EVERGREEN

Nice day so I fired up the 61 to take my daughter out for a ride. Noticed right away that the amp guage did not swing over to the + side after starting and while the engine was warming up on the auto choke at about 1500rpm, strange.
Have never had a problem with the charging system. Did add the solid state VR earlier this spring and it has been working like a charm.
Had the battery disconnected recently while adding safety items like a circuit breaker and fuses and a new CD player.
Just checked the battery voltage with my volt meter with the engine running at 1500rpm, 12.47volts and losing! Me thinks the generator has lost its polarity but how do I polarize without screwing up the ss VR?
Also, did a continuity check on all wires from the gernerator to the VR and the ground, all good.

Thanks in advance for any help,

Jerry

Frankie the Fink

I sent you a PM on how to do polarize the generator without the V/R involved....also sent you Bob (the V/R guy) phone number so you can ring him up if needed.

1snake

There is no way that disconnecting the battery will cause a de-polarize problem.
If you have a charging problem the easiest and best way to check output AND rule out the volt. reg. is to disconnect all the wires from the generator, hook a volt meter to the arm. terminal and start the car. You should have between 2-6 volts. Now ground the field terminal and you should get over 15 volts when you rev. the engine. If you do, you have a bad regulator. If you don't, you have a bad generator. Simple as that.

Jim

EVERGREEN

Now that is somewhat confusing (to me), if I disconnect all the wires, does that include the ground? Ok so now I connect the volt meter to the arm terminal and look for 2-6 volts. Then I ground the field terminal and look for 15+volts. Hey that does sound easy.......seems I have the solid state mentality and always scared to arc, spark, or run items without a load.
Thanks for the info,
Jerry

1snake

It doesn't matter about the ground wire, it's purpose is to supply a ground for the V/R. The generator is grounded through its mounting to the engine. Be sure to rev the engine to about 2000 RPM when checking for the 15 volts.

Jim

Kerrmudgeon

Is your generator rebuilt or a high miler? As the brushes get to the end of their life they will fail altogether at some point. They are pretty easy to check visually and replace if worn out. Just an idea. good luck.

Frankie the Fink

Jim's check out procedure is the same one that Bob (the fella that does the V/R solid state conversion) had me run when I was having problems...that's how I confirmed the generator was good-to-go!

EVERGREEN

Ok, I ran 1snake's trouble shooting and found 2.4 volts on the Arm and when I grounded the Field.........whoa, 48+volts until I kicked off the auto choke and got down to 750rpm where I found 16+ volts.....whew, hope I didn't screw up anything
So the generator is good and since I bought a new VR to send to the solid state guy I still had the old VR to put back in, just finished and after polarizing I now have my charging system back..13.87volts at the battery with a fast (1500rpm) idle
Interesting that I can sniff the solid state VR and note a smell I remember from my TV repair days, something fried in there.
Kerrmudgeon, its a rebuilt generator, 043 model. I put the solid state VR in 4/18, 63 miles ago, the fellow that does the circuit board install said he will fix it for free (minus shipping).
Thanks again for the help, 1snake and Frankie the Fink.

Jerry

62Jeff

Jerry, you didn't by chance polarize the system right after you first installed the electronic VR did you?

EVERGREEN

No way, like I mentioned before, arcs, sparks, and no load conditions do not like solid state devises
Recently installed some safety items, 30amp circuit breaker on the wire from the starter solenoid to the amp guage, 2 amp fuse in the clock circuit, and 20 amp fuse in the cigar lighter circuit........and a CD player (draws 800ma). Before I started these installations the battery was totally disconnected.
The fellow that makes the solid state conversion e-mailed me and said he thinks the CD player may be the reason the ssVR failed.......I don't think so!

Jerry

Frankie the Fink

That's a good test to spot bad charging components...when a generator 'runs away' due to lack of voltage regulation it can float up to dangerous levels.

My solid state V/R conversion is still running perfectly 20 months after I installed it and I've added a reproduction radio, satellite radio, relays for the headlights, etc. since then.

1snake

Glad you got it figured out. Now that it's working correctly, why not leave it alone. My stock V/R has worked flawlessly for 30 years. I see no advantage to change to solid state V/R, especially if they don't last very long. You probably figured this out already but "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".


Jim

Frankie the Fink

Disconcur, but folks already know that. I went through two mechanical V/Rs in two years...maybe the repops are just crappy...can't say. My solid state V/R has run nearly that long now with zero problems. Personal choice as always.

abe g

About 15 years ago, after problems with my original regulator (63swc). I bought a cheap solid state from JC whitney (imported) about 15 dollars. Has worked well since. You never can tell in advance. Regards, Abe G

GCD1962

"I put the solid state VR in 4/18, 63 miles ago"

Jerry, that's at least a couple of trips all around the island, right?

No political corrects around, so why not just go to an alternator, better charging for the type of driving you do.

EVERGREEN

Good advice 1snake, trouble is I'm into this broken solid state VR $168! However even after its repaired I'm thinking of donating it to Frankie the Fink
Hey GCD1962 you are about correct on the mileage thing. Hope you're going to get here this year on a day when its not raining so I can show you around the island in the Corvette

Later..Jerry

92GTA

I would also like to know how to polarize at the generator without using the VR....

Thanks!

92GTA

Ok. I haven't gone SS VR yet, but I plan to. Thanks for the advice!

Frankie the Fink

The voltage regulator has nothing to do with polarization...manufacturer's just like to have you polarize from there because its convenient. Polarization aligns the residual magnetism in the generator itself. Think about it..you temporarily short the BAT terminal (the + side of the battery) to the GEN terminal at the regulator with a jumper...just because its convenient.

By disconnecting the V/R leads and applying battery voltage to wherever the V/R GEN lead was connected to the generator you are doing exactly the same thing....just a little more troublesome but without the V/R in the circuit BUT you eliminate the wiring between the V/R and generator in case there is a wiring problem.

EVERGREEN: Yes pls send me your S/S V/R conversion. I like them so much I ordered a second to have a hot spare and a third won't hurt my feelings either. One of my better mods on the car. I've added a 600W stereo amp since the V/R conversion and everything still works perfectly (two years now). Four other forum members are running the conversion with no problems.

Jim is an exception...when I was a mechanic in the '60s on my Dad's car lot I didn't just work on my own car, I worked on dozens from all manufacturers and mechanical V/R failures and mis-adjustments were common problems.

emccomas

My 56 BelAir still has the original VR and generator on it. Still works great.

Solid state isn't necessarily better.

I am with Snake on this one.