The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay coil for 12 volt conversion

I'm in the process of collecting all my parts to make the conversion from 6 to 12 volt. I was wondering what type of 12v coil to look for to fit my 216 engine or does it matter much?

doesn't matter much, but it might be a good idea to bring the old 6v in with you to check sizes so it fits in the little holder on the engine. also remember to get the resistor for it.

Thanks for the reply Gecko. I was noticing in your post about converting to 12v you are still using your amp gauge. I thought I had to switch that for a volt gauge when I make the conversion to 12 volts. Can I skip this step and get by with my original amp gauge?

I'm not any authority on this stuff, but I have never heard you have to switch to a volt meter. Mine works well, and I've been using it for several months now. Don’t under estimate how tough some of these components are, I was running my truck with 12 volts for about a month without disconnecting the gas gauge, I figured it was fried, so I didn’t bother. Yesterday I hooked it up properly to the sender and it worked perfectly, not fried at all.

Crow, if you are still running a points type ignition you will want either a coil with a built in resistor, or, if you choose a coil without the resistor, you will need to install an external ballast resistor in the 12v supply wire to the coil. If you run the full 12v to a coil without a resistor, your points will burn pretty quickly. If you are running HEI or other electronic ignition that doesn't use points, then it's not an issue(although Pertronix still advises dropping the voltage to the coil for their conversion kits).

Your ammeter cares not a whit about voltage , all
it does is measure the amperage so don't worry about it .

You'll fry the fuel gauge in 5 seconds if you run 12 volts through it though .

Get a 55-57 Chevy coil with a built in resistor. They look very close to stock coils, if that matters to you. Cecil.....