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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / 8 volt battery for 40 Ford?

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Posted By Discussion Topic: 8 volt battery for 40 Ford?     42guy 01-24-2013 @ 4:27 PM reply profile send p.m. New Member Posts: 108 Joined: Oct 2009 I also had dim lights, so I purchased new head light wire loom that goes from dimmer switch to head lights. I used a relay activated by light switch for power and with the new 6 volt halogen bulbs available, the lights will light up the road for all you will need. I had previously installed seperate new ground wires before installing the relay and it didn't help. TomO 01-24-2013 @ 8:10 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7252 Joined: Oct 2009 While he may have bad grounds, he still isn't getting the correct voltage to the lamps and cleaning grounds is not going to help him, until he fixes the voltage problem. I would rather check the connections with a voltage drop test, than pull each connection apart to maybe find the bad one. Some of these connections are in places that are hard to see if you have the connectors seated properly and disturbing them can add to the problem. The headlight and dimmer switch on the 40 are very likely to have high resistance internally. Before I cleaned the internals in my dimmer switch, it was dropping 1 volt. The light switch was dropping .5 volts. All of the other connections were dropping a combined .2 volt. Tom This message was edited by TomO on 1-24-13 @ 8:26 AM woodiewagon46 01-23-2013 @ 4:34 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 698 Joined: Nov 2012 Trjford8 just about sums it up. Send for a Ron Francis wiring catalog, its filled with tech tips and can help. Do what Tri recommends. Check and clean with a small brass brush ALL your connections. I'm leaning towards a grounding or bad switch problem. Has your car just been painted, grounds hate paint. Granted a 6 volt system isn't the greatest but if everything is working as it should your lights should be fine. If you do convert to 12V. Ron Francis has a kit for your car, yes its a big job and it's not original, but now you will have a modern system, and you do not need an electrical engineering degree to install it. trjford8 01-23-2013 @ 7:22 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 4214 Joined: Oct 2009 It sounds like you have a voltage drop in the system. The 6 volt system should work as designed if the system is up to par. Check all your battery cables and make sure they are clean and in good shape. I have found that old cables become oxydized over time and this creates a lot of resistance. If the cables are old you should change them. Make sure the replacements are the large 6 volt cables. If the braided ground strap is not shiny and bright you can bet it needs to be changed. Make sure there are ground straps from the body to the frame and from the engine to the frame. You would be amazed how ground straps can make a vast improvement in the function of the 6 volt system. Next make sure that the headlamps are properly grounded to good clean metal. Check all the bullet connectors and make sure they are clean and tight. Also check the connections to the dimmer switch. The contacts for that switch are under the floor and are exposed to the elements and do get oxidized. Lastly check the headlamp switch. You are dealing with a switch that is 72 years old and there is some wear on the switch and possibly a loose connection or two. Also make sure your generator and regulator are working properly. An 8 volt battery will not solve the problem if all else is left the same. Going to 12 volts is a big job if you have not done it before and have limited knowledge about auto electrics. I've converted cars to 12 volt, but have done it with all new components. Before doing any type of conversion talk with other old Ford owners and see what they recommend. They may have some additional tips that I may have missed. TomO 01-23-2013 @ 7:22 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7252 Joined: Oct 2009 Bob, fix the problem with your lighta using the procedure outlined in your other post. Changing to an 8 volt battery will shorten the life of your generator and the bulbs that are now getting the correct voltage. Changing to 12 volts will not solve your problem either, you will still have the high resistance connections that are causing your lights to be dim and this can eventually lead to a fire. Tom supereal 01-23-2013 @ 7:18 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 As is often stated here, using an eight volt battery is a crutch, not a fix. If you measure only four volts at the headlights, there are bad connections or grounds between the battery and the bulbs. This was discussed at length here recently, and you can review the comments and suggestions. Think of the circuit between the battery and the lights as a garden hose with holes in it. So much water leaks out that there is little at the nozzle. Until you patch it (connections), it will be sub par. If this seems difficult, enlist a friend who knows how to diagnose and repair the system. It isn't a tough job. bwhitworth 01-23-2013 @ 6:05 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 59 Joined: Nov 2010 I am unhappy with the amount of light produced by the sealed beam head lights on my 40 Ford with the 6 volt system. I have been looking at changing out the 6 volt system for a 12 volt system. There is a lot to do to change over. I see that there is a 8 volt battery sold for golf carts. The foot print is the same 7" x 10", but it is 3" taller. The extra heigth would require moving the battery box. Have any of you changed to a 8 volt system? What would need to done to the charging system? At present the head light are operating at 4 volts, adding 2 volts would get me back to 6 volts at the kights. Dose anyone have any suggestions? Thanks, Bob

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