Dad's '47 Dodge Pickup (original straight six) will not start using the starter. It turns over fine, but appears to have no spark. When pull started with a tow rope it took right off and ran fine.
Would this be a bad starter solenoid? Is the solenoid on these old trucks the same as the starter switch/button mounted on the starter?
Thanks...
Posted By: procharged 484
Re: '47 Dodge Starting Issue - 11/18/14 07:21 AM
Old secret 1940 Dodge would not start but push it 1 foot fired right up . New coil , starter ,battery, everything no start . 90 year old guy says to me clean your amp gauge studs and wires and it fired right up !
Posted By: moparx
Re: '47 Dodge Starting Issue - 11/19/14 02:25 AM
gene is right. 12volts is the key, plus it is a relatively easy thing to do. and you can keep the original starter. it will spin over like a late model mini.
Posted By: 68Bee
Re: '47 Dodge Starting Issue - 11/21/14 06:55 PM
Make sure you have the heaviest battery cables you can buy. I think they are an 01 or something like that. The standard 12v cables they sell are not thick enough.
Posted By: DDodger
Re: '47 Dodge Starting Issue - 02/19/15 11:50 PM
Check for voltage drop through the key/switch circuit.
The reason that just about all 12V cars originally used a ballast resistor was so that they could bypass it for starting, therefore have a hot spark during cranking. 6V cars don't have this luxury
Also as above, make sure all cables and connections are good and 'big' and make sure battery is up to snuff.
On a side note, my Dad drove GM and other 6V pickups for quite a few years when I was young, and they started, grinding over slow, on some VERY cold days.
You have to keep them tuned
You have to have good quality parts
clean cap and rotor
AND A GOOD CONDENSOR (cap) in the distributor. "New" does not mean 'good'
If you are using resistor wires, consider going to solid wires, LOL
What shape is the engine in, compression, burn oil, etc?
All the battery power goes through the amp gauge. Poor connections there will rob the system of amperage. You can't afford to loose amperage on a 6 volt system. Might also want to do a load test on the battery, just to be sure its up to the task.