VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - GENERAL Electrical - 6 volt 1933 master generator question

My generator appears to work,shows about 8 amps with no lights on.I do notice as my rpms increase the charge rate drops.With the headlights on,I am discharging about - 2 amps.Is this normal? I was thinking about adjusting the third brush to raise the charge rate from negative to slightly positive when the lights are on.Is this a safe thing to do?I don't want to boil my battery from over charging.I did check the fan belt and it's tight.

As they say...."If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"

From what you describe, your generator is doing just fine. Once the generator reaches its max. charging rate, be it 8 amps or 10 amps depending upon what the output is set at, as the RPM increases the charging rate will drop back a little. With the headlights on at idle you will show a couple of amps discharge. With the car driving at normal speed, with the headlights on and with a output of 8 amps on the third brush, your amp meter should show anywhere from 0 to about 2 amps charge.

If your amp meter is showing a slight discharge with the headlights on while driving at speed, then you might want to adjust the third brush up a little to a max. output of 10 amps.

Thank you JYD

Mike,

I'd like to suggest that you check out the 1933 Plymouth owner's forum. There you'll find a great article on the subject you have raised.

With one simple modification these ancient Delco generators can be made vastly better. My '36 PU has an original generator with this modification, an internal voltage regulator, and it does everything described in the article, including powering halogen light bulbs. Imagine actually being able to see when driving at night!

I didn't believe it myself until I tried it. I came by one of those voltage regulators in non-working condition because of an improper installation. My electrical engineer son located and replaced the fried part and the rest is history.

By the way, the improper installation was done by a "Professional" auto electric facility.

Ray W

Over about 50 MPH the charging rate will begin to drop slightly.

brino,I saw that article a while back and it really sparked my interest.I really want to keep my car as origional as possible,but,you have a good point.I would really like to see where I am driving at night !

Mike,

There are at least 2 kinds of "Original" that I can think of, "Driver Original" and "Trailer Queen Original". There may be others.

1. Driver Original I would describe as modified in a way that nobody notices. Examples in the case of my '36 PU that I've owned for 50 years are the voltage regulator hidden in the generator, halogen headlight bulbs, '46 PU window regulators, stainless steel heat riser bushings and shaft, 3.55 gears in '37 Chevy car rear end, home made drag link and modern tie rod ends on drag link and tie rod, rejetted carburetor, steering sector housing machined for an oil seal to allow use of gear lube in steering box, flare fittings in the fuel system instead of compression fittings, more modern 1-piece points in the distributor, modern paint, etc.

Personally, I find car shows excruciatingly boring but I did go to a couple of them in 1976, including the VCCA National Meet in Colorado Springs. At both of those shows, including the National with highly qualified judges, none of these modifications were recognized and my PU won its class. So from that I conclude that these kinds of deviations from "Original" to improve safety and make a vehicle more pleasant to drive will not be noticed.

Is the car/truck still "Original"? I don't know (or care).

It's like asking "If a man and his wife are out in the forest and there is no one else there to hear her criticize him is he still wrong"?

2. Trailer Queen Original I would describe as having no deviations from the as-built factory condition.

So, would your '33 be "Original" if you upgraded the charging system? I don't know. What do you think?

Sorry I came across the wrong way.Mine is definitely a driver.I put quite a few miles on it every year,that's why your suggestion makes sense.I often drive at night locally and it is really hard to see.As for local car shows,I was once lumped in to a "STOCK" class because there wasn"t an antique class.The judges chose a Smart Car over mine!!!!! Imagine how that felt.

"Sorry I came across the wrong way"

No problem Mike. I just enjoy the friendly banter and I must admit to not understanding why anyone would own a car that looks pretty but is otherwise useless.

But there are plenty of them, hauled around in enclosed trailers towed by motor homes.

Are you anywhere near Lambertville? My cousin lives there.

Ray W

Twenty minutes south of Lambertville.

"Mine is definitely a driver.I put quite a few miles on it every year,that's why your suggestion makes sense.I often drive at night locally and it is really hard to see."

There is a guy in Australia who makes 25W/25W halogen headlight bulbs that are a direct replacement for the original bulbs. With the Peterson voltage regulator the original generator lights up those bulbs nicely without any discharge. The '33 Plymouth article says the same thing and that's what motivated me to give both the voltage regulator and the halogen bulbs a try.

There are so many stealth modifications that can be made to these antiques that make them safer and more pleasant to drive. If you open the headlights to replace the bulbs and find the cork lens seals deteriorated a simple piece of clothesline cord makes a perfect replacement.

Ray W