Post to the EFV-8 Forum
Post Classified Ads
Shop the Online Store

User Login

Not Registered Yet? Click Here to Sign Up!

Early Ford V-8 Club Forum

FORUM RULES: Users agree to these Rules when using Forum.

The site administrator reserves the right to change the terms and conditions of the user agreement without prior notice to the user. It is the responsibility of the user to regularly review the terms of this agreement.

The user agrees to the following terms:

All information that you provide to us for your membership is correct.
You will not use your membership to spam, harrass, or exploit other members in any way.
Vulgar, Abusive, Racist and Sexist Language will not be tolerated.
Commercial-type sales postings will not be allowed.
No mass posting or flooding of the boards is allowed.
No Advertising of parts or cars; no Ebay or business/commercial ads (please use the "Classified" for ads Wanted or For Sale).
VIEWING MULTIPLE TOPICS ON SCREEN: You can choose to see more than 10 Topics at a time ... Log In and choose "Preferences" from the top bar on the Forum page. Scroll down and Change the "Default Topics Returned" parameter to 25 or 50, and save the changes. Since this setting is stored in your browser 'cookies' (if enabled), it seems to use that stored value even if you are not logged in. So, if you use a PC that you haven't logged into the forum from, the setting still seem to remain at the default.
EXTERNAL PHOTO LINKS ON FORUM: You can still use external photo links in your posts on the new forum. They follow the rules of any link in that they have to have the URL link qualified down to the full image file name (example: .jpg). The links will open in a new browser window, the same as an uploaded image attached to a post. Since an image attachment to any post does not display inline with the post, the results are the same. You can use multiple external links within a post. This link is from photos on a site from Don Clink's 'Deuce@75' albums:

http://donclink.com/deuce_75_1/images/dscn2950.jpg

Using links from photo sites such as Photobucket can help in "size" issue with uploaded attachment files. For best viewing in web browsers, photos should be around the 800x600 pixel range, and probably not more than 1024x768. Most cameras today store HUGE jpg image files, as the default settings are in the 7, 8, 10, and 12Mb image sizes. The image files that are then attached are very large, and the browser can't display the full image size without using the scroll bars. Use the re-sizing functions of your photo editing software to reduce the image to 800x600, which reduces the file sixe and the image load time in the browser. Don uses Google's free Picassa3 software, which is an excellent photo management product. All of the photo albums of the Deuce, Grand National, and Auburn that are links on the NORG site were built using Picassa's web creation functions. And it's free? (THANKS to Don Clink for the info!)
HOW DO I SHOW MY EMAIL ADDRESS ALONG WITH MY USERNAME? You can LogIn on the Forum, and select PREFERENCES. On this page Members can add optional information such as their City,State, Country; Occupation; Hobbies: list a Homepage; list AOL Instant Messanger Handle; Signature; "Make Email Address viewable to others;" and even change the number of Default Topics shown on a page. WHEN others click on your profile, they will see this information.

EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / Battery drain

Reply to Discussion | New Discussion

<< previous || next >>

Posted By

Discussion Topic: Battery drain -- page: 1 2

Randy1944

05-15-2019 @ 4:40 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 4
Joined: Nov 2015

1946 Ford Flathead engine. Haney coil, new voltage regulator, new wiring harness, cleaned crab dist., nos condensor. Starts and runs great, about twenty minutes, motor stumbles, then dies. Tow truck home , charge 6 volt positive ground battery and next day, truck starts and same thing all over. What to going on? Help?

pauls39coupe

05-15-2019 @ 5:04 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 206
Joined: Jul 2014

Does your battery actually go dead and need to be recharged? If so have the battery load tested at a reliable parts store.
I would suspect your NOS condenser may be causing the engine to die. Fifty year old tin foil and wax paper does not last. Buy a new one from NAPA. It should cure your problem.

Randy1944

05-15-2019 @ 5:50 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 4
Joined: Nov 2015

I will go by NAPA tomorrow and do that. Thanks

40cpe

05-15-2019 @ 6:26 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 477
Joined: Jan 2010

I don't think a condenser will run your battery down. You should determine if your generator is charging by placing a volt meter across the terminals of your fully charged battery and running the engine at about 1200 rpm. If you don't see 7+ volts you have a charging problem and maybe a battery problem

37RAGTOPMAN

05-16-2019 @ 9:57 AM

reply profile send p.m.

