6 volt or 12 volt?

[javan]

I'm restoring an farmall "H" and When I got it, it didn't have a batt in it. so how do i know if it is a 6 or 12 volt? It has (what i think is) an alternator. I did pull a light bulb out and it has the number 1133 on it (if this helps)It doesn 't say anything on the voltage reg.The trac is a 1953. any help would be greatly app. thanks

 

[M Hoffmann]

The bulb you pulled out 1133 is a 6 volt bulb,
The H was 6 volt from factory you need to know if it is a alt. or Gen on it and go from there.

 

[Bob Huntress]

Many people run the new 12 volt conversions so that the lights remain 6 volt, and as the tractor was origanally a 6volt, you would need to know if that is an alternator. What are the markings on it?

 

[Anonymous-0]

If it has an ALT better check as ther are 6v ALTS available. Why dont you take it to a good shop for a good check. The bulbe are 6v so its hard to know from here if you have 6 or 12 or even pos or neg ground. Remember a 50pluss yr old machine could have been changed several times over the course of its life.

 

[teddy52food]

Was the bulb good or burned out? If it's burned out it probubly is a 12 volt system.

 

[KEB1]

They were all six volt positive ground originally. If it actually has an alternator and not a generator, it's most likely been converted to 12 volt negative ground. There are six volt alternators available, but I'm not sure why someone would go to the effort of replacing the generator with an alternator & not convert to 12 volts.

There are a couple places to look for indications. First, the most telling indication is the charging system itself. Where is the voltage regulator mounted & how many wires come out of it. If there's one wire to the batter & one wire to the generator, its a cutout relay & almost certainly still six volt. If there are three terminals, its not a cutout relay and could be either 6 or 12 volt. If the regulator is mounted on top of the generator, it could be either six or 12 volt. If the regulator is mounted separately from the generator or alternator, its most likely (but not absolutely) either an alternator (12 volt negative ground) or a 12 volt generator.

Second, if a 12 volt conversion was done properly, there should be either a ballast resistor in series with the hot side of the ignition coil, or the coil itself should have been replaced with a 12 volt one. If there's no ballast and the original coil, its probably still 6 volt. If its magneto ignition, this wouldn't apply as a magneto operates indpendently of any electrical source.

Check more light bulbs. If they're all six volt, its a good bet the tractor is still six volt, unless of cours as previously pointed out they're all burned out.

One last option is to take the generator/alternator/regulator to someplace that specializes in generators & alternators & have them identify it.

Post a picture of the generator or alternator.

Hope this helps,

Keith