You Won't Believe Me ... But I Have PROOF! This was the FIRST Model A of 1929! 

Hard to believe the very first ‘29 out the door is still in existence and actually runs and drives! Folks back then had very little sentimental value when repair and parts were needed. Someone is gonna show up in Idaho with a bag of cash and put that ol’ girl into a complete restoration. Let’s hope it doesn’t get locked up in a museum afterward! She deserves better…👍

It's awesome that you contacted Paul Shimm the resident expert on Model A car's and got good info on this '29 Ford for your preservation Merlin. Very interesting watching you bring it back to life!

Great to see Merlin gas welding using a coat hanger… I’m 70 now and from the age of 17 through about 35, I did so much gas welding on old cars, replacing panels, and rusted out floors and sills (rockers) and the like. I was forever running out of coppered steel rod, so it was coat hangers I used, more often than not 🤣❤️🇷🇴

Thank you Merlin. This brought back memories of my Grandmother telling me of her adventures of driving a 1930 Model that my Grandfather bought for her in 1932. A nice job fixing the old girl the right way. I can imagine the language would make Grandma Lollie proud when the pulley broke. Thanks for sharing.

I love seeing you work on your own. You’re part of a dying breed that we need to preserve. Humanity won’t know they needed you until you gone by past experiences. Love your show man.❤

This is surely one of the more beautiful things I have seen in me 66 years. Excellent in every way, loads of character, coat hanger patchwork, updated alternator system (which ole Henry would surely approve of), and just plain authentic eye candy! Thank you for doing this.

I love seeing the old techniques being used not many people even know what they are nowadays let alone use them

What a rare, way cool classic old Ford video paired with Merlin's knowledge, experience, ability and passion for old, nostalgic, cool vehicles plus his willingness to reach out to a true guru-expert for a little advice and help whenever useful and needed. *As others have commented Merlin & Crew peeps...putting the clip of Derek of "Vice Grip Garage" thanking Paul Shinn for helping him while he was working on an early Model A Ford...very creative, brilliant, cool move.

1929, cars came with on the fly timing advance and rich/lean adjustments. 2023 they come with warning stickers to make sure you don’t leave your kid in the car with the windows up during summer. ‘23, half the population can’t change a tire or oil. 🤦‍♂️ it’s hard to convince me that we’ve advanced as a civilization.

What a fantastic car. The fan sure looks like an airplane prop without the radiator in front of it. An amazing piece of history with appropriate repairs. Fine work, sir.

APPROVED!! Very nice job, Merlin. Your mechanical ability is impressive. You MADE screws!! What a man!

Another mechanical piece of history survives and continues its journey down the road through time. So cool. Preserved, not restored. The way it should be!

My first car was a 28 Model A 2 door. I am surprized there are no ribs on the body band. Mine had 16" spoked wheels and hydraulic brakes from 40's Ford. A pull string wound the clock in the side of therear view mirror and there was a blind for the back window. 55mph downhill, tail wind. Bitter cold in the winter but beat hitch-hiking. I believe the Hotchkiss closed Driveline made changing the trans a chore. Good times. It had a Cast threaded Gas Cap with nice finger grooves. Strange looking Exhaust manifold. Some had a 'heat exchanger' on top with a duct to a hole in the wooden passenger floor. Knob on the Choke Shaft is to adjust mixture.

What an honor to work on the first Ford model A off the assembly line in 1929! It's hard to believe it still exists! It's one of many good stories to tell! You should write your Memoir! There would be a lot of interest in it! Til next time, see you then 😊

Clever use of VGG/Derek thanking Paul. Love it. 👍🤣 Two more knowledgeable and great guys.

Merlin I almost choked on my morning coffee when you started gas welding with a coat hanger lol🙃 I thought I was the only one who did that the only issue I have found with this is it tends to pop a little 👍👍👍👍

Thanks Merlin for sharing such an iconic piece of automotive history, Henry Ford would be proud. Its probably not going to win too many drag races but the car certainly makes up for it in SPH (Smiles Per Hour)

When Merlin started taking about the assembly line, I was reminded of the Ford museum in Dearborn MI. The visitors build a model T every day. Showing the visitors how the assembly line worked. Merlin would love that place. Great video.

Can't believe that thing survived those years. Its a true beauty. Love the work you do especially the brazing.

Inconsistent: no phillips screws, but an alternator? Maybe hide a voltage regulator in the old cutoff relay box.

