VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1929-1932 1929 roadster with Wards Tractor kit..

Hi, I just picked up 1929 roadster/touring that had a Montgomery Wards tractor conversion done in the old days.

I was told it sat as yard art for 50 years, not running.

I don't recall ever seeing a early 6 cylinder Chevy with a kit before. I might have seen a 4 cyl Chevy years ago, not sure.

Anyways, I did get the motor to run today, using a old 1/2" drill on the crankshaft nut. The starter. carb and generator are missing, and I see that a big patch of ring gear teeth have been ground right off, maybe from a bad starter with sloppy bushings?

It started so quick and went to a nice idle. I only ran it for 2-3 minutes as the radiator is off and real badly cracked.

I think a friend might have a parts motor for what I am missing, and a good radiator.

Is this a worthwhile thing to fix up a bit, for not much money?

It won't take long to pull the motor to replace the ring gear, and to find out why the clutch is not only stuck, but won't depress enough.

I will try to do pics. They don't show on preview though.

[img]http://s34.photobucket.com/user/dailydrivervw/media/DSCN0570_zpsam0hecoc.jpg.html[/img]

[img]http://s34.photobucket.com/user/dailydrivervw/media/DSCN0567_zpsdn3p8bew.jpg.html[/img]

trying pic again



not having any luck with pics, sorry

Nice piece of engineering to get something like that for extended life on the farm, Well worth saving it as it is, once running properly.

YES, Yes and Yes it is worth saving. Plenty of Chevy guys would like to see it. There are also lots of Vintage tractor shows around that would love to see such a piece of history.

I'd love to have one of those to plow out the driveway in the winer up here!

Fabulous vehicle!! Grease it up, get 'er running good, don't pretty it up, and take it to all the local shows! Guaranteed hit!

Love it! Dean

In case people want to see progress on this tractor kit;

I did get the motor back in today. It went better than expected, as the transmission was left in the chassis.

On the stuck clutch; I got a used rusty pressure plate and flywheel from a friend. I had to use some good springs from my plate, and free up the 4 fingers.

on the badly stripped ring gear, I tried to use his ring gear on my flywheel, but his gear literally fell into place without heat, and spins! Both flywheels are 1929. One is F-29 date one is E-29 date. Both old gears came off with the same amount of force, so I have no clue why the diameters are different.

I had a worn out carbon throw out bearing, and I had a good used ball bearing TOB from a 70s European car that fit the Chevy housing perfectly. The clutch adjusted fine, so it will be OK.

My friend gave me a 31 shortened headlight bar and lights from a 1931 doodlebug he scrapped. I like the 29-30 style bar better, though, but he did not have one.

I have only found one other early 6 cylinder Chevy with a Montgomery Wards kit online so far. It is the red one below. It was a closed car and I think it is a 1930? Note that the red one does not have a lift kit on the front axle like mine does.

And lastly, I hated the huge oversized 4x4 wheels/tires that were on the front of it. I had 2 unidentified 5 lug 18" wire wheels and some usable tires, so I cut the centers out of each, and swapped the wires to 6 lugs....much better looking.

My friend is still looking for a good radiator. He sent me home with a 28 by mistake, and it's too narrow. I will have it running tomorrow to at least see if it moves.