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ICM 1913 Model T Ford Roadster, review with pics


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I've been anticipating this model since I first heard about it last spring, and my two kits arrived a couple of days ago. Here are the parts sprues:

ICMModelT4.jpg

ICMModelT2.jpg

ICMModelT1.jpg

This kit is everything I expected from ICM, although it's not nearly as complex as their first 1/24 scale offering, the Opel Admiral--but then, the hallmark of Model T was its simplicity--there just aren't nearly as many parts to a T as in a large 1930's car!

At first glance, I was taken aback a bit by the frame rails being molded as part of the floorboard/fender/running board unit, which to me seemed a throwback to some of the simplified model car kits of 60 years ago, but on closer examination--I like that, as it eliminates the possibilty of a twisted frame or floorboard unit and at any rate, the two crossmembers are well detailed, having their respective transverse springs molded as part of them, the front crossmember also having a nicely done T front axle molded into it. In addition, this construction concept should make adding the extra details such as parking brake rods, etc.

The plated parts look great, and are coated in a clear yellow, but still far too light in shade for my tastes, but nothing that an airbrushing of Tamiya Clear Yellow won't cure. I especially like the wood wheels--they are as light and spindly as the early 30X3 1/2 wheels used by Ford at that time. The tires come in for special comment as well: The first white soft PVC tires I have ever seen in a model kit. in 1913, all car tires were made with vulcanized natural latex rubber, which when finished, had a light buff color to them. In period photographs, due to the primitive elmusion used, along with primitive lenses, those tires show up in black & white pics as very starkly white--which is why modern restorers and collectors demanded that the likes of Coker Tire Company make tires for brass era cars in white synthetic rubber. I'm not sure if I can successfully color these tires in a more realistic buff color, but there's sufficient sprue there on which to try.

I think the engine will satisfy most all modelers, it's done to ICM's usual crisp detail standards, but they did miss the exposed cylinder barrel surfaces on the left side--again, something I think I can correct with bits of Evergreen styrene tube stock.

For those wanting to be more realistic, it should be easy to replace the plastic floor sections and the dashboard (in industry parlance, the firewall was termed the "dashboard" for decades--acknowledging that panel's purpose on horse-drawn buggies and carriages--it was there to stop the horse's hooves from dashing mud, dirt and "you-know-what-comes-out-of-the-back-end-of-a-horse" into the driver's face (and onto his companion as well!) with thin wood, stained an appropriate color. Besides, it makes more sense to call that a dash than a firewall--somehow a wooden firewall seems an oxymoron!

The clear parts call for special mention--they are as optically nice as the glass in my Opel kit--just a quick polish with Novus and a shot of Meguiar's Carnuba Wax, they should be perfect!

Now, I gotta get going on this one--it should be FUN!

Art

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Many thanks for the review - very interesting reading!

At first glance, I was taken aback a bit by the frame rails being molded as part of the floorboard/fender/running board unit, which to me seemed a throwback to some of the simplified model car kits of 60 years ago, but on closer examination--I like that, as it eliminates the possibilty of a twisted frame or floorboard unit and at any rate, the two crossmembers are well detailed, having their respective transverse springs molded as part of them, the front crossmember also having a nicely done T front axle molded into it. In addition, this construction concept should make adding the extra details such as parking brake rods, etc.

That was my thoughts too when first seeing the sprues, until I read your write-up. Given the scale thickness of the plastic mouldings compared to sheet steel, the way ICM have done it is probably also far more realistic and accurate once it is assembled. Given the simplicity of a T chassis, it shouldn't be tricky to construct the rails for those of us who want to build one without the mudguards!

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Many thanks for the review - very interesting reading!

That was my thoughts too when first seeing the sprues, until I read your write-up. Given the scale thickness of the plastic mouldings compared to sheet steel, the way ICM have done it is probably also far more realistic and accurate once it is assembled. Given the simplicity of a T chassis, it shouldn't be tricky to construct the rails for those of us who want to build one without the mudguards!

A Model T Ford frame has but two crossmembers! One each in front and back. Those are, as I described, separate parts. Should you want to do a fenderless T, making those frame rails should be as easy as your nearby Evergreen Styrene display rack.

Art

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If I wish to paint a T red or another color besides black, That molded frame will be a B-word. Were Ford frames painted body color before the only in black edict from Henry?

Factory stock, ALL Model T Fords, from 1908 through 1927 had black frames, and the fenders, running boards and splash aprons were black, regardless of body color. That was very much a tradition among most automakers in the US back then--a carryover from horse-drawn buggy and carriage days, when those vehicles had black leather or patent-leather mudguards (fenders). \

In fact, factory stock Fords from at least the Model K out through the end of the 1932 model run, that black tradition was standard. If one were to paint the fenders any other color (and it would be on both upper and lower surfaces most likely), a bit of masking would be in order, so to get black frame rails.

Bear in mind, there are probably more Brass Era Model T's painted bright colors, over/under/around and through, than correctly restored to factory colors, so you can be on your own as to colors, and what parts are what color.

Art

Edited by Art Anderson
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Awesome Art. I'm gonna have to research how many colors and if they ever offered a car with body colored fenders as an option. I saw a K that was all red.

From all my literature on Model T's, the standard of everything black below the body sills was what you got from the factory. An owner back then wanting any other color for those sheet metal parts would have been on his own.

