is my generator charging?

onekoolkat1950

onekoolkat1950

Member
just had my 39 generator converted to 12v.amp guage was showing negitive so i changed the polarity.how do i check if the generator is charging?
 
One quick way we used to use is to head the car at a wall and turn on the head lights and watch and see if they brighten up when you rev it up. To be more accurate, hook a volt meter to the battery and see what it does when you rev it up. Another way is to drive it and see if the battery goes dead. LOL
 
Hi there, Was the car battery connected positive ground as per original ford system ? and now is negative ground for the converted 12 volt generator. Do you have a 12volt regulator in place of the original 6volt unit ? Charging VOLTAGE should read 14 volts with engine revs up around 1,500 using an analog (has needle pointer) multi meter or test set. What polarity did you change, the ammeter or the battery ? You need to give more complete information here to get a satisfactory answear to your problem. Regards, Kevin.
 
koates,negitive ground 12v gen with rebuilt 12v voltage regulator.changed the ammeter polarity by swapping the wires to the opposite side.
 
Whoever rebuilt/converted your generator, did they test run it together with the new 12volt voltage reg in a test bench ?? They should have. To bypass the regulator on the car so as to just test the generator do this :- Remove the wire off the "F" (field) terminal on the gen. Connect a small jumper wire across the "F" Terminal and "A" terminal on the generator. Leave the other wire on the "A" terminal. Start the engine and rev it up a little and note if the ammeter is showing a charge. The gen will charge flat out here with some revs as it is not regulated. If it does not charge the gen is probually at fault. If it does charge the problem could be with the regulator. NOTE that the regulator must be the correct type to match up with the type of field windings controlling the generator output. Make sure the base of the new reg is earthed on its mounting screws and there should be an earth wire between the reg mounting and the generator ground terminal. Also your wiring should be double checked to see that it is not crossed up somewhere. Compare it to the factory diagram in your service bulletins. There is only ONE WAY for this charging system to work and thats THE RIGHT WAY. Good luck, Kevin
 
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