As a veteran i THANK YOU for displaying the flag in your videos

I'm still in awe at the knowledge that Merlin has ! He is definitely a man of many talents ! And I truly don't think there isn't anything that he can't work on. Thanks for sharing this amazing rare car video with everyone Sir ! Like all you videos it was educational an entertaining as well. I bet it turned alot of heads while you was test driving it ? I thought it sounded kinda mean without a muffler on it ! But I know you're not spose to run without them. Thanks again for sharing your passion for cars and other vehicles with us Sir ! ✌️❤️🙏

You probably have ancestors in your family who drove that car or saw it being driven. Crazy that its now in your shop, what an honor!

Merlin, that was an awesome preservation session! Great shout out and credit to Paul! Hope this work is a great blessing to the Peterson family! Merlin, the highly skilled man shall stand before kings! You're a cool Cat! Grace & Grace!

Sounds just like the old doodle bug my family had when I was growing up. (A doodle bug is a homemade tractor made out of whatever you had). Ours was a marriage of a Model 'B' Ford up front with it's flathead 4 and 3 speed transmission, and the back was from a ton and a half pickup with it's 4 speed transmission in line. And yes, it was a dually back there. If you put that puppy in double reverse you went FORWARD. You'd have to wind out the engine to barely move, BUT, you'd have enough power to rip the bellybutton out of the Earth, (if you had the traction). I learned to drive it when I was about 10. It was fun learning/ experimenting with meshing gears by timing engine fall with wheel speed in various gear ranges. Thanks for sharing this video. I really enjoyed it!

I see now why Paul was so fired up. Merlin you are OUR people. When you set up to MAKE screws I said I AM IN. Subbed right away and will be watching. Paul is a dear internet "friend" on YT and is a wonderful individual he and his wife. Now I have Paul, Ms Tina and MERLIN doing cool things! I LOVE IT!

I’m glad it made it this far in life and is still in this condition not cut up and destroyed 👍

Merlin even has an Old Skool Grin. Bringing back the good ones.

Your little buddy ranD he’s a really neat little dog. I appreciate little buddies like that my friend that used to live up here in Pennsylvania moved back with her family in Houston has two really funny little dogs and yesterday I called her and it was about the time in the morning when they got to go for their walk and I used to take them for walks a lot up here and I’d say OK you little guys wanna go outside and play and they start jumping around running back-and-forth and I did that again yesterday and while her phone was on speaker and they started running around getting into their little shenanigans. Gotta love them all right keep up the good work Merlin, six in a row jim again

Merlon my dad was born in 1929. Unfortunately is no longer living. He passed in 2014. He would have enjoyed your channel because he worked on motor vehicles for years. Unfortunately for me I didn't pay close enough attention and I have regretted it ever since. My much younger brother who almost 15 years younger did learn from dad and he has been our families mechanic since dad died. I don't know if I have told you this. Back in the early 40s if you were tall enough and built well and had a heavy beard you could pass yourself off as being much older. My dad worked for a local wrecker and towing service while he was in high school. He started when he was 15 but when the owner found out he didn't have his drivers license he wouldn't let him drive until he got one. He started working for the Greensboro Fire Dept in 1949. In Dec of 1951 enlisted in the Army. He spent close to a year in Germany and spent a lot of time playing in his battalions baseball team. He got a chance to play against Hank Aaron. After he finished in 1953 he went back with the Fire Department until he retired in 1977 because of medical disability.

The year my father was born..9-11-1929 so hard to wrap my head around what was going on when he was growing up..

Sax background music very fitting for 1920 car. Surprised since it’s a “first” car owner not putting it back original show ready!!!! Sounds like starter needs some love. Anxiously awaiting river trip!!!!

Gas welding with a coat hanger = RESPECT !!. It's how I first learned to weld.

Wow Merlin amazing find!!! Glad you got to share that one with us.

Maybe paint the alternator black to hide it a little? SO glad you're going the preservation route!!!

I like your old school ways like the coat hanger welding and the incandescent work light.

Merlin you did a fine job resurrecting that sweet model a that's so cool to get to see the first one that came off assembly line. Could tell you enjoyed every minute workin on it. Thanks for sharing be safe have fun enjoy

Great to see your wife helping out! Paul Shinn is amazing!! Very smart to include him!! All the best from Canada

At age 13 I learned to drive on a 1938 Ford 1 ton dually so watching Merlin double-clutching brings back memories. Flat head V-8 and a non-synchro 4 speed. My Dad taught me how to double clutch. I now have a 1985 Ford F-250 with a T-19 4-speed/460 and when it is cold then I have to double clutch it. Those old skills never are forgotten. Great video of old school stuff.... BTW my 1957 Hillman Minx kept breaking the hydraulic clutch line so I would have to start in Emergency Low (what Rootes called first gear) and shift without using the clutch. It was a 4-speed on the tree. A non-synchro 4-speed is almost theft-proof from kids nowadays.Great and interesting channel.

