40phil41 Posted November 9, 2006 Report Share Posted November 9, 2006 Something I have been meaning to ask about for several months now. On my '41 Dodge the amp meter stays at or near the '0' mark when idling and cruising (maybe 1/2 the needle width towards the +'ve side). However, on my '40 Dodge the amp meter jumps between zero and the +'ve side irradically. It has a recently new regulator (I did polarize it) and Amp gauge and the generator seems to be doing O.K. at keeping the battery charged. Any ideas why the difference? Both are 6 volt +'ve ground. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob westphal Posted November 9, 2006 Report Share Posted November 9, 2006 The only reason a needle will fluctuate is because the gauge is getting fluctuating signals. Check your wiring connections for loose terminals, fraid wire, etc. It could also be the regulator points are arcing. You can check this by hooking a volt meter to the amp gauge. if the voltage jumps the reg is arcing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg g Posted November 9, 2006 Report Share Posted November 9, 2006 The needle reacts to the regulator regulating. Mine after a first start up will jump up and show a good measure of charge, after a few minutes it wil drop down to zero or just above, putting a turn signal on at idle will cause th eneedle to move into the negative area with each flash of the lamps. The meter measures electrical flow into and out of the battery, and senses by that flow when to energize the field coils of the genney to induce it to start making electricity. So some movement is normal and reflects what is going on with your cars electrical system, big erratic movements could indicate a problem with the VR points as mentioned above. And being made up of bimetalic strips, electromagnets, and resistance wires, every one will react differently to the given situation. You might want to swap the VRs between your cars and see if they react the same way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
40phil41 Posted November 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2006 Unfortunately, my '41 is in winter storage. However, I do have another new regulator so I may just swap them and see what happens. Thanks for all your ideas. Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
40phil41 Posted November 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2006 Tim, That's another good idea. I do have a new set of brushes if they turn out to be the issue. Is there any test that will show this other than removing and opening up the generator? Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
40phil41 Posted November 10, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2006 Considering the other end of the charging circuit, a friend suggested that I may have a bad cell in my battery. Would this show up with the symptoms I have? Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.