VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1912-1928 1924 Generator - Again!!

Rather than reply to my earlier posts I thought I would start a new one. I had oil pump problems which turned into generator problems after the pot metal end plate disentegrated. My buddy got the new end plate on and the generator worked for an hour or so. I took the generator a very good shop here in town that has experience working on older stuff. I guess a lot of folks keep their tractors forever!! Anyway, the generator was working great for about 10 miles and boom, the ammeter goes back to zero.

Pretty much the exact same thing has happened twice now, the generator worked for a very short period. Before my buddy got here with the good volt meter, I tried running the wire straight from the battery to "polarize" the generator. I also tried to bypass the cutout with a hard wire. I am not quite sure I understood the reading on the ammeter, it was set to 20V DC and we got .2? As we moved the third brush up or torwards the passenger side it moved to .6 or so.

Any ideas on why a generator would work for a little while and then just quit???

Thanks

Going by the extremely low voltages you obtained at the generator terminal of the cutout,it sounds like there are short circuits in the armature winding,and possibly the field coils as well.
For the cutout contacts to close,the generator output voltage has to be between 7.0-7.5 volts.This adjustment is obtained by the adjust of the flat tension spring blade on top of the cutout,which should be covered in your owners manual.
Moving the 3rd brush towards the passenger side(ie. towards the engine)should increase the current output.Moving the 3rd brush towards the mudguard,should decrease the current output.
Sounds like you'll have to have it re-wound.I'm currently re-building a starter,generator & oil pump for a 1924 for a bloke in Tasmania.

Without going out and looking at my cars, If you have an "F" terminal on the genny, ground that and see if you get any improvement. Also if you rebuilt your engine, make sure there is NO paint under the genny bracket or on the genny mount points and all grounds are in spit shiney bare metal condition. Grounds are half the curcuit and are notoriously neglected. As I experiance in my old 1951 Farmall H tractor, 6V systems will give all kinds of trouble if all connections are not totally clean and that includes engine to frame ect. If it acts up, I clean everything, grounds and all and it usually works perfect after that. (I am one of those guys who uses old tractors and it gets used daily)

The standard 3rd brush type 1924 REMY Model 950-A or B generator doesn't have an external "F" terminal.The only lead that comes through the generator barrel is the output lead from
the positive main brush,which is connected to the unmarked terminal on the generator cutout.

Bob and CJP

you guys are the best, I know who I am gonna call if I got a problem!

Happy Thanksgiving
Ken 45145

Interesting. I don't remember a gasket where the geny is bolted when I took it off. There was one in the gasket kit I had so I put it on. Is it possible there is not enough ground because of this gasket? It bolts to the case and the gear meshes with the cam shaft gear. Wouldn't the oil lines attaching to the pump and then to the pan serve the same purpose? Forgive me if that is foolish, really just a desk jockey!!

Oh, my! Didn't realize it has been a year since I have posted. Actually only got the car out a few times in 2010, hope that doesn't happen again in 2011. I did make it to the AACA meet in Blacksburg, VA. It was fun even though it rained.

Well, I finally got the generator out of the car Sunday, then it almost got warm enough for golf, so I went and played. Hopefully I will get the Genny fixed soon and have Aurea back on the road!

Happy New Year to all!!

Bruce,
If you are looking in to having your generator rebuilt, feel free to contact me with any questions. I specialize in restoring generators & starters for the antique auto industry and would be happy to help you out.
Jason Smith
Advanced Electrical Rebuilders
www.aerrebuild.com
jason@aerrebuild.com
toll-free: 1-866-228-0218

Now that you have the generator out of the car, connect a 6-volt battery to the body (-) and a wire to the wire exiting the generator (+). The generator should turn like a motor if everything is up to snuff. This is not an absolute test, however it gives you an indication of the condition of the generator.

I'll try that. Thanks. Just wondering, the gear on the front of the generator doesn't seem to have much oil or grease on it. Although the car hasn't been driven since September. How does it get lubrication? When I put the generator back on should I put grease on the gear??

You could put a very light coat on it. The gear is lubricated by a very small amount of oil that is fed out of the front of the engine onto the two gears.