Remember not to fill them completely until after charging as the water/acid solution will expand when charging. Just put in enough to cover the plates, then charge them up.

Thanks - I seemed to recall reading something to that effect, so that's what we did/are doing.

he bought a battery

Forgot to post this diagram

Tried the battery tester this evening.

Somewhere I read that it's common for metro EV conversions to end up with the batts in back and be too heavy in the rear (and who wants that? :D ). I'm not sure if that's true. It'd be good if you could balance it, but it'd also be pretty good if none of the batts were in the passenger compartment.

But I thought the inability to carry 4 adults was a stock feature. :D

j/k - I have no idea

You've got a point. And in this day and age, you'd be hard pressed to get 4 adults in that Metro without exceeding its 695lb weight rating! Never mind any luggage. (I wonder if the GVWR changed when they switched to the Blackfly's body style - I've never looked.)

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So this evening I made up 4 cardboard boxes - "battery mockups". Easier to monkey around with these under the hood to figure out placement and rack options than with the real things. I've seen a few people do this.

It looks like the hours meter will run constantly with the precharge resistor across the pot contactor--perhaps you should change the negative connection to be on the other side of the key switch contactor?

Good eye. I'm not sure but I think I may have introduced that change when I offered the "fuse re-drawing with a single ground."

Maybe it should be:
https://www.gassavers.org/attachment....1&d=1169153129

Yes, good eye! Gotta love peer review.

I'll update and post drawing version 2.1.

(SilveredWings - we're having version conflicts with the drawings. :D)

...and open source. :)

quick, better get a source control system. ;)

Ah memories of cannibalizing old TV sets. If you go with a used one, make sure you get a linear taper and not an audio (logarithmic) taper pot.

OK, if I understand the potentiometer conundrum, the Curtis uses a 0 - 5K ohm variable resistor (the center and one end of a pot.), and the forklift controller came with a ~23K ohm pot. From your photos, it looks like a common part:
https://rsk.imageg.net/graphics/produ...265106w345.jpg

a single-turn, linear-taper, 1/4" shaft carbon potentiometer rated at 1 Watt (without a built-in switch I assume). Don't put an underrated part in or you might smoke pot ;).

Anyway, if you can't get the exact length shaft, you can always go over-size and cut it to fit (usu. aluminum).

So, which controller are you going to be using?

The forklift pot is interesting. With a jumper wire (short) connected between the 2 ends of the resistor, the 0-23k pot acts as a 0-6-0 k pot - meaning resistance is highest with the wiper centered between the 2 ends and drops as you turn it either way from center.

Tidbit: the 2 Youtube videos of the motor spin-up have been collectively viewed over 2000 times. Apparently there's a healthy interest in conversion info.

And Project ForkenSwift is inspiring other people. Check this out:

https://www.43things.com/people/progr...rschaq/6037794

PS - get the fuel pump installed?

...working on it, thanks.

Edit: no really, I am.

Kudos for the Kudos. :D It's a really great project!

It's in and tested! If I hadn't spilled a little gas it would have been perfect. :rolleyes: (news flash: I'm not perfect :eek: )

Nice! Tested as in engine running, or good pressure?

Good pressure, from the tank to all 3 carb bowl needle valves (new Healeys didn't always do as well ;) ).

I have a whole checklist before I feel it's safe to attempt an engine start.

Edit: actually I'm down to priming the oil pump and rotating the engine a few turns. Then I'm about ready.

Speaking of pressurization, I'll be replacing a lot of the cooling system (hoses, pump, thermostat, belt), but the that won't hold up the start.

So... engine start yet??

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The guy who initially explained to me how to use a 3-wire pot on the Curtis controller tells me my hack to make the forklift potbox work ... will probably eventually wreck the controller. Sigh.

So, probably got to bite the bullet and order that $29 unit to see if it'll work I guess. No point in tempting fate. DC controllers fail "on", after all.

Haha, YIKES! :eek:

I'm concerned about how well 20W50 oil gets through the engine and bearings at 8 degrees F (-13 C). :( I also forgot what kind of oil I need to put in the carb dashpots. I probably should use a multiviscosity oil since that engine compartment traditionally gets very hot.

