RE: [MV] 12-volt conversion questions

From: Horrocks, Aaron (ACHb@pge.com)
Date: Fri Jul 23 2004 - 15:13:54 PDT


Whoops I mixed up positive and negative there... I didn't get much sleep and have been running on Mountain Dew all day. Just reverse everything I said earlier and follow that!

Electron flow is a certainty? I'm fairly confidant it's still theory, as all the books and references I have say, the most currently dated one being 1991. Unless sometime in the last few years the technology has been developed to physically view the flow of electricity in a circuit.

Aaron Horrocks

-----Original Message-----
From: Military Vehicles Mailing List [mailto:mil-veh@mil-veh.org]On
Behalf Of m35products
Sent: Friday, July 23, 2004 2:56 PM
To: Military Vehicles Mailing List
Subject: Re: [MV] 12-volt conversion questions

I wonder who these "most people" are, who agree. Electrons flow from
negative to positive. It's not a matter of opinion, religion, phase of the
moon, or a show of hands. It's just a scientific certainty.

If you want to read about electrolysis, galvanic action, and metal
erosion/acretion, start reading the Bell System Technical Record at a local
engineering library.

(By the way, many joints have been smoked discussing just this question.)

The telephone system is positive ground, by the way, because it was found
that lead-sheathed cables, directly buried in the ground, would suffer from
galvanic erosion if the sheaths were negatively charged. I believe, however,
that it also had something to do with the original electrical power
transmission technique, which used direct current. So, the story goes, the
phone company (Bell System) changed over to positive ground. I'm not so
sure that the same reasoning would apply to the frame of an automobile,
since it is suspended above the ground, both mechanically and electrically,
by rubber tires.

a p bloom, lighting up a fat one, and waiting to hear a better explanation.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Horrocks, Aaron" <ACHb@pge.com>
To: "Military Vehicles Mailing List" <mil-veh@mil-veh.org>
Sent: Friday, July 23, 2004 3:33 PM
Subject: Re: [MV] 12-volt conversion questions

>
> Depending which electrical theory you follow... Most people will agree
that the electrons flow from Positive (+) to Negative (-) in a DC system. A
positive ground keeps the frame and body of a vehicle connected right up to
the battery terminal, effectively making it part of the battery. So the
metal of the vehicle is energized or charged on a very small degree.
(There's more electrons present then there would be without the positive
ground). Depending on the electricity (usually 12VDC) and metallurgy, this
will either promote or prohibit the metal from joining with other particles,
or atoms... Like oxygen, which can cause the vehicle to rust!
>
> This is, however, all based on theories and mechanic's tales. I have set
to see first hand evidence of this, or read any experiments that prove or
disprove it.
>
> Aaron Horrocks
> Sr. Electrical Engineering Estimator
> Livermore Office
> achb@pge.com
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Military Vehicles Mailing List [mailto:mil-veh@mil-veh.org]On
> Behalf Of kuhrick
> Sent: Friday, July 23, 2004 12:08 PM
> To: Military Vehicles Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [MV] 12-volt conversion questions
>
>
> i don't see the neg/pos ground doing much
> i have converted tractors and fork lifts too 12 volt with mid 1070s
> alt. with built in regulators
> butt they didn't have to look 6 volt they had to start wane needed
> that alt. can have a 1 wire voltage regulator in them if you ask for
it
> that alt only needs the battery wire not a wire to power the
regulator
> the cucv's have same alt in them but 2-3 wire
> and no ground so with a one wire regulator in it you can ground
> it like you what i was thinking of using one on my m886 for a 12+12
make
> 24 volt system
> ken m886
> kb9yku
>
>
>
> At 11:28 AM 7/23/2004, Colin M Rush wrote:
> >For those that do not already know, I have the care of an IHC M-5H-6.
> >After spending 4 days driving it around several weeks ago, we have
> >decided that a 12-volt conversion is in order. 6-volt works great when
> >it is first started, but after if gets hot and tight, it takes about 30
> >to 40 tries before the engine cranks over enough to catch. We jumped it
> >once or twice with a 12V battery, and it popped right off. When
> >researching this for a 1941 Chev truck I was working on, I had asked
> >around several years ago at a local shop called Willamette Electric that
> >rebuilds generators and alternators and starters (they are now out of
> >business, thank you NAFTA), and they had told me that the generators and
> >starters were built heavy enough that they could withstand being used in
> >a 12V system. We also will need to rewire it, since the old wiring has
> >been cobbled up and is painted over with Navy surplus paint and all of
> >the color codes are gone. Anyway, I would like to keep it looking
> >original if possible. One thing that I am worried about is the voltage
> >regulator. It is a large Delco unit, with a removeable aluminum can held
> >on with two thumbscrews. Can that work with 12 volts? If not, is there
> >another one that looks the same from a newer application that I can
> >install? Again, I would like it to look 'right'. If not, I may just
> >install one of the more typical 'black box' regulators like the passenger
> >cars and trucks used up into the early 1970s, and put that inside the
> >larger aluminum can of the old box. If anyone has any input on this, I
> >would appreciate hearing it. Also, does anyone have any suggestions for
> >a solid-state version of one of these that will work?
> > Also, the same truck is a positive ground vehicle. I had heard
> >that this was a bad thing on some newer aluminum-bodied vehicles, causing
> >corrosion. Is this something I need to change, or should I just not
> >worry about it?
> >-Colin Rush
>
>
>
> ===Mil-Veh is a member-supported mailing list===
> To unsubscribe, send e-mail to: <mil-veh-off@mil-veh.org>
> To switch to the DIGEST mode, send e-mail to <mil-veh-digest@mil-veh.org>
> To reach a human, contact <ack@mil-veh.org>
>
> =Mil-Veh is a member-supported mailing list=To unsubscribe, send e-mail
to: <mil-veh-off@mil-veh.org>
> To switch to the DIGEST mode, send e-mail to <mil-veh-digest@mil-veh.org>
> To reach a human, contact <ack@mil-veh.org>

===Mil-Veh is a member-supported mailing list===
To unsubscribe, send e-mail to: <mil-veh-off@mil-veh.org>
To switch to the DIGEST mode, send e-mail to <mil-veh-digest@mil-veh.org>
To reach a human, contact <ack@mil-veh.org>



This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Sat May 07 2005 - 20:33:54 PDT