EATON Detroit Spring

The leading manufacturer of leaf and coil springs for the street rod and restoration industries

We Help Maintain American Icons by Manufacturing Leaf and Coil Springs Right Here in America

Phone: 1 (313) 963-3839
Fax: 1 (313) 963-7047

MENUMENU
  • Home
  • Products
    • Leaf Springs
    • Coil Springs Mustang II Springs
    • Shocks
    • Attaching Parts And Hardware
    • Installation Kits
    • Leaf Spring Shackle Replacement Kits & Parts
  • Applications
    • We Manufacture Leaf & Coil Springs For...

    • Restorations
    • Resto-Mods
    • Street Rods
    • Modern Vehicles
    • Custom Design
    • Makes We Have Available Online

    • Allstate
    • American Motors
    • Buick
    • Cadillac
    • Chevrolet
    • Chrysler
    • DeSoto
    • Dodge
    • Edsel
    • Ford
    • Hudson
    • International
    • Kaiser-Frazer
    • LaSalle
    • Lincoln
    • Mercury
    • Nash
    • Oldsmobile
    • Plymouth
    • Pontiac
    • Rambler
    • Studebaker
    • Chevrolet Truck
    • Dodge Truck
    • Ford Truck
    • GMC
    • Honda
    • Hummer
    • Plymouth Truck
    • Studebaker Truck
  • Spring Tech
    • Learn About Leaf & Coil Springs
      • Spring Tech Videos
      • One Minute Monday
      • EATON Detroit Spring Podcast
      • Replacing Springs
      • Ride Height
      • Ride Quality
      • Custom Spring Design
      • Spring Manufacturing
      • Browse All Tech Questions
    • Spring Tech 101

      We have been manufacturing springs for American vehicles for over 80 years. Our process and expertise has been continuously refined and improved over the century and our Spring Tech section reflects some of that specialty knowledge.

      Browse our many articles, watch videos produced in partnership with AutoRestoMod, and learn all about your spring suspension here.

  • About Us
    • About EATON Detroit Spring
    • Customer Showcase
    • Facebook
    • YouTube Channel
      • One Minute Monday
  • Order Here
    • Lookup & Purchase Your Vehicle's Parts
    • Request A Quote
    • Email Our Sales Team
  • Get Newsletter
  • Click to Call Now: 1 (313) 963-3839
MENUMENU
  • Home
  • Products
    • Leaf Springs
    • Coil Springs Mustang II Springs
    • Shocks
    • Attaching Parts And Hardware
    • Installation Kits
    • Leaf Spring Shackle Replacement Kits & Parts
  • Applications
    • We Manufacture Leaf & Coil Springs For...

    • Restorations
    • Resto-Mods
    • Street Rods
    • Modern Vehicles
    • Custom Design
    • Makes We Have Available Online

    • Allstate
    • American Motors
    • Buick
    • Cadillac
    • Chevrolet
    • Chrysler
    • DeSoto
    • Dodge
    • Edsel
    • Ford
    • Hudson
    • International
    • Kaiser-Frazer
    • LaSalle
    • Lincoln
    • Mercury
    • Nash
    • Oldsmobile
    • Plymouth
    • Pontiac
    • Rambler
    • Studebaker
    • Chevrolet Truck
    • Dodge Truck
    • Ford Truck
    • GMC
    • Honda
    • Hummer
    • Plymouth Truck
    • Studebaker Truck
  • Spring Tech
    • Learn About Leaf & Coil Springs
      • Spring Tech Videos
      • One Minute Monday
      • EATON Detroit Spring Podcast
      • Replacing Springs
      • Ride Height
      • Ride Quality
      • Custom Spring Design
      • Spring Manufacturing
      • Browse All Tech Questions
    • Spring Tech 101

      We have been manufacturing springs for American vehicles for over 80 years. Our process and expertise has been continuously refined and improved over the century and our Spring Tech section reflects some of that specialty knowledge.

      Browse our many articles, watch videos produced in partnership with AutoRestoMod, and learn all about your spring suspension here.

  • About Us
    • About EATON Detroit Spring
    • Customer Showcase
    • Facebook
    • YouTube Channel
      • One Minute Monday
  • Order Here
    • Lookup & Purchase Your Vehicle's Parts
    • Request A Quote
    • Email Our Sales Team
  • Get Newsletter
  • Click to Call Now: 1 (313) 963-3839

The Kraus Model AA

The Kraus 1930 Model AA Dump Truck

A Part of “The GearHeaducation of a Young Man” Series

The 1930 Model AA Kraus Dump Truck

The Kraus’ 1930 Model AA Dump Truck

My dad has the most eye-catching vehicle I’ve ever seen, and trust me, it’s not because of some gimmick.

Pictured here is his beautiful 1930 Model AA with an enormous steel dumping mechanism dated for 1929.

Let’s answer some questions right off the bat: it runs.

