The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay 12v Battery size for an AD?

Got a friend who's converting and he was askin' me about
it this morning. Now ya'll know how I'm a 95% purist so
I didn't have an answer for him, but I told him I'd look
into it.
So I fumbled around the search engine for an hour searcin'
every which way with no luck, so now I'm throwin' it out
to the general populace. Any of you who have made the
switch, know for sure what size 12v battery will fit in
the stock battery box on an AD? Or know of a chart that
lists the physical sizes?
I'm countin' on you Longbox Bill, bet you'll have a suggestion.

Tks
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I have one of these I. My 50

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/d..._1443141_3153&pt=C0423&ppt=C0005

I didn't do the conversion

So no guarantees that its correct or the post are in the correct location.

There is a link to battery sizes in this thread.

Thanks Gus, that's just what the doctor ordered. I'll printout
that picture and give it to my buddy. And thks Tim for the
chart from interstate, printed that out also.
Thanks guys that orta get him goin'.

Denny G
Sandwich, IL

My Battery looks a little taller than the ones in the other thread.

just want to add that
I can use the Hold Down top. In the pic you see only one nut thats because the other stud snapped off.

It clears the lip that hangs down. I added some asphalt loom on the 10G wire for more protection..just in case.

Been searching while me fingers are thawing out and I came up with this.
BCI group 1 6v battery is 9 1/8" x 7 1/8" x 9 3/8", CCA 650, CA 850
BCI group 86 12v battery is 9 1/16" x 6 13/16" x 8", CCA 540, CA 675.
Terminals both on one side and they're on top as in Gus's photo.
Don't know what group that bat is that's in your photo Gus but
maybe you can post it for a comparison if it's different.

So that battery is gonna fit with a few fractions to spare,
only not have quite as much stamina as the 6v Group 1. But
since the 6v starter is gonna get an extra kick form the 12v
battery it shouldn't present a problem, unless you're in dire
need of a tune-up.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

here is the info off the oreilly site linked above

•UPC: 721112782157
•Cold Cranking Amps (CCA): 640 CCA
•Cranking Amps (CA): 800 CA
•Group Size (BCI): 35
•Length (In): 9-11/16 Inch
•Width (In): 6-7/8 Inch
•Height (In): 8-13/16 Inch
•Voltage (V): 12 Volt

Oh yeah, gotta forgive me Gus, my brain's kinda frozen from
spending most of the morning out shoveling snow.

Well, here I go again. every time I try to do a favor it turns
into a week long project. It taint my truck, I don't have it
here, I don't have ready access to it and I taint gonna tear
the battery out of mine to get the actual dimensions of the
tray. Nor am I chasing around to 10 different places to
physically measure 10 different brands of batteries to
verify which one will actually fit the tray without modification.

My man says his tray is 9 1/2" and the half dozen charts that
I've spent a couple hour searching say the gp. 35 battery is
9 3/4" long, and your O'Reilly specs say 9 11/16".
Tks for the info Gus, I'm turning it over to the guy with the
problem.
One more reason why I'm in love with keeping them stock.
Denny G
Sandwich, IL

It’s not you.....it’s me

I put on my sunglasses and braved the 68 degree winter temperatures and took a photo of that battery in the tray.

Here is a pic of that 35 battery in the tray
...pic...

...pic..2...


...pic.3..

I purchased this battery in 2010

Its definitely not the dimensions listed on the web site but its definitely sitting in my 50.

I apologize

No apologies due here Gus, I just get frustrated because out of
all the charts I looked at, I'll bet there were a half dozen
different lengths. I though the object of the BCI was supposed
to standardize the sizes.
But like I said, I taint got nothin' here and can't get to it so
I'm just the middle man in this exercise. Just though it would
be nice to have a simple answer to this all to common retrofit
for the members to reference to.
Pete's done a couple 12v conversions and should be along here
with another choice, that is if he's not still mad at me.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Denny, I grew up around a Dodge dealership and remember my truck battery being from a Dodge Aspen in 1976. A quick search shows it as a group 25. It fits the underfloor battery box well and has top mount terminals. I know the battery in it now has a choice of top or side mount terminals. I would have to check it's group number when warmer. Maybe this weekend.

