On Thu, 25 Aug 1994, Will Zehring wrote:
> Correct me if I'm wrong but: on a battery that does not have (+) or (-)
> identified (yes, I've got two of the b*****ds, a pair of new 6V batteries
> from Interstate (aka Joe Gibbs, Dale Jarrett, etc.; good ole boys both!). A
> local source of wisdom says: the larger pole is the (+) pole and, as night
> follows day, the smaller pole is the (-) pole.
>
> Correct?
>
> Will "there he goes again" Zehring
>
Dear Will,
Hard way:
Get a voltmeter, put the + or "Volt/Ohm" lead on the large terminal and
the "com" lead on the small terminal. If the reading is positive, then
the large terminal is positive. (Some analog meters, like my beloved
Simpson 460, have a selector switch that offers a +dc and -dc position,
which should be in the +dc position.)
Easy way:
Look at the terminals of a battery that *is* marked. If the MG is your
only car, look at a neighbor's. If no neighbors, see hard way above.
REAL easy way:
Batteries sometimes have the polarity marked on the end of
the post, and sometimes on the case. Have you looked at both places?
Ray Gibbons Dept. of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics
Univ. of Vermont College of Medicine, Burlington, VT
gibbons@northpole.med.uvm.edu (802) 656-8910
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