I like that nice touch at the end dropping Derrick in as i was thinking sau he had the same guy helping him on his old one !

About 20 years ago my dad found a 1931 model a in a barn with 28k original miles it was all there from front to back even had all 5 original tires on it that it had when it rolled off the assembly line

I have used a cutout which contains a solid state regulator, for over twenty years. It treats the battery properly and I've had no charging issues. It looks good, too.

“Brakes? We don’t need any stinking brakes!!” 🤣🤣🤣 👍👍

When i was a kid in the 50s my dad welded with gas and either coat hangars or more often with baling wire. Great video Merlin. 100 years fromnow it will be a classic on old, old, old cars.

Merlin you are awesome and very knowledgeable about this Great 1929 Ford it was born 1 month before my Mother Nicely Done ✔ Thanx for Sharing 😮 Have a Great Day 👍 God Bless America 🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸

Sir, you are a wizard, esp. with Model T fords !! so enjoyed this video. Oh thanks for helping your cousin in Utah, all the time. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Love seeing something like this come back to life. Thanks Merlin.

Boy, you guys are sure getting chem trailed! Wow, little piece of history! Priceless.

Merlin I live close to Portland, MO. It's right on the river. There's a great pit stop with food and facilities. If you would verify the estimated date. Some of us would meet you guys there. I'd buy the burgers. Portland is just below Jefferson City. If you are interested, we just need to figure out a PM communication.

Awesome episode Merlin! Pretty stoked that you’re getting back to the mini semi! I love that thing!

Nice to see the manifold heater hole in the firewall and closing cover is still there. We had to tighten the bolt on manifold heater constantly on my cousin's 1931. These cars are so much fun!!!

I can not wait for the river race . Nice work on the Model A .

The saxophone jazz made me stop and come see, ??? This music made the difference in 8MM vacation video and Spielberg. Perfect fit.

When I was 13 I bought a 1929 Model A sedan just like this one. It was 1957 and they weren't worth anything, paid $15. That was delivered, he had to drive it 50 miles to get it to me. Wasn't legal for me to drive it so my Dad took me to the Santa Anita race track parking lot in off season so I could drive it, it was only a mile away. It became hard to start but always started with a little push. Traded it for a 1946 Salsbury motor scooter which wasn't legal for me to drive, either, but I could drive it around the yard. When I got my driver's license I sold the scooter for $30. What memories!

modern upgrades to make an engine more reliable, like the alternator, are great. Keeps these legendary cars on the road so we all can enjoy them!

The ENGINE was the first one produced in 1929, but the CAR didn't get assembled until weeks later. Still, amazing the car is still around!

We ❤ Merlin. That car is 40 years older than me. I feel young. 😂

Oh my word. That car deserves a full restoration, back to what it was when it rolled off the line and out of the factory doors. What a piece of automotive history... (and I am an old English man, who should not even care about American cars).

IMHO the car should be kept as close to original as possible. But what do I know. Appreciate your videos.

I owned a 1927 model A had a number of differences eg the rod hand brake to all four wheels, a multiple disc clutch etc. It was a 4 door phaeton tourer. It finally went to Hawaii. Cheers David.

That's a really neat old car. I went on a campout to a friend's farm in about 1965. His dad had a Model A that they drove around the farm. It had a bad radiator leak. He took a five gallon can of water with him everywhere we went. Well that night it froze. We weren't expecting that and he had forgotten to drain the radiator. In the morning we filled it with water and it never leaked again. I guess there was enough water that froze in the rad, that it sealed it up permanently.

I would love to watch you restore an old car like that. Almost a 100 year old piece of history.

Those old cars show where the expression 'Flat to the boards' comes from. Kids today have no idea, it's great to see your ideal on retaining originality. My brother had a Model A Coupe. (two door convertible with dicky seat). Petrol gauge on dash with petrol in the actual gauge. Great fun.

The alternator looks like the opposite of a “preservation”. I’m 76 and have restored three model A’s, and never had any issues as you stated…. It looks like crap on top of all that. However it’s your car and o respect your choices. Enjoy the greatness of the A.

I had this up on the TV and we were watching you install the distributor and my wife comments that you sound like the Bob Ross of cars. 😂 Just calm and smooth, talking us through the process. It was great. 😁 Well done on the car, it sounds awesome!

Merlin, nice looking preservation. There was someone up north here that used to put a small car alternator inside an original looking generator housing.

Good To See You Working In Your Shop And Your Videos Are Very Entertaining

You brought back a memory of my dad using coat hangers to gas weld a crack in a fender. It was in the early 50’s.

