supplier has now changed out that gasket and sent me a new one, but that will just be saved as a backup.
I like this photo, because it really shows how the new front springs give the car a perfect "stance". It was probably 1.5" to 2" lower in front before the change.

Hope all is well in Texas

Jim"
Here is the pic!

[YellowRose]

elijahbird8's Tbirds!

Jim sent me some neat pix of his Tbird awards and some other information. I will post them for your enjoyment and the pix. Notice that Jim has the very rare left and right, hard to find HL-1 Winged Spotlight/Side Mirrors on his '59 Squarebird!

"Ray, Thought you may find this interesting. The Rochester, Wisconsin show is a Judged show that usually has between 130 to 170 cars. Last summer my 59 was selected as Best of Show (my 56 won the show in 2010).
The following year, the winning car is asked to park in front of the show, and all of the Dash Plaques and Plaque winners have a picture of your car on them, which go to the Class winners. Three top trophies go to People's Choice, #2, and Best of Show.

It got a little windy later on, so they had to take the sign down so it wouldn't blow into my car. A couple of people asked me for the car number because they wanted to vote for it for People's Choice, but the car is not eligible the year after winning...and you don't have to pay the $10 show fee either.
The whole town has something called "A Day in the Country", with a band playing outside the bar, artists selling their goods, and one booth where ladies sell homemade pies and cookies. This 1914 Case Steam Tractor was running very quietly all day as well...Hugh machine."

[bird 60]

Beautiful Birds, both of them. Congratulations.

Chris.....From OZ.

[Dan Leavens]

Jim they are sweet looking birds and both true classics.
Good stuff

[YellowRose]

elijahbird7's Tbirds!

Jim just pulled the trigger on this drop dead gorgeous '57 Starmist Blue Babybird! It has had a full frame off restoration and it is to die for! Here is what Jim had to say.

"I bought it. I took my friend Andy who also has a Starmist Blue 57 with me. This car is so far over the top that he almost started to drool. This is definitely Amos Minter ++ standards. The guy who owns it now never even put license plates on it because he was afraid of scratching the chrome. The top has never been lowered either.
As soon as Mike, the restorer of this car gets a new set of full size hubcaps from Dennis Carpenter, he will swap them out and deliver the car to me in his trailer, either by the weekend or early the following week. He has some used ones, but said they don't belong on this car! The quality of this car screams for riding in a trailer, but I will DRIVE it. Jim."

Here are some pix of this beautiful Babybird. Please don't drool on your screen or keyboard!

[Dan Leavens]

Jim love that Starmist colour and how the top accents / contrasts the 57. Good stuff!!!

[YellowRose]

elihahbird7's Tbirds!

I just got this email and pix from Jim regarding his new to him '57 BluBrd!

"Hi Ray,
The car got delivered to my house in the trailer by Mike who restored it, on Sunday about 7 pm. The previous owner even rode along. I changed the oil yesterday, and took the horn ring off to paint the letters on the "Power Steering" area correctly Gold. That was the only thing I could find that wasn't factory correct on this car..
Today, I was able to go to the Secretry of State's office to transfer title, pay sales tax, and apply for Antique plates..I requested BLUBRD, so we will see if that comes through..online, it said that was available.
We had snow Sunday night, and more last night into this morning, so it will likely be awhile before I get it out for a ride..has to rain and wash all the salt off the roads first.
Hope all is well in Texas, Jim."

Here are the pix.

[YellowRose]

elijahbird7's Tbirds!

Jim sent me some additional information regarding his recent addition to his Bird Nest.... Here is what he had to say and several new pix. BTW, Jim tells me that this Babybird has won many, many trophies over the years at major Tbird organization events.

"Had a few small things to keep me busy this week. I had been checking on everything to make sure there were no issues. One thing I forgot was if the wipers and heater worked..so turned the wiper switch..yep, wipers started. Turned the knob back to off, and they just kept going! Then when I got back home, I remembered to turn on the heater, and it worked, but there was antifreeze leaking under the car. I talked to the restoration guy, and he talked me through what I could do to fix the issues. Had to crawl under the dash to get a screwdriver to the top of the wiper motor to move a lever back, and lubricate it...good, that worked. The antifreeze was coming from the heater control module that screws into the front of the intake manifold, and is attached to a heater hose and a vacuum line. I ordered a new one that came today, and had it replaced and running by noon, with no more leaks! This car has been a trailer queen, and not driven for many years, so it takes awhile to get it ready to be a driver! Jim"

[Wyldie]

Simply stunning

[YellowRose]

elijahbird7's Tbirds!

