1952 D2 Charging system voltage

Original pony motor starters for the D2 are 6-volt. Pretty common to run them on 12v to get a higher spin. Doing so is hard on the original type starter bendix spring sometimes resulting in breakage but doesn't seem to be that hard on the motor unless you crank it to death. Replacing the bendix with the later style used as replacement on flathead fords will solve the spring breakage problem.
Problem is if you want to run 12v system the 6v generator will need to be changed to 12v or go the alternator conversion route.

If the starter ,battery and wiring are ok they are great starters with 6 volts , using a 12volt battery is just a bodge, fixing the problem is the answer ...

Original pony motor starters for the D2 are 6-volt. Pretty common to run them on 12v to get a higher spin. Doing so is hard on the original type starter bendix spring sometimes resulting in breakage but doesn't seem to be that hard on the motor unless you crank it to death. Replacing the bendix with the later style used as replacement on flathead fords will solve the spring breakage problem.
Problem is if you want to run 12v system the 6v generator will need to be changed to 12v or go the alternator conversion route.

[quote="Old Magnet"]Original pony motor starters for the D2 are 6-volt. Pretty common to run them on 12v to get a higher spin. Doing so is hard on the original type starter bendix spring sometimes resulting in breakage but doesn't seem to be that hard on the motor unless you crank it to death. Replacing the bendix with the later style used as replacement on flathead fords will solve the spring breakage problem.
Problem is if you want to run 12v system the 6v generator will need to be changed to 12v or go the alternator conversion route.[/quote]

I guess my question should have been "how many volts is the generator an regulator?" I don't need to use a 12 volt on the starter. If the system voltage is supposed to be 6 then that is what I'll get. Sounds like it is. I thought it would say 6 volt on the regulator somewhere.

Thanks for all the help again.

The guys at the old Myers-Ward used tractor parts that was in Fresno Calif. told me all the old Delco stuff on Cats that the tag was printed with black lettering is 6 volt. If it was in red lettering it was 12 volt. Cannot confirm this with any other information. Have not ever found any generators or starters with red lettering other than the one they had,which had broken shaft in it. They said looking for 12 volt in original stuff was like looking for hens teeth. The most likely place to find 12 volt starters was engines running generators.

Something to think about you can easily enough make it charge for a 12 volt system but be aware that to reach 12 volts the alternator will have to spin at faster RPM's which may or may not be a problem and you wont know until you try
The good thing about alternators as opposed to genny's is they reach full charging volts at a lot lower speed
So even if you change the regulator to start charging at 12 volts it may not spin fast enough to reach 12 volts for most of its life

Paul

If you set it up for 12 volts the speed will only change the amps, the voltage is set by the regulator which is controlled by the battery voltage.

Hi Uncle Rich.
There is an easy way to convert your generator from 6v to 12v and that i to change the fields to a set of 12v ones and replace the regulator with a 12v one as well. The only issue is the current rating will be reduced, say a 6v 20A will become a 12v 10A, this is because we use the 6v commutator as there is no 12v ones.

Regards