wow thank you for the great informative answer ,you put in a photo with an ignition switch that seems like it had a light in it .like a courtesy light .The offending light I was talking about staying on is the battery light that is on the speedometer on the right side ,staying on ,

I think the left sided light is the ammeter light and the right is the " batt" LIGHT ,this is the one that wants to stay on even though the key is turned off and out of the key hole .
It goes off if I unhook the batery .
I didn't know that the switch itself had a light too.

thanks!!! Ill check the ignition switch! ,maby Ill replace the switch as its an original, and Ive fixed up most of the electrical system already ,
I was wondering if it could be that pesky" ball in the carb "starter gizmo thats hooked up to the accelerator linkage not behaving.It has stuck a few times leaving the starter motor running while the engine was running ,I honed out the cylindrical path with a 3-m green pad and reinstalled it which seems t have worked . (The carburator and starter swith are new ones from max merrit)
Thanks for the tip .I had another question ,Its about the ultramatic it makes some funny noises on the big hills here in El Cerrito Ca ,(Ive moved from Virginia ) There was a specialist in ultramatics in Fredricksburg ultramatic dynamic ,Mr Fitch
,Anyone reccomended in the California Bay Area for an Ultramatic rebuild ?

Hello ,I have a 52 200; the battery light has started to stay illuminated after I remove the key ,
I swtched all of the switches on and off ,to make sure none of them were stuck ,the wiring harness has been replaced ,the generater rebuilt (a few times ) the voltage regulator is replaced ,I tried tapping on the regulator ,tried restarting the car (it doesnt like to start warm ) but the light stays illuminated .Ive put the unhooked battery on a charger till I figure this one out Any advice on what to do ??
,is it a defective ignition switch?
should I take the voltage regulator down?

how does one check the voltage regulator adjustment ? the manuel statwes there eas a exchange program in 1952 so when the thing blinked out one just got a new one installed .
mines a new one from max merrit .I didnt understand how to do the initial de static thing on initial installation in the directions ,I have adry cell 6 v battery ,,i wonder if that is the sourse of the problem ,
it seems to work fine .the concept of overcharging making the light go on is facinating ,I guess first it would be easy enough to go to the mechanic shop on a day off ,put the voltage meter on the generator and rev the engine and see if there is a drop .
what rpm do you suppose is 60 mph?
Ive always wondered if anyone made a 6 volt positive ground tack I could mount in the passenger compartment just to know how fast the old flat head was spinning
oh come to think of it Max merrit guys said it wasnt actually a packard generator ,it was some other kind ,they had their rebuilder fix it anyway and sent it back to me .hmm the mystery continues!!

Need help with mystery
have 52 200 with an ultramatic
battery light goes on brightly when travelling above 58-60 mph ,below this speed seems to work normally,on at idle goes out with a bit of acceleration
what gives? battery is a dry cell 6v which seems to work fine ,generator is a recant rebuild ,voltage regulator is replaced ,cables are fresh ,belt is new any ideas??will the battery run down driving at 60 at night?
I need to use the car at this speed and conditions to use it for commuting to work

Sounds like the over- heat blew a little hole in your head gasket and your blowing coolant into a cylinder ,white smoke is steam ,the head gasket is made to give out before something more critical doeas.The head can warp though particularly teword the back of that long engine so before that new head gasket goes in have the head machined to make sure its still flat .Modern hard gaskets if theyre metal on only one side require a sealer too
I have a 52 also , has the straight 8 and ultramatic ;It got hot so I replaced the hoses ,the thermostat and had the radiator recored ,It had a recent ring job to replace two broken oil rings so the head gasket should be alright
Now its not overheating but runs on the hot side of the scale now the notch before all the way hot ,I wonder if the water pump is bad, or mabey the new modern cores run hotter?
Im having a wierd problem also with the electrical system
the batt light comes on at idle normaly and goes off when at slow speed ,up to 50-55 mph ,then at 60 it comes back on!
I have a new voltage regulator and the generator is a fresh rebuild ,Hmm this is mystery ,is the belt slipping generator pully at speed?Voltage regulator need adjustment ??