Re: Battery Disconnect

Posted by su8overdrive On 2015/3/15 19:44:18

The knowledgeable above gentlemen give good advice. All i could add is make certain your disconnect switch is rated for more amps than your starter draws. I got a marine brass rotary switch from a NAPA store years ago, sounds like or akin to the Cole Hersee mentioned above. Make certain you use nothing but double aught (00) gauge copper cable. The "heavy duty" cable sold at your local parts house in today's 12-volt world is still way too skimpy for a six-volt system. I had to go to a big rig supply house to find some. Make sure the ends are both crimped and soldered on.

In a '40 One-Twenty i owned long ago, i not only made sure the battery couldn't bounce up and down, but pop riveted some thin aircraft plywood on the facing side of the removable floor access panel---just in case (any dielectric material will do). But then i was using a Group IV battery, standard in Packard Twelves, instead of the Group II called for in One-Twenties and 1939-40 Super-8s. It b a r e l y squeezed in and was a trace taller so i had no option. But still a good idea: An old mechanic told me about the battery posts touching the metal floor of a car on a bumpy road. Yikes!

Do yourself a favor and if/when you need a battery, get an Optima six-volt Red Top. Summit Racing has the best price and free, quick shipping. 800 cold cranking amps and weighs but a fraction of a leaky, off-gassing traditional battery.
I got nearly 10 years out of my last Optima, and it readily turns the gear-reduction starter in my '47 Super Clipper (356-ci). Weight's the enemy of any road car. You save a little here, a little there; it adds up.