The little Model "A" is a gem. Thanks for letting us have a glimpse of yesteryear.

Reminds me of a long time ago in 1968 when I was in high school our shop teacher mentored an auto club. I assisted him obtaining a model A sedan like this one. We modified it to modernize it with hydraulic brakes, automatic transmission and a V8. Amazingly it wasn't that difficult to alter. We removed the mechanical brakes, rear end, engine, transmission. Replaced the front spindles with 55 Ford pick-up trucks. Just had the axle heated to get the right alignment. Inserted a nice little Chevy 283 with a powerglide using 57 chevy front engine mounts. Rear end was replaced by a 49 Mercury rear end that bolted right to the springs, Split the trailing arms and fixed to the frame. So, in the end the only thing added was an electric fuel pump as it didn't get fuel when going uphill. greg

Maybe Paint Alternator to match Motor so less Obvious but You have to Go Safety First and Overcharged Battery's can be an issue and anyone born in 50's learned you had to double Clutch almost everything that had age on it

You will not use a phillups head screw BUT you did use an Alternator. The love you showed this antique tin is awe inspiring

So glad you started your own channel Merlin. Your content never ceases to amaze. I live in northern Ontario and we gust don't have old Vehicles like you guys in the south we're lucky we can find something from the nineties.

Thank God that car came to you! Count your blessings brother. This is gonna be great.god bless love brother skinner.

Wait a minute... I see a saguaro cactus! Are you filming in my old hometown, Tucson?! Yeah, you can't fool me! This IS Tucson! And yes; Tucson is about as close as you can get to the Wild West!

I owned a 1927 Model A. It had a multiple disc clutch a fly wheel that weighed 75 lbs. and for brakes that worked on all four wheels. The rear wheel hub was different to the 28 model as there was no expanding hand brake shoes fitted. The car was a four door phaeton tourer. I fully restored the car over a period of a year. My name is David not Elaine as the system will state. Cheers.

I would LOVE to spend a week (or more) in the shop with you!

Thank you for your videos, in fifty years from now, when nobody knows how to fix, or restore these old gems they can refer to this channel to see how to do a proper repair.

Merlin working his magic again, great video!

We chuckled because my boyfriend immediately noticed the phillips head screws in the proper driver's side tail light, right after you made period proper screws for under the hood. Beautiful car though!

What a super cool old Model A!!! You did a great job getting it fixed up! When I was a kid my grandfather had a 29 Model T. I wanted it really bad but I was only about 10 (1960) when he "sold it to some cocky from California for $150.00"!!" He thought he made a killing on it. It was running!! Looking forward to seeing the mini semi getting some love! 😁

Me and my grandfather and uncle had some good time putting together my great grandfather's 27 Ford after it was sitting for 30yrs and we got it running in about 3 months great video and great job with the 29 and stay safe and God bless from GA

Amazing find and rebuild. Thanks.

Just love the music with this one. Great Channel.

Merlin, you have blossomed over time. Keep up the good work. Keep things real and remind cousin Paul to wear his seat belt.

Being that this beauty was defaced with black paint, a preservation can't be done; it must be restored to the original paint color.

I wish I had known. I spent MANY MANY trips out to Lake Havasu on test trips with the car companies, up and down Davis Dam more times than I care to admit. I would love to have stopped in to say Hey!. I also have "welded" many a tail pipe and muffler with a torch and coat hanger. Love the content!!!

i found out not all too long ago there is actually a company that makes a conversion alternator that looks just like the factory generators. for the life of me i cannot remember the name of the company but i do know i have seen them. pretty slick tech.

Good work on the model a. Awesome to see these old cars up and running. Especially the first off the assembly line

I have such a good time watching, Merlin do what he does best. That is 100% ANYTHING WITH A MOTOR & WHEELS. Boats too. You're a MECHANICAL WIZARD. Happy Memorial Day, everyone...

You posted this shortly be fore 5am have a nice cool morning in Havasu. From Glendale AZ.

Love your safety glasses for welding.

It's amazing that ANY car has survived that many years. But the 1st one? That's super special!

Amazing…..Merlin is indeed MERLIN the magician!👍

I’m sure at times it was a pleasure working on that vehicle, thinking of the simplicity but realizing this was the latest and greatest at that time.

Y’all should look into coming to Michigan for the woodward dream cruise!

❤️❤️ Seeing Automotive history still rolling. Thank You Merlin, Paul Shimm for keeping the knowledge & parts in the treasure boxes. The 29 is a true hidden treasure.

Awesome Watching you bring these classics back to life.

Beautiful first Ford model A 1929 sedan

Certainly went old school in this vid...gas welding with a coat hanger and the incandescent drop lamp. Nice!