'49 Charging System

Greetings all...<P>The old '49 has been getting jump-started on a fairly regular basis, so I finally had the battery checked at the parts store on their amp,volt,charger,tester thingy. Guy said it was pretty well fried. No reason to doubt that. But I had to scoot around town to find a replacement, and finally got a 6 volt battery at the tractor supply store.<P>I spent some time talking with the fellow at the tractor place, and as I was leaving, he said something about re-connecting a six volt battery on a negative-ground system may sometimes cause the generator to flip polarity, and thus the generator will never send a charge to the battery. Well, the best I can do at this point is to just nod wisely and say "yep, yep", because I have no idea what he is talking about.<P>Something I need to worry about, and how do I check it? I disconnect the battery all the time, 'cause there's a drain somewhere in my system. Or is there? Maybe not if the old battery wouldn't hold a charge; or maybe the generator toasted the old battery, or...<P>Aw, hell. You guys tell me what to do. Or rather, tell me what to have my mechanic check for.<P>Thanks fellas,<BR>Andy

With the car warmed up,put a voltmeter across the battery,At a fast idle,the voltmeter should read 7.2-7.4 volts. Less than that may not fully charge.Not too much more than that,and you use battery water and bulbs burn out.There are two units inside the voltage regulator with similar points.The one with heavy winding is the CURRENT regulator,the other one is the VOLTAGE regulator.You can clean the points with a riffler file or nice clean paper (like greenbacks are made of).You can ADJUST the voltage regulator with a #1 Phillips screwdriver

Before you adjust anything, read your shop maunal.<P>The regulator has two adjustable settings.<BR>One is the setting that tells the generator when to kick in. (the low voltage setting)<P>The other setting is the high voltage setting. This is when the regualtor kicks the generator off.<P>Setting either one of these wrong could result in over or undercharging your battery.<P>You do have to test the generator to make sure it is putting out the minimium voltage, per your shop manual. If it is not, you will only ruin your new battery.<P>If the regulator is not working, or not adjusted properly, it will cycle improperly, and either undercharge your battery or cook it.<P>The tractor store guy is correct about the polarity. You have to polarize the generator. Again, check the shop manual for the proper procedure. You just have to jump a wire, I forgot weather it is accorss the regulator or the generator for a second to do this.<P>If you do not understand this, take the car to a shop with an older mechanic works, (over 50) and they should be able to check all this for you in a few minutes.<P>Scott Mich BCA # 6619<BR>Assistant Director<BR>Chicagoland Chapter<BR>1955-76C<BR>1959 Olds SS-88

I hope the guy with the 49 is good-natured.one "Web-guy"gets madder than a wet hen when you suggest reading the shop manual!

The next thing you do after buying any old car after changing the oil and fluids, is to buy the shop manual.<P>Even if you don't do the work yourself, the mechanic you take it to sometimes needs the specs. and tech. info in the book.<P>It is invaluable.<P>Scott Mich

This is how you polarize the generator:<BR>(Now this is for a Ford tractor and I believe that the procedure is the same for all cars but you may want to peek at your manual to see if the same two wires off the voltage regulator have to be shorted)<P>Polarizing the Generator:<BR> <BR>A generator that has been repaired or tested must be polarized in respect to the battery it is to charge. Failure to polarize the generator in respect to the battery it is to<BR>charge may result in generator regulator failure. <BR>The generator is polarized by disconnecting the field wire and the battery wire from their respective terminals at the regulator and momentarily touching the two wires<BR>together (the engine is not running during this procedure). This quick surge of current correctly polarizes the generator. Reconnect the field wire and the battery wire to<BR>their respective terminals on the regulator. <P>There will be a small spark but nothing to worry about.<P>For additional electrical information, see the following link:<BR> <A HREF="http://members.aol.com/naa60512/elect.htm" TARGET=_blank>http://members.aol.com/naa60512/elect.htm</A> <P>Hope this helps,<p>[ 10-23-2001: Message edited by: our51super ]

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Yeah, but you buy the shop manual, then when you need it you find that the wife "put it somewhere" out of the way !!! Well, guess if she can put up with me puttering around with old cars.......I shouldn't complain too much. Just make sure to tell the mechanic (if he's the one working on it..) to clean his paddies before looking in the book (...that'll get a remark or two from him I'll bet )