I also got my speedo, temp and oil gauges back from the rebuilder. :)

I'm still a little fuzzy about how that pot is wired. Is it off at 0 ohms and full on at 5K ohms (70 degrees)? Why did he think that "6K pot" would cause damage?

It's not the 5 vs 6k ohms that's the problem, it's that I shorted 2 tabs on the controller together so I could use the forklift pot in its *2-wire* configuration rather than in the *3-wire* config that the controller is expecting.

It's one of these things that would take me an hour to properly describe in writing and in a diagram vs a minute to show you in person. Frustrating!

I'm just going to order the expensive potentiometer rather than trying to mod this one to make it work.

There is a spec on the three wire connection for the amount of current flowing through the pot from high to low and there probably is a certain amount of loading and current from the wiper into the circuitry that requires a certain amount of impedance in the pot to perform properly. If the resistance is lower the throttle responce is probably more exact and if the impedance is higher the effect may be a more tapered movement. In any event the only thing that could damage a controller is too much loading on the pot leads - if you have low voltage there then it should not really matter but if you have battery voltage then it is a concern. It may also be setup for forward and reverse with the full movement - depends if 0 ohms is off or not. The eCycle controller can be setup so that center position is 0 rpm and it goes forward and reverse depending upon which way you turn the pot from center. They spec a 5k pot but a 10k pot also works ok.

Best to measure what is coming out of the controller for voltage to the pot and go from there.

You should add CAPS to the controller input of sufficent value to handle the switching noise that the PWM will cause or else you produce a lot of EMF that could be harmful to your health and can induce currents in conductive materials near any of the battery cables. Just be careful of contactor currents charging the caps upon powering up - they should be limited via a charging resistor.

Dashpot oil usually was light weight hydralic fluid or brake fluid - I think I used marvel mystery oil or motorcycle fork oil. The heavier the weight of oil the more accelerator "pump" action you get - a richer mixture when pressing the pedal down. Too light an oil and stomping on the gas pedal will cause a lean "bog" stumble. It also dampens intake pulses at low RPM.

With 20w50 and a tight engine keep the RPM low until the oil warms up or else you will have a lot of oil pressure and put a load on the drive train turning the oil pump - timing belt or chain if not crank driven.

Thanks for the info JanGeo, and that does make sense.

Metro, sorry to sidebar your thread but my goal really is to sell the Healey to fund (and free up my garage for) an EV project. Such are my good intentions anyway... :D

Unfortunately, I don't have enough knowledge /

Don't worry about it! It's interesting. And perfectly related as sidebar material with the "EV funding" angle.

Connect the pot to the controller and turn it on - in the 0 rpm position and read the voltage across the wires on the pot. Something comes to mind that there was a safety feature on the controller that would shut it down if there was no pot connected in case the wires broke or something. Anyway there should be plenty of info on the controller on the web about the inner workings and how the pot connects to the internal circuits. You do want to use a good pot that will not wear out under constant use. Yes I saw the resistor across the power relay - that should do the trick.

Minor update: just pursuing a few leads on potentiometers that will both work inside the potbox, and talk to the Curtis.

Taking my time. The fact that it's -20 out has removed a lot of the urgency for getting back into the garage.

Oh man, you sure do get the lake effect, don't you. I do hope you are talking about degrees C, not F. It was a balmy -17 C at my house this morning in still air, but now it's ~-21 C with the wind chill.

When I walked to class this morning it was a cool -24C and now it's up to -17C, dunno with the wind chill though, :)

Yep, that was in C. Just walked downtown. Got a ride back. Temperatures like this sure make you appreciate the 25% efficiency of the ICE. Gimme some wasted heat - NOW!

Well crud. Just missed out on an eBay auction for a potbox that had all the right specs.

Got another price for a Curtis replacement pot: $45 CDN. That, to me, is just insane, considering you can go into radio shack and get a 5K pot for $2. But the standard seems to be 300 degrees of rotation, not 50.

It's looking like buying the replacement will be the route to take.

I just hate spending 5% of our total budget on a wee potentiometer :)

What's good about EVs is that you can install ceramic heaters. No need to wait for any ICE to warm up. you can get your heat as soon as you want it.