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Posted by Doug on December 28, 2003 at 14:47:28 from (24.156.63.116): I just bought a Ford 8n. Seems like its in really good shape. It has a 6 volt system and I have heard about 12 volt conversion kits and wonder why would I bother? What are the benefits of a 12 volt, and would it make sense to change a 6 volt if all is well. My planned use for this tractor is odd jobs around the yard. Thanks Doug, this phenomenon started years ago when folks discovered the availability of salvageable automobile parts at a much less expense than 6 volt parts. When cars switched to 12 volts many people who had 6 volt systems converted their cars to 12 volts. Basically, the reasons had to do with availablity of parts. There were secondary reasons also, the most obvious were that a cheap 10 dollar salvaged alternator would charge a battery when the engine was at idle speeds. Also, spinning the starter motor much faster would allow a tractor with defects such as low compression and marginal ignition systems to start easier. Starter motors would run on 12 volts with no modifications and a simple ignition resistor would control the ignition system. Nowadays, single wire 12 volt alternators solve a lot of wiring problems. It seemed like the conversion fixed problems, the parts were substantially cheaper, and the conversion caused no major problems. And, some farmers had a single good battery they carried from car to truck to tractor when times were tough, (standardization, you know). But, you are right, if it works on 6 and you want to keep it that way, by all means, keep it that way.
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