"Mechanics and Owners guide for 41-59 HDs Vol I"

[awander]

Think I found a mistake:

On p161, it says,

"Pour water into acid, never acis into water/"

This is the opposite of the way I have always been taught. In Chem Lab, they even taught us a rhyme, "Do as you oughta', add acid to water'".

I checked a bunch of on-line references, and they all agree with my chemistry teachers.

Adding water to acid is dangerous, and can cause burns.

[FlatHeadSix]

Absolutely right Andy! The reaction becomes even more violent, and dangerous, when the acid is concentrated. The logic behind this is that the water is attempting to dilute the acid, very quickly. If you drip distlilled water into pure sulphuric acid you better have all your protective gear on, it sputters and hisses and spits, and generates lots of heat.

I don't have VT's book (sorry VT, maybe one of these days...) so I don't know what the reference is about. If they are talking about wet cell batteries it may explain the statement. When you top off a battery you should NEVER add more acid, only pure distilled water. In this case its OK to add the water to the acid because the concentration of the acid in battery fluid is pretty low to begin with and the reaction is usually not violent. I won't get into lead-acid battery chemistry here, but if you add fresh acid to top off the battery it will significantly decrease the capacity of the battery.

mike

[VT]

"Pour water into acid, never acid into water"

That may have been an error that my editor was instructed to change, but didn't. I kept all the notes from Vol.1, and I'm curious about the statement, so I'll look for the source. As I remember, the warning was printed on a rectangular piece of literature that shipped with the G.S. (Japan) H-2 6V battery. But, seems like typo dyslexia since I recommend using 2.5 fl. oz. of Charge-It® before the acid is installed into each of the three cells - and Charge-It is a cadmium-water mixture. At any rate, battery (electrolyte) acid is not too hot and it won't explode won't like sulphuric. I activate all of my H-2 batteries the same way: 2.5 fl. oz. of Charge-It into a dry cell, then 7.167 fl, oz. of straight (electrolyte) acid. By adding the Charge-It first, you don't have to measure the electrolyte - just pour acid in up to the "upper level line". Let it sit for 20 minutes and use an eyedropper to top off more cells with acid as necessary.

And as Flat6 mentioned, and on page 161, "(The first time) is the last time straight acid is added to the battery. All other top-offs must be made with distilled water."

Thanks for finding the presumed mistake Andy. I will investigate the source of my information and whether it was missed by the editor on a "corrections revision". Please post a notice here, if you find any others. All of the (7) mistakes I've found are printed as corrections on the amazon site under "See All Editorials". If the acid/water warning is wrong, I'll add that correction to the amazon site.
The Charge-It solution is a great battery life extender and of course the Battery Tender. Very important to never use any other charger. All it takes is one charge with a 6V automotive charger and the 6V, H-2 motorcycle battery is permanently ruined.

If the battery is rated as 22 amp hr. it must be initially charged for 22 hrs.

[awander]

VT:

I have another one-it may be a mistake, or it may be that i just don;t understand it.

in Vol I, on p21, under Troubleshooting, it says:

"Problem: The motor is running at highway speed and suddenly cuts off. The points have closed.
Solution: While the motor is still turning over, try pushing the (Linkert) choke lever all the way down (closed), then one notch up (open) from full choke. This should keep the motor running at 55 mph until you can get safely off the road to make a repair...." It goes on to detail how the plugs should be removed, and replaced soon, and how to set the gap of the points.

Does "The points have closed" mean "The points gap adjustment has slipped, so that they are no longer opening as far as they should"?

And will putting the engine on (almost) full choke really let it run better with a small-to-non-existent points gap?

The book also says:

"Caution: Do not touch the spark plug while kicking the motor over. Serious or fatal electric shock may occur. If the plug must be held during this test, use rubber insulated pliers and not your hand. Remove all gasoline form the area."

Does this warning apply to this "Problem-Solution"?(which does not mention doing any kind of test with the plugs, or kicking the motor at all, or even the fact that you need to put the plugs back in). Or does it apply to the next Problem-Solution?

I think the editor skipped this page(or else I am just missing something).

[VT]

Does "The points have closed" mean "The points gap adjustment has slipped, so that they are no longer opening as far as they should"?

Yes, the points have slipped and are closer together. Choking the Linkert and making it run richer helps. Try it if it ever happens to you - but after you're well off the road and riding on the shoulder. 0.022" for the points, 1936 - 1960.

"Caution: Do not touch the spark plug while kicking the motor over. Serious or fatal electric shock may occur. If the plug must be held during this test, use rubber insulated pliers and not your hand. Remove all gasoline form the area."

That's a warning connected to kicking the motor over.
If you find any more, try and give me the page number too. Thank you