Ground conversion

[KENS TR3]

When you convert 59 year or three to negative ground, do you have to change the voltage regulator?

 

[glemon]

No, it should work both ways if you have the old electromechanical type. They do have points type contacts which apparently used materials that would last longer if the electrons are flowing the right way, or so I have read.

 

[RichB4493]

...and I believe you should change the small wire connection between the coil and distributor. It still works either way but "they" say the spark is stronger if connected properly.

 

[Flivver]

Swap the coil wires and re polarize the generator if it is a positive earth system now

 

[auprichard]

Anyone remember Randall Young? I kept this from when he posted it years ago.

"Note that you don't have to actually change anything on the generator, just repolarize it. One easy way is to disconnect the wire from the F terminal at the regulator (ignition off, engine stopped), and brush it against the A terminal. If you see sparks, the job is done."

 

[mctriumph]

The amp meter will read backwards if not reversed , but the rest is EZ PZ.
Mad dog

 

[glemon]

The amp meter will read backwards if not reversed , but the rest is EZ PZ.
Mad dog

Amp meter is easy too, swap big wires on the back of the gauge, disconnect battery first, as I believe the circuit is hot all the time.

 

[mctriumph]

And if you hate smoke, adding a fuse able link in the large brown wire can add a lot of piece of mind,
Mad dog

 

[Wire-Wheels]

Can someone tell me when the British auto industry went to negative ground & when they ended the Whitworth system ?...J.D.

 

[Hamish Racing]

Can someone tell me when the British auto industry went to negative ground & when they ended the Whitworth system ?...J.D.

My 1937 Alvis is whitworth as I had to find spanner’s and sockets when I bought the car this year
I think they moved to unf/unc in the 1950s in the uk - what did mr Ford do ?
And the neg earth a transition during the 1960s.
Triumph did itwith with the change from tr4 to tr4a in 1965 (open for correction here)

But I guess Honda and the like started metric and neg earth

 

[Wire-Wheels]

My 1937 Alvis is whitworth as I had to find spanner’s and sockets when I bought the car this year
I think they moved to unf/unc in the 1950s in the uk - what did mr Ford do ?
And the neg earth a transition during the 1960s.
Triumph did itwith with the change from tr4 to tr4a in 1965 (open for correction here)

But I guess Honda and the like started metric and neg earth

I started working on import cars here in the US in about the early 60's as a hobby. All the German stuff was 6 volt, neg. ground The US auto industry had standardized all their products, going to 12 volt neg. ground [I think in 1955]. I didn't get exposed to British cars until about 1970 when I started working in dealerships and independent repairs shops as a mechanic. By then, the Brits were all done with Whitworth. I left the auto repair business for the last time in 1984 when I was granted an engineering apprenticeship. ...J.D.

 

[Sarastro]

The switch from positive to negative ground didn't happen instantly, of course, but over a few years around 1960.

What most people call "Whitworth" is actually the British screw standard, mostly BA and BSF, which were derived from Whitworth. Car manufacturers were done with it around the mid 1950s, but a few fasteners persisted, mostly in distributors, carburetors, and other ancillary equipment.

 

[Pat MM]

The switch from positive to negative ground didn't happen instantly, of course, but over a few years around 1960.

What most people call "Whitworth" is actually the British screw standard, mostly BA and BSF, which were derived from Whitworth. Car manufacturers were done with it around the mid 1950s, but a few fasteners persisted, mostly in distributors, carburetors, and other ancillary equipment.

Morris Minors used Whitworth/ BA & BSF until production ceased in 1971, though from the mid’50s onward the running gear no longer used the old British Standard fasteners.

 

[Hamish Racing]

Thankfully the early whitworth hammers and screwdrivers can still be used.

 

[Wire-Wheels]

The switch from positive to negative ground didn't happen instantly, of course, but over a few years around 1960.

In the US, when the change to 12 volt came [I believe 1955], the polarity was also standardized. Before that you could have it either way depending on the manufacturer. Sometimes jumpstarting a car could go VERY WRONG if you were not careful. ...J.D.