AA Snowmobile, 12 Volts?

[Roadster AA]

12 Volts?
I am working on a 1931 AA snowmobile and I would like to change over to 12 volts. It gets cold
here in Maine and I do not want trouble cranking, if I stop in the middle of the woods to have a coffee brandy.
I would like to know if the starter will work OK with 12 volts, or will it burn it out?
Are there any books for sale that tells you how to change from 6 volts to 12 volts?
Any information anyone can give me would be very much appreciated.

Thank you very much,

Pat

[Neil Wilson]

The starter should be okay. It turns very aggressively with the 12 volts. I converted a '29 pickup years ago and the starter worked well. I replaced the coil and light bulbs. I installed an alternator. I had to put a resister in line for the horn as it does not sound like an A horn with 12 volts. Sorry, I don't know of any book/documentation on this conversion.

[John - NNY]

One thing to watch out for with 12 volt going to a 6 volt starter is excessive wear and chipped teeth on the flywheel ring gear.

John
NNY

[modeleh]

There is an upgraded bendix available from the parts houses that is recommended as apparently the original style can fail on 12v. I have not done it myself, just heard of others who did it, and some say the original style bendix lasted them on 12v for years, others have had them fail. It would probably help the situation to always remember to fully retard the spark when starting.

[IHC]

The change you suggest can be done without any problems or damage anywhere. I did it on my truck and it runs perfectly with the 12 V system. You need a 12 V alternator and notice though it has a negative ground it will not affect the starter's rotation direction. Next: You have to change the field coils in the starter. If you know how these things work you can just resolder the four field coils in a series connection (they are borne in a 2 by 2 parallel connection) or buy and install new coils e.g. Snyder's A-11002-12 coil. You also have to change all bulbs and the ignition coil to 12 V. It will probably also be a good idea with a replacement Ammeter which can show up to 30 Amps. You don't have to make changes to the horn. It will run a little faster but will not be damaged. This might even be an advantage as the ground connection to the horn is often poor. If you want to do something more and get more light from your head lights the A-13027-QK12TS from Snyder will give all the light you can possibly wish for.
Good luck
Ib