# Bolens 154 Battery Not Charging



## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

So electrical is not my strong part but I have a multimeter and know enough to be dangerous. Battery is in good shape takes a charge and load tests fine. When I charge it up the tractor fires right up. Checking at the battery posts when running its showing 12 volts, so there is no charging happening. The plug on the back of the Alt was in bad shape, broken and sun burnt. I put new connectors on. Still the same, no charge. with it running I pulled the connector off the back of the Alt and checked the battery spade, at idle it’s showing 14 volts. Ok now what to check? I looked at the wiring diagram and it looks like the only other thing in the line back to battery would be the key switch. i cleaned all the other connections from the Alt to starter with no change. The key switch has three positions, on/lights/lights and in any of these positions the battery shows no charging. Where do I go From here. Thanks in advance.


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Welcome to the forum Luvnlife, can you attach the wiring diagram so we can have a gander at it before making an assumption.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

No problem. Thank you


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## Rolex (11 mo ago)

Does the alternator only have 2 wires, one from the battery and one from the key ?

If yes start the motor, touch the wire that goes to the key from the alternator to the battery wire then test if it is charging.

(That is you are joining the alternator wire the the battery not the switch wire to the battery)

You will normally hear the alternator start to squeal if it's charging.


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## fuddy1952 (Mar 6, 2021)

Looking at the schematic it's simple: battery + goes to starter (B) from there to generator output. Running if you measure 14v at this generator output terminal and only 12v at battery then either wire is bad or corrosion at starter. It's a simple circuit.









Sent from my SM-S205DL using Tapatalk


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## Rolex (11 mo ago)

He talks of a alternator not a generator as in the .schematic. 

A 2 wire alternator needs a battery wire and a power wire to excite it.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Rolex said:


> He talks of a alternator not a generator as in the .schematic.
> 
> A 2 wire alternator needs a battery wire and a power wire to excite it.


It is an alternator in the diagram. Those connections points to a Japanese origin, Hitachi or Denso for instance.

An alternator is a generator, just like a dynamo is a generator. They all generate electric energy. It would be more handy to use the terms AC-generator and DC-generator, but languages develop in their own
ways.

*** Edit
Misspelled.
***


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Rolex said:


> Does the alternator only have 2 wires, one from the battery and one from the key ?
> 
> If yes start the motor, touch the wire that goes to the key from the alternator to the battery wire then test if it is charging.
> 
> ...


The Alt has four wires going to the harness, battery/warning lamp/neutral/field then it has the wire going to the starter


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

fuddy1952 said:


> Looking at the schematic it's simple: battery + goes to starter (B) from there to generator output. Running if you measure 14v at this generator output terminal and only 12v at battery then either wire is bad or corrosion at starter. It's a simple circuit.
> View attachment 83399
> 
> 
> Sent from my SM-S205DL using Tapatalk


I will check again this evening but I think that was only showing 12v when running


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> It is an alternator in the diagram. Those connections points to a Japanese origin, Hitachi or Denso for instance.
> 
> An alternator is a generator, just like a dynamo is a generator. They all generate electric energy. It would be more handy to use the terms AC-generator and DC-generator, but languages develop in their own
> ways.
> ...


correct it has a Mitsubishi k70 engine


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

I am a newbie (to say the least) around this type of alternators. One thing, though; You measured the voltage at the "B"-post and got 14 V, but that was with the battery cable disconnected?

If you do the same test with the battery cable connected to the "B"-post and get 14 V, or at least higher than the battery voltage at the same time, as said, the wiring is a culprit. Apart from the battery (+) wires, check that the alternator housing is grounded properly (no major voltage drop between housing and battery (-)).

I found this, it looks reliable. Hope it helps:





Tech Wiki - Alternator diagnoses : Datsun 1200 Club


datsun 1200 club




datsun1200.com


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

I just had to nail this to the thread, it is from the site I linked to earlier. I have been looking for an internal diagram for a long time, and there it was:


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

In "Engine Electrical System" from this site, there are also some info:





Downloads - Datsun 1000







www.datsun1000.com


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## Always something (6 mo ago)

Is there an external voltage regulator? Looks like it from the wiring diagram . I the main power cable goes to the field coils .The armature is made hot by a separate hot lead .That lead is intermittent and controlled by the regulator or internal diods.You have a break down in regulator function. The armature and field coils are making electricty .The regulator is not sending the electricty to the main hot wire that charges the battery. With the battery fully charged remove your positive cable . Pull the positive cable and touch it back to the post listen and look for a spark .should not be any .With the positive cable disconnected. Use the ohm meter touch postive lead to the cable .Touch the ground lead to the ground cable on the battery .There should be no reading .If there is and your experiencing dead battery after it sits a while .Then you have something burned out or broken in the regulator or internaly in the alternator. Always heard you should not pull the battery cable when the alternator has a electronic regulator .Pull the alternator take it to autozone or orlieys get them to test it .it's free .