Yes, a gp. 25 will also work. Just about the same size as the gp. 86
A little smaller capacity but I wouldn't think it would
make any difference under normal operating conditions.

Looks like there are a few that would work.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I have a group 24 in my truck but I rebuilt the battery tray due to corrosion. I don't remember if I changed the dimensions or just winged it. The battery just barely fits.

Not surprised Vern, a gp. 24 is at least 3/4" to nearly 2"
larger that the gp. 1, depending on who's chart your looking
at. It would have the same CCA rating that the gp. 1 has.
You definitely would, have to modify the tray in order to get it
in the hole. The stock hold down bolts are spaced around 10"
and the opening in the floor is only 11 1/4". So what did you
do for a hold down?
Let me clarify the object of this post, we were aiming at
finding a direct 12v swap for the gp. 1 without any mods.
Again, it's not my truck, just askin' for a buddy.
If I were doing this and if I were adding a bunch of 12v powered
items like power windows, bear claws, AC, earth shaking boom
box and such, I'd probably opt to move the battery out on the
cowl where the later ones were, like some guys have done. At
that point there would be enough changes made that it would
just be a shadow of an Advanced Design Chevy truck anyway, so
who cares where the battery sits.
Just the purist in my talkin'.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Denny,
I actually have been running for four years without a hold down. Just last weekend my battery failed so while I had it out I added a piece of angle iron on the outside edge of the battery tray so I could put one in. The hold down consists of parts from the common universal unit sold in the help section at O'Reilly autoparts. The inside is attached to the truck frame and the outside to the shiny new angle iron.

I run an Interstate MTP-35 in my '47:
( http://www.interstatebatteries.com/cs_eStore/Products/RT/PID-MTP-35(Automotive+Truck).aspx?dsNavigation=Ntk%7eSearchGroup%7cmtp%2f-35%7c3%7c%2cNy%7eTrue%2cNtpc%7eDisabled%2cNs%7eproduct+Type%7c101%7c1%7c&Title=Mega-Tron+Plus+35+Automotive+Battery++85+months+++640+CCA )

The dimensions are close to what I understood the original 6V to be. Two things to consider if you use this battery:
1) It's about a 1/2" taller, so an original hold-down has to be modified to allow for bolts on the original studs to engage
2) The posts are slightly farther apart length-wise. I added generous clearance cuts to the hold down to avoid accidental arc-welding.

Don’t see why that wouldn’t be a good fit also BD.
Ya shouldn’t have any trouble with the hold down fitting other than the terminals might
be close to the hold down frame. If it’s made to the BCI standard then it should be a full
½” shorter than the original gp 1 battery.

BCI gp 35 (12v) is 9 1/16” x 6 7/8” x 8 7/8”

BCI gp. 1 ( 6v) is 9 1/8” x 7 1/8” x 9 3/8”

Denny G

Hi Denny,

I must have been comparing to another 6V, I'm not sure.

My hold down modifications may have been overly cautious, but it makes the system more robust from the perspective of avoiding a short.

Thanks and have a great day

Guys due to the difficulty in finding a 6v battery in Italy, at least at a reasonable price, and the 82Ah battery I bought doesn't do it....., I am converting to a 12V.

It seems that batteries are rated a bit differently here, as in Amp Hour and not CCA. I already bought a 12V. I bought a 55Ah battery based upon the conversion from 6v at 100-110 ah.

Gonna be ok?

Ok. Well tried it anyway. 55Ah was more than enough. Funny, the alternator mounted up without any bracket or adapter, and it all started up and charging fine.

I still gotta find the voltage reducers....