The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 12volt starter and alternator for 216

I suppose this has been asked a thousand times on this forum, but I'm new here and will ask anyway. Can I get a 12 volt starter and alternator to convert my old 216 to 12 volt? any and all suggestions appreciated.

What I recommend is keeping your 6 volt starter, if it is operable. I've been running mine on 12 volts for about 4 years with no problems. They say not to crank for over 15 secons at a time, but the starter is a tough one.

For the alternator a 10SI is the easiest swap, even works with the stock brackets with some modification. Get the 3 wire style. Also go the Fifth Ave Auto Parts (in the links under electrical). Randy sells a book on the conversion and the DA plug that make wiring simple.

Thanks Fred, Ya the starter is good and that is probably the way I will go with the starter. But is there even a 12 volt one made that works (just wondering). Also,are all these after market harnesses for 6-volt systems? Do they make them as a 12 volt conversion?

There are harnesses wired for alternators.
The 55 up starters are 12 volt but there is no
need to change it. The 6 volt starter will last
longer on 12v than it will on 6.

Thanks for the info-I quess I should have put this in the electrical forum- I'm still learning

And if you do use a standard 12 volt one the teeth won't mesh with your stock flywheel.

If you want, take your starter to an old rebuilder. There you can get the 6 volt converted to 12 volts. I would only do this if my starter was not working. Also, Chevy Duty shows a 12 volt starter for the pre-55 trucks, but I know nothing about it, other than it's expensive.

I hope u get this in time, Im having major problems with this the previous owner of my 1950 3100 installed a 235, but left the 6v 139 teeth flywheel, well i had to get a 1949 chevy sedan with automatic starter to make it work!

I had ordered the one on chevy duty and it did not work, the teeth dont mesh.

madelectrical.com has very good information on wiring in alterantors, and relays

My grandfather put the '55 235 in my 1948 Chevy PU in 1970, and kept it 6 volt but ran 2 batteries in series for 12-volts and a relay only for starting. When I restored it in 1984, i went back to only one battery. In 1994 I replaced the 6 volt generator with a 12 volt generator from a 1962 Buick. The starter is the same starter since 1970. My grandfather told me begore he passed away, that if I ever had to replace the starter, to get a GMC 6 volt starter, as the windings were supposedly heavier duty, and he should know, as he was a WWI airplane mechanic, that shifted to automotive after the war, and had his own shop for over 40 years.
Hope this helps, Garry

Good luck ever finding a GMC starter ~ yes it's heavier duty and has an additional bushing supporting the armature , I've been hunting the scraps and core bins for one ever since fixing Proffit's on his '39 some time ago ~ the rebuilders all just laugh when I ask them .

It bolts right in place of the Chevy starter and gives your old 235 a healthy spin .

If you want a heavy duty starter, get one off of a tractor. I think mine's off of a john deere 4020. I used parts from a '51 caddy starter to convert it to 12V. It has the intermediate bushing, four field coils, and heavy duty housing. Find a good automotive electric rebuilder who can tell you what other starters fit your engine.

But, unless you are starting your truck in the dead of winter, the 6V will be plenty strong.

Just another thought here.

A local guy here where I live, rebuilds starters, alternators and generators and so forth. I took my Farmall Cub tractor's starter to him last summer to have him rebuild it and I was asking him what he was doing for us guys who are running 12 volts on a 6 volt starter.

His response is the same as everyone here, that the 6 volt starter will handle the extra 6 volts with no problem, just not keep grinding on the motor.

Well anyhow, he said that he worked on a older vehicle's starter that kept knocking the teeth off of the drive bendix. So he went to his parts supplier and was looking on what might help keep from doing this. Well what he found was a company that made 12 volt fields for that could be used with the 6 volt starters, what this did was lessened the hard engagement force and faster spinning of the starter motor. He said that the fields run about 12 bucks a piece.

He also told me that since he put these new 12 volt fields in this guys starter, he hasn't had any problems since. I thought COOL, now that I have several teeth missing on my flywheel ring now. Maybe this might been been what happened to mine in the first place. I know when I engage the foot starter that engine is really cranking over quite fast. But my engine starts so quick and easy, that I don't hardly have enough time to get my foot off the starter pedal.

I don't know if this may be a problem with every 6 volt starter running on 12 volts or not, but I thought it was something to think about. I don't feel there would be any problem going back to the original 6 volt system on my truck, but it sure it nice to be able to go to even go, let's say Wal-Mart and buy light bulbs in 12 volts for my old truck. Where I would probably have to order 6 volt bulbs, flasher relay and so forth from a parts store and wait a couple of days to get em. For that reason alone, and since it's a semi-daily driver, I really like having the 12 volt system on my old 54.

EVEN THOUGH, I was surprised the other day when I went to one of the parts store and they actually had a new brake light switch for my truck, on the shelf. They pulled out a couple different styles and the one was the correct one for my truck...... better yet is was only 12 bucks and even more surprising, is was MADE IN U.S.A. I about fell over.

John Niekamp

The 4020 John Deere Diesels used two 12 volt batteries, so the starter is a 24 volt unit.

They made butane (LP Gas) powered tractors as well, I don't know if they were 12 or 24 volt.

Hey guys,I've been gone on business for a week and I come back and have all this feedback-Its Great! Thanks for all the comments and keep it coming!