GregtheDC

Member
My son bought an H for me as a gift, but it didnt have a battery. It is 12 volt but should I be concerned if positive or negative ground and if so how do I te..?
Thanks in advance
GH
 
If you have an alternator then its negative ground. If it has a 12 volt generator then it could be either but the regulator has to be made for which one it is. If you have a regulator it should tell on the back if its positive or negative ground.
 
the owner's wife told my son it had a 12 v battery in it, but it didnt when I got it. the gentleman has since died
To Charlie who mentioned the alternator or generator, it is a gen, with a box, I assume a regulater, on the top with 1 wire on each side. 1 wire goes to a terminal on the top of the Gen and the other one goes into a wiring harness. So I still am concerned whether it is a Positive or Neg gournd. Have new 12 v batt dont wont to ruin something. I appreciate all the help, read eveything that appears here on H's
 
Now I would be worried if it really is 12v, maybe 6v. I don't know what to tell you how to test. Maybe take it to an auto parts store and see if they can test.
 
look at the generator, if it has the adjustable pully its a 6 volt generator. look at the coil if the wire from the points is going to the pos. side of coil its pos. ground. it most likely has the original 6 volt starter. put a 6 volt battery in it pull out the ignition switch , if the ammeter goes to discharge all is good.
and how do you know its 12 volt? post some pictures of this stuff we can tell you then.
it amazes me why anyone would want a 12 volt battery in such a little engine. i just finished doing a valve job this afternoon on a super W4 . it has high dome pistons and i shaved the head .020 and when done it was running before it turned over 2 times. i tryed the hand crank and 1/4 turn to start it. so what's the sense in screwing up a starter and flywheel, when all these tractor need is a good tune up. that thing runs so smooth at 400 rpm you hardly hear it running. customer drove it away smiling.
 
I like 12V for the convenience of being compatible with my other stuff.

My MH44 starts real tough when hot on 6V, the M's did too.
 
Sure seems like it's 6 volfs with cutout on the generator. If it's a true regulator it should have 3 or 4 wires connected to the regulator.
 
The positive terminal is bigger. Also most likely if it's 12 volt it's neg ground and 6 volt positive ground. Also if it's got alternator neg ground. If there's nothing on it for a charging system it prabably wouldn't even make a difference which way you put battery in.
 
Morning. I wanted to thank all for the help yesterday, tractor is 12 v neg ground, starts and runs great, hasnt run in over a yr, is a '46 model. AMazes me how great it ran, sounded and drove for being 74 yrs old. No dents or dings, just a lot of surface rust, weather cracked tires, but ran great. Again thanks to all for the help. I am no mechanic and this place keeps me running
Greg
 
You may be finding that it is running off of the battery, and not charging. If the amp gauge stays in the middle, it is likely just using the battery. If it is, it might work for a week or two before it stops starting. If it is charging when running, all is well. Jim
 

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