Projects Bought a 51 Ford on Purpose

My hometown will have a high temp of -12F on Friday, there was a warning of areas mostly north of us that trees could spontaneously explode from the cold.

 

Wow! That’s crazy! Weather here doesn’t look great for the next several days either, but even the lows are only 0F or so. Today is supposed to be 52F for a high so a pretty mild January day for driving an old car. Not looking forward to next week.

 

Representing the Crossmembers CC. KQQL.

 

How bad is the snow going to be for you guys? They’re predicting either 16”+ for us or 3.5” of ice depending on how it plays out. It could also be a mixture of both

I put mine up for a short hibernation until this is gone in a couple of weeks.

 

Beautiful!

 

Sounds like maybe a foot or so of snow Friday night and Saturday. Probably like there, no one here knows how to drive in it and they also aren’t really prepared to clear roads efficiently either.

 

wow! and I have the heater on in the garage working on my 48 because it is only 70 here.

 

Color me jealous, but not. Great find!

 

Sure is a nice old Ford.

 

Jeff you and lostn51 jinxed us with all the talk about warm temps in January. The temp here in Lakeville this AM is -21 degrees. Gotta love Minnesota!

 

No kidding...seems it is going to be a little below zero here as well in the next few days. I have to admit that I put the 51 in the shop last night and don't plan to get it out for a few days mainly because there will be salt on the roads. I rode into work with my daughter this morning in the vehicle she is borrowing from me until she replaces the one she totaled back in November... On that note, she looked at a car yesterday, so maybe I can get at least one vehicle back soon.

 

I put mine in hibernation a couple of days ago just because of the weather. My last 51 that was a daily I drove in the snow and ice not thinking twice about it but it had a modern driveline and radial tires

 

Trees don't explode, they can make popping noises when the moisture inside freezes...but the don't explode.

 

Yeah they do it was even on our news here in Tennessee. The water/sap freezes in the tree and expands, when that happens it sounds like a shotgun they said when it blows!!

 

The sap can freeze and “pop” the bark you normally see the healed up scars on trees the next summer. The photo above probably isn’t frozen sap as much as a frozen tree plus wind has let it break. Just like putting a green limb over you knee and breaking it. The center buckled and splits it doesn’t just snap in half.

I’ve seen this all over lately online and it’s just some attention getting headline click bait with this big storm rolling in.

Yes a tree breaking, from any force does sound like a shot gun. A sharp, loud crack. But the sensationalism that you’re all going to have trees “exploding” is nonsense.

I’ve lived through my fair amount of -60 F winters and until this week I’ve never seen this stuff hyped up.

Now that being said, if you’re in the south I would expect a lot of downed trees and branches if you get some heavy snow. Places that get it regularly have had the weak pieces dropped a little bit at a time and have never had a chance to ac***ulate in a tree. Myself even after I moved south spend a couple hours every fall t******* out the dead and weak branches. I’d rather get it over with now that clean up a mess or deal with it landing on something.

In 2012 we were in Little Rock and they got about a foot of snow in a day and I was shocked the amount of stuff that was down.


That being said, good luck and stay safe.

 

Boy, we were watching the weather channel. Those guys are acting like it’s the end of the world. Talk about DoomsdayErs!

 

Exactly why I don't watch the weather. I did have to get a gallon of milk last night for my wife and the shelves were almost bare because of the craziness...

To keep this on-topic, I drove the 51 to the store after driving it to work yesterday as well.

I should also mention that it seems I have speedometer issues and will be sending that off for a rebuild to @e1956v as soon as I can park it long enough to let go of it for a while. Hopefully that will be early next month when I plan to be driving my "new" daily.

 

Does the heater work?

 

Like a champ...well, other than the fact that the heater core started dripping a little recently.

 

Eeek!

I’m Always curious how they perform some of the 40’s/60’s aftermarket units are said to have dang near melted you out of the vehicle!

 

I can say that if I drive the car down the highway for 30 or so minutes when it is around freezing outside, it will run you out to the point that I typically roll a window down some to help regulate. That seems to work better than regulating it with the controls.

 

Perfect I’ve got a couple old ones around I’ve talked about putting in the model A. It’s going to have a snap on fabric roof insert so I figured either heating the seats or just hang a volcano of a heater was the best idea instead of trying to keep any of the heat contained.

 

...I still don't call that "exploding"

 

Jeff I can go out to the shed and see of if I can find you a heater core if you need one. I know I have several of them back there

 

I might take you up on that once it warms up. I don’t think they make a reproduction one. My plan was to take it to our local radiator shop that still knows how to fix stuff.

 

I’d definitely do that but if I have one then that will give you a spare!!

 

I rebuilt my old Arvin heater, and it kicks ****!
I have to crack the windows.
I used a ‘60s 70s ford Cable heat valve.
so I didn’t have to go out and turn the little needle valve closed and all that and opened when I needed it. so far works pretty good doesn’t really regulate the heat all that great but it keeps it from boiling!

 

Talking about heaters and adjusting….The one in my Tudor works like a champ and it regulates pretty well using the selector which amazes me because all my other old cars that was a waste of time

 

So fellas back east in Midwest, Has the ice started that they were talking about?

 

Sorry Jeff
Back on topic LOL!
Gotta keep Ryan happy!