6 volt battery question

J

Jim Boehmke

Senior Member
is a standard 6 volt battery from the auto store adequate for starting a stock Ford V8 flat head?
I live in Calif. so temp. is never very cold and the '34 will be a daily driver.
Thanks for any info.
Remember, Click and Clack are on NPR radio this morning.
Jim
 
If the wiring is in good shape and you have good "grounds" a good 6V. car battery will work just fine. There are still lots of old Fords running on 6 volts.
 
yup, I have a 36 Pickup, the most it sits for is a month, mainly when it is raining. on cold days it cranks right up. make shure that you have big battery cables. they need to be 2 ought or bigger you cant use the cables from autozone. lower voltage higher amperage, brake Ohm's Law go to jail!
 
I agree with 19Fordy and with Brendan, I run 6 volt and I just added a extra ground strap and he fires right up. Keep your post clean and crud free.
 
thanks much guys.
You all say a STANDARD 6 volt is just fine. Are you also infering that what is called a GROUP 2L six volt battery is not necessary?
The 2L is physically larger and has more cold cranking amps.
If the STANDARD 6 volt works well, that's what I'll get.
Jim
 
I would suggest the 6V battery that has the most cold cranking amps and fits your battery tray with the positive and negative terminals positioned correctly so your cables fit nicely like the originals..
 
The mistake I made when I first started running my car again and went to NAPA to get a 6 volt battery was to take their advice, "Use this golf cart battery." Made sense since they gotta run a golf cart a long time. The battery was taller than a stock battery but I figured bigger must be better. WRONG. I knew nothing of cold cranking amps then and didn't realize the the deep drain golf cart battery had less CCA's. Found out the hard way. Be sure to get a car battery, not golf cart or other deep drain battery.

Oh, the other mistake was to buy the battery cable the NAPA guy sold to me. It was for 12 volt so I thought for sure it would work fine for 6 volt. Right? WRONG AGAIN as has been explained earlier.
 
You might consider a 6V Optima Red Top battery with 800 cca. Although some may disagree, I've used them for years and they've never let me down.
 
I would venture a guess that the majority of people are unaware that golf cart and/or deep-cycle batteries are not intended for use as a starting battery.. Golf Cart/Deep Cycle batteries do not have the CCA that a starter battery has... By the same token, a regular car battery does not work well for lighting, etc. as an aux bat in an RV/Boat/Golf Cart... Battery's that are designed for cranking power only have the rated power for a few short minutes, then their done..
Deep Cycle batteries are designed to be completely discharged, then recharged, on a regular basis. Car battery's are not designed to be run down and recharged...
 
I'm not sure about 34's but 35-36 require a 2L battery (lead acid) to fit in the battery box under the floor boards unless you lower the mounts or use a high profile battery cover. I chose to go with an Optima 6V Red Top in my Avatar fordor. Just ordered another one last night for the coupe. I made a drop down mount for the Optima in the fordor and will probably do an engine compartment mount in the coupe.
 
Most important in using the 6v system is to make sure all connections are CLEAN, SHINY and TIGHT!!!. Especially the grounds. Go over each one, with special attention to where the 6v positive cable attaches to the frame.

If you have a good battery and good connections 6V is just fine for our cars.
 
I use a Group 1, 6, volt. in my '49 and '50 car. I fill the case with a 2x4 painted black to make up for the smaller size. A Group 2-L is hard to find and costs much more. I get them at Farm Stores or TSC.
 
I've got 2+ years on a NAPA battery in the Courier. Part no. 7204, group 2, 780 CCA, These are $90.00 at NAPA. No Issues with a 6 volt system. Be sure all grounds and connections are clean and tight.
 
Last edited:
Henryat1140 said:
Most important in using the 6v system is to make sure all connections are CLEAN, SHINY and TIGHT!!!. Especially the grounds. Go over each one, with special attention to where the 6v positive cable attaches to the frame.
Click to expand...

So true. I recently spent most of a day replacing the instrument cluster in my '40. I'll skip over the part about working upside down in close quarters, threading nuts by feel and trying not to drop them, fumbling for tools just out of reach, etc., etc. Once the new cluster was finally installed, I flipped the switch for a test only to see no needlea moving and then the dreaded puffs of smoke rolling out from underneath the dash. Fortunately, I shut if off before letting all the smoke out of the wires. Checked and doubled checked all connections to no avail. Finally, at the suggestion of a friend, I ran an extra ground from the cluster to the dash, and VIOLA, it worked. I would have thought that between the mounting studs and the tight fit of the cluster into the dash opening there would be plenty of ground, but apparently not. Just goes to show you can never have too many grounds....
 
6 Volt is very good and adequate for the car's needs. I have a 1951 Ford F-3 P/U and got tired of the cranking power failing here in CT. I rewired for 12 Volt:eek: and never looked back. Now all my electrical needs are met with no worries. It is merely a matter of your preference.
 
My 6 volt Optima is 12 years old this month in my 31 chev & still working. I have one in my 34 Ford pickup which I laid on it's side under my seat & a 12 volt mounted in the trunk of my 48 DeSoto. I don't think I will ever go back to a lead acid battery. ( I found the best price on the Optimas at Amazon.com. Just my 2 cents.
Gary.
 
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