Note: These threads are old. I managed to restore these Sun Automotive Equipment threads from backups that I had made several years ago.
Hope you like them -
Since it's a crappy day outside, why not tackle a little project in the garage. I found this interesting unit on e-Bay of all places.
These are quite rare since they were mostly used to recharge the 6-volt batteries on many Sun diagnostic and distributor testers. In the early years (1940's and early 1950's) Sun used 6 volt batteries to supply the test voltage for their equipment (most notably in the distributor testers of the time). It was only in the mid- to late 1950's that they switched to integrated DC power supplies.
This one is OEM for my 1950 Master Distributor Tester (MTD). Although I built a power supply for my MTD, it's nice to have all the OEM equipment that came with the tester.
One thing to note on Battery chargers of the time -- they are configured for 6v POSITIVE ground systems, so in order to use them on more modern charging systems, the clips will have to be reversed -- or duly marked.
It was pretty ratty, but salvageable. I replaced much of the wiring, installed a proper grounded power cord, new charging clips, and finally painted the base and housing.
The only modification I'm going to make next week is to install a DC ammeter on the back to indicate current draw.
Pretty crappy and dirty lookin' -- lots of dead bugs
Transformer tested perfect -- amazing!!
Cleaned the heat sinks and repainted the base and housing
