Matt Harwood Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 Well, it appears that this car's default state is broken. How much blood is enough to satisfy it? Was looking forward to a drive and then an oil change and a few other little things to get it ready to go. So I pulled it outside and left it idling to close the shop door. When I got back in, I noticed the ammeter was showing discharge, even when I revved the engine. Generator is offline. A few posts up, you'll note that I learned it has a fuse, so that's what I checked first. And it was blown. So I replaced it. And it blew that one, too. And the next three. Something is amiss inside the generator. Unfortunately, getting the generator out involves tearing apart everything I just spent the last month working on. So I guess I'll do all that again. I have no idea how the generator and regulator work, there is nothing obviously amiss, I didn't do anything other than take it out of the car and put it back in, but it's broken now. There are no details in any of the manuals, so I can't even do basic troubleshooting. I'm in the dark, so out it has to come to let the experts figure it out. Broken, broken, broken. Being broken is what this turd of a car likes best. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABear Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 Words just can't describe the hurt feelings you end up when a car you put so much effort, energy and money into it. I feel your pain. Hang in there. I feel your pain as a car that was handed down through my family entered my garage.. Many, many blisters trying to turn that stuck engine over, then progressed to getting one single hit after hrs of hand cranking and that was all for the evening.. Took me the better part of three yrs to finally get the engine to run long enough to circle my drive way. It too has had many, many "winch of shame" moments when it decided for no reason at all to no longer participate in my life like a stubborn mule.. It has broken one 3,500 lb winch and the car isn't near that weight. I have even gone to the point of just ignoring "that car" in the corner for a while until I have had time to form a new plan of attack to see if I can coax it to behaving. Thank fully, the great car folks at the shows and parades where it has decided to have a sit down strike have been extremely kind to help push it on the trailer and a few times push it halfway across a field.. Yeah, there are times that I suspect the engine in my car was designed, forged and assembled by satan himself.. I say to myself, WHY DO CONTINUE messing with blasted thing.. Then I remember, it always brings childhood memories of my Dad driving it and it is fun see to other people smile when I have it out as it doesn't look like the crowd of modern vehicles. You are in good company.. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alsancle Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 3 hours ago, Matt Harwood said: Well, it appears that this car's default state is broken. How much blood is enough to satisfy it? Was looking forward to a drive and then an oil change and a few other little things to get it ready to go. So I pulled it outside and left it idling to close the shop door. When I got back in, I noticed the ammeter was showing discharge, even when I revved the engine. Generator is offline. A few posts up, you'll note that I learned it has a fuse, so that's what I checked first. And it was blown. So I replaced it. And it blew that one, too. And the next three. Something is amiss inside the generator. Unfortunately, getting the generator out involves tearing apart everything I just spent the last month working on. So I guess I'll do all that again. I have no idea how the generator and regulator work, there is nothing obviously amiss, I didn't do anything other than take it out of the car and put it back in, but it's broken now. There are no details in any of the manuals, so I can't even do basic troubleshooting. I'm in the dark, so out it has to come to let the experts figure it out. Broken, broken, broken. Being broken is what this turd of a car likes best. That stinks. Eventually you will get everything fixed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 (edited) If this is a third brush generator with only a cutout, and I think it probably is, check for a bad connection in the wiring somewhere in the circuit from the cutout, through the ammeter to the battery. You might also want to drag a small file (once, very lightly, with battery disconnected) between the points of the cutout. Could the generator be badly grounded? New paint on the mountings? That might do it. Offhand I don't recall what your generator is like on that car. Is it third brush? A peculiarity of third brush generators is they absolutely must be connected to a load, usually a battery, while charging. It is because voltage supplied to the field (the electromagnet) by the third brush is a percentage of the generator voltage. If the generator voltage rises, the field voltage rises (it's a percentage!) and makes the generator charge even more. The voltage runs away, and the field soon gets more voltage than it can handle, draws more current than it can handle, and burns up. Here is an example, voltage is unregulated, so it is hard to predict what it will be, but probably 7 or 8 