6 volt battery life?

[gbhrps]

My 55 has yet to hit the road with a new 6 volt battery. What can I expect as life expectancy from it if I recharge it monthly during winter storage? I've been led to believe that most will only last a year, but I think that has more to do with the lack of driving and battery maintenance. What are your experiences?

[gbhrps]

Did everyone who owns a 55 change over to 12 volt systems and just don't remember anymore? Any help would be appreciated, as I'm going to use the info to determine if I should change everything over to 12 volt or not.

[t-bird-art]

Life exectancy of 6 volt batteries depends on current manufacturers and what they are willing to put into the batteries. Just like 12v batteries , you can go for cheap or expensive 7 year batteries. I would go to Sears and pick out the battery with the Warranty nd price you prefer.

[gbhrps]

Thanks for the reply! I agree that you get what you pay for, but my concerns surround what my experience has been in the restoration shop where I work. The boss has quite a stables of late 20's to mid 70's cars. Many do not get driven more than once a year, if that, as he has his favourites that do most of his touring chores. His remarks to me, concerning the 55 bird, is that the most I can expect is a year from a 6 volt battery. I think that that may well be his experience, since many of his cars run 6 volts rather than 12, and from the lack of maintenance that his fleet of batteries get, and not what will happen if the batteries are used regularly, and charged up once a month during storage periods. Do you think I'm right, or are 6 volt batteries more prone to dying earlier than 12 volt batteries?

[t-bird-art]

Again, check with Sears. See what Warranty they have available on 6v auto batteries. Currently, 6v auto batteries have such a limited sales volume ( compared to pre 1955 when everythig had 6 volts) , it may very well be that nobody currently makes 2, 3 or 4 year batteries. Sears has one of the largest battery manufacturers making Sears batteries, that is why I recommend Sears. If they don't have it, it's likely nobody makes a long lasting 6v battery. Also try Interstate Batteries. They have a web site and they responded well to eMail questions. See what Warranty Interstate has on 6v auto batteries. Now, as far as battery maintenance: Auto batteries are very unhappy when they are not fully charged. The internal plates become coated with sulfate and the plates become less efficient at discharging electrons (electrical current to drive starters,bulbs etc). You can buy fairly cheap automatic battery trickle chargers ( less that 2amp) that will keep the battery fully charged.Be sure to get a AUTOMATIC trickle charger so you can just leave it connected. Point #2 : Battery acid laying on top of the battery very efficiently discharges battery current between the + and - posts even with the battery cables disconnected. Wash the top of the battery 4-5 times with plain water and scrub brush .Place the RED probe of a voltage meter close to the + post and the black probe near the negative post. When it finally stops reading 6v you know you have scrubbed enough.

[gbhrps]

Many thanks! I particularly appreciate your suggestion concerning the voltmeter trick. The first time I've heard of that one, and I'll start using it right away on all of my vehicles.

[nomadbird]

I use the following suppliers for my 12V collector car batteries. All their batteries carry a 48 month warranty regardless of size or voltage. I have never had a warranty claim.
http://www.turbostart.com
http://antiqueautobattery.com

Check 'em out, Tom D.

[t-bird-art]

Very good. I forgot about the speciality battery manufacturers who have carved out the 6 volt niche in the battery market.

[t-bird-art]

To gbhrps Re: Change over to 12v on a 55 Bird. People who worked on these 55s way back then haven't forgotten--they have either died off or are retired at this late date ! I'm retired but just haven't died off yet!.I'm working on a guy's 55 Bird now where he swapped engines for a 12v- 56. Well a long story short he burned the 6v Fuel guage , Temperatre guage and fuel tank sending unit to useless. The one line sending voltage to the Fuel & Temp guages MUST have what Ford calls a "Constant Voltage Regulator" spliced into the voltage feed. Ford used the CVR clear up to 66 Birds that I know of. The CVR drops the 12v input to 6volts to feed the guages the correct voltage. Other problems converting to 12v: The 6v starter will spin teriffic with 12v applied---but it overheats very quickly. The overheating will shortly ruin the 6v starter. No problem , just replace with the 12v starter used on the 56 & 57 Birds. The fuel tank sending unit has to be replaced with the sending unit used on the 56 & 57s . The ignition coil has to be changed to the 12v coil used on 56 & 57. Bulbs & Headlights have to be replaced with the 12v used on the 56 & 57. The radio won't stand the 12v either requiring 56 or 57 radio. Don't know about the Tach yet. Don't know if power seats will stand 12 volts. Don't know if stoplight switch will stand up to 12v. Don't know if headlight switch or Hi/Lo beam switch will stand 12v. I have limited myself to 61-66 Birds, so haven't gotten that far into 55 birds. Good luck

[gbhrps]

Thanks for the input. I'm starting to think that a 12 volt conversion is going to be more trouble and expense than its worth. The car just completed a full frame off restoration for another client, whose situation change allowed me to buy it. It won't be getting a lot of miles on it when it hits the road in the spring. I think its best left the way it is.