Quote:
Originally Posted by Dollar Bill
Have pull started many old cars and tractors with a dead battery.
An alternator needs to see battery voltage in order to produce current.
Also, a real-quick way to smoke test an alternator is to remove the battery cable while the engine is running.
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By "dead battery" do you mean not enough juice to turn over the engine? I am still having trouble with the idea that a generator (not magneto) will produce enough current to excite the coil at hand cranking speed. If so you should be able to start the engine with the battery disconnected? That would be an interesting experiment. However if it worked, you would have to shut right down, as a generator not connected to a battery could burn itself out.
So . . .
An alternator not connected to a battery produces no power, while a generator not connected to a battery produces too much power.
Interesting.