Bill Tattersall
Member
I want to put an 8 volt battery in my 8N. Can anyone help my with adjusting the regulator so the system charges properly?
flying belgian
Well-known Member
When I put 8 volt in my 49 GMC I drove it down to the auto electric shop and had him tweek regulator.
Richard G.
Well-known Member
Had an 8 in an 8N years ago.
Worked great the whole time we had that tractor.
Never touched the regulator.
I have 8v in my Case Vac. THe generator puts out about 9 v wide open. Problem is I seldom run the tractor wide open. THus I went through a couple batteries quickly. I found an 8v trickle charger that i put on my tractor after use to bring it up to full. No issues with this battery. Ford charging might be different.
DaveBN
Member
- Location
- Western lower Michigan
Why an 8V battery? If it turns over slowly just fix your problem. Maybe new cables or an extra ground cable and you'll probably be good to go.
Dave
Dave
Bill Tattersall
Member
Clean almost new 1/0 cables. Or, as one of our members once said, "thick as your thumb."
Brown David
Well-known Member
- Location
- New Brunswick Canada
8V is a Mickey Mouse patchwork fix at best.
Fix the 6V or convert to 12V, the latter being the best solution.
Fix the 6V or convert to 12V, the latter being the best solution.
Richard G.
Well-known Member
I agree Sir.
Tony in SD
Well-known Member
As others have said, I would not consider an 8V battery. There are harder to find than an 6 or a 12 and a 6 V will work just fine if all other things are working.. Proper sized wires both positive and negatieve, properly working starter, clean contact between the starter housing and Bell housing, etc. The point is make sure there is little resistance between the starter and the battery electrical path. Besides, Im kind of a purist. I like to see the old tractors restored to original. But to each their own.
buickanddeere
Well-known Member
There is VD due to a high resistance connection or. Cable
DanielW
Well-known Member
- Location
- Haliburton, Ontario
I'm with those that suggest to look deeper into the true nature of the problem. I'm not opposed to voltage conversions in general, and I'm certainly not a purist who thinks everything needs to be kept original: I've done numerous 12V conversions, and also swapped a lot of original 12V generators with 12V Delco alternators just to simplify the charging systems and eliminate the external regulators and wiring bird-nests made by previous owners.
If you were converting to 12V to keep things standard/simple between equipment and use more common batteries, I'd fully understand. Or if this was a larger engine that needed more 'umph' to crank I'd also understand. Quite a few models of tractors that originally had 6V systems really didn't have much cranking power even when new, and benefitted from 12V conversions (an IH Super W6 and Massey 44 Special come to mind - they barely had adequate cranking power right from the get-go).
But 8V conversions are usually masking more major problems. They also use hard-to-find batteries and don't do the 6V electronics much good. And (more significantly) in the case of an N, those engines are so easy to crank that a 6V battery should be more than adequate. Our 2N with rebuilt engine and full compression will crank for ages at good speed with the old 6V battery in it - even in the dead of winter.
If yours is cranking slowly with 6V, something else is awry, and I'd want to know what that is prior to any voltage conversion. And if you are converting, I'd recommend a 12V conversion. Even though an N doesn't need it, at least with a 12V conversion you'll have a tractor you can boost (or boost from) easily, use standard batteries, and use a standard/cheap internally regulated alternator to replace much of the original wiring paraphernalia/regulator. You can throw the original 6V genny and regulator in a box to keep on a shelf if you ever want to do a purist's restoration.
If the cables are indeed good (make sure you examine the connection where the cables go into the terminal clamps - they often get loose or corroded inside and are hard to notice), I'd next be suspecting starter problems. Better to get it looked at and fixed now while the original field coils and armature might still be good. Keep running it as-is and you might burn those up. Mind you, parts for 8N's are so conveniently cheap that it might be cheaper to buy an aftermarket starter anyway rather than get yours rebuilt.
If you were converting to 12V to keep things standard/simple between equipment and use more common batteries, I'd fully understand. Or if this was a larger engine that needed more 'umph' to crank I'd also understand. Quite a few models of tractors that originally had 6V systems really didn't have much cranking power even when new, and benefitted from 12V conversions (an IH Super W6 and Massey 44 Special come to mind - they barely had adequate cranking power right from the get-go).
But 8V conversions are usually masking more major problems. They also use hard-to-find batteries and don't do the 6V electronics much good. And (more significantly) in the case of an N, those engines are so easy to crank that a 6V battery should be more than adequate. Our 2N with rebuilt engine and full compression will crank for ages at good speed with the old 6V battery in it - even in the dead of winter.
If yours is cranking slowly with 6V, something else is awry, and I'd want to know what that is prior to any voltage conversion. And if you are converting, I'd recommend a 12V conversion. Even though an N doesn't need it, at least with a 12V conversion you'll have a tractor you can boost (or boost from) easily, use standard batteries, and use a standard/cheap internally regulated alternator to replace much of the original wiring paraphernalia/regulator. You can throw the original 6V genny and regulator in a box to keep on a shelf if you ever want to do a purist's restoration.
If the cables are indeed good (make sure you examine the connection where the cables go into the terminal clamps - they often get loose or corroded inside and are hard to notice), I'd next be suspecting starter problems. Better to get it looked at and fixed now while the original field coils and armature might still be good. Keep running it as-is and you might burn those up. Mind you, parts for 8N's are so conveniently cheap that it might be cheaper to buy an aftermarket starter anyway rather than get yours rebuilt.
Last edited:
Fixingfarmer
Well-known Member
Finding the right trickle charger to keep the Ford 2000 of dads ready to go cured me of any thoughts of keeping an 8v system around
560Dennis
560Dennis
- Location
- Madison,Ohio
Do a voltage drop test on the 6 volt system . This will help you diagnose the issue with the 6 volt.
My local implements dealer says Most guys think they can get by with a smaller cheaper 6volt battery. This doesn’t work , pay up for the correct battery and the 6 volt system will work fine . He makes out pretty well taking in trade ins due to this ! All he does in a lot of cases is put in the correct battery , sells the tractor .
My local implements dealer says Most guys think they can get by with a smaller cheaper 6volt battery. This doesn’t work , pay up for the correct battery and the 6 volt system will work fine . He makes out pretty well taking in trade ins due to this ! All he does in a lot of cases is put in the correct battery , sells the tractor .
buickanddeere
Well-known Member
AS previously asked. What is the voltage across the starter and voltage across the coil while cranking ?
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.
Copyright © 1997-2025 Yesterday's Tractor Co.
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters
Website Accessibility Policy