Bill: I have the shop manual and have checked figure 38. My set up seems to be a collar located on the front of the starter motor and attached to one side of the oil pan. The rear of the started bolts directly into the bell housing. The ground travels from the rear of the starter to the frame.. Connections do appear rusty and should be cleaned. I always thought the frame was an excellent ground. I have new wiring throughout but will check for grounds around the headlights. Thanks to you and Todd

 

Brien.
My ground cable runs from the battery to the engine, i also have a ground strap from the engine to the frame,engine to cab, frame to front clip and frame to rear of pickup box.

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 15-Aug-02 AT 12:01 PM (EST)]Robert: Why so many grounds. Do you not think my ground strap from starter to frame is sufficient? As far as the battery ground, do you find those extensions help with a better grounding to all of those sources? Like I previosly posted, I was considering extending my battery ground from engine to frame, but do you think I should go farther as well in my 6 volt set up. What benefits do you find by going to the cab and the front clip and rear frame?
Brien

 

Brien,

I know this may be obvious but the bottom line is - you need a good, heavy-duty path for the current to flow from the battery, through the load, and back to the battery.

If you have a good, solid ground connection from your battery to a frame rail, and from the same frame rail to your starter, you'll probably be OK. If one of your grounds is to some other frame component (the other rail, a crossmember, etc.) you may or may not have a good ground since their is probably at least some rust between the riveted joints holding your frame together. Earlier in my project, I took my frame apart (yes, took all the rivets out ) and there were very few places where the joints between the riveted components hadn't rusted at least a little in 50 years. Even tightly clamped joints will rust over time as the oxygen diffuses in. For low current loads this may not be a problem but for starting I can imagine it being a big issue.

I'm hoping to rewire my restoration project soon and I've pretty much decided to run a separate ground wire for every circuit that goes to a different part of the truck. For the starter I figure I'll run a heavy ground directly from the battery to one of the mounting bolts to avoid problems.

I also like to use a waxy rust inhibitor spray on any exposed electrical connections (battery terminals, frame grounds, etc.) - part number 10505K27 from www.mcmaster.com. There are surely other coatings like this available from other vendors. Clean ALL the parts so you have shiny metal, put the connection together, and immediately coat it with this stuff. I found it even keeps light bulbs from rusting in the sockets. Just coat the base of the bulb and the inside of the socket, install the bulb, and let it dry.

George


BTW, one of the benefits of unibody construction is that you don't have to worry about bolted or riveted joints in the frame. Before somebody pointed this out to me I always wondered why I had so many electrical problems on my really old vehicles and the unibody ones were fine.

 

George: Good advice. I am completly rewired but I am suspect of my ground cable from starter to frame. The frame is a little rusty and the connections are for sure, so I will try as you have suggested. This should be the last thing I will have to do to complete the rewire. Thanks. I have used vasaline petroleum jelly on connections in the past. I will checkout the stuff you cited. Thanks again.
Brien

 

 

Hello!
I have a 1953 f250. I am restoring it. Its a 6 cylinder 215 cubic inch motor. All the wiring is damaged most of it missing. I have to rewire everything. Before I started I want to figure 12v or 6v - is there a way to identify it?
Thanks

 

Stock was 6V. One easy thing to check is to determine what coil is installed. Any markings? Another easy clue is to get the bulb number off of the main headlight.

 

Are you sure that your wiring set-up is solid, e.g., good wires, good connections? If not, adding another battery may just double your risks of fire or other damage.

 

Thanks, from what understand the biggest risk is the starter. SO, I will be going 6 volt as I rewire UT get the highest AMP battery I can with 6 volt.

 

Do you have new 2/0 cables to the battery? On my Bobcat I had a no start issue. Cables looked good, but there was corrosion on the inside of the wires. My local Interstate Battery Store made me sets for each of my old trucks. Very reasonable prices too.

 

Sounds like a good plan. Along the way if someone recommends an 8 volt battery it could be done but you will have to have your voltage regulator set up to charge a little over 9 volts, and that is not easy to do. If you dont, you will sooner or later will end up with a dead battery and will be reaching for jumper cables. Not to mention it will drastically cut down on the life of you 6 volt bulbs. Also don't forget your grounds. Your battery ground should run directly to your engine block like a starter bolt or cylinder head, and then from that same point or other good connection point on your block, you should run a ground to your frame and also to your cab's firewall.