Gargoyle Mobiloil for the Model T Ford.
This isn't the first item of memorabilia relating to Mobiloil on the site (this 1950's Mobiloil blotter probably takes that title), but I'm sure it's the earliest. This booklet, issued by the Vacuum Oil Company Limited, dates to the 1920s and was written specifically with owners of the Ford Model T motor-car in mind.
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Owners of similar Fords would also find the information to be of interest, as the opening paragraphs illustrate:
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The Ford Lubrication System.
The following notes on the Correct Lubrication of the Ford Car apply equally to the Ford Delivery Van. They apply also to the Ford One-Ton Truck, with the exception of the back axle recommendation.
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Your Ford is an Economy Car. When you bought it there was probably one thought uppermost in your mind. You felt it was an economical car to buy and economical to maintain. But the cost of operating any car varies greatly. Have you ever considered what causes your operating costs to be high or low? Correct Lubrication is the most important single factor in keeping down the cost of running a Ford. There are four basic economies, each of them dependent upon Correct Lubrication, that always mean a low running cost for your car.
- Economy of Repairs, resulting in a direct money-saving and in decreased wear and tear of your car;
- Economy of Depreciation, which gives you the maximum service from your car and maintains its high second-hand value;
- Economy of Petrol, which keeps down your fuel bill by giving you maximum power from minimum fuel consumption; and
- Economy of Oil, resulting in a direct money-saving and greater protection for your engine.
In each of these economies, Correct Lubrication is a vital factor.
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The reader is then offered further advice on why correct lubrication is essential to the well-being of a Model T's engine, and how the use of the correct oil helps in minimising wherever possible wear to an engine's components.
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Individual tips regarding the Ford's engine, and its correct management with regard to oil, are then given. This commences with instruction on how to accurately measure the level of oil when it is being poured in, using the "pet cocks" situated on the flywheel housing, and the issues of using an oil that flows too sluggishly, possibly leading to the sump being over-filled.
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The build-up of carbon on the head of an engine's pistons is then covered, along with - as with each of these tips - information on why the use of Gargoyle Mobiloil "E" is recommended for Henry Ford's car of the masses. This lubricant was also designed to help prevent gumming up of the valves, and to distribute evenly between the clutch friction discs, operating as they do in a mist of engine oil. Use of too-heavy-a-oil might lead to clutch drag.
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The centre pages contain a cutaway drawing of the Ford Model T's sidevalve engine, designed to illustrate the path of lubricant within its casings.
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The leaflet then continues to discuss other areas of lubrication to be found on the Model T, for instance in the transmission, the gearbox, and with the transmission band. Chattering of transmission bands could simply be due to incorrect adjustment, we're told. It could also arise due to the oil in the sump becoming contaminated or diluted, affecting its performance and ability to lubricate the gripping surfaces. Gargoyle Mobiloil "E" was again recommended as being ideal for the job, unsurprisingly perhaps.
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Page Sixteen begins a guide to checking, topping up, and where necessary replacing the lubricant within various components to be found in the Ford. Beginning with tips on utilising the pet-cocks again to check the engine oil level, there then follows similar maintenance advice for the commutator, the generator (dynamo), and steering box, for which Mobiloil "E" was ideal. The front hubs and bearings should be re-packed with Gargoyle Mobilubricant Medium prior to re-adjustment, while the Model T car's back axle needed Mobiloil "CC" to operate effectively. The one-ton truck however, with its overhead worm drive rear axle, required the use of Mobiloil "C", a "heavy dark fluid oil". It was recommended that the axle be drained every 1,000 miles, then flushed with paraffin, before replenishing with fresh lubricant.
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Mobiloil cans and barrels.
Page Nineteen explains how it made sense to buy in bulk, if you maintained your own Ford at home. Mobiloil "E" could be purchased in 42 gallon barrels, 22 gallon half-barrels, 10 and 5 gallon drums, or cans of 4 gallon, 1 gallon, half-gallon or quart capacity. Illustrations of the different containers accompany the text. I wonder if any of the large barrels, advertising Mobiloil "E" For Ford Cars survive?
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Mobiloil "C" and "CC" back axle oils could also be ordered in these quantities, while Mobilubricant grease could be purchased in anything from 1-lb packets to 3.5cwt barrels, depending on your requirements.
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Return to the motoring memorabilia section.
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