Thomas-Related Forgeries Home
by Kelly R. Williams
The reproductions of missing parts is a standard element of auto restoration.
Indeed, some very fine cars on the road are composed almost entirely of reproduction parts.
But when parts of other origin are re-marked, in an attempt to make them appear to be
Thomas factory parts, that is forgery.
It enables fraudulent deception of uninformed people who may be convinced to
pay extra money for the value of having Thomas parts or Thomas cars.
Ths page presents photographic evidence of known forgeries.
All of these appear to have originated in Colorado or California,
but they could be anywhere by now.
The 1929 American LaFrance Engine
Here's an example photo of this engine at home in a 1929 ALF fire truck.
2019 RM Sotheby's Indiana Auction
Here's another identical engine, but -
it's labeled Thomas in at least four places.
1. Intake manifold - a nice piece of pattern work to match to the '29 ALF cylinders, but -
The E. R. Thomas Motor Co. markings make it a forgery.
2. Cylinder blocks - each of the three has a "Thomas" logo adhered to it.
The Forged Marque Plate
This plate has been attached to early brass lamps.
Image posted by John McNichol on the Horseless Carriage Club of America Facebook group, 11/26/2024
1. "Thomas" plates are adhered, where all other plates on these lamps are riveted.
2. Adherence is irregular between the plates -
left one is humped up in the middle, right one has edges loose, etc.
3. Plate positioning on the two lamps does not match.
Image posted by John McNichol on the Horseless Carriage Club of America Facebook group, 11/26/2024
Once again, the "Thomas" plate is adhered.
And, notice the similarity in appearance between the plate on these lamps
and the forged marking on the ALF cylinder block, above.
The Wisconsin Engine
Here's an example photo of a six-cylinder Wisconsin T-head in a very nice speedster.
2024 Bonham's Auction
Here's a nearly identical engine (this one is drilled for a 3rd spark plug), but -
it's labeled Thomas in at least three places.
Modelt T Forum, 2017
The manifold received an adhered "Thomas Flyer" plate.
This one is also similar to the forged "Thomas" marque plates at the top of the page.
The crankcase received a forged data plate, copied mostly from the Wisconsin plate that was pulled off.
1. Since they left "MFD BY THE" and "MFG. CO." on the copy, they created a company name that never existed.
The Detroit affiliate, which became Chalmers, was the E. R. Thomas Detroit Co.
2. They left in the Wisconsin-specific word "CONSISTENT" under the marque name.
3. The E. R. Thomas Detroit Co. never manufactured a Model G (or a Type G).
(The Buffalo company did manufacture a Model G - it was a tiny taxicab,)
4. The E. R. Thomas Detroit Co. never manufactured an engine that measured 5 x 5 1/2.
5. Since the factory rivets were removed, the forged copy had to be fastened with screws.
The crankcase received a truly awful set of stampings.
1. The quality of the stamping work speaks for itself.
2. Only the Buffalo company built the Thomas Flyer.
The E. R. Thomas Detroit Co. products were called Thomas Forty in 1907, and Thomas Detroit in 1908.
3. There was never a Thomas Flyer Model G.
The 1904 Thomas Catalog Cover
Image posted by John McNichol on the Horseless Carriage Club of America Facebook group, 11/24/2024
This image was used in an attempt to justify declaring that an old wooden body was a 1904 Thomas.
It was clearly faked.
1. The front wheels are not round.
2. The "MODEL 22" is applied in a modern computer font.
3. The catalog from which this picture was faked does not use the "Model 22" designation.
Thanks to Pete Wood for recreating the faking process on this one, in the following pictures.
Actual catalog cover
undistorted source of the faked image
Distortion and insertion of faked image
The 1904 Thomas Engine Number Photo
The photo on the right is accompanied by claims that it is an image of a car that the poster personally owns.