VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1937-1945 Electrolock on a 12 Volt coil

I converted my 38 Chevy to 12 volt and wanted to keep the electrolock look on the coil. So this is what I did to retain that look. After replacing the wire inside the electrolck, I stripped all the paint off of the cable and cap. The previous owner painted it all black. I repainted the cap black, then clear coated the cap and the bare cable to keep it from rusting, we'll see how well it holds up in time.

I went to Home Depot and bought a can of HDX window and door lubricant. All I wanted was the can, not the contents. I searched a lot of cans, but this one was the correct diameter of my coil.



I cut the can down to 3 1/2 inches.



I had to grind the inside ridge on the bottom of the can so the electrolock adapter would fit into the ridge area.



I drilled a hole in the center of the adapter and another hole for the wire to go through. The adapter is held onto the can with a nut and bolt.



I also drilled a small hole on the side of the can so the wire can connect to the resister, then the coil. I used rubber grommets on both holes that the wire goes through.

Here is a picture of the assembly placed over the coil.



And here is the picture of the completed, and painted assembly.



Hope you enjoyed the article and I'm open to your opinions.

That is so cool. I think it is great when guys (or gals) find modern stuff to dissect to look like old stuff. Must add, though, sooooo cool.
Gus...

Ingenious. Love the idea and the result.

Adding a ballast resistor for dropping the 12V to 6V to power the coil would work for a 12V conversion also. Your canister does look good. Curious if any pressure was left in the can when you cut it open. I can still remember putting a can of yellow paint in the drill press when I was a youngster and .......yikes!

In my 12 volt conversion, I also removed the points and installed the Pertronix kit.

Good point about the pressure in the can. I bought the can new, it was only $3.55. I put some weight on the nozzle and left it there until all the product and pressure was released from the can. I had no problems cutting it open after that

Neat idea. Wondering if the cable was originally silver? Mine is all black.

The armoured spiral cable on the electrolock was originally a silver coloured Cadmium plating.

I gutted a junk original coil and slid a modern coil in the case,I used a coil with a internal resistor since it still has points. Not sure if its going to cause any heat issues with the coil since I did not drive it this summer due to a rattle in the motor.