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Does anyone use an 8 volt battery in their Packard? I mean 1954 and older that has the 6 volt system.

Sometimes used by butchers who are just too lazy to properly diagnose and repair problems. Just a bad idea, period.

Some people do, but I wouldn't trust them. They are a band-aid for those who do not understand how a six volt system works. Charging can be an issue with them as well.
Is your starter slow to crank? look at a few things--
what is the gauge of the battery cables? Many 6V cars can have cheap 12V cables from the corner auto parts store as replacments, that will slow the cranking speed. Is the ground cable a braided strap and not a round wire? it should be the braided strap. What shape is the starter in? starters with bad bearings eat up a lot of current that should be used for cranking.

I use a 6 volt battery in my 1954 Packard Cavalier as well as my 1922 model T Ford.

I use an Optima 1000 cranking Amp battery in the Packard and regular old 6 volt checker auto type in the T.

Over the years people have talked about using an 8 volt but I personally see absolutely no reason.

Some problems are slow cranking with 6 volt which is usually do to using too light of gauge battery cables.

The Optima is probably as good at cranking as the original battery and if you need more juice, two of them could be paralleled and sit on the battery shelf.

I just got through rebuilding my 6 volt generator and replacing the regulator and it will run the headlights and radio and heater fan and maintain just under 7 volts at idle. I regulates around 7.2 volts when warm but higher when the car is ice cold.

I run the original 6 volt system so I can keep the original lights, tube radio, and other electrical stuff these cars come with.

I live in Phoenix AZ and it rarely gets below 30 degrees but it has been in the low 30's the past few weeks and my Packard and Model T start right up.

An 8 volt battery would require higher charging voltage from a 6 volt generator. The system in my 54 is rated at 45 Amps, which when delivering 7.5 volts = 337.5 Watts.

If you jack that voltage up to 10 volts to charge an 8 volt battery you will need 450 Watts from the generator. Watts = heat in the armature windings and regulator contacts.

Jim

I have a perfect braided ground cable waiting to be installed in my 54, if I could figure out where it lands on the engine block.

I made cables out of some special high current wire used in a television transmitter. My Packard cranks on 6 volts as good as my modern car cranks. This cable looks a little like welding cable with lotsa fine wires and is quite flexible.

Another thing to keep in mind is the voltage for the ignition system is fed from the starter and if the voltage drop is too great at the starter the ignition spark is greatly compromised making it eisier to flood and hard to start.

Jim

I know a man that uses an 8 volt battery in a 35 Packard and says it works just fine. I don't know really that's why I brought it up. Can he expect any problems? When the car is running is it too much for the 6 volt system to run an 8 volt battery?

You'd have to rework the generator regulator to give a higher voltage output, and you can surely expect shorter life from bulbs, ignition points, and the like. 8-volt just offers no advantages at all that can't be obtained by just having a properly sized battery and cables, clean connections, and a starter motor in good condition.

I bought a 40 120 years ago and it had an 8 volt battery. Spun the starter nicely, but went thru light bulbs like me in a candy store. Changed it back to a six volt battery, cleaned the ground and put in a welding wire wire (double 00) and never had any trouble starting it for the next 10 years I had it. About the only thing it's good for is causing you more headaches.

I got him to switch the 8 volt battery for 6 volt. The thick braided cable was hooked to the negative terminal. Shouldn't that cable be hooked to the positive terminal since its a positive ground system?

The braided cable is the ground wire, so he is not correct. The hot wire is the large insulated cable - it goes to the starter from the negative post.