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rustykan

Battery Problems???

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Save Old Iron

just a quick addition

 

the AC out from the stator is spec'd at 28 VAC or higher.

 

typical is 32 to 40 and I have seen as high as 50 VAC.

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Save Old Iron

 A regulator needs to see battery voltage before it can regulate the charge current.

 

Garry

 Quick experiments I have performed suggest the regulator "wakes up" with 4 - 5 volts present at the B+ terminal.

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gwest_ca

 Quick experiments I have performed suggest the regulator "wakes up" with 4 - 5 volts present at the B+ terminal.

This was addressed in service bulletins

 

1989

 

1990

 

Garry

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Save Old Iron

Yes, it's good to see when experimentation agrees with theory.

 

The rectifier / regulator circuit board contains a component that acts as a voltage regulator within the voltage regulator. This device will always show a 5 volt voltage drop across itself when the input voltage rises to 5 volts and above. This becomes a non changing voltage "reference" inside the RR assy. In the 2nd image shown below, it's the little red guy 3rd component from the right - officially called a Zener diode - a tried and true voltage regulating diode.

 

Several of the non functional RR's I have looked at were repaired by simply re-soldering a few connections on the pcb. Circuit board flexing due to heat, old age and vibration can break solder joints on the RR boards and result in defective charging systems. In the 1st image seen below, note how the resistor pulled out of the solder joint with ease. This is a "cold" solder joint that did not cold weld the lead of the resistor to the copper traces of the circuit board. The RR lost its "reference" and became inoperative.

post-1689-0-36201400-1423082900_thumb.jp

post-1689-0-98872200-1423083408_thumb.jp

Edited by Save Old Iron
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rustykan

Took advantage of the warm weather today and did some troubleshooting as suggested. I started off by taking the regulator off and added the star washers to that and the mounting plate. Started it up and and ammeter showed positive voltage. After it ran for a little bit, the ammeter showed about in the middle or a little in the negative. The stator showed about 33 VAC and there was 12VDC to the B+ terminal of the regulator. I thought everything was great. Then I noticed the ammeter was showing positive readings again and then it would go back to normal. Readings from the battery, while the engine is running, varied from 12.5 VDC to 17.0 VDC, within seconds. Is any of this normal?

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Save Old Iron

The ultimate goal is to achieve conductivity between the RR case and the negative battery terminal. Star washers on the mounting plate promote good conductivity between the RR and the mounting plate. What about conductivity from the mounting plate thru the hoodstand and then to the battery negative cable?

 

The best way to avoid scraping paint from all ajoining pieces of sheet metal is to create a jumper wire from under the head off the RR bolts directly to the battery negative cable where it joins the chassis.

Edited by Save Old Iron

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rustykan

The ultimate goal is to achieve conductivity between the RR case and the negative battery terminal. Star washers on the mounting plate promote good conductivity between the RR and the mounting plate. What about conductivity from the mounting plate thru the hoodstand and then to the battery negative cable?

 

The best way to avoid scraping paint from all ajoining pieces of sheet metal is to create a jumper wire from under the head off the RR bolts directly to the battery negative cable where it joins the chassis.

I will give that a try!

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rustykan

Here's an update. Ran a ground straight from the regulator to the main ground which is on the engine. Still showing over 17.5 volts at the battery when first started (near full throttle) and the ammeter showed well into the positive. Turning on the headlights brought it down to about 13.5 volts. After a little while the ammeter showed just barely into the negative and the reading at the battery was 13.50 volts. What does this all mean???

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Save Old Iron

Thanks for the update.

 

17 volts at the battery indicates you will need to replace the regulator assembly.

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rustykan

What is everyone's experience with the aftermarket regulators? Thirty bucks sounds much better than $130 or more!

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Save Old Iron

Aftermarket parts are no problem. Or post in the forum's WANTED section.

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