voltage regulator

paul cass · #1 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 12:12 PM

hey guys
does anyone know how to properly adjust the old style ford voltage regultors. the new one in my wife's 65 mustang was clicking on and off. it has a bar with points on both sides and when i moved it in the alternator light stayed on and when i moved it out the light went off. i'm not sure if its adjusted properly to run volts to the battery when its needed. haven't found anyone local that goes back that for.
thanks for the help,
paul

HighPlainsDrifter · #2 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 12:42 PM

Hi,
You need to connect a digital DC voltmeter to the battery.beg ,borrow or buy a cheep one.
With the engine running adjust it to give 14.2 volts.
That will be very close to optimum charging.
Perry.

mr0077 · #3 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 01:55 PM

Paul, let me check tonight, I may have a Motors and a Chiltons for 65-72 cars, they had fairly good sections on components. I'll get back to you tonight.

paul cass · #4 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 02:00 PM

hey perry
hmmmmm. i tried that and the voltage meter showed something in the 12's, like 12.4 to 12.6. never more from the battery terminals. i didn't know if you could get enough of a reading from the battery or if i would need to tap in somewhere else.
paul

snakebyt · #5 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 02:43 PM

Why don't you replace it with a solid state one? I bought one from JC Whitney for $9.99. It came with a nice chrome cover too.

Tom

paul cass · #6 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 02:53 PM

hey tom
trying to keep it original looking.
paul

snakebyt · #7 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 03:03 PM

I wanted to keep it stock looking too so I just put the old cover on the new regulator. Fit perfectly. Now I have a solid state "Autolite" voltage reg. Replica Cobra -> Replica VR!!

Tom

chopper · #8 (**permalink**) 10-20-2003, 10:59 PM

The solid state unit which I put on my car a few years back is identical in outward appearance to the original unit, basically a little black box which mounted and connected exactly as the original. I got it at one of the local alternator repair shops when I was down in Florida. The gentleman at the shop said that the unit was designed to replace the OEM units and maintain the appearance of the original. I'm not trying to be dense here, but why would you want to stay with the old mechanical (read: failure prone) regulator when the solid state unit is available, cheaper, orders of magnitude more reliable and looks identical?

paul cass · #9 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 08:30 AM

hey chopper
i had the solid state before, two, and had trouble with both. ordered the adjustable to see if that would solve my problem and it seems to, except that i don't know how to set it. however, ken smith found an old shop book that i am going to look at tonight and see if i can properly set the points. i'll update tomorrow.
paul

chopper · #10 (**permalink**) 10-21-2003, 12:07 PM

Again, not trying to be a smart-aleck, but if you have had problems with multiple voltage regulators, perhaps the problem is in the alternator instead of the voltage regulator. Have you taken the alternator to a repair shop for testing? Most reputable shops will put your alternator on their test rig and give you a pretty complete analysis of its operation. That's what this repair shop in Florida did for me; he also asked that I bring the voltage regulator in along with the alternator, and that's how we found the particular problem. Just a thought, as it sounds like you may have a problem with the rectifier bridge circuit inside the alternator.

Monster · #11 (**permalink**) 10-22-2003, 12:07 AM

Interesting how things go in cycles.
I am tracing down a charging problem right now. I had the old style regulatur and have old Chiltons & Motors manuals with adjusting procedures. Basically, you are suppose to adjust them on the bench and then re-install and check. The adjustment is done by bending the bracket for the spring on the output side. (up is lower voltage, down is more voltage. I found this a very touchy adjustment to perform even a slight increase jumped the voltage up from my low 12.5v at idle to 15.5v. at which point my B+ Alt. wires got hot in seconds. I went and bought a new solid state regulator and now I have 13.5v max (regardless of engine RPM) and it drops as fans, lights are turned on down to 12.8v. I have a call in to the regulator manufacturer asking about the "excitor" voltage possibly causing my lower than desired 14.5v. I am expecting an answer tomorrow so I'll post what I find out.

Good luck,
Mike

paul cass · #12 (**permalink**) 10-23-2003, 12:04 PM

hey guys
been kinda busy so i'm just now replying. ken smith provided me with an old shop manual and as mentioned by mike you take the regulator off of the car and adjust and reinstall. it is a touchy adjustment. i'm now getting about 13.8 volts. i did have the altenator checked and it was ok. thanks for all the replys. wouldn't want to do this for a living!
paul

paul cass · #13 (**permalink**) 11-03-2003, 12:46 PM

hey guys
well, you'll will love this. for the past 5 years, ever since i restored the 65 mustang for my wife, i've had these electrical problems. after resetting the regulator i found that after the musatang warmed up that the voltage to the battery kept rising-to almost 16 volts! asked a friend, who used to race a real 289 cobra up until the early 80's, what he thought and he said that since i had exhausted all other possiblities he suspected a short in the battery. over the weekend i took the battery in for a test and they claimed that it was fine. i asked for a new one anyway and took it home and installed it. started the car and ran it for 20 minutes and not a problem one. the voltage stayed around 14.1-14.2. imagine, for the last 5 years its been the brand new battery causing the problems. at least its all well that ends well.
paul