Trip to Dearborn Mich....just back.

[Dead Money]

Last week went with brother-in law.

We both wanted to see Ford Museum of Innovation, Dearborn and a few things in the area, Detroit is minutes away.

Ford museum is awesome, cars, planes,trains, HUGE power generators from 1800's to early 1900's..

They have a very large agricultural machine collection, saw a mechanical tomato picker, cotton picker, I sat in the cab of a 1940's monstrous combine.

Throughout the museum were exhibits on the progress of innovation in America; everyday items like furniture, iron stoves, clocks, glass ware, rifles, TV's, media in general. There is something to interest anyone.

There was an area with a model T that you could contribute towards building from scratch....learned a lot about model T's.
They had NO water pump...
The transmission was a 2 speed and reverse.
You controlled the spark advance as you motored.

I always wondered how people did not killed using the hand crank to start it....the technician answered that life long mystery...

The procedure to start a model T was simple....you retarded the spark, cranked, it started...the hand crank was spring loaded for protection.

Remember the old movies of people hand cranking and the car would backfire and buck? If you had the spark ADVANCED you were asking for a broken arm.


Next door to Ford Museum is Greenfield Village...a Henry Ford outdoor museum.
Got to ride a restored model T, the museum has 12 functioning....steam locomotive around the park, visited glass blowing exhibit, listened to an Edison actor talk about his inventions, toured the many shop buildings all faithfully re-created.

All those industrial pulleys operated pretty much everything in the shops, lathes, drills....I would venture many early workers were maimed in some way.....OSHA was not around...

more later....

 

[Old School]

:0074

 

[Dead Money]

Trip cont'd

Trip cont'd

We took the optional "Rouge" Ford Plant tour.

Constructed 1917 thru 1928, at its peak employed 100,000 people, today 6000.

It is currently solely building F150's...

The tour included 2 multi-media displays, one was the 3-d building of a F-150...star wars special effects, it was cool.

We entered on cat walks above the production floor.

The soon to be vehicles, were on individual platforms that revolved assembly line style around the workers and robots. Just like Henry did it way back when.

From above you watched most of the entire process men and robots building the complete vehicle.

What you did not see was the painting and drive-line portion...I was told it was a safety issue.

The most fascinating thing to me was the robots picking up and installing wind shields, one after another.

At the very end, robots were checking out with lasers I think, the fit and finish of each vehicle.

There was an area for problem vehicles, I watched a human replace an entire engine wiring harness.

Tour is self paced, figure 3 hours including media presentations. No photography allowed in work area.

We did Ford Museum opens 9:30, closes 5. With lunch took us 7 hours casual pace, good shoes.
Greenfield village same hours, took us 5 hrs, one custard cone.
Rouge tour including shuttle bus ride, 4 hours, no lunch.

Total admission cost for 2 $138.00 Passed on the $30.00 museum t-shirts and $35.00 Ford Ball Caps....found decent Detroit Souvenir shirts at Walmart for $5.00 and Ford Ball Caps $7.95




more later...

 

[hammer1]

We took the optional "Rouge" Ford Plant tour.

Constructed 1917 thru 1928, at its peak employed 100,000 people, today 6000.

It is currently solely building F150's...

The tour included 2 multi-media displays, one was the 3-d building of a F-150...star wars special effects, it was cool.

We entered on cat walks above the production floor.

The soon to be vehicles, were on individual platforms that revolved assembly line style around the workers and robots. Just like Henry did it way back when.

From above you watched most of the entire process men and robots building the complete vehicle.

What you did not see was the painting and drive-line portion...I was told it was a safety issue.

The most fascinating thing to me was the robots picking up and installing wind shields, one after another.

At the very end, robots were checking out with lasers I think, the fit and finish of each vehicle.

There was an area for problem vehicles, I watched a human replace an entire engine wiring harness.

Tour is self paced, figure 3 hours including media presentations. No photography allowed in work area.

We did Ford Museum opens 9:30, closes 5. With lunch took us 7 hours casual pace, good shoes.
Greenfield village same hours, took us 5 hrs, one custard cone.
Rouge tour including shuttle bus ride, 4 hours, no lunch.

Total admission cost for 2 $138.00 Passed on the $30.00 museum t-shirts and $35.00 Ford Ball Caps....found decent Detroit Souvenir shirts at Walmart for $5.00 and Ford Ball Caps $7.95




more later...

Sounds Great!! I wanna see the video a how they built the Pyramids !!!!

 

[Dead Money]

Final ramblings on Detroit and area and Baked Sheepshead

Final ramblings on Detroit and area and Baked Sheepshead

Downtown Detroit casino Motor City is a dump..period.

In broad daylight there were areas in near downtown that I did not want my car to break down....

Lots of boarded up houses...houses that at one time when US auto makers were king, had a proud existence.

Yet there were solid rays of hope.....SHINOLA...
Some entrepreneurs have planted a seed of hope.

They have purchased and refurbished a block of old Detroit and opened a vision... High Quality American made watches, bicycles, leather goods.

I wish them well, American Pride at its finest....check them out here https://www.shinola.com/collections/gifts-for-grads.html


Food stories....

I like good food... almost every city has a made from scratch diner....some good, some bad.

In Dearborn is a wonderful place called "Rex's" on Telegraph road. It was so good, we ate there everyday.
Fresh ground burgers, daily ethnic specials made right, Italian, Greek, Hungarian....amazing.

Than there's my Brother in law, Preston, the human garbage disposal.....he likes to try food way out there.

He is a big boy, 300lbs plus, thinks he is the guy on the travel network who eats atomic hot stuff, 3 pound burgers, fried insects, you name it.

We both like Mediterranean food.....I found a place that specialized in Baked Sheepshead....yep, you read that correctly...Baked Sheepshead..

As a matter of fact, on the front door to the restaurant was a graphic of a cooked sheepshead.

I ordered Lamb Kafka, (ground lamb ka-bobs in a cherry sauce with rice) a salad, hummus, and pita bread, it was very good.

Preston ordered the house specialty...

....he dug in (literally) started eating brain....I am thinking...OMFG there's a split skull, jaws, teeth, membrane, and he's enjoying it.

He offers me a chunk of brain ( I had to save face),I dunk it in the chick peas and after a chew, down it goes. I graciously passed seconds.

I concentrated on my ka-bobs and did not watch the ensuing carnage of his meal.


I enjoyed Detroit Int Airport....a little...going from Terminal A to B you are underground listening to a medley of Motown sounds from the 60's as you are whisked thru a L O N G tunnel that's entirely illuminated with subtle lights that changed with the music.....


This is the short version of the trip....for more info send $19.95 to me for complete manuscript....lol:0002