Negative Earth.

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exlkrs
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Location: J3 M56 North West
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Negative Earth.

Post by exlkrs »

Finally gave in and changed! Can fit a period radio cassette now.
There's so many stories/doubts/myths around this, and a dearth of info if you want to keep a dynamo, so simply -

Disconnect smaller F terminal from back of dynamo.
Disconnect and reverse battery ( I needed a new positive terminal)
Reconnect battery.
Attach wire to battery pos, and 'flash' (you see sparks) the other end of this wire 3/4 times to the dynamo terminal you exposed earlier.
Remove wire. Reconnect wire you removed earlier to the dynamo.
Reverse the 2 connections on each side of the coil.
Start up, job done!

***IMPORTANT SAFETY TIP*** (See photo)
This many have brought the now positive terminal to the left in close proximity to the battery clamp bar.
I cut a notch out of the bar here to put more distance between them and added a little insulation into the notch.
Safety first!
Safety first!
neg.jpg (407.27 KiB) Viewed 898 times
Messin' with Morris (and Austin) for half a century!
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geoberni
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Re: Negative Earth.

Post by geoberni »

Welcome to the Dark Side, according to a certain breed of owner..... :P
You're right, there can be an issue with just switching the battery around when you first change, depending on which battery retaining bar your car has.
There were 3 different ones used over the years, along with 2 different designs of tie rod.

Also fitted with an insulating rubber strip, even though the terminals were to the back?? :-?
exlkrs wrote: Tue May 02, 2023 4:17 pm Finally gave in and changed! Can fit a period radio cassette now.
But if it were truly period, wouldn't the radio cassette be Pos Earth to... :-? :lol:

Incidentally, according to the Parts List illustrations, your bar might be upside down, or just not one of the originals :-?
Battery strap.JPG
Battery strap.JPG (124.55 KiB) Viewed 880 times
Basil the 1955 series II

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exlkrs
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Re: Negative Earth.

Post by exlkrs »

You try finding one! More chance of seeing Elvis riding a Unicorn down your street. Actually went for a polarity switchable 8 Track, but it just blew fuses. Gave up and changed! My bar is as it came and definitely not original, has a strip of wood underneath (hence self tappers) to help it maintain the correct angle to grip properly.
Messin' with Morris (and Austin) for half a century!
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geoberni
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Re: Negative Earth.

Post by geoberni »

exlkrs wrote: Tue May 02, 2023 5:41 pm You try finding one! More chance of seeing Elvis riding a Unicorn down your street. Actually went for a polarity switchable 8 Track, but it just blew fuses. Gave up and changed!
:lol: :lol:
The only ones I've ever seen have been very expensive and still only sold for 'repair'..
Mine was already Neg Earth when I brought him, but it took me nearly 2 years to realise they had forgotten to change the Coil connections, so I was getting through Spark Plugs, probably as they were overheating because of the spark going the wrong direction. :roll:
Basil the 1955 series II

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svenedin
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Re: Negative Earth.

Post by svenedin »

geoberni wrote: Tue May 02, 2023 5:34 pm Welcome to the Dark Side, according to a certain breed of owner..... :P
You're right, there can be an issue with just switching the battery around when you first change, depending on which battery retaining bar your car has.
There were 3 different ones used over the years, along with 2 different designs of tie rod.

Also fitted with an insulating rubber strip, even though the terminals were to the back?? :-?
exlkrs wrote: Tue May 02, 2023 4:17 pm Finally gave in and changed! Can fit a period radio cassette now.
But if it were truly period, wouldn't the radio cassette be Pos Earth to... :-? :lol:

Incidentally, according to the Parts List illustrations, your bar might be upside down, or just not one of the originals :-? Battery strap.JPG
Yes definitely the dark side but I can see why people do it if they want electronic gizmos. I don’t have or want any gizmos so positive earth my car stays.
1969 1098cc Convertible “Xavier” which I have owned since 1989.

Stephen
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