you sead the battery is from a rv,is it the house battery ,if so it should be a deep cycle that being the case that is the first thing to change. deep cycle batterys ar intended for long periods of low draw,not recomended for car or truck. a deep cycle takes longer to charge and after starting  the truck for tests  alternator sences low charge and load the engine at idea..

Your Pertronix unit wont like low voltage.. If your electrical system is sad then you turn your lights on lowering the voltage more ... well ?



"Came too close to dying to stop living now!"

Check the output of the charging system by using a multi-meter or similar and checking voltage output at the battery.  Around 1500-2000 rpm's an alternator should be putting out 13.7 to 14.5 volts.  At regular idle it may be a little lower.


54 Victoria 312;  48 Ford Conv 302, 56 Bird 312
Forever Ford
Midland Park, NJ

I tried checking all grounds and ran a new ground from intake to cab just to have extra. seemed to help a tad. The battery has a cold crank of 550. Thats low right? I drove the truck to work today so i can go grab a pic of the battery if you guys want.

think you can fit a battery with more cca.  However, if the engine starts, then the battery is not a problem in that respect.  I wouldn't spend money on a battery simply because of that.

If the grounds check out okay, make sure all of the connections are good, no corrosion frayed wires, etc.  Once that is verified, start your troubleshooting of the battery and charging system.


Lawrenceville, GA

550 CCA  should be fine



"Came too close to dying to stop living now!"

not so charley,a deep cycle will start the engine but will show low charg after heavy load, as deep cycle ar desighned to run a rv furnace all night etc,not desighned for a car or truck. example if you try and charge a deep  with a regular car battery the alt will sence  full charge befor the deep cycle is charged and cut out. the chart to min.. another example in real cold weather deep cycle will fail to turn the engine fast enough to started amp -25 etc.