Half-Scale Model T Built From Scratch

Half-Scale Model T Built From Scratch AG WORLD 32-5-24 "Whenever I take it to antique tractor shows, people often ask me where I bought it," says Dale Lemmerman, Wyoming, Minn., who built a 1/2-scale Model T car from scratch that's powered by a Honda 5 hp gas engine. The car measures 70 in. long by 32 in. wide and rides on 12-in. high wheels equipped with wooden spokes. The body is made from 18-ga. sheet metal and is painted black, while the spokes are painted red. To make the wheels he cut all the spokes out of a pair of 16-in. bicycle wheel rims and made a hub for each wheel, then attached wooden spokes to each hub. The front axle was made from 1-in. sq. tubing, while the rear axle was made from 1-in. dia. round tubing. The differential was designed for a go-cart and was purchased from Northern Hydraulics. The engine and transmission are located on back of the car. The transmission has two sets of sprockets, with one small sprocket driving another bigger sprocket and a slide between them. There are two forward speeds and one reverse. The seat is made with foam rubber, tucked and rolled, over a metal frame. A plexiglass windshield protects the driver. "It took me about seven months to build, but it was worth it," says Lemmerman. "Our grand kids have lots of fun with us driving this car. Top speed is about 15 to 20 mph. It's equipped with a centrifugal clutch so as soon as I step on the gas it goes. "The headlights are just for looks. I made them out of 4-in. dia. stainless steel mixing bowls. I made small plexiglass lenses for the bowls and rolled a welding bead around the lenses to hold the plexiglass in place. Then I mounted a small light bulb in each bowl." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dale Lemmerman, 18927 Jewel St., Wyoming, Minn. 55092 (ph 763 434-7936).

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