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Luvnlife said:


> correct it has a Mitsubishi k70 engine


Do you have any numbers on the alternator or regulator?
Pictures of alternator, regulator and connectors would be nice.


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## bubbagoat (Nov 10, 2019)

My Japanese tractors with four wire connector and a wire to the starter/battery use this alternator wiring, see page three. https://cdn.compknowhow.com/carterandgruenewald/wiring_diagrams/IH 234-244-254.pdf
Ted


Sent from my iPhone using Tractor Forum


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

So I had some time today. Fully charged battery, hit the glow plugs and it fired right up. It was about 50 degrees outside. Checked the B terminal and after using sand paper on the end it’s showing 12 maybe 12.5 depending how accurate my multimeter is. Does this mean an internal problem with Alt?


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Always something said:


> Is there an external voltage regulator? Looks like it from the wiring diagram . I the main power cable goes to the field coils .The armature is made hot by a separate hot lead .That lead is intermittent and controlled by the regulator or internal diods.You have a break down in regulator function. The armature and field coils are making electricty .The regulator is not sending the electricty to the main hot wire that charges the battery. With the battery fully charged remove your positive cable . Pull the positive cable and touch it back to the post listen and look for a spark .should not be any .With the positive cable disconnected. Use the ohm meter touch postive lead to the cable .Touch the ground lead to the ground cable on the battery .There should be no reading .If there is and your experiencing dead battery after it sits a while .Then you have something burned out or broken in the regulator or internaly in the alternator. Always heard you should not pull the battery cable when the alternator has a electronic regulator .Pull the alternator take it to autozone or orlieys get them to test it .it's free .


Yes external voltage regulator. I’ll perform this test tomorrow. Thank you


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> Do you have any numbers on the alternator or regulator?
> Pictures of alternator, regulator and connectors would be nice.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> Do you have any numbers on the alternator or regulator?
> Pictures of alternator, regulator and connectors would be nice.


can’t read any numbers on the Alt, the sticker is so faded


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

bubbagoat said:


> My Japanese tractors with four wire connector and a wire to the starter/battery use this alternator wiring, see page three. https://cdn.compknowhow.com/carterandgruenewald/wiring_diagrams/IH 234-244-254.pdf
> Ted
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tractor Forum


thanks, looks similar to what I have but mine is more simplistic. I have no tach or really any bells and whistles. I’m going to print this out and match it up side by side with what I have.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Just want to thank everyone for their help. I’m sure this will get figured out.👍


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## bubbagoat (Nov 10, 2019)

Don’t get too wrapped up in all the other stuff, but pay attention to the alternator and voltage regulator wires only.


Sent from my iPhone using Tractor Forum


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Luvnlife said:


> View attachment 83513


Can you show where you are taking your voltage reading from in this photo Luvnlife, you should have battery voltage at the battery connection on the solenoid and the same with the connection with the rusty nut and stud on the alternator, I cannot see any problem with that short cable apart from the rusty connection, I guess this is what you sand papered.

Does the ignition charge light extinguish when you start and run the engine, does it light up when you turn the key to either run or start, it is important for the light to turn on and then go off with engine running, if the light glows with ignition on,(non running engine) can you pull the F connection cable on the alternator and read the voltage there, this will show if there is an field excitement circuit to initially excite the fields to start charging.

