Mike, if your ring gear is in good shape 12volts will work. The six volt starter slams kinda hard to the ring gear, I used a new replacement starter that is 12v and have not had any problems in about 5000 miles. (The starter is advertized in the model T mag. ) Sounds to me like you may have a need to pull the engine at some point. T's are fun to work on. If you follow the service manuals and ask advise when your not sure , you will not go wrong. I converted my present 1915 T to a starter engine. Bad back and torn sholders from a horse related accident did not let me crank any longer. I enjoy driving a T I have four antique cars but the T is my favorite to drive. An easy fix right now is going to a battery 12v. It takes a long time for the points to go bad on battery , as stated by Doug the Dc is not quite as good as the AC power. I think 10,000 miles you would need to tend to the coils. Of course I am assuming that they are in good shape to start with. Most people that change to a distributer do so because they don't understand the modet T ignition system. ( open a can of worms here). Frank