Senior
Posts: 1971
Joined: Oct 2009

HI Randy44
I am wondering if the coil gets real hot, maybe no resister before the coil, or defective resister, feeding the coil a full 6 volts, ?
using a volt meter the coil should be only getting about 3-4 volts, when running,
also
TRY this for making the battery going dead,if that is the problem,
disconnect the ground strap and use a test light between the battery terminal post and ground,
if it lights up with everything off there is a drain
to find the drain start disconnecting one thing at a time, if the light goes out that what you disconnected is the drain,
I suspect the GENERATOR, see if it is warm, also could be starter switch,letting a small amount of electric to the starter
not enough to make the starter to turn but enough to make a drain on the battery,.
does the car have a under hood light, glove compartment light, or trunk light ?
my 2 cents 37RAGTOPMAN

This message was edited by 37RAGTOPMAN on 5-16-19 @ 9:58 AM

Randy1944

05-16-2019 @ 12:32 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 4
Joined: Nov 2015

Thanks for the help everyone. This is a pickup(commercial) truck. No Underwood light, no interior light, no glove compartment light. My battery is about five years old, so I ordered a new 6 volt Optima battery. I will start there and try to find the drain. Thanks and let me know if other ideas come to mind.

ford38v8

05-16-2019 @ 12:45 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Senior
Posts: 2799
Joined: Oct 2009

Randy, Your problem may be the integrity of wiring and connections. A battery cable, for instance, will have the ability to discharge to the cars needs, but must have a good solid clean connection to the battery in order to recharge from the generator. This in fact did happen to me once, as my car stopped dead while driving. I discovered that the braided ground cable had corroded inside to the point that it no longer could recharge the battery.

Alan

pauls39coupe

05-16-2019 @ 2:44 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 206
Joined: Jul 2014

Once again I must ask is your battery actually going dead or is the engine just shutting down? When the truck stops can you turn the engine over with the starter? If the battery was dead the generator should produce enough power to keep the engine running. If you have a break in the wiring or an internal short in the battery that mite shut things down.
If the truck shuts down but the battery will still crank the starter, then you have an ignition problem. I suggested replacing the NOS condenser because they are often defective from setting on a shelf for the last 50 years. However that would have nothing to do with a dead battery. You may have a bad ignition switch, defective resistor, bad coil or a broken wire in the ignition circuit .
Please let us know does the battery actually die or is the engine just shutting off. This will help us pin point your troubles.

Randy1944

05-16-2019 @ 2:54 PM

reply profile send p.m.

Member
Posts: 4
Joined: Nov 2015

When the motor dies, the battery just barely makes an effort to turn motor over, then nothing. It will not start the engine. Tow truck home and put on charger and then the next day, same thing all over. My tow truck guy is loving it! Thanks for all of the suggestions, I intend to get the new battery and then start doing the things suggested. I have a volt meter, but I am not well versed in using one. Time to learn! Thanks again for the help.

37RAGTOPMAN

05-17-2019 @ 8:39 AM

reply profile send p.m.

Senior
Posts: 1971
Joined: Oct 2009

hi
the more information you tell us the easier the Repair or Diagnosis
does your AMP gauge read CHARGE when you are driving,?
you never said, if it is charging or not, you said it had a new voltage regulator, did you polarize it ?
easy to test it is disconnect the battery., if it dies, it is not charging,
did you check the gen brushes, and the commutator ? check for arcing,burnt.scored ?
what was wrong with the Regulator ?
my 2 cents 37RAGTOPMAN
this might seem stupid but I have seen sticking brake light switch drain the battery, by the brake lights on,,!!!!
another thing to check,

This message was edited by 37RAGTOPMAN on 5-22-19 @ 10:16 AM

<< previous || next >>

PAGE: 1 2

NOTE: YOU MUST BE A REGISTERED USER AND BE LOGGED IN TO POST (and reply to) messages in this forum. If you are a first time user, please click the CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT in the masthead above to register and Log In. After that, all you do is LOG IN to enjoy using this site.

DISCLAIMER: The V-8 Club does no independent testing of any of the opinions, thoughts or suggestions presented in the website on the Forum, in the Tech Tips section, or any section. A reader should consider the website to be a forum wherein differing solutions to a particular set of circumstances may be discussed. Ultimately, the selection of an item for an individual's vehicle must be based upon the independent study of the vehicle owner in consultation with people in the hobby and restoration experts.

Early Ford V-8 Club Forum

Merchandise Questions

Membership Questions