The F (field) wire is important for charging, if the field rotor in the alternator doesn't get this light voltage flow, then it wont charge.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

bubbagoat said:


> Don’t get too wrapped up in all the other stuff, but pay attention to the alternator and voltage regulator wires only.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tractor Forum


👍


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

FredM said:


> Can you show where you are taking your voltage reading from in this photo Luvnlife, you should have battery voltage at the battery connection on the solenoid and the same with the connection with the rusty nut and stud on the alternator, I cannot see any problem with that short cable apart from the rusty connection, I guess this is what you sand papered.
> 
> Does the ignition charge light extinguish when you start and run the engine, does it light up when you turn the key to either run or start, it is important for the light to turn on and then go off with engine running, if the light glows with ignition on,(non running engine) can you pull the F connection cable on the alternator and read the voltage there, this will show if there is an field excitement circuit to initially excite the fields to start charging.
> 
> The F (field) wire is important for charging, if the field rotor in the alternator doesn't get this light voltage flow, then it wont charge.


when I turn the ig switch on the charge light illuminates, it goes off after the engine is running. Tomorrow I will pull the F and get a reading. I do have battery voltage at the solenoid and at the rusty nut. BTW I pulled all those connections and cleaned them up.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

FredM said:


> Can you show where you are taking your voltage reading from in this photo Luvnlife, you should have battery voltage at the battery connection on the solenoid and the same with the connection with the rusty nut and stud on the alternator, I cannot see any problem with that short cable apart from the rusty connection, I guess this is what you sand papered.
> 
> Does the ignition charge light extinguish when you start and run the engine, does it light up when you turn the key to either run or start, it is important for the light to turn on and then go off with engine running, if the light glows with ignition on,(non running engine) can you pull the F connection cable on the alternator and read the voltage there, this will show if there is an field excitement circuit to initially excite the fields to start charging.
> 
> The F (field) wire is important for charging, if the field rotor in the alternator doesn't get this light voltage flow, then it wont charge.


with engine running the red circle middle to the left shows 14 volts. With engine running the upper and lower right show 12-12.5 volts.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Luvnlife said:


> 👍


If my posts are "the other stuff" that does not need attention, say so and I am out.
A last attempt to get through:


When something like this happens, always start with the wiring. A lot of charging problems on Internet forums start with the advice: "Make sure the wiring is OK before you do anything else". Some people are almost offended by that and answer like: "Of course the wiring is in top shape, what do you think of me?". After thirty plus posts with different tips and tricks, the threadstarter comes back: "I fixed it!, I replaced the battery cables, and now it charges as it should".

It is impossible to verify the quality of a wire/cable just by looking at it. However, you mentioned that the 4-pin plug on the alternator was crusty. Chances are that there are more crustiness lurking in the wiring. Renew the battery cables and the wire that goes from alternator "B" to the starter. Clean all contact areas to a shiny surface.

Then there is the wiring from regulator to alternator. There is a multi-connector in the harness that needs attention. The extra ground wire is important, make sure that it is in good condition and that it is connected to good ground. Also, check how "A" is connected to Battery (+).

Of course, the wiring IG/starter switch/key switch and L/warning lamp should be checked.

Taped wires are always a warning sign, especially wires that are taped together. Remove all tape and examine the wires. If in doubt, replace.



Make sure that the alternator housing is properly grounded.

Do not forget to check the state of the fan belt and its tension.


Now you are ready to do some testing. The alternator is of the same type as on the Datsun 1000 and 1200 car models. That is why I linked to the "Alternator diagnoses" in post #11 and info in post #13. Your alternator looks like the one showed below this text. The type in the instructions have connector/plug types that look different than yours, but the letter designations are the same.

Unfortunately there is false information about the "N" connection. It is not for the dash warning lamp, the warning lamp is connected to "L" on regulator. This false information does not mean anything to how the diagnoses are performed.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> If my posts are "the other stuff" that does not need attention, say so and I am out.
> A last attempt to get through:
> 
> 
> ...


All the info is greatly appreciated and I’m using it to diagnose. The 👍🏻 was more of a way of saying keep it simple as I do believe it’s a wiring issue. ive had some little quirks here and there that were intermittent and went away so I was never able to track them down. All of your info is being put to good use, like I said electrical is not my strong point. I’m sure there is lots of crustiness in this wiring, the good thing is it doesn’t look like anything has been hacked on and pirated so I should be able to track this down. Thanks again.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

FredM said:


> Can you show where you are taking your voltage reading from in this photo Luvnlife, you should have battery voltage at the battery connection on the solenoid and the same with the connection with the rusty nut and stud on the alternator, I cannot see any problem with that short cable apart from the rusty connection, I guess this is what you sand papered.
> 
> Does the ignition charge light extinguish when you start and run the engine, does it light up when you turn the key to either run or start, it is important for the light to turn on and then go off with engine running, if the light glows with ignition on,(non running engine) can you pull the F connection cable on the alternator and read the voltage there, this will show if there is an field excitement circuit to initially excite the fields to start charging.
> 
> The F (field) wire is important for charging, if the field rotor in the alternator doesn't get this light voltage flow, then it wont charge.


