The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay 6 volt vs. 12 volt

Hey all, my question is whether or not to change to 12v from 6v. I realize there are more 12v options nowadays but my truck is running on 6v. I think I would like to upgrade to 12v but what is involved? Voltage rectifier or do you have to change all the electrical and components? p.s. I haven't searched the forum yet for answers. just throwing this out there. Cheers and KEEP ON ROLLIN!

oops maybe i should post this in the electrical section!

Battery, bulbs, voltage regulator, generator or alternator, internal resistor coil or external resistor for coil. Resistor for fuel gauge and you have to either upgrade the heater motor to 12-volt or use a resistor for it as well. You will have people argue it both ways. I converted mine and it works well, there are people here who have great luck leaving it 6V too!

With a new harness and clean connections 6v should work just as well. The advantage of running 12v in my opinion is the ability to add modern accessories without worrying about voltage boosters and whatnot.

The Tech Tips section of stovebolt.com has a wide variety of very informative articles. Here is a Tech Tip on the conversion to 12v.

FifthAvenue Auto Parts sells a conversion manual (the owner is a moderator on stovebolt.com).

There is very little reason to change to 12v, unless you need/want 12v devices in your truck. 6v systems need to have good clean connections and grounds. Both battery cables and all ground straps NEED to be a thicker gauge than in a 12v system. If you only need a few low-powered 12v devices, 6v to 12v voltage converters are available.

I guess I’m to slow on the composition Tim, ya beat me to it. But I agree with you
and Eric, clean it up and leave it alone. In the seven years I’ve been driving my
'50 I've never had a failure to start. I have by the way, kept her original
6v system.
I wanted something other than the talk radio that my original 6v AM radio
supplied so I added a 12v AM/FM/CD stereo player under the dash. I also wanted
a tach but the 6v tachs were way to pricey and settled for an inexpensive 12v tach.
I simply installed a voltage booster behind the dash and that took care of both of
my 12v accessories.
The 6v lights are just as bright as the 12v lights, that is as long as all of your
connections are clean and tight.
Electrical Current is inversely proportional to the voltage so back in the mid 50's
when the public demand for more electrical devices was on the rise, to save on the
copper wiring they cut the wire size in half by switching to 12v systems. They
were now offering more and more electrical options at this stage such as stereos,
power seats, power windows, more lights, etc. If they could save a couple of
bucks by using half the copper then that meant millions to the stockholders.
The Trucking industry uses 24v, 48v was common in the aircraft industry during
the wars and today much of your airliners electrical is 115v, all for weight and
cost savings.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Thanks guys, that gives me some fuel to think about. I probably am going to keep it 6v. I was thinking of throwing my camper on the old bird, for the odd trip, but I have another truck (1988 chev heavy half) that would be better suited for the camper. I will just enjoy the 54 as is and booting around town, country drives and to some car meet. KEEP ON ROLLIN!