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Old 11-26-2020, 06:53 PM   #21
koates
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Default Re: Charging System Will Not Work Under A Load

The FUN PROJECTS voltage regulators which look the same as a round original Ford cut out have not been available for the last couple of years. I have emailed them a several times but received no reply. The company changed hands a while back, Regards, Kevin.
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Old 11-26-2020, 06:59 PM   #22
billybronco1
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Default Re: Charging System Will Not Work Under A Load

how do I measure generator amperage output to the battery with a mutlimeter? Do i use it just like checking volts or do I need to put the meter in series with the battery
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Old 11-26-2020, 07:57 PM   #23
koates
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billy, to measure amps charge you need to connect your ammeter in series with the generator cut out battery wire. The battery wire is the front wire on the cut out. Be very careful of the insulator on that terminal, they break easily and only go on one way. If your multimeter is only able to handle 10 amps like most are then its not high enough. Dont you trust your dash ammeter which for your purpose is usually near enough ? On old cars I use a generator test set which has separate analog volt and amp gauges. You could possibly buy a digital clamp on multimeter which has provision for higher DC AMPS capability but they cost money. I feel you are making a problem here that does not exist. Just set the third by the dash ammeter as described earlier and leave it alone. Regards, Kevin.
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Old 11-26-2020, 11:48 PM   #24
Aarongriffey
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Sounds to me like you are not getting the generator belt tight enough.
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Old 11-27-2020, 07:34 AM   #25
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Okay I'm going to play with this today, checking connections, belt tension and amp gauge. Right now its putting out about 15 amps at 1000 rpm with no load (too high). The thing I don't understand and sorry if I keep repeating myself but, if I start out with a fully charged battery and the generator is putting out 15 amps with no load, why does the gauge go negative (and stay there) when I put the lights on? If I was to keep driving all day the battery would be dead at some point. Not that this is a huge deal for the short trips I take and from now on I will always put the battery tender on after trips. I can drive without the lights on too, just trying to understand, this does not seem right.
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Old 11-27-2020, 09:51 AM   #26
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Billy, because the lights are pulling more amps than the generator can output. If you assume the generator is working properly and actually outputting 15 amps with the lights off and keeping the battery charged properly, then the lights are requiring more amps than the generator can supply. No idea what the lights off load is on the generator, but just assume it's 5 amps. Ok, that leaves 10 amps. If each light consumes any thing over 5 amps apiece, you end up more amperage draw than the generator can output and the lights end up pulling power for the battery.
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Old 11-27-2020, 10:11 AM   #27
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Okay, thanks for you patience. Today I made for a better chassis ground it was not so pretty but it made no change, I feel better about though. I played with the third brush moved it a lot each way while looking at voltage and amps so I had a better idea how it worked. The fog lamps must draw more than the head lights (will test later) because the amp gauge drops more with them over the stock head lights. I adjusted the third brush to be putting out 5-6 amps at a fast idle. I will not use the lights much, thanks for your help, case closed.
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Old 11-27-2020, 10:30 AM   #28
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You need to understand how the charging system works. It is not a set and forget system. With the engine running and whatever accessories you need on there should be a 2 or 3 amp charge showing on the ammeter. If it is too high you boil the battery and too low you kill it. As someone said do not worry about volts. If you see 2 or 3 amps you have the right volts. If you are not able to get the ammeter to the positive side you may have a partial short if the generator is working correctly.
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Old 11-27-2020, 12:01 PM   #29
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Driving with your lights on during the day is a modern day phenomena. When these cars were new, no one did it, as the electrical systems weren't designed for it. If it's important to you, you may want to consider moving to a more modern system (2 brush generator and voltage regulator or even an alternator).
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Old 11-27-2020, 12:50 PM   #30
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one reason you saw many old cars with only one fog light is because the charging system was really barely adequate to keep up with the basic needs of the car, and not designed for adding lots of electric accessory's.
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Old 11-27-2020, 12:54 PM   #31
J Franklin
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As I said before try some LED lighting for daytime running lights.
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Old 11-27-2020, 01:36 PM   #32
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Has the car been converted to halogen lamps? These require more amps than the originals. Terry
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Old 11-27-2020, 05:13 PM   #33
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Default Re: Charging System Will Not Work Under A Load

The amps the bulbs require is the watts divided by the volts. In general numbers a 25W bulb would use ~4 amps with 6 volts. Two 25w bulbs would pull around 8+ amps and two 30w bulbs would get you to 10 amps. It adds up fast.
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Old 11-27-2020, 06:18 PM   #34
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billy, you have 2 headlights =10 amps. 2 fog lamps=10 amps. 2 tail lamps=2 amps. 2 dash lamps=2 amps. an ignition coil =3 amps. These are all approximate but add up to around 27 amps and your generator is set to a SAFE MAXIMUM OF 15 AMPS. You see the system will never keep up. Get rid of the fog lamps which it was never meant to have anyway or find some LED bulbs for them all. Enjoy the fun of driving an old car. Regards, Kevin.
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