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1980 - 1986 Bullnose F100, F150 & Larger F-Series Trucks Discuss the Early Eighties Bullnose Ford Truck

Charging Issue

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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 06:09 PM
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Charging Issue

Next to my starter solenoid I have a box that has several wires running in and out of it. I thought it might be a ac to dc converter. Right now my trucks not charging and I'm working my way back from the alternator, which I just replaced.
 
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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 06:18 PM
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Check your voltage regulator.
 
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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 06:24 PM
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Where is the voltage regulator. I would like to figure out what that box with the wires going in it is.
 
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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 07:25 PM
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Your mystery box is probably the regulator. Do you have a meter? You can do some checks with it.
 
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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 07:34 PM
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Yes I do, I'm thinking thats my problem since I just put a new alternator in it today.
 
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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 07:40 PM
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Yes I do, I'm thinking thats my problem since I just put a new alternator in it today.
 
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Old Mar 7, 2009 | 07:42 PM
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If you want to do some checks, take your meter and put the neg on the battery neg, and touch the + lead of the meter to the large bat+ terminal on the alternator. You should get 12 volts there. If you don't, then you probably changed the alternator, or someone was messing around the alternator with the battery hooked up, and burnt out the fusible link.

Next check would be the green/red wire on the regulator "S" terminal. You should have voltage there with the keyswitch in run.

If that all checks out, it's looking more and more like the regulator is bad.

And to quickly verify if it's charging or not, get the engine running, and you should have 14.5v on the battery.
 
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Old Mar 8, 2009 | 04:24 PM
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I checked the green wire and that was good. When I checked the yellow/black wire running from the alternator to the voltage regulator I had nothing with the truck running. I checked the bat+ terminal on the alternator I had power until I disconnected the wire and then I had nothing. So the new alternator I just got is faulty and I'm taking it back to carquest tomorrow.
 
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Old Mar 8, 2009 | 06:50 PM
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IIRC you ground the field terminal wich full fields the alt..Batt volts should go to like 16-18 volts at idle , maybe higher(dont do it for long) You'll hear the alt whine. If it does you have a bad regulator. I dont think you will get 12v on the alt bat term with the wire unhooked. Some internal reg alt's have a terminal on the back to do the full field test
 
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Old Mar 8, 2009 | 10:49 PM
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They may put the alternator on their machine, and if it checks good, then before you put it back in, take the large output wire and see if you have voltage on it with the battery terminals connected. Be careful and don't short this wire out with the battery connected. This wire should be connected directly to the battery through the wiring. If you get nothing on this wire it's too late, you have already blown the fusible link in this wire and it will have to be replaced
 
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Old Mar 9, 2009 | 11:25 AM
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I ended up figuring it out. The previous owner of my truck had redone all of the wiring and jerry rigged it. I got a wiring diagram from one of my auto teachers books and got it. The old alternator had been full fielded by the previous owner which is why he didn't have a field wire going to it. So I hooked everything up correctly and still wasn't getting anything. So I jumped the field wire by connecting a jumper lead from the battery to the field terminal and then found out my voltage regulator was shot. I replaced that this morning after auto tech and everythings set. Thanks alot guys
 
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