Yes the charge light is on when the ignition is on and goes out when the engine is started. I turned the ignition on, pulled the F connection, checked the spade on the back of the Alt and there is zero voltage. Light went off when I unplugged and went back on when I plugged the connection back in.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

I’m going to look for the extra ground like Hacke mentioned and clean the connection.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> I am a newbie (to say the least) around this type of alternators. One thing, though; You measured the voltage at the "B"-post and got 14 V, but that was with the battery cable disconnected?
> 
> If you do the same test with the battery cable connected to the "B"-post and get 14 V, or at least higher than the battery voltage at the same time, as said, the wiring is a culprit. Apart from the battery (+) wires, check that the alternator housing is grounded properly (no major voltage drop between housing and battery (-)).
> 
> ...


I got 14 volts not at the B post, but at the A connection. The B post only showed 12-12.5. Both were checked with engine running. Alt appears to be grounded, ohm check from ground to battery ground showed zero.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Always something said:


> Is there an external voltage regulator? Looks like it from the wiring diagram . I the main power cable goes to the field coils .The armature is made hot by a separate hot lead .That lead is intermittent and controlled by the regulator or internal diods.You have a break down in regulator function. The armature and field coils are making electricty .The regulator is not sending the electricty to the main hot wire that charges the battery. With the battery fully charged remove your positive cable . Pull the positive cable and touch it back to the post listen and look for a spark .should not be any .With the positive cable disconnected. Use the ohm meter touch postive lead to the cable .Touch the ground lead to the ground cable on the battery .There should be no reading .If there is and your experiencing dead battery after it sits a while .Then you have something burned out or broken in the regulator or internaly in the alternator. Always heard you should not pull the battery cable when the alternator has a electronic regulator .Pull the alternator take it to autozone or orlieys get them to test it .it's free .


Ok just did this and I’m getting a reading. 10 ohms on the 1k setting. If I’m reading it right🥴 But there is resistanc.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Luvnlife said:


> I got 14 volts not at the B post, but at the A connection. The B post only showed 12-12.5. Both were checked with engine running. Alt appears to be grounded, ohm check from ground to battery ground showed zero.


That is strange, A and B should be internally connected.
Could you, please, do the tests in the attached PDF?


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> That is strange, A and B should be internally connected.
> Could you, please, do the tests in the attached PDF?





Hacke said:


> That is strange, A and B should be internally connected.
> Could you, please, do the tests in the attached PDF?



Im pretty sure I located the second ground. I cleaned the connection with sand paper and installed. No improvement but at least I have a clean ground.😎 I‘m unable to download the pdf you posted. Thank you


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Luvnlife said:


> Im pretty sure I located the second ground. I cleaned the connection with sand paper and installed. No improvement but at least I have a clean ground.😎 I‘m unable to download the pdf you posted. Thank you


Try and refresh the screen, Ctrl+F5 on a computer.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> Try and refresh the screen, Ctrl+F5 on a computer.


I’m on an iPad. That’s prob the prob.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Try this one:








Test_A_D.pdf


Shared with Dropbox




www.dropbox.com





No need to register, just download.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> Try this one:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Test A 12 volts
test B 12 volts at idle slight increase at half throttle but no where near 13-14
test C same results
test D same results


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

At idle the needle is straight up at 12.5 volts on the 25 volt scale at half throttle maybe just crosses the 12.5 volt line. This is an old multimeter and not sure of accuracy. I ordered a new klein digital. It’s reading consistent though.


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

How easy to place a jumper from battery positive to the "F terminal on the alternator" and run the engine, if the alternator is working, it will throw much voltage and this then will show that the voltage regulator is kaput, -- and if the alternator doesn't throw a charge, then we can assume that the alternator needs servicing.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Perform tests E and F in the attached PDF, can also be found here:








Test_A_F.pdf


Shared with Dropbox




www.dropbox.com


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

FredM said:


> How easy to place a jumper from battery positive to the "F terminal on the alternator" and run the engine, if the alternator is working, it will throw much voltage and this then will show that the voltage regulator is kaput, -- and if the alternator doesn't throw a charge, then we can assume that the alternator needs servicing.


