8 volt battery ? ok not ok?
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I've heard the same and don't see any problems in doing so.0
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I have a 27 Essex that I put a 8 volt battery in and also have a 51 pacemaker that had an 8 volt system on it when I bought it. They both run and work real well.
R Sims0 -
I use an 8 volt battery in my 54 wasp. I did no alterations except to take it to the local auto electric shop and have them adjust the voltage regulator to put out 9.5 volts for good charging. All your light bulbs will be brighter but can certainly take the extra voltage. No problem with coil,etc. My car turns over much faster now and starts easier. Only 1 downside, I haven't found a way to charge an 8 volt battery to its top on the bench.0
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I believe that 8 volt batteries can be had at most farm/tractor supply stores.0
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What about frying out the radio or clock?0
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Both of those are on fuses so its hard to fry them. The radio will handle then extra voltage and it shouldn't affect the clock.0
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OK, but what about constantly blowing fuses? Am I wrong or is it difficult to find an
8 volt battery with a high CCA rating? As for people who use them, how do they fit you battery trays?
BTW, I've seen 8 volt chargers all over the Net.0 -
Also, If you do much night driving, you had better carry an extra headlight. They are much brighter with 8 volts but don't last as long........
C.J.0 -
Circuits are "fused" ( i.e., fuses are sized) to allow considerably higher than normal current before the fuse will blow. Jacking it up to 8v isn't enough to cause any problem in this regard unless you're running some heavy-current non-original stuff on a circuit.0
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Hi Park W, Can you please define "Considerably Higher"
Fuses and circuit breakers are sized according to load and the maximum current a circuit or conductor can safely handle. Maybe for someone with old wiring and high resistance conditions to overcome, 8 volts may be the way to go. However, with resistance comes heat. Pumping more juice into old wiring, or wiring gauge that was not originally intended to accomodate same, usually nets an unsatisfactory result. Why stop at 8 volts or even 12 volts for that matter? Sure, fuses will do their job, but I would be concerned about the effects of spurious voltage spikes on age compromised electronics and wiring. After all, amperage is more of a concern than voltage in this case. For now, I think I'll stay with 6 volts.
Dave0 -
My $.02--Unless I were going to install some 12 volt accessories I would stick with 6 volts. Almost 20 years ago ( 40 K miles ) When I bought my '50 Super Six I had my auto electrician friend go through my gen., regulator and starter. I installed a Gr. 4 truck battery ( had to modify the batt. box ). I have a 308 in the car (for the last 10 years) and never had a problem starting. I now have a 6 volt Aptoma batt. in the car. It works fine. Ask anyone who knows my car. I do live in S. Cal. which helps, I realize. Norm0
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Don't worry about the extra voltage of the battery. The circuits in your car are energised by the generator when your car is running. The output of your generator at a engine rpm of 1250 is about 50 amps. The wiring in your car is rated for this and regulated down the correct draw for your circuits and fused to a correct amp rating. For example the radio has a 14 amp fuse adding an 8 volt battery is not going to spike the amps enough to blow this circuit. And in fact is not going to spike the amps at all unless you adjust the output above 50 amps. So if your voltage regulator is doing its job you should be ok. Of course if it is faulty you may start blowing fuses.
Of course I have a Optima 6 Volt in my Hornet and it cranks like a hot damn and the generator charges it nicely. So no problems for me so I leave it alone.0 -
Yeah, I second the motion. If wiring is correct size for 6 volt, terminals and connections clean, and battery adequate, I really don't see a need to switch voltage either -- unless, again, you have those extra accessories. Just be sure you have a good, powerful 6 volt battery -- not some cheapie $29.99 special. I have a DEKA with 780 cold cranking amps which has good starting power. The last one lasted 6 years and might be running still, had I not prematurely retired it, thinking it was getting weak when actually the problem turned out to be something else. I think many guys take the difficult road of changing to higher voltages when in fact all they need to do is to upgrade the condition of their wiring and get a battery with decent power.0
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In my opinion, if you need 8V, you're masking a problem that should be fixed.
If everything is in tune, a Hudson will start easily at 20 below on 6V0 -
I've been using Optima batteries for years with good results. Had a problem with one and the dealer was of no help. I called Optima (Johnson Controls) and they shipped a new replacement at N/C. Great customer service. Now if only they would pack their technology into a vintage looking case.0
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There is no need for an 8volt battery if your 6 volt charging system is working propely
and if : you have 6volt battry cables, your starter is working propely,the grounding system is clean and tight. buy a good tractor line six volt battery from Napa.
remember when your car was new everything worked fine on 6 volts.
will0
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