Meet the N.S. man who has owned the same truck for 70 years

CBC News ^ | 06/09/19 | Laura Fraser

[mkleesma]

At 87, Randall Pitman is driving a truck that's older than he is.

But much like its owner, Pitman's beloved 1927 Ford Model T still has a lot of mileage left in it.

This weekend, the pair will cover more than 600 kilometres winding from Pitman's South Ohio, N.S., home to a vintage truck show in Crapaud, P.E.I., that's expected to draw hundreds of vehicles and their admirers.

This time, the truck will travel on a flatbed, but Pitman has driven it that far in years past. While he could find replacement parts and fix the antique himself if it met trouble on the journey, Pitman cautions that new parts for an old truck don't come cheap.

The Model T has been with him for 70 years. At 17, Pitman pumped gas part time, earning 10 cents an hour until he'd saved up $50.

[Kickass Conservative]

My Brother has owned his 32 Ford 5 Window Deuce Coupe for 55 Years. He’s a Piker compared to this guy. #;^)

[Bubba Ho-Tep]

Did 1927 Model T’s have odometers?

Only as an after-market addition along with the speedometer. I believe the only gauge that came stock on the T was a voltage meter. And those early odometers don't really mean much, since they could be reset at will and many only went to 4 digits.

[BfloGuy]

A town in Nova Scotia is named after Ohio?

"Ohio" was the Iroquois word for "beautiful river".

[mumblypeg]

Thanks!

[BfloGuy]

“Crapaud”. French for “toad”.

Sort of. In Canadian French, crapaud is a derogatory term for a French person (i.e., frog).

[Fido969]

But much like its owner, Pitman's beloved 1927 Ford Model T still has a lot of mileage left in it.

I wonder what clairvoyant basis for that claim is.

[knew it all the time]

My late father who drove T models while in college in the late 1920 era said you had to go up steep hills in reverse due to the gravity feed fuel system. Since there was no fuel pump it was necessary to keep the gas tank higher than the carburetor to prevent fuel starvation.

[Drew68]

What gas can it take? I’d think the usual 87 octane, with 10-15% ethanol, no lead might be hard on it. But, the hardware store gas-in-a-can might be ideal - pure gas, no ethanol, but the price is upwards of $23 a gallon.

Those old Fords could run off damn near anything combustable. Henry Ford himself was a great proponent of ethanol and in the 1920s, ethanol was already being mixed with gas.

[Verginius Rufus]

Senator Mike Crapo (R-ID) (pronounced with a long A) is of French descent. Was the name originally crapaud?

[Bull Snipe]

would doubt that it would be worth much less if fully restored. As long as the parts are original, finished correctly, and consistent with the body style and year of production.

[Bull Snipe]

would doubt that it would be worth much less if fully restored. As long as the parts are original, finished correctly, and consistent with the body style and year of production.

[rockinqsranch]

Thanks. It’s about what I was thinking. The car looks, and runs great. Just needs brakes as far as I know.