Brass T Battery Back In The Day

Mountain Dew

Mountain Dew

Senior Member
Before Model T's had starters, what type of battery was used and where was it usually mounted back then? Did they come with a battery from the factory?
 
Headlights were lit on Carbide gas, side lamps had oil ( kero )
Horns were honked by air from a large rubber squeeze bulb.
Motors of course were started with a hand crank.
The magneto provided 40 volts AC, to the coils.
No electric storage was present.
 
A bones said:
Headlights were lit on Carbide gas, side lamps had oil ( kero )
Horns were honked by air from a large rubber squeeze bulb.
Motors of course were started with a hand crank.
The magneto provided 40 volts AC, to the coils.
No electric storage was present.
Click to expand...

So.......The engine was started on Magneto every time? The ignition with has both battery and Magneto positions.
 
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The ignition switch left the option to use a battery to make starting easier. Most people used a 6 volt dry cell battery that was used for telephones of the era. Most I have seen were located under the front seat near the gas tank.
I don't think the cars left the factory with a battery.
 
A battery similar to this one? But it's only 1.5v. Are there any concerns with it being so close to the gas tank?
 

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The batteries were like that example or similar. Four of those for six volts was enough to fire off the ignition and then switch over to mag, although a good mag works just fine. My '11 never carried batteries and the ones in my '13 rarely got used.


The batteries were often kept under the back seat in the touring cars, although they would sometimes leak and ruin the side curtains. Or, they were in a running board tool box or in the roadster turtle deck.



The early '15 roadsters had a tool and battery box built into the space under the seat, yes, by the gas tank. Low voltage, low amperage DC was unlikely to make a big spark like the post '19 storage battery with enough amperage to crank the starter over.



Ford offered a wooden battery box for the Centerdoor Sedans equipped with a dome light that also fit into the post '19 chassis battery holder. They are a nice with box joints on the corners, a Ford script branded on the side and two metal handles on the end pieces. Quite rare these days. If the one hidden somewhere in my stuff makes itself known I'll take a picture of it. Otherwise they are illustrated in the Ford Part Lists.


All the best,
gb
 
I have a 1915 Touring with a bad magneto. I put a Model T era tool box on the running
board and put a lawn and tractor 12v battery in it. It is plenty of juice for a full weekend
of touring. I also change the wires to the battery back and forth several times during the
touring season so the coil points don't have a build up on one side.
 
Dodge said:
I have a 1915 Touring with a bad magneto. I put a Model T era tool box on the running
board and put a lawn and tractor 12v battery in it. It is plenty of juice for a full weekend
of touring. I also change the wires to the battery back and forth several times during the
touring season so the coil points don't have a build up on one side.
Click to expand...

So you reverse the polarity going to the coil points?
 
Acetylene gas was used in the early years for headlamps, but eventually, they went to the high voltage bulbs so that they could be powered off the magneto. WWI caused the advance to full electrical systems that started showing up in 1919.

Magneto system problems can be a challenge to repair considering the location of the magnets on the flywheel and the coil plate sandwiched in there. The magnets can be recharged and the coils rebuilt but it is a lot of work as far as model Ts are concerned. A good magneto system will run a T quite well. It puts out a pretty good voltage at normal operating rpm. More than a 12-volt battery for sure.
 
I use a 6V dry cell designed for one of those old hand held flashlights. Both Duracell and Rayovac still make them. I don't like wet cells and you don't need more than 6V to tickle the coils. I keep it in a Tupperware container under the rear seat of my touring. Works fine and I get 3-4 years out of the battery, which I only use for cold starts.
 
couple of basic facts-

first production starter was in the 1912 cadillac, though a few expensive cars had starters of sorts a few yrs earlier.... thus 6 volt batteries

Dodge Brothers provided the basic chassis for Ford and wtd to give Ford electrics in their
chassis, but Henry refused it and so Dodge Brothers went on their own in 1914.
They had electric lights and starters and were somewhat better built cars.

I believe the first Ts had starters in 1916? pls correct me if Im wrong. Hence batteries.
Henry needed to play catch up to the other manufacturers around him. By this time there was a myriad of automobiles being offered.
 
400A said:
I use a 6V dry cell designed for one of those old hand held flashlights. Both Duracell and Rayovac still make them. I don't like wet cells and you don't need more than 6V to tickle the coils. I keep it in a Tupperware container under the rear seat of my touring. Works fine and I get 3-4 years out of the battery, which I only use for cold starts.
Click to expand...


Was that six volt dry cell you are talking about, the same style the railroad used in the sixties for their signal light lanterns? About 2-1/2" square by 5" tall with two contacts on top that looked like tapered springs.
 
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