Flathead ford 8ba

[racer135]

How do you tell whether it's a 6-volt or 12 volt ignition/starting system without frying everything with a 12v battery first? I heard dad say the fella he got it off said that they (previous owners) converted it to 12v, used to turn over really fast when starting. Has a 12v alternator. Not sure if the dizzy and starter are 6 volt and have been killed by this. Does it say theyre 6 volt on the distributor/starter somewhere?

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http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=30354279&l=23216a683e&id=1344461990

 

[rustybeercan]

used to turn over really fast when starting.

Probably a 6v starter if it turns over really fast.

Beercan

 

[racer135]

Probably a 6v starter if it turns over really fast.

Beercan

Like i said, this is second hand information, never actually was there when they did it.

And as i said, i'm not game enough to hook a 12v battery up just in case i kill something that isn't entirely dead. I havent got a 6v battery. And would it be positive ground or negative ground in this thing, and how would i be able to tell? (1952 Ford F-1)

 

[RodGuyinCO]

In MY experience...

To make is easy, if your battery cables are still intact, I've found that if you take your battery cables and see which one fits where-e.g. your cable leading to you starter fits easier on the negative cable, then you have a positive ground system. Obviously, this isn't foolproof, but you can be pretty much assured that if your car is mid-late 50's, many mfrs. used a positive ground system. Just my .02...
Best of luck,
Chris

 

[racer135]

To make is easy, if your battery cables are still intact, I've found that if you take your battery cables and see which one fits where-e.g. your cable leading to you starter fits easier on the negative cable, then you have a positive ground system. Obviously, this isn't foolproof, but you can be pretty much assured that if your car is mid-late 50's, many mfrs. used a positive ground system. Just my .02...
Best of luck,
Chris

Oh yeah, forgot about the pole sizes, shall check that out. Any ideas about how to tell whether it's a 6v or 12v system? it's in a 52 F-1 by the way.

 

[RodGuyinCO]

Frankly...

Racer 135,
As I put down in the first response, that's usually the best way, but....
You can also check one of the gauges on your dash...Let's say the temp gauge, or whatever. See if the + goes to ...- or + ground...? That'll also help. If your car hasn't been messed with for years and is pretty much stock, you can pretty much count on the fact that anything in the mid 50's, etc., is + ground. I grew up (in the 70's) with everything being pretty much -ground, so it IS a bit of problem trying to "see" everything as "negative ground..."
Take Care, my brutha', and I hope you can get the electrical all sorted out... Trust me, bro', I FEEL YOUR PAIN... ;-) God Bless Ya',...Chris

 

[racer135]

yeah i had a feeling it was positive ground, but now i need to figure out whether it is 12v or 6v.

Does anyone have any suggestions at all how i can figure out whether it is a 6v system or 12v system.

I would like to know for sure whether it is a 6v or a 12v ignition system/starter so i get the right battery without BBQ'ing the starter and other ignition components. You cant find (affordable) engine components for flatheads here in Australia. I want to do this as cheap as possible and would really like to use a flathead in my project to avoid flaming and other derogatory comments from fellow rat rodders by using a crapanese engine or other new engine

Do they even make 6v batteries good enough these days? Do they even make them at all?

 

[RodGuyinCO]

Bro', look for this...

Hey, Bud, many of the "normal" Auto parts stores don't even carry 6V batteries (at least over here in the U.S.). If you check your local "Ace Hardware", or other type of store which will carry the 6V battery you need for a "tractor" or other type vehicle, you should score just fine...

 

[TheTruant]

I'd say if it's got an alternator on it it's probably 12V. Running your stock 6V starter, distributor, points & condensor on 12V won't do them any harm. The stuff inside the truck like the radio, lights, gauges, etc. is what gets fried when people put 12V to it. You can just disconnect all that stuff if you're just trying to get it running. Check your headlight and taillight bulbs and see if somebody swapped them to 12V. Try looking real close at the coil too and see if it's got 12V or 6V on it. Also look at the starter solenoid and see if it's marked 12V or 6V.

You'll want to stick a 12V ballast resistor in it to keep from frying your points over time if it dosen't have one already.

I'm not sure about the starter solenoid but I wouldn't run a 6V one on 12V.


Anybody sees any errors in there please point them out!

 

[racer135]

Thanks mate.

Yeah daylight today i'll have to get stuck into it, give everything a quick clean up, unhook all the circuitry and plug everything into my ignition diagnostic harness. (read= hotwiring harness)

 

[racer135]

It's a nippondenso alternator. 12v, or at least it has a 12v regulator on the side of it.

Checked the battery terminals, one of them has a leg broken off one side, hard to tell the difference of the sizes between the 2. But I only had about a 3 second look at them.

Where abouts should the ballast resistor go inline? And what resistance should i use?

 

[racer135]

Checked a few things a bit more thoroughly. But it was towards sundown, so didn't get a real good look.

Pole Sizes/terminal leads - One has bigger hole than the other, big one (positive) goes to solenoid, smaller one (negative) goes in the direction of starter, not quite sure where it attaches. They are more modern looking, and it doesn't have the old braided ground cable, so whether these have been replaced properly in the right polarity or not, i donno.

Coil - 12v changshing or some japanese brand of some sort. Doesnt feel/sound like it has any oil left in it.

Solenoid - Doesn't appear to have any voltage or anything written/stamped on it anywhere. Has a spring loaded button sort of thing poking out the bottom (push button to start?).

Lights - Cant see anything cos theyre sealed beam headlights, dont know about the parkers/indicators bulbs below (52 ford F-1) because they are rusted in.

Alternator - Nippondenso 12v, with SLF 12v regulator. Has DCX or DC+ written on the mounting at the top front written in black texta.

Distributor's vaccum advance/retard assembly has been removed from the distributor for some reason, diaphragm probably popped, doesnt feel right while moving the arm around. Donno where you'd ever get another one of them from? May be the deciding factor on whether i use this engine or not, hope you can find (affordable) replacements.