A real reason for this was that prior to 1914 (when Model T went to "You can have any color you want so long as it is black", while bodies were offered in a very narrow range of colors, painting sheet metal was a laborious, labor-intensive process, as there was no spray painting possible yet ( (De Vilbiss developed the first spray guns about 1920 or so). The painting process on body shells involved brushing on an enamel primer, letting that dry, and then hand sanding it smooth, The color coat was also enamel, laid on by hand with brushes, which could take weeks to dry. Once dry, the painted body was coated in varnish, and then set aside to dry (again more weeks at times). Finally, it was hand-rubbed to a satiny sheen.

Model T bodies could not be baked at a temperature high enough to harden the enamels of the day, due to their structural wood framing, which itself was coated with a thin mixture of asphaltum--get that too hot, and all kinds of nasty things could happen, not the least of which was fire. The black sheet metal parts on the other hand, could be dipped in black enamel, and then baked to a hard, durable finish.

Art

I need another kit like I need a hole in my head. That said, at the very least, I'll pick up the touring when it appears...

I laid in two roadsters--one of them is going to get a Depot Hack body--just ordered the scale basswood for it.

Art

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Looks like the raised top is made up of about four parts (side areas including top irons, rear window area, and top area) while the body looks like several parts (sides, top of turtledeck, probably a separate piece for the top of the cowl). The body looks as though it was broken apart along seams that would exist on the 1:1 body, so it's not as though massive amounts of bodywork will be needed after the sections are joined together.

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Looks like the raised top is made up of about four parts (side areas including top irons, rear window area, and top area) while the body looks like several parts (sides, top of turtledeck, probably a separate piece for the top of the cowl). The body looks as though it was broken apart along seams that would exist on the 1:1 body, so it's not as though massive amounts of bodywork will be needed after the sections are joined together.

With their Opel Admiral, ICM set a standard in my eyes for precision tooling and injection molding--parts fit on that model is impeccable. I would expect the parts fit on the Model T's to be no less so.

Art

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  • 2 weeks later...

Art is almost completely correct. With any Model T everything from the frame down (including fenders and splash aprons) was black EXCEPT for the very early1909's. In those cars everything: axles, frame rails, and (based upon the most current literature) the engine and transmission should be body color. The red cars should be all red with black reveals (and of course, some of us will have to build a '09 out of one of these kits), green cars should be all green with black reveals and French gray cars all gray with black reveals. There were two documented black 1909's made but that was it. Keep in mind we are talking about only a few hundred cars that are genuine '09 Fords anyway.

I agree with Art's assessment of this kit. Mine arrived last week and it is a very good model which will build up very well. I am excited because I can finally kitbash models of my 1:1 cars!

E-

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So far, the only think I have seen that is problematic and probably not fixable is the "Ford" script on the radiator. While it is fairly close to the correct script it is quite out of scale. Looking at the tires, in '14 they were a light gray...pretty close to the color of gray primer from the factory but with a pretty fair amount of shine to them. A coat of gray primer with a finger rubbed over them should bring them to the right sheen. I personally like white tires but find they are a royal pain to keep clean and they are technically wrong for the car. The only major components that are missing from this model are the center frame support (which is a movable cross member) that also serves as the brake controller. That part is present in the AMT kits or could be easily used or could be created from spare tubing.

We have a good start with this model.

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So far, the only think I have seen that is problematic and probably not fixable is the "Ford" script on the radiator. While it is fairly close to the correct script it is quite out of scale. Looking at the tires, in '14 they were a light gray...pretty close to the color of gray primer from the factory but with a pretty fair amount of shine to them. A coat of gray primer with a finger rubbed over them should bring them to the right sheen. I personally like white tires but find they are a royal pain to keep clean and they are technically wrong for the car. The only major components that are missing from this model are the center frame support (which is a movable cross member) that also serves as the brake controller. That part is present in the AMT kits or could be easily used or could be created from spare tubing.

We have a good start with this model.

Eric,

I too don't much care for the FORD script on the radiator core--I don't believe that was a stock item in 1913, more likely (I think) indicative of the brass script a lot of restorers affix there.

As for tire color--early automobile tires (even bicycle tires) were made from natural latex rubber, without any carbon black added to the rubber--that additive was just coming in by late 1913 or so. As such, the tires (if replicating new tires on a new car from this particular year) would have been a light buff color (if you remember the buff-colored sidewalls that used to be part of 26-27" lightweight bicycle tires in the 70's--that was natural, unpigmented natural latex rubber).

The "center" frame support you mention is not at all a part of the frame--it is the cross-shaft for the hand brake lever, which actuated the parking brakes in drums on each rear wheel, and was completely movable. If you cannot find any pics of how that operated, Google for Model A Fords, the Model A footbrake system used the very same type of cross-shaft, which was mounted to a Model A Frame in the very same manner as the cross-shaft on Model T's. At the outer ends of this Model T cross-shaft, there is an arm, pointing upward, about 4" long, to which a brake pull-rod attached by means of a clevis end. At each brake drum, Just inside the "collar" at the end of each radius rod, there was another actuating arm which captured the rear end of each brake pull rod. On the underside of the floorboard (and this is a detail that ICM also missed) there was a semi-circular ratched assembly which looks just like have a spur gear, with a pawl that was connected to the catch-release handle at the top of the brake lever. The brake lever itself extends downward, and is connected to the cross-shaft in much the same manner as the brake pull rods. (I'll be adding this bit of detail to mine as well.

On the right side of the underneath of the floorboard, directly below the front seat, there should be a fuel sediment bulb/water trap, with a little petcock at the bottom of it, and at the top, pointing to the front, a coupling for the fuel line which goes to the carburetor.

Also missing is the "timer", which is a rudimentary type of distributor. This is mounted in the raised circular area of the front cover of the engine, I've added it to my engine already, will post up a pic of it on Saturday, when I have more time.

Art

Edited by Art Anderson
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