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Hey all, I've got an issue I can't seem to figure out. Seems pretty odd to me and I can't even make sense of why it would happen. Motor is a 218CI Flathead six out of a '49 plymouth. It's installed in a '57 Dodge D100 pickup. The engine started running a bit rough, a bit of a sputter, when accelerating. Also, it did not want to start hot, wait 15-20 minutes and starts. The ammeter was broken and the battery died so I went ahead and replaced the ammeter, battery, generator (yes, I polarized it) , voltage regulator, coil, fuel pump, added a couple ground straps, reset the breaker points. I fired it up and it ran fine for about two miles, then almost instantly it started sputtering. When it was running fine it did not show a charge so I thought maybe I received a bunk ammeter. When it started sputtering, simultaneously it also started showing a nice charge. I thought it was a coincidence. I took it back to the shop and checked all the grounds, wiring resistance and connections and routing. All looked good. I took it out again and seemed to be running fine so I drove for about 20 minutes putting it through the paces, with no issues, EXCEPT, it's not showing a charge now, showing a slight draw. Finally got on the highway and at top end picked up a slight sputter. While limping back home the sputter got a bit worse. Also, need to mention simultaneously with the sputter returning, the ammeter now shows a charge. I can't place the relationship, anyone have any thoughts? Could it be the distributor? Points? I'm fairly certain it's an electrical issue due to the simultaneous misfires/sputtering aligned with the charge showing on the ammeter. Thanks in advance for taking the time to read this and respond. Located in North San Diego if anyone nearby wants to check it out.

I am in the process of a modern upgrade on a 1948 B pickup. It is now sitting on a shortened 2000 Ram frame and has the Ram driveline and a 4 cylinder Cummins. My question relates to reusing the stock Ammeter. I had the gauge cluster rebuilt and would like to use those gauges on the truck. The water and oil are mechanical, no problem. Is there a way to use the ammeter to register charging/ discharging? I am not using any of the original wiring. How did it know what was happening with the generator/battery ? Is there a shunt somewhere in the old truck wiring? Or did current pass through the meter to indicate direction and amplitude? A schematic of that section of the wiring would be of great assistance. Thanks.