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For some unknown reason, I'm not getting a any charge out of my 31 Standard 8. Cutout/regulator and generator were rebuilt a couple years ago and everything was fine just a couple weeks ago.

Basically, with the engine running I'm not getting any positive charge. The ammeter will show a discharge when the engine is off and lights on, so I don't think it is the gauge. With the engine running, voltage at the battery terminals is jumping all over the place, but not greater that 6 volts.

I'd like to conduct Dave's frequent advice to test the system ie ground the field terminal on the regulator or generator, rev engine and see if system charges ratably or at max etc., but need clarity on what to ground. The generator has two wires coming through the case that attach to the underside of the cutout/regulator, which in turn has two terminals one marked "Bat" and "Gen". Bat is connected to a lead and Gen is not connected to anything. What need I ground so that I don't fry anything? Thanks!

See my post '32 901 Sedan Generator Polarization it might help.

Thanks Marty. I'll give it a try. Just curious -- Did your generator put out current one day and not the next? What would cause the generator to lose polarity -- in my case I haven't hooked up the battery backwards or done anything electrical to the car. Thanks.

I took over a restoration. While I have no records that show generator had been rebuilt when I got it, it looks like it had been rebuilt. I just finished the restoration and it has never charge during the short periods that I ran the engine.

Looking into the generator issue was low on the priority list. Some people say you should re-polarize a generator system everytime the battery is replaced. I have never found that to be a problem in the generator systems I've had.

Quote:
Believe the usual reason for a generator to suddenly stop working is brush problems. A loose connection or broken wire, or one of the contacts or components in the regulator or cutout could also have failed.

In some of the 3 brush generators the max amp output is monitored by a fuse in the cutout assembly and excessive current produced by the generator sometimes caused by a brief short of misadjustment of the third brush could have caused the fuse to blow.

Well, there weren't any problems with the generator or with the control unit. Everything looked and tested good. My generator man told me that to repolarize the unit, just attach a lead from the Bat side of the regulator and flash to the Gen side. Seemed to work fine as everything operated as it should. Many thanks to all for their input.