Team Blog

Friday, March 13, ……a day when some would say it is best to stay in doors and be careful to avoid black cats, walking under ladders etc. But….the weather was a beautiful sunny day (rare in the Pacific NW) so friend Pete came over and we fired up the Maxwell for a run down the road. Living on a 55 mile long island in Puget Sound means we have many miles of almost deserted rolling back roads and one major highway up the spine of the island. After checking all the fluids, she fired up easily and off we went. Pete is a Model A Ford guy and has had little exposure to brass era cars so this was an adventure for him.

We drove south on some of the most beautiful scenic roads along the water, avoiding all traffic and perfecting the down shift into second gear as we rolled through most stop signs. After about 30 miles we arrived in the small town of Freeland where we stopped for lunch. The car was running smoothly and powerfully on the battery, but switching it over to Mag. found it working fine for a period of time, but then developing a problem with missing and some back firing.

In Freeland we met a fellow who brought us 3 Maxwell script wrenchs. The story he gave was about his father, an auto mechanic, who had left a number of old tools and these three were among them. He donated them to the cause, and I promised him they would ride in the car’s tool pouch across the country.

After lunch we proceeded south to Langley, continuing to struggle with diagnosing the missing and back firing problem with the Magneto. I wasn’t ready to accept that the Splitdorf Model D Type E mag. was the problem. Vern Campbell had completely rebuilt that mag as his gift and donation to the Centennial and I was sure it was in better condition than when it was new. The car was smooth and powerful on battery, but switch over to mag. on the coil box switch and it would run OK for a bit then begin to falter.

Heading back north toward home, I kept flipping the coil box switch back to the mag side to see if it had healed itself yet. I think once, out of frustration, I flipped the switch a bit harder to the mag. side and we drove on in the sunshine……About 20 miles later Pete and I noticed the car was still running very smoothly without missing a beat, and the switch was still on Mag.

My conclusion is that the mag. side of the switch needs a little attention. A firm push to that side planted the contacts together better and everything went fine. Previously switching over to the mag. side I believe the contacts met, but car vibration eventually shook them a bit loose, and so contact was not solid and caused a break in the circuit – miss-fires & back fires……So we will rework that switch to be sure it makes solid contact all the time when Emily is driving the car.

We drove 75 miles and enjoyed every sun filled moment of it. There were a few tree lined and shaded sections of road that got a bit cold in the 45 degree weather, so there was a chill in our bones when we arrived home. The car performed perfectly…..and the coil box switch problem was discovered and will be repaired.  That is why we drive the car for a 1000 miles before it goes to NYC.