volts or so normally while charging. Just pulling some numbers out of the air, lets say it is 7.5 volts, and lets say the field is running on 70 percent of that, or 5.25 volts, and lets say the field draws 3 amps. It's resistance is 1.75 Ohms (Ohms law). If the battery gets disconnected, the generator voltage can go up because there is no voltage regulator holding it back. It will go as high as it can until it meets some physical or electrical limit. Lets say it instantly goes to 30 volts. It could be even higher. Since I am pulling these numbers out of the air, lets just go with 30. The field runs on 70 percent of that or 21 volts. The 1.75 Ohm winding will now draw 12 amps (Ohms Law) through magnet wire that was sized for 3 amps. The smoke will come out. I am guessing your fuse is probably in the field circuit to prevent this exact scenario. If they put a fuse in the charging circuit, a blown fuse would cause this scenario rather than preventing it. It's also possible that your field could be shorted to ground inside the generator somewhere, but I think a bad connection in the charging circuit is much more likely. Edited March 24 by Bloo (see edit history) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 13 minutes ago, alsancle said: That stinks. Eventually you will get everything fixed. Unfortunately, I had everything fixed. Now I'm fixing everything for the second time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee H Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 Matt, that generator uses a regulator with a 3rd brush generator. The 5 amp fuse (is that what you are running?) is on the field windings. What could have happened, is the adjustable 3rd brush has slipped, and there is excess current coursing through the field windings, and blowing the fuse. That’s where I would start, anyway. Schematic attached. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 Now that we know it has a voltage regulator (thanks @Lee H !), make sure the voltage regulator points have not stuck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 24 Author Share Posted March 24 With this new information, I think I know what happened. When I had it off the car and on the bench, I noticed one of the mounting screws for the regulator was missing. I found one that fit and screwed it into place. I bet it was just a little too long and hit the field coils inside the case. Of course, when it was blowing fuses, the first thing I did was remove the screw to take it back 100% to the way it was when it was working. It's still shorting out. My guess is that the screw was just long enough to damage the field coils, which are now shorting inside the case. So it has to come apart. I'll take it to my electrical guys and see what they say. What are the chances that they can find new field coils for this generator? What are my chances of finding a replacement generator? Foot, meet bullet. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee H Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 Matt, I would at least run some continuity checks before giving up, just to confirm your theory. The most likely scenario is rewinding the fields, if one is indeed irreparably shorted (I have my doubts). 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 If you know where the spot is, maybe you can separate the short and apply a little varnish. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee H Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 7 minutes ago, Bloo said: If you know where the spot is, maybe you can separate the short and apply a little varnish. What Bloo said. Use Glyptal 1201, it’s the best. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlespetty Posted March 24 Share Posted March 24 On 3/23/2024 at 2:47 PM, Matt Harwood said: Well, I finally found the time to finish putting the water pump back together. Life kept getting in the way. I bought some thinner gasket stock for the oil cooler lines in hopes that they would be easier to install. And they were technically easier, but still far from easy. Eventually I got everything bolted together and sealed up. Two oil lines. Four bolts and four nuts. Took two days to install them. I also noticed that one of the head studs was leaking coolant, leaving a track mark on the cylinder head, so I removed it and added some sealer on the threads. Fortunately there was no struggle and the ARP studs have provisions for an Allen key on top, so they're easy to remove. Once it was back in place, I re-torqued all 58 head nuts to 60 ft-lbs. Some were a little loose the rest were right on spec. Once it was all back together, I filled it with 7 gallons of water, and, of course, while doing that the stupid godd@mned hood fell. AGAIN. It's an incredibly poor design with no secure place to hold it in the open position. And in falling, it yanked itself loose from the center mount on the firewall, so I have to figure out how to fix that next. At least no paint was ruined this time. I wish I could find the guy who designed the hood and kick him. Anyway, I fired it up and oil pressure was good and it didn't leak. No water pump leak, no lower radiator hose leak, no water manifold leak, all good. Of course, idling in the shop for 15 minutes isn't the same as a 55 MPH drive on a 90-degree day, but I'm optimistic that it'll hold. I'm very glad I