Thanks for all the help.

Some background:
- The truck has not run since 1990 - at least per the inspection sticker
- I bought the truck earlier this Spring from some guys who clearly got the truck "running" in order to sell it. They knew nothing about the truck in terms of history
- The truck came with a 12V battery installed
- Most of the bulbs were burnt out - these I replaced with 12V versions
- The battery charge indicator light has been lit since I bought it
- I've driven no further than ~4 miles, and that seemed to produce some smoke from the wires at the generator
- I see a 6V relay for the flasher, and no ballast resistor
- The solenoid looks original
- The tag on the generator reads 7V / 35 amp
- The 12V bulbs seem to burn a little dim, but not overly so - see picture

Tonight's testing:
- I measured 12.74V at the battery before starting
- 12.55V while running
- The wiring diagram shows three connections on the regulator plus a ground. I measured 9V at the "A" port (the one at the bottom) of the regulator
- Because I was so worried about the now worse leak on the carb, I totally forgot to make sure the engine was at 1500rpm. Ugh. The carb is off again, but I guess I can put it back on and get the engine up to 1500 again if these results aren't conclusive.

 

Based on your latest post, I think this truck has not been converted and a 12V battery was put in it solely to get it running.

 

I totally agree. See if you can borrow a 6 volt battery and give it a try. Hopefully the generator and regulator haven't been fried.

 

Wouldn't that be Murphy's law.
I buy the 6v battery instead of the parts needed to convert to 12v, and then find my 6v reg and gen to be toast. Ha.

I guess we'll see. Carb rebuild next, then back into the electric.

 

Yeah, that's why I suggested borrowing one if you could.

 

Man, I wish I had friends half that resourceful in an endeavour like this!

 

Long term, what are your plans for the truck? Does 12v make sense in the future?

 

Thanks for asking Ross.


This truck needed a lot of work, and up until this project, I've never done anything more complex than change my pads and rotors.


I only have two (initial) goals:
1. Make the truck fair-weather drivable for ~3 mile trips to Home Depot / the grocery store and maybe the very occasional ~10 mile trip to work.
2. Do all the work myself and learn as much as I can along the way.


I don't plan on adding any modern accessories. Brighter lights would be nice but not essential. And easier starting sure wouldn't hurt (the starter does turn that motor over fast with the 12V that's currently installed!).


I ordered an Optima 6V last night for $112. I'm interested to see if that solves some of my problems. And if I decide to go 12V in the future, I'm only out that $112.

 

For what it is worth, I have all my Fords with their stock 6V systems. 6V systems are just as reliable as 12V systems when properly maintained.

 

Brighter lights? They make 6 volt halogen headlights now. They are brighter and even draw less amperage.

 

Another detail suggesting this truck was still setup for 6V positive ground: the positive side of the coil is connected to the distributor.

After rebuilding the carb (no leaks it seems!), I swapped in the new 6V battery - positive ground. No more battery light, and although the starter spins a little slower, the truck starts right up and seems to run just as it did before.

Cool!

I measured about 6.2V at the battery, rev'd it up a bit, and didn't really see a change.
Same thing at the regulator - about 6.2V without no real change after adding some rpms.

Again, after adding some rpms, I disconnected the battery, and the truck died.
Crap!

I guess I did fry the generator running it at 12V....

More testing needed, but it doesn't look good for the gen....

 

You should try polarizing the generator before shooting the parts cannon. You do this by disconnecting the Field wire at the regulator, and momentarily flashing it on the Battery regulator terminal.

 

Since the 12V was installed backwards I expect your generator and / or regulator are toast. I've forgotten how many flathead era Fords I have had to fix after someone put the battery in backwards.

 

Yup.
Going to try that for sure.
F to A on the regulator.

Thanks!

 

Looks like only $50 for a regulator
Maybe a lot more for a generator....

Ugh