Easy enough to do👍🏻


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> Perform tests E and F in the attached PDF, can also be found here:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I will try this tomorrow morning👍🏻


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

FredM said:


> How easy to place a jumper from battery positive to the "F terminal on the alternator" and run the engine, if the alternator is working, it will throw much voltage and this then will show that the voltage regulator is kaput, -- and if the alternator doesn't throw a charge, then we can assume that the alternator needs servicing.


When I do this it shows 15 volts at the battery.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> Perform tests E and F in the attached PDF, can also be found here:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Test E just under 8 ohms
Test F pegged my volt meter


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Luvnlife said:


> Test E just under 8 ohms
> Test F pegged my volt meter


I suppose you mean the other way around.
That means that you have found:

1. Nothing is wrong with the wiring between alternator and battery.
2. Alternator is charging.

Now it would be tempting to victimize the regulator, it is the most likely culprit. However, there could be a wiring (again!) problem.

You say the charging warning light goes out after a few seconds. But the alternator is not charging? That does not make sense when you think of "ordinary" regulated alternators and the "excite" function through the warning light that they have. This type of regulator is different, the warning light is controlled by the charge relay inside the regulator. If there is just a slight amount of charging going on in the alternator, the light goes out.

The explanation is probably that there is some magnetism left that can produce enough current to pull the charge relay, but that is it.

The charging process is normally started by giving power to the IG pin, this IG power is then regulated by the regulating relay and resistors to feed the field coil. I would check that there is power coming in to the regulator's IG pin. 

We do not know what regulator you have. If it is a mechanical type of regulator, there is a regulating relay that may have contacts that are stuck together. Not impossible, since you have experienced intermittent troubles. Dirt/dust get in between contacts and you get arcing that welds the contacts together. Sometimes they loosen after a while or are kept shut.

It would be nice if you could post some pictures showing the regulator and its wirings. Try to find numbers on the regulator.

If it is a mechanical regulator you could try to knock on it with a screwdriver handle and see if relay contacts get unstuck. You should be able to remove the cover and examine the contacts inside.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Yes I had the tests and results backwards. Got the number last night. Nippendenso 026000-1763 which is super seeded by 026000-1764 which is unavailable but Southern Global Tractor has rv-19480910. I’m pretty sure it’s mechanical with six spade connector. I’ll pull it out.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

OK, pulled the voltage regulator. Connections looked crusty as well. I did have 12volts coming to the ig. Again it’s nice to work on an unmolested machine as the wire color coding matches. Pulled the cover and everything looks alright, I mean nothing fell out, the contacts were there and not stuck, wires were all connected. Put the cover back on. Cleaned both ends of the six spade connector really good with contact cleaner and slid a loose terminal on them. Checked I had 12 volts at the ig wire one more time, put it all back together and fired it up. Took volt readings at the battery terminals, first one at idle, second one like at third throttle.







-


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

That is ~16 V?
As far as I can understand:

1.
The regulator was stuck on full-fielding all the time, but the wiring had issues before cleaning.

2.
The regulator was "no charge", no relay action, and it shifted as you were dealing with it.


I do not understand why there are so many different regulators of this kind, what could possibly differ, apart from the voltage?

Maybe it is better to go for a solid state version? The mechanical ones need to be adjusted perfectly at factory, and perfectly is not always compatible with parts manufacturers today. I am sure that a shop that deals with alternators and parts for it, can help.



This is very good tutorial:


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

Hacke said:


> That is ~16 V?
> As far as I can understand:
> 
> 1.
> ...


Yes about 16. Is that too much? Are you saying I should get a new voltage regulator? How do I change to solid state? If it’s not to much voltage maybe I’ll run it and monitor the issue.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

16 V is a bit high. Maybe some parts in the system will suffer, but the main problem is if the battery boils and gets destroyed. I really do not know how your system will handle 16 V. If I look at the Nippendenso 026000-1763 it is rated for 14.3 V. That is the same as for the car regulators I found documentation for. There you can find how the voltage varies with temperature. Maybe the voltage will be correct after some use?:









You are probably right, use the tractor and check the voltage.

A solid state regulator for this system is a regulator that uses solid state components (semiconductors) instead of mechanical relays. I do not know if there is one for this system, but I am sure that an expert could find one that is suitable. The regulator will be a box with a connector, just like the old one.


There is a small wire connected to the battery (+) pole connector, is that wire going to the regulator?