changed the packing nut so I never have to do this job again. What a monumental task just to replace water pump packing. Next time should be easier (famous last words?). Tomorrow I'm going to put it on the lift, clean up the underside a bit, maybe figure out how to fix that hood (I bet we'll need three people for that because the stupid thing weighs 150 pounds). I'm also going to change the oil with some SAE 50 synthetic to see if I can bolster oil pressure a bit. It's supposed to be dry tomorrow so maybe I'll even take it for a drive. We'll see... Like TexRiv_63 said about his 1934 Packard, Lincoln originally had molded rubber bumpers for the hood corners. They were missing on my 1937 Lincoln K, but the mounting studs were still on the inside corners of the hood. I purchased a nice reproduction set on Ebay and my hood never falls anymore. Ray Theriault may still have a set or two of these hood bumpers. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lahti35 Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 It it makes you feel any better my '68 F250 transmission pan i put on last fall is leaking... I did my due diligence and cleaned the mating surfaces, used the right gasket and didn't overtorque. Sometimes they just give you the one finger salute! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmhowe Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 My first operation would be to disconnect the battery, then remove the cover to the generator. If there is a lot of solder scattered about, you need the generator repaired. If there is negligible solder scattered about the generator is still probably OK and you need to replace the cutout and regulator. Also, I'd carefully examine the cutout/regulator. I'll bet the points were stuck together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB-Buff Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 (edited) Ray has the hood rubber Edited March 25 by AB-Buff (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grimy Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 3 hours ago, pmhowe said: My first operation would be to disconnect the battery, then remove the cover to the generator. If there is a lot of solder scattered about, you need the generator repaired. If there is negligible solder scattered about the generator is still probably OK and you need to replace the cutout and regulator. Also, I'd carefully examine the cutout/regulator. I'll bet the points were stuck together. Always do the easiest, least-invasive diagnostics first! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 25 Author Share Posted March 25 (edited) Some continuity testing this morning reveals that the field coils are shorted to the case. It's coming apart again and I'll let the pros at the electrical shop handle it from there. Four days of work, flushed. Ugh. Edited March 25 by Matt Harwood (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zimm63 Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 8 minutes ago, Matt Harwood said: Some continuity testing this morning reveals that the field coils are shorted to the case. It's coming apart again and I'll let the pros at the electrical shop handle it from there. Four days of work, flushed. Ugh. Take you half the time, this time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 25 Author Share Posted March 25 13 minutes ago, Zimm63 said: Take you half the time, this time. Unfortunately, I've already perfected my ability to do this job. I've done it 9 or 10 times over the course of my ownership of the car. It's a huge job, not a quick R&R that you can knock out in an afternoon. Access is restricted, it requires a cherry picker to pull the generator/water pump assembly into place, custom gaskets, cleaning mating surfaces that are impossible to reach, working around other delicate parts, etc. I'd rather donate a kidney than do this job again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB-Buff Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 (edited) Matt, I haven’t had time to read everything but that generator will un bolt and slide right out. There’s just one gasket between the generator and that front case. It only goes in one way I believe it sets on a key shaft of some kind. You don’t have to fool with timing chain or anything like that. All that stays in place, you don’t have to take the front apart. You don’t have to take the engine out. I’ve had mine off once and it wasn’t too bad, I’m old and I didn’t need a cherry picker. And I want to say the water pump was still attached to it when I did it. Maybe I’m stronger than I think. Lynn I should add I had the car on the lift so I’m thinking I dropped it out the bottom. But I did not drop it. Two people would be the best. Edited March 25 by AB-Buff (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB-Buff Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 If Ray doesn’t have a field coil. I would try Leland Powels. I’m almost certain Allan Decker would have a spare one laying around, but Allan passed away earlier this year during surgery. His son has taken over, but I understand he’s hard to get a hold of. Leland might be able to get a hold of him easier. if Leland doesn’t have any. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K8096 Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 Ray does fix the center hood hinge holders. Both front & back. It’s common for them to break or wear to the point where they won’t hold the center strip anymore. You send him your originals and he fixes them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laughing Coyote Posted March 25 Share Posted March 25 4 hours ago, Matt Harwood said: Some continuity testing this morning reveals that the field coils are shorted to the case. At least you know what happened and you're not hunting for the problem of why it's happening. You have a good car and it has proven to be reliable last year while driving it around with your family. Once you get it straightened out again you will be on the road enjoying it with your family again. Don't be too upset, that's what old cars do. They test you. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 26 Author Share Posted March 26 Spent a few hours after work this evening pulling the generator and water pump out of the car. Coming out is always a lot easier than going back in. I'll have to make all those gaskets again (this will be set #10 I believe) so I'll do that while I wait on the generator. Earl and Jeff at Certified Auto Electric said they can take a look at it this week, so if I'm lucky, they'll be able to fix it in time for me to reassemble everything this weekend. If, on the other hand, things go like they usually do, the generator will need some bit of unobtainium. Fortunately, my friend Lynn (AB-Buff) says he has a spare generator that I can use for parts if necessary. I can also check with Ray T. or the guys at the Canton Classic Car Museum, all of whom have helped me out of previous jams. I'll drop the generator off in the morning and we'll see what the experts say. 16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 27 Author Share Posted March 27 Took the generator to Earl and Jeff. Good news? I didn't damage it with that screw. The field plates are right under that screw and they're solid steel, so no damage there. The bad news? They won't know what's wrong with it until they take it apart. So it'll be a few days, probably next week before I get it back and we find out if it's working again. 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38Buick 80C Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Do you feel better that at least you didn't cause the failure? I imagine you were perturbed at your self thinking you did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nsbrassnut Posted March 27 Share Posted March 27 Hi Good to hear that the screw hasn't caused any damage. One "dumb thought" comes to mind. After the generator was re-installed and before the car was started what the generator "flashed" to re-establish the polarity of the windings? I have missed that step before and sometimes the generator will not generate until it has been re-flashed, the amp gauge will just jiggle or might show discharge. Hopefully the repair is straight forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38Buick 80C Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 As I sit on the side of the road .... AGAIN... With this car that will not run properly... I feel your pain Matt. Every other car I have consistently runs well... This one consistently can't get me home... Sorry to hijack... It's fuel related... mechanical and electrical pumps both not functioning properly... Triple A will get me home and I have spares of all...this car makes me so mad... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dibarlaw Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 Brian: Best of luck sorting this out. I know with my 3 old Buicks it took quite a few side of the road events to finally get things sorted out and I was able to have some confidence in getting home. Only on a rollback 3 times so far. That was with all 3 cars. The other times it was within a mile or so. Then a tow strap and my 1987 Chevy S-10. Last time was one mile away so a walk back home and return with a gallon of gas got me and my 1925 home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 Matt....if it makes you feel any better, I'm on the fourth time with a V-16 Cadillac R&R the transmission.......don't ask. I'm gonna use wing nuts this time so number 5 removal is easier. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB-Buff Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 (edited) 1 hour ago, 38Buick 80C said: Sorry to hijack... It's fuel related... mechanical and electrical pumps both not functioning properly. On my 33 Chevy every time I got 15 miles away from home it quit running. That was when I first got the car. It ended up being the fuel pump. Nothing wrong with it other than when you put a diaphragm in it you want to squeeze as much diaphragm as possible into the pump. Just laying the diaphragm on the pump and putting it together will allow the car to start and run and go for a while and then run out of fuel. It’s kind of weird so when I finally took the fuel pump apart, I compressed the arm to pull more diaphragm into the inside and then tightened it up. I have 7000 miles on that fuel pump. It works great no electric assist. You might try that it might solve your problem. I thought it was ignition for a while. Once again like you, AAA got me home. I don’t like doing that. I forgot to mention I did the same thing with the Lincoln. I took off