Jim sent me some pix of the underside of his BlueBird!

[YellowRose]

elijahbird7's Tbirds!

Jim sent me a copy of his 1956 Babybird's Factory Invoice or "Gate Release" to post.

There was staff at the end of the production line whose job was to take the vehicle off the line, check off that everything that was on the gate release, was actually on the car. If not, then the car was driven to the side, and taken to a make ready shop to have anything missing put on the car. At least, that is what I remember from talking with actual plant personnel back then who had worked on the production line in those years. That is also, as I recall, if I remember correctly, what Dave ~ simplyconnected told me.

If everything was in order, then it was driven to a point where it was uploaded onto a car carrier or on a train for distant shipping. Since this car was destined for a car dealership in Studio City, California, it was, according to the gate release, going by rail. Here is the copy of his Gate Release. He got this many years ago. He will also be ordering one for his '57 that he just got.

It is cool that anyone wanting an original Factory Invoice/Gate Release for their '55-'57 Tbird can still get them (except for some early 1955's) from the CTCI IF you are a member of their organization. If not a member, you can join and become one, and then order it from them for a $30 fee. The CTCI is the ONLY organization, that I am aware of, that has these forms available to buy. Here is the CTCI website and also the link to order the form.

http://www.ctci.org/

Membership Information
http://www.ctci.org/membership.php

CTCI Original Factory Invoice Order Form
http://www.ctci.org/docs/Original_Fa..._Jan_2017a.pdf

For other years of Tbirds and other Ford cars, contact Marti Auto Works in Arizona who specializes in providing replacement Data Plates, Original Ford Invoices Their contact information is on their website. Contact: 623-935-2558. sales@martiauto.com
http://www.martiauto.com/

[simplyconnected]

Your memory is pretty much on the money, Ray.

Visualize a Ford Security Guard. He is the very last 'Ford person' who will touch the car before it is handed over to the transportation company. Once 'transportation' drives the car out the back door, it no longer belongs to Ford Motor Co.

All cars are purchased BEFORE they are assembled. 'Dealer stock' units are leased (not owned) by banks who charge the dealership interest for every month the car sits on the lot.

So, what exactly does this guard do? He's VERY busy because he only gets 60 seconds per car. As the next car stops in front of him, all four wheels are weighed, and the 'total weight' is recorded and printed in several copies including the window sticker. He observes everything on the car and matches all the options, marking them off, then signing it. The window sticker is among the copies. The trunk is open and usually the hubcaps are in there with the spare tire.

If all is well, he rolls the window sticker on a wide 'glue roller' and slaps it inside the driver's window. Then the car advances to an awaiting driver who quickly whisks the car to the railhead or transportation trailer. Imagine moving 60 cars per hour, every hour; nearly 1,000 cars per two-shift day. The transportation company employs a crew of drivers and a bus to return them to the plant's back door.

If something is awry, the car is retained and it goes back to make the paperwork (which is a contract) correct. What could go wrong? Here's where the transportation company is very concerned. What if the spare tire is missing, or a number of hubcaps is missing, or the antenna, jack, etc? Once the transportation company accepts the car, THEY are responsible for lost and stolen parts and damages. The dealership commonly supplies and/or installs some parts. These items are noted on paperwork beforehand to eliminate any misunderstanding.

If you understand everyone's task, it's a rhapsody to watch these folks in action. They are responsible to literally move over $20Million every day. - Dave

EDIT: Looking at the rubber stamp, it reads:
DRIVE AWAY GARAGE <--This is the work area where the guard is, at the back door of the plant.
PLANT SECURITY SECTION
DEARBORN ASSEMBLY PLANT

[YellowRose]

elijahbird7's Tbirds!

Thanks, Dave, and for giving us a very detailed breakdown of what actually happens, step by step once the car reaches the end of the production line. Also for explaining that stamp. Very interesting stuff! Thanks!

[simplyconnected]

I hope I'm not too long winded but my whole life has revolved around the automotive industry. Dad engineered and sold screws, bolts and nuts to Fisher Body. I started working for Chrysler (yep, Ford was my second auto company) right out of high school. Cars and women are my passion! Both of their bodies are marvelously engineered and fun to play with. - Dave

[Dan Leavens]

Both of their bodies are marvelously engineered and fun to play with. - Dave

Dave I would have thought you might have mentioned the comparison of women and cars might be complex as well