Ruidoso Update!
As many of you may remember, just over 3 months ago, The Southwest Model A’s, along with the Model A Ford Club of America, were forced to cancel the 2024 National Convention due to the natural disasters that devastated the Ruidoso community.
At the time of cancellation, our first priority was to ensure the safety of our attendees and the families in the area. Once we got everyone safely notified, we began the process of identifying how to go about “unwinding” the first national convention MAFCA has ever been forced to cancel.
Both organizations committed to refunding fees paid by attendees to the Southwest Model A’s for the National Convention if requested. We knew this could be a substantial financial burden, estimated at the time to be over $85,000.00 more than the current, available cash balance. Even though this was a huge dollar amount, MAFCA stood ready, willing and able to back up The Southwest Model A’s to completely meet all their financial obligations, as we do with any chapter that hosts a national event.
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Congratulations to MAFFI for the success of yet another great Model A Days held at the Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan. This year’s event was made even more special with the breaking ground of the long-awaited museum expansion project. This additional square footage will make our already great Model A Museum even better. Add that to the Bus Restoration project and it’s unveiling to the public and the large turnout made for an excellent event.
Close to my heart this year at the museum was the ribbon cutting ceremony for the 50-year Chapter Longevity Winner brick program. Announced this same time last year, MAFCA President Robert Bullard and I and other MAFCA board and chapter members were on hand for this special event. 100 inscribed bricks were placed in the sidewalk beginning with the Bakersfield Chapter our very first MAFCA chapter.
This is by no means a onetime event. Each year MAFCA will recognize those chapters who have reached this prestigious milestone with an inscribed brick in their honor. Many thanks to our late friend Jerry Morrissey for all his help in making this happen.
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The Model A Ford hobby, it can mean many things to many people, but the overall theme is enjoying and preserving the automobile make with the company of like-minded individuals, whether it is a Fine Point Judged car or Touring Class or just a what I would call a Daily Driver. I can see the allure of all these and have in my lifetime. From having a Marc of Excellence class car to that very same car years later becoming a touring car that gets lots of miles to a literal barn find that runs and drives like the day it was built. I contend that the people are the common denominator of all of these, but what we are seeing is the gradual reduction based simply on “aging out”.
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National Event News
Final preparations are underway by the Utah Valley Model A Club, with assistance of the Salty A’s and the Beehive A’s, for this year’s National Awards Banquet to be held in Salt Lake City December 11 to 14. See you in Salt Lake City!
Registration is also open for next year’s National Tour to Civil War battlefields of Virginia, hosted by MAFCA’s Dallas Chapter. The dates for this event are June 15 to 22, 2025. Registration forms can be found on the MAFCA website or the Dallas Model A Club’s website. Accommodations are self-serve, so please book your rooms soon. You can find information on the chapter’s website: https://www.dmafc.com/ .
The 2025 National Awards Banquet will be held in Mobile, Alabama, hosted by the Gulf Coast Model A Ford Club. Please check the MAFCA website for details.
Finally, our 2026 National Convention will be hosted by the Blue Mountain As of Pendleton, Oregon, assisted by several neighboring chapters. This is already gearing up to be a memorable event. The convention date has been set for May 31 through June 7, 2026. Please mark your calendars! We will share more details soon.
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Model A Ford Mechanics Handbook Vol. I | Written by Les Andrews, a legend in the Model A hobby, this is one of the first books that every new Model A owner should get! This 400-page book, with over 500 illustrations, contains the step-by-step instructions to remove, repair, and replace each of the major mechanical parts and assemblies on your Model A. It includes instructions for carrying out routine preventative maintenance, for common service adjustments, and for simple troubleshooting. Spiral bound, so it lays flat on the bench at the page you opened it to, while you follow the instructions. | | | |
A Visit to the Model A Museum
Howard Eckstein
My wife and I recently returned from a lengthy road trip from Salt Lake City to Washington DC. We made a stop at the Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners, Michigan where the Model A Museum is located. I was surprised that my GPS led me through back roads to get there. I didn’t expect it to be in the middle of nowhere. It’s a large campus surrounded by farmland.
I’ve heard about this museum for a while and wanted to see it. The articles in the Restorer piqued my interest. Housed on the Gilmore campus, the Model A building is separate from the main hall. I was so interested in seeing the Model A exhibits, that I rushed through the rest of the
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“Maybe the phases of the moon change the styles in women’s apparel. Maybe the women’s caprice does it. Whatever the reason behind the fact, every few weeks sees a swinging to and fro of details if not silhouette. And it’s the details, after all, that make a woman well-dressed when she pays attention to them.” Anne Rittenhouse. McCall’s, February, 1928
“While there is no question about the indulgent disposition of fashions, there are, however, certain trends that run through the mode like a theme through a story… It is the collar that swings to one side . . . in spiral flounces . . . in the surplice bodice . . . in the scarf that knots on one shoulder and falls free on the other. Everywhere is the effort to keep from one side what the other is doing.” May Piper Spear, McCall’s, July 1931
Ah, the devil is in the details! For a flattering finishing touch, a scarf or muffler can add a level of sophistication and flair to your ensemble.
Click the Read More Button to read the full article on the MAFCA website.
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Model A Tools, covered in Area 17 of
The Model A Restoration Guidelines and Judging
Standards, is a good area with which to become
familiar. When you go to a swap meet,
you need to know what you are looking for
since there are a variety of items that look about
the same but may be a Model T, Model A or V-
8 item or even an item that was part of a tool set from a different vehicle manufacturer. The most common tools are pliers, screw drivers and wrenches. These tools are inexpensive and often incorrect.
These adjustable wrenches look great with the forger’s name and Ford Script visible on the upper one
and the wonderful Ford script on the one beneath.
The top one is correct while the bottom one with
no forger’s mark and a misplaced Ford script is
probably from a Ford V-8 tool kit.
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A-World Newsletter for Youth | |
A-World: A publication for the youth, and those young at heart too!
Sherry Wink, Editor, A-World
A-World for kids (and kids at heart) has a variety of info directed at our young enthusiasts. Stories, pictures of kids having fun, coloring pages, and more. But there is also always a tech article to help learn about taking care of our grand old cars. Some articles are simple, such as the steps on how to start the car. Some are a little more complex, discussing carburetors or rebuilding the horn. But each adds to the collective knowledge needed to enjoy the Model A hobby and encourages the kids to learn more from their parents and grandparents, or other mentors! Here’s an example from a past issue (3rd Quarter 2019.)
Please consider subscribing to the direct email list for this newsletter and sharing it with others to help spread the information to our next generation of Model A owners! A-World is free, courtesy of MAFCA. Just send your email address to AWorldEditor@hotmail.com.
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That's A Wrap!
As they would say in Hollywood, “That’s a wrap!” The 2024 MAFFI Model A Days held on September 20-21, 2024 in Hickory Corners, MI is in the bag. Held at the beautiful Gilmore Car Museum, this year’s event was another huge success for MAFFI and the Model A community. With a crowd approaching 1,500 and a Model A stable of cars approaching 500 there was plenty to see and do at this year’s event.
There were numerous events that will be detailed in a MAFFI press release yet to be released but I would like to point out two events that are dear to MAFCA members.
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Inside reads: Best wishes for a Merry Christmas and a Joyous New Year. 10 cards/envelopes per package. | | | |
The Flying Quail is free to all members of the Model A Ford Club of America. Please help us by encouraging your fellow members to join today! Please forward this to them and encourage them to sign up. | |
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Submit An Article To The Flying Quail | |
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250 South Cypress,
La Habra CA 90631-5515
562-697-2712
info@mafca.com
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