Generator ?

[Laughing Coyote]

I have a question regarding my generator on my 1961 Mercury. I have it all hooked up and I when I touch the field wire to the generator tab on the regulator (battery tab) to polarize it, it doesn't do anything. Don't know if there would be a small spark or any other tail tell signs to let you know. The when you put the field wire on the field tab on the voltage regulator the generator starts to rotate very slow.??? IS this normal? The belt is off of it so if it's hooked up will it cause a battery drain or burn anything up? Never owned a car with a generator so not sure what's correct. I checked and rechecked all the wiring and it is all correct. Not sure if the voltage regulator is bad. The auto parts store can test it. Must be to old for them. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

[F&J]

7 hours ago, Laughing Coyote said:

Not sure if the voltage regulator is bad. The auto parts store can test it. Must be to old for them. Any help would be appreciated

Well, you typed that wrong I assume....meaning you mean the parts store can NOT test the regulator.

 

Ford uses a hot wire to energize the fields in the generator.  Most cars use a grounded wire to energize their fields inside the generator.

 

It sounds like your regulator is "faulty", and I'd think it is stuck points that is sending power through the F wire from reg to the generator.  Unhook the F wire either at gen or reg, but not both.   With key OFF, there should not be power going towards the F terminal at generator.

 

If you DO have power showing at the F circuit with one end unhooked, I have to think the points are stuck inside the regulator.  There will be two sets of points.  One sends power to the F circuit when the battery needs some charging.  That is the one that must be stuck together.  I am basing that diagnosis on the fact that you must have already made sure the wiring is correctly run between the key, the reg, and the generator,

 

I don't just swap parts, unless I have a good used or NORS/NOS regulator on hand, but even then, I would still find out if the F circuit is HOT with key OFF....then if yes, I'd check the points in the reg

[Laughing Coyote]

Hey Frank. Glad to see your back. You are correct. The auto parts store CANNOT check the regulator. I verified the wiring to the ignition switch. I turn the key to acc or to run without turning the starter over and I get the oil light and gen light on the dash. All the other circuits that run off the key work fine also. I will do the checks on the regulator and see what I come up with. 

Thanks

 

[Laughing Coyote]

Ok. I got a chance to work on the generator issue. I have everything hooked up again. I have 12 volts at the battery post at the regulator. I don't have any voltage at the armature tab on the regulator (key off). No voltage at the field tab on the regulator. I did measure 12 volts at the field wire coming from the generator. Soooooo, is the generator fields shorted or is the regulator bad? That's the question.

[F&J]

39 minutes ago, Laughing Coyote said:

Ok. I got a chance to work on the generator issue. I have everything hooked up again. I have 12 volts at the battery post at the regulator. I don't have any voltage at the armature tab on the regulator (key off). No voltage at the field tab on the regulator. I did measure 12 volts at the field wire coming from the generator. Soooooo, is the generator fields shorted or is the regulator bad? That's the question.

Test the generator itself:

 

Disconnect all wires at gen.   Put a voltmeter, (I use analog for this, but digital should be fine) put the voltmeter red/or power lead at the ARM or BATT whichever that generator says. Now put the voltmeter ground wire to a good clean ground at generator.

 

Now get a jumper wire; hook one end to the battery plus side, then you will use the other end to "power" the Ford fields.  Get the RPM up to say 1500-1800, and momentarily touch the F term with that hot jumper.  Be looking at volts, a bad generator may stop at 2-3 V or just be stone dead.   A good generator will "run wild", meaning going 2x times normal volts.

 

Do not keep the jumper on any longer than that quick test.  You are overloading it, or making it put out way too much.