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

I just want to thank everyone for their time, replies, diagrams, and suggestions in tracking this problem down. I would have just had the Alt rebuilt and wasted that money, then changed the voltage regulator, and wasted that money(we’ll see). Going to run it as is and monitor everything, worst case is I change the voltage regulator. Thanks again to everyone for helping someone you don’t even know but asked for help. I have a new multimeter on the way that is way more accurate for readings. Thanks, Cale.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

Glad to be of any help, I learned a lot from this. Thank you.

I first thought that your battery is of the, so called, maintenance free type, but I think I see a cover common for the six cells? If so, check the electrolyte level now and then.

I would consider new battery cables and clamps, and check what, and how, the A pin on regulator is connected to.

*** Edit
Check that the regulator housing is properly grounded.
***


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Hacke said:


> Glad to be of any help, I learned a lot from this. Thank you.
> 
> I first thought that your battery is of the, so called, maintenance free type, but I think I see a cover common for the six cells? If so, check the electrolyte level now and then.
> 
> ...


This may help Hacke.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

FredM said:


> This may help Hacke.
> 
> View attachment 83599


Thank you, I think I have that clear already. What I am after is how the A-pin on regulator is physically connected to B+.

The diagram Luvnlife shows has one A connection between regulator and alternator, but other diagrams and pictures of this type of regulator has wires that could point to that there are other ways to connect (and the regulator may not be the original one).

The regulating coil is operated by the current from the A-pin to ground, a bit like a sensing function for other regulators. My thought is, that if there is a bad connection to B+ for the A-wire, the coil will act as there is a lower voltage than the actual system voltage, hence the 16 V.

*If there is only one connection between A on regulator and A on alternator, and that is all, like in Luvnlife's diagram:*
Earlier it was reported that A and B+ on the alternator had different voltages. That, and the now measured 16 V could mean that the alternator's internal connection between A and B+ has an issue and it would be better to run a wire from the regulator A-pin to the battery post on the starter, for instance.


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Hacke said:


> If my posts are "the other stuff" that does not need attention, say so and I am out.
> A last attempt to get through:
> 
> 
> ...


The A,B and B+ designations are one and the same, this is shown in your Post #28 attachment.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

FredM said:


> The A,B and B+ designations are one and the same, this is shown in your Post #28 attachment.


Yes, but if a connection is bad, there might be a voltage drop that fools the regulator to increase the output voltage.


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Hacke said:


> Yes, but if a connection is bad, there might be a voltage drop that fools the regulator to increase the output voltage.


Well then it will be up to the OPS to check and clean the connections, this is something that should be done when checking for faults in either the alternator or regulator, the alternator is the easiest to check, just by removing the field wire and connecting a light hot wire from battery to the F spade and running the engine, if the alternator is ok, then it will throw a good output, so then the regulator becomes suspect, the mechanical regulator could be cleaned and adjusted as long as the eternals were ok, solid state regulators were throw away.


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## Hacke (Feb 22, 2011)

FredM said:


> Well then it will be up to the OPS to check and clean the connections, this is something that should be done when checking for faults in either the alternator or regulator, the alternator is the easiest to check, just by removing the field wire and connecting a light hot wire from battery to the F spade and running the engine, if the alternator is ok, then it will throw a good output, so then the regulator becomes suspect, the mechanical regulator could be cleaned and adjusted as long as the eternals were ok, solid state regulators were throw away.


That has already been done, read through the thread.

There was no output to start with.
Alternator is charging when full-fielded by connecting A to F on alternator.
Wiring between alternator and battery is found good.
Removing/reconnecting and cleaning some contacts resulted in 16 V.
We were not showed how the regulator or the wiring for it actually looks. The A-pin on the regulator may be connected with its own wire that has an issue.
A diagram is one thing, reality might be another.

The regulator might be bad, but since the charging started it can also be a wiring problem. According to how the wiring that is showed looks, the latter would not be a surprise.

The owner decided to use the machine as it is and monitor how the regulator behaves. If it will not sober up, he probably will get a new regulator.


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## FredM (Nov 18, 2015)

Hacke said:


> The owner decided to use the machine as it is and monitor how the regulator behaves. If it will not sober up, he probably will get a new regulator.


Way to go.


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## Luvnlife (Dec 26, 2021)

So I got a new Klein digital multi meter, way better than the other one I had. It is overcharging at about 16.5 volts. Ordered a new voltage meter that should be in tomorrow and I’ll swap it out. 👍🏻


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