Edelbrock 1906 choke connection and how's the electric choke work

[live4theking]

I'm preparing to put an Edelbrock 1906 on my 68 NYer. The mechanical side of it seems to be pretty straight forward. It says to hook the choke to "keyed 12v", I though that I saw on here where someone hooked to the supply side of the ballast resistor. For the life of me I cannot find that know though.

Is this a good place to pick up the 12v for the choke?

I understand the basic principle of how the electric choke works, but what keeps it from trying to continually work? After it gets to a certain temperature when the engine is warming does something inside open up (electrically speaking)? Then does the heat of the engine keep it open? Asking out of curiosity.

 

[Blish]

An electric choke uses electricity to heat the choke spring and gradually open the choke. I would connect it to some 12 volt source that meets the following requirements:

1: has 12 volts when the key is in the run position
2: has 0 volts in any other position

I personally would connect it to an ignition switch wire, but anything works if it doesnt interfere with the other electronics.

-Paul

 

[CBODY67]

Holley used to sell a "thermocouple" to hook into the elec choke wiring. I got one, installed it, but could not see that it really did anything. It was supposed to decrease the power to the choke due to engine temp, to allegedly not over-choke or the opposite. After a while, I removed it and it's now on a shelf.

FWIW,
CBODY67

 

[jbooth35]

I just did this on a 1906. Like blish says connect to a source the turns on with the key. I used a piggy back connector on the back of alternator which I had already ran a wire to for the ammeter bypass. Others have used the wire going to the wiper motor or to the key side of the ballast resistor. The wire that comes with the 1906 is long enough for either alternator or wiper motor, but you’ll want a need a new wire for a longer run. I also added a fuse between the choke and connector.

 

[65sporty]

I'm preparing to put an Edelbrock 1906 on my 68 NYer. The mechanical side of it seems to be pretty straight forward. It says to hook the choke to "keyed 12v", I though that I saw on here where someone hooked to the supply side of the ballast resistor. For the life of me I cannot find that know though.

Is this a good place to pick up the 12v for the choke?

I understand the basic principle of how the electric choke works, but what keeps it from trying to continually work? After it gets to a certain temperature when the engine is warming does something inside open up (electrically speaking)? Then does the heat of the engine keep it open? Asking out of curiosity.

The 12V keyed side of the ballast resistor would be a good place or another keyed 12V source. The only problem is if you sit with the key on your choke will open. Some other factory applications used a oil pressure switch to provide power only when the engine is running. As far as I know the electric choke element is always hot, it never shuts off.

 

[CBODY67]

The elec choke coil creates an artificially hotter environment inside of the automatic choke coil's housing, to open the choke before ambient air would otherwise open it. On some models, Ford ran a heater hose beside the choke coil housing.

I don't know for sure how much electrical energy the elec choke coil consumes, but it caused no problems on my '77 Camaro 305 or '67 Newport 383, both factory a/c cars.

Best to use the "ACC" setting on the ign switch to listen to the radio with the enging not running. Doing that also keeps the ignition system un-powered.

Just some thoughts,
CBODY67

 

[live4theking]

Thanks everyone.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

I would relay it off the battery/alternator post, resettable circuit breaker inline. It has current all the time ignition is on.

 

[3175375]

Regarding the operation, the electric choke is nothing more than a resistor, shaped as a coil. Once voltage is applied, a relatively constant current exists. The current causes the spring to heat up and it turns the coil, opening the choke.

I don’t think that connecting the electric choke to the supply side of the ballast resistor is bad, but the idea of finding another fused circuit (or creating one) is cleaner. I think that inserting a relay is a bit of overkill.

 

[300C]

The 12V keyed side of the ballast resistor would be a good place or another keyed 12V source. The only problem is if you sit with the key on your choke will open. Some other factory applications used a oil pressure switch to provide power only when the engine is running. As far as I know the electric choke element is always hot, it never shuts off.

I did the same ballast connection with my '68 300, same e-choke on an Edlebrock carb...worked flawlessly!