Startmotor 12 Volt

[Magnus]

I wold like to convert 6 volt Dodge -36 to 12 Volt. Anyone knowing wheel to find a 12  starter? I have a Flathead 230 in my car. 

[Plymouthy Adams]

unless you just want a 12 volt motor the 6 volt will work fine on 12....problem with the 12 volt is the bendix tooth count...you will need to replace that with the matching one for your flywheel..rumors are first year change over did not change tooth count in '56 like the later years but you will need to verify or suffer locking up the bendix onto the flywheel

[Sharps40]

any good 6v starter will run fine for years and years on 12v.  If you crank it for days, then like any starter, it'll overheat and burn out.  There may be 12v options out there but ask lots of members here.....6v starter and 12v battery will work fine on a motor that's not so worn out that it takes forever to crank it up.

[Don Coatney]

If you have a foot pedal starter engagement you should be good to go on 6 volts. If you have a relay starter engagement you may have a problem. I tried running my 6 volt relay engaged starter on 12 volts and I discovered that not only does the starter motor spin faster but the Bendix also engages faster. The starter gear and flywheel gear would clash and I was not happy with that. So I switched to a 12 volt starter from a mid 50's Plymouth and that fixed that problem.

[Magnus]

I start it with regular key. I would prefer a 12 Volt starter instead of running 12 volt over a 6 volt starter. Should I look for starter from Mopar 56 with a Flathead or will a hemi starter work as well?

[Los_Control]

The interesting thing about 6 volt to 12 volt conversions, 6 volt requires heavier wiring.

Looking at your stock 6 volt battery cables, size should be 00, while 12 volt cables are pretty small and not adequate for 6 volt.

All of your original wiring harness will be over sized for 12 volt, 6 volt requires larger heavier wiring.

 

The 6 volt starter is the same way, it is built heavier then the 12 volt starter. I would use the 6 volt starter as long as it worked.

If it wore out, I had a choice sitting on the bench with a 6 or 12 volt starter, I would grab the 6 volt again, and install it without giving it a second thought.

To mr the 12 volt starter would be like a "get me by". I wanted the 6 volt, but this is all they had, so guess will use it.

[dale]

Keep the six volt starter.  Turns over the motor much faster.  I would actually keep the whole car six volt and put on a six volt one wire altinator.

[Niel Hoback]

That's what I did, 6 volt alternator made it a very dependable car. its been starting that way for 68 years. Who needs 12 volts?

[squirebill]

Do you have source information on "6 volt one wire" alternator?

[casper50]

i bought mine off of ebay.  If you do also make sure that the vendor sells the correct pulley also.  The one that came on mine had a slot that was too narrow.

[Don Coatney]

15 minutes ago, squirebill said:

Do you have source information on "6 volt one wire" alternator?

Try google. I just did and got a lot of hits

[DonaldSmith]

Source for 6-volt 1-wire alternator:  Try a local auto electric repair shop, the more hole-in-the-wall, the better.  Starters, generators, alternators repaired.  12-volt off-the-shelf alternators converted to 6-volt. Pulleys switched as necessary.