6 volt battery question

[40 Deluxe]

No need for 12 V.! When a kid in the '50's, in town on a cold winter day, I heard a starter grinding away. A lady in an early '50's car couldn't get it started. After a while the car started to move but the starter was still grinding away. She was backing out of the parking spot with the starter! She then put it in low and cranked her way a few car lengths to the corner where she turned right to a street that ran downhill. She then coasted down the hill and popped the clutch near the bottom, and away she went in a cloud of black smoke! Smart gal! (Except she flooded it in the first place).

A 12 volt battery would have run down before she got the car to the hill (smaller cells so fewer plates thus less reserve).

 

[Karl]

so, i had planned to switch to 12 volt as soon as i got everything else in order...is that not recommended?

I run 6V no problems . The advantage of 12V is that batteries ,bulbs and cables etc are freely available from any Auto Supply Shop. You need to plan ahead with 6V stuff. -Karl

 

[19Fordy]

Vintrex: It all depends on if you want to keep your car original. I switched to 12v simply because it would allow the use of a 12V starter, electronic ignition, halogen headlights, brighter tail lights and also have more parts available when "on the road". I found that with 12V it starts at the touch of the button. Doesn't even crank one time. Vroooom! That's a great thing if you live in a cold climate.

 

[jerdan]

I am not sure why we are worried about running a 6 volt battery. They were used for a long time. You only need a 12 volt if you are going to run a lot of electronics.

 

[ABento]

I just finished tinkering on a 34 1 1/2 truck,59 AB under the hood, 6 volt batt, big cables,just rebuilt the carb, todays gas is the big problem for starting, it sat for two weeks and was hard to start yesterday, gas most likely evaporated, the 6 volt batt cranked over just fine the whole time to get running,once this one has run and is warm it starts with about one turn of the fan,if its run everyday it starts very nicely,I've not had any problems with it.

 

[Anteek29]

Run my stock '41 with 6 volt Optima Red Top

 

[19Fordy]

so, i had planned to switch to 12 volt as soon as i got everything else in order...is that not recommended?

Vintrex: FYI, I use a Walmart battery. I think it's Group 6. They have a 5 year free replacement policy and last a long time if you keep them charged. You can also use the OEM battery cables if you make a small copper sleeve to fit the smaller terminal. Photo is from 2013.