In fact, this is the first vehicle I learned to drive a stick shift on, but more on that later.

The Engine

The engine is the same inline-4 201 cubic inch you would normally see in a Model A, except for a few minor modifications installed by the guy who used to own it.

40 horses of pure Model A

40 horses of pure Model A

The modifications? Not much. There’s a fuse in there we had to bypass to get it running. That’s about it. Oh, and Dad had to duct tape something, so that’s not exactly spec.

That engine is why the Model A is so popular. Mike Eaton says the most beautiful sound in the entire world is a running Model A. It’s the sound of a pure, simple machine that gets things done.

It’s the sound of the same gas, spark, and air that has done everything from building the Hoover dam, hauling coal, and running farms to fetching ice cream on a Sunday, uniting auto buffs with auto novices, and yes, being the vehicle my father taught me manual transmission on.

A Working Truck

I could wax poetic about the yesteryear of this fine machine, but I’d rather point out how it still has a ridiculous amount of life in it.

As long as gas is in the tank, this truck will get up and go when you ask it to. It’s even done a bit of farm work lately, hauling wood around so Dad could build shelters for the sheep and rams.

Even the llamas find this ride enjoyable!

Are we being replaced??

Are we being replaced??

My GearHeaducation

Like I said earlier, this was the first manual transmission vehicle I’ve ever driven (if you don’t count that time I accidentally launched a Viper in an herb garden, but that’s a different story.)

My dad taught me how during my sister’s baby shower. All the guys had been ‘banished’ to the pole barn out back and, naturally, our eyes started wandering to the truck.

We had to fiddle with the engine a bit (the fuse had to be bypassed), we filled it up with gas, then Dad and I went for a drive down the street and back.

When we got back, my Dad said “Want to drive?” I said I didn’t know stick shift and he said he’d teach me.

“The transmission is a four-speed manual gearbox, but first gear is worthless, so pop it into second. You need to pull the shifter all the way back and over to put it in gear, and this is always further back and over than you’d imagine, so make sure to be assertive about it.”

I cruised (lurched and puttered, really) up and down the street, with Dad coaching me the whole way, and I’ll be damned if it wasn’t better than any roller coaster. The sound of the engine revving, the feeling of this enormous steel machine coming to life and moving, all of this while being coached down the road by my father, is an experience I’ll always remember.

Like father, like son.

Like father, like son.

Have a great vehicle in Michigan or Illinois?

Then you could have your vehicle featured here! Submit yours to me and I’ll see if we can’t arrange something.

Scroll for more pictures!

Me and My Dad Driving




Filed Under: Article

Find Parts For Your Vehicle

  •  

Can’t Find What You Need?

If you can’t find your vehicle in the above search form, be sure to call us! We are in the office every weekday. Call 1-313-963-3839

Sign Up For Weekly Newsletter

Every Wednesday we send spring tech videos, articles about classic cars and hot rods, and feature customer vehicles in our showcase.

OEM Replacement & Custom Springs

  • Classic Cars Springs, Hot Rods, & More
  • Over 24,000 OEM Spring Blueprints
  • 166,000+ Stock Spring Applications
  • Design Staff Available For Custom Applications
  • Spring Experts Since 1937
  • Made in Detroit, Michigan
  • Made in the U.S.A.

How To Order Springs For Your Vehicle

To find the correct springs for your vehicle, you need to provide as much information about your car as possible. There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all spring.

We try to make this easy by providing many ways to order your springs and send in as much information as possible:

  1. Call Us at 1 (313) 963-3839
    For Quickest Order Completion
  2. Fill Out Our Quote Request Form
    To Spell Out Details
  3. Browse For Parts Online
    To Browse By Make, Model, Body Style, & Engine Size

Quick Spring Tech Videos

Listen To Our Classic Suspension Podcast

Franz Estereicher on Early Corvette Suspensions

Franz Estereicher on Early Corvette Suspensions

Subscribe to the EATON Detroit Spring Podcast

Apple PodcastsGoogle PodcastsAndroidby EmailRSSMore Subscribe Options

Need Spring Wisdom?

Just ask the Spring Guru!
We love helping with any leaf or coil spring problem.

WARNING:

This product may contain chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm.
www.P65Warnings.ca.gov

  • About EATON Detroit Spring, Inc.
  • Custom & Replacement Leaf Springs
  • Custom & Replacement Coil Springs
  • Consumer Policies

Contact EATON Detroit Spring

  • Request A Quote
  • Order Online
  • Ask Suspension Questions To The Spring Guru

Locate & Connect To EATON Detroit Spring

EATON Detroit Spring, Inc.
1555 Michigan Avenue
Detroit, MI 48216
Phone: 1 (313) 963-3839
Fax: 1 (313) 963-7047
Email: inquiries@eatonsprings.com

Content Copyright 2020 EATON Detroit Spring, Inc.