the electric fuel pump, threw it away and only have a mechanical pump. I probably have 3000 miles on that with no issues. Edited March 30 by AB-Buff (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 30 Author Share Posted March 30 (edited) 2 hours ago, 38Buick 80C said: As I sit on the side of the road .... AGAIN... With this car that will not run properly... I feel your pain Matt. Every other car I have consistently runs well... This one consistently can't get me home... Sorry to hijack... It's fuel related... mechanical and electrical pumps both not functioning properly... Triple A will get me home and I have spares of all...this car makes me so mad... Sorry, Brian. Shared pain is still pain. That sucks. Nobody understands the frustration better than I. It's always the pretty ones, isn't it? I just acquired this banner and plan to hang it in my shop where everyone can see it: Edited March 30 by Matt Harwood (see edit history) 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38Buick 80C Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 40 minutes ago, Matt Harwood said: Sorry, Brian. Shared pain is still pain. That sucks. Nobody understands the frustration better than I. It's always the pretty ones, isn't it? I just acquired this banner and plan to hang it in my shop where everyone can see it: Shame on me for trying to get three cars ready for the Grand National next week (at the last minute cause of boys soccer)... a longer drive from my storage to the house than from my house to showfield. The showfield is down hill from the house so all three are going to make it there darn it... they may not get back, but they are going to make it... so I can get second places with all of them 😁 The '30 ran great as did the 58 which was what replaced the 38 in storage...only that car that leaves me on the side of the road EVERY DAMN TIME was a B@#$H. Love it... let me know if you reproduce it, I'm in!! LOL... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted March 30 Author Share Posted March 30 14 minutes ago, 38Buick 80C said: Love it... let me know if you reproduce it, I'm in!! LOL... Send me your address, I'll get you one. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee H Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 I like to think that experiencing a roadside breakdown focuses my thinking and makes me a sharper mechanic and problem solver. By now, I figure I must be the best mechanic in the state 😅. 1 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Harwood Posted April 2 Author Share Posted April 2 (edited) Generator is back from the electrical shop. Big thanks to Jeff and Earl at Certified Auto Electric (@certjeff1). Always first-rate work, reasonable prices, and in this case, a huge stroke of luck. Let me explain. Generator is back. A little clean up and some paint and it will look good as new. In 1935, Lincoln used a kind of hybrid charging system. It still had a third brush to regulate generator output, but it also had a primitive regulator on top. It could charge up to the maximum allowed by the third brush, but no more. Theoretically, the regulator could back charging down to 0 once the battery was fully charged, but I have not seen that on my car--it always sits at about 8-9 amps which is OK with me and shouldn't hurt anything. The bouncing of the ammeter needle at idle tells me that the system is working correctly. So what happened to my generator is that somehow the third brush was adjusted to full charge and then some, which burned up the regulator and kept blowing the fuse. The third brush is adjustable externally using a screw on the back of the housing, but Jeff says he can't see how it works or how it keeps the brush from moving. Either it's ineffective or a part is missing (I suspect the latter). Under normal operation, the third brush isn't moving around and everything is fine. I don't know how it happened, but I must have jostled it enough to move that third brush to the full charge position. That, of course, blew the fuse and burned up the regulator. The original regulator is toast. Third brush is adjusted via that screw on the back of the housing. But--BUT!--Jeff and Earl had a spare NOS regulator ON THE SHELF! They bought it decades ago and never knew what it fit, but sure enough, it's for a 1935 Lincoln. They installed it and the generator should be good to go. Astounding! I paid them double what they were going to charge me simply because that regulator was probably the last one on the face of the earth. Worth every penny. Original regulator is cooked. Fortunately they had a NOS unit sitting on the shelf! I talked with Earl and we brainstormed that if the third brush keeps wandering around, we should come up with a solution. Earl's suggestion was to eliminate the third brush and switch to a Delco regulator like the one in my 1941 Buick. We could hide it out of sight and keep the original regulator box on the generator so it'll look stock. That would cure the problem. My second thought was to do what @AB-Buff did with his Lincoln and have James Peterson build me an electronic regulator inside the original regulator box. Since I now have a spare, I figure I'll send it to him and have him solve the problem that way. I can remove the third brush with the generator on the car and all should be good from here on out. We'll see how it works, but that's the plan. I'll put the car back together this weekend and see if these two repairs (generator and water pump) are holding. Let's hope there are no more surprises. Edited April 2 by Matt Harwood (see edit history) 25 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kar3516 Posted April 2 Share Posted April 2 22 minutes ago, Matt Harwood said: Generator is back from the electrical shop. Big thanks to Jeff and Earl at Certified Auto Electric (@certjeff1). Always first-rate work, reasonable prices, and in this case, a huge stroke of luck. Let me explain. Generator is back. A little clean up and some paint and it will look good as new. In 1935, Lincoln used a kind of hybrid charging system. It still had a third brush to regulate generator output, but it also had a primitive regulator on top. It could charge up to the maximum allowed by the third brush, but no more. Theoretically, the regulator could back charging down to 0 once the battery was fully charged, but I have not seen that on my car--it always sits at about 8-9 amps which is OK with me and shouldn't hurt anything. The bouncing of the ammeter needle at idle tells me that the system is working correctly. So what happened to my generator is that somehow the third brush was adjusted to full charge and then some, which burned up the regulator and kept blowing the fuse. The third brush is adjustable externally using a screw on the back of the housing, but Jeff says he can't see how it works or how it keeps the brush from moving. Either it's ineffective or a part is missing (I suspect the latter). Under normal operation, the third brush isn't moving around and everything is fine. I don't know how it happened, but I must have jostled it enough to move that third brush to the full charge position. That, of course, blew the fuse and burned up the regulator. The original regulator is toast. Third brush is adjusted via that screw on the back of the housing. But--BUT!--Jeff and Earl had a spare NOS regulator ON THE SHELF! They bought it decades ago and never knew what it fit, but sure enough, it's for a 1935 Lincoln. They installed it and the generator should be good to go. Astounding! I paid them double what they were going to charge me simply because that regulator was probably the last one on the face of the earth. Worth every penny. Original regulator is cooked. Fortunately they had a NOS unit sitting on the shelf! I talked with Earl and we brainstormed that if the third brush keeps wandering around, we should come up with a solution. Earl's suggestion was to eliminate the third brush and switch to a Delco regulator like the one in my 1941 Buick. We could hide it out of sight and keep the original regulator box on the generator so it'll look stock. That would cure the problem. My second thought was to do what @AB-Buff did with his Lincoln and have James Peterson build me an electronic regulator inside the original regulator box. Since I now have a spare, I figure I'll send it to him and have him solve the problem that way. I can remove the third brush with the generator on the car and all should be good from here on out. We'll see how it works, but that's the plan. I'll put the car back together this weekend and see if these two repairs (generator and water pump) are holding. Let's hope there are no more surprises. Fantastic result; that is great! I’m very happy to know this possibility should be investigated when we get to my 34 Lincoln. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee H Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 On 3/24/2024 at 5:16 PM, Lee H said: What could have happened, is the adjustable 3rd brush has slipped, and there is excess current coursing through the field windings, and blowing the fuse. Who was that masked man?😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ply33 Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 20 hours ago, Matt Harwood said: My second thought was to do what @AB-Buff did with his Lincoln and have James Peterson build me an electronic regulator inside the original regulator box. Since I now have a spare, I figure I'll send it to him and have him solve the problem that way. I can remove the third brush with the generator on the car and all should be good from here on out. We'll see how it works, but that's the plan. Is James Peterson still around and making these? If so that is great news. For what it is worth, I installed one of his electronic voltage regulators in my '33 Plymouth nearly 25 years ago and it is still working perfectly. Totally hidden and the modification is totally reversible if you decide to go back to stock 3rd brush operation. It makes the charging system work just like that of a car from the later era equipped with electronic regulators. You still have to mind the maximum output of the generator but if you are otherwise stock that is not an issue. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edinmass Posted April 3 Share Posted April 3 Matt.....that regulator is still made today....in China. They work decent. I have originals NOS also. They are EXPENSIVE for the NOS units..........the reproduction units are made for the four cylinder Indian motorcycles. They convert easy to car use. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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