HELP -battery cooking

ZieglerSpeed

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84 318 5th ave. I wanted to keep origional alternator, but it wasn't charging so it got diodes, bearings. It was a poor job and I had the alt rebuilt by another electric motor shop as it made bearing noise. The system is charging at 16 volts at idle and boiling bat. I put on a new regulator and its still 16 volts and boiling. Can the alt put out to much if the reg is good?
 

MiradaMegacab

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If I'm off of here for 6 weeks, my "stay logged in" is irrelevant, you forget my email, you forget my password. Its a bitch to get back in and I AM SICK OF IT!! -Tim Ziegler


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volare 77

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It is time to check the wiring harness. It sounds like it is grounding out somewhere. I had the blue wire under the dash was melted on my car. Look around closely for bare or melted wires.
 

Aspen500

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If one of the field wires are grounded, it will cause unregulated charging. Check to be sure BOTH brush holders have the insulating washers on them, between the attaching screws and the terminals. If missing, it will be full fielded because the field circuit will be grounded. I'm assuming before the alternator failed, it was charging OK and the only thing that's been changed is the alternator so, that's where I'd look first, then go from there.
 

78VOLAREWAG

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84 318 5th ave. I wanted to keep origional alternator, but it wasn't charging so it got diodes, bearings. It was a poor job and I had the alt rebuilt by another electric motor shop as it made bearing noise. The system is charging at 16 volts at idle and boiling bat. I put on a new regulator and its still 16 volts and boiling. Can the alt put out to much if the reg is good?
I had a Dodge pick up do the same thing, turned out the ground from the battery to block was bad.
 

ZieglerSpeed

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Thanks, as I absorb all info, I removed the female spaid wires from back of alt and use an ohmeter from the male spaid terminal to the alt case, one field terminal has continuity to ground so I'm taking alt back to auto electric shop
 

ZieglerSpeed

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CONCLUSION: Bad rotor in alt. When I installed the repaired alternator it still only had 12 1/2 volts at idle. Tried a new regulator and BINGO, 14 1/2 volts. When the alternater was putting out big time, it cooked the batt and fried the regulator. Ahh, that was a tough one. I feel for a mechanic up against this issue, but then I didn't want to just put on a new alternater. (they're date coded)
 

Aspen500

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Good deal! As an auto tech (aka mechanic), we run into things similar to that everyday. "What failed to cause the failure of what?"
Semi off topic: I still remember back in the 1980's when a Tempo would get hauled in for a no start. More often than not it needed a stator (distributor pickup coil), a TFI ignition module AND a new coil. Any combination of new and old and you'd still have no spark. So, what caused the failure of all 3 pieces at the same time? We always guessed the coil shorted and sent a voltage spike down the primary ckt into the TFI module and stator but how can you verify that, not to mention explain to the customer why it needed more than one part to get it running again and you just didn't "throw parts at it until it was fixed"?
 

ZieglerSpeed

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It helps o have an understanding customer eeh? Why some mechanics are in their own business to hand pick their clients. My auto electric man mentioned a heavy duty v. reg has some soltage spike protection and might have survived. Your Aspen is beautiful! I think you have a 1/4 dragstrip by you? I can't imagine that power. If you could get traction you could spin the earth faster
 

Aspen500

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Thanks for the car compliment! Closest strip is W.I.R. over in Kaukauna, near Lake Michigan about 100 or so miles ESE. The other is Rock Falls, about the same distance the other direction, sort of near Eau Claire(?) Only was ever there one time a loooooooooooong time ago so I don't remember for sure. Like 35 years ago, there were plans for a 1/4 mile strip in the Wausau metro area but it never got very far. Just as well. Where they had planned on putting it in what was then way out in the country, is now more like the middle of the city due to the metro area population going from about 50,000 then to 110,000 now and so called "urban sprawl" so.........................
 

ZieglerSpeed

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I raced a lot at Rock Falls (Eau Claire), loved it! Strip was owned by legendary stock elim racer Al Corda. Ya know, Brainard was born because as "urban sprawl" squeezed the strip outa Coon Rapids the owners relocated. Milwaukee has it figured out. The drag strip, airport, junkyards and dairy farms are past Hales Corners in Union Grove. If you don't like noise, stay the fuck out. I guess the cows got use to the noise. They race all night there. If you lose you can buy your way back in
 

Aspen500

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My dad (electrical engineer) worked with Al Corda at Marathon Electric for years. Not sure what Al did, if he was an engineer or worked in the shop. I remember seeing him (Corda) driving around in his '64(?) Plymouth every so often when we were out cruising back in the early '80's. In fact, the block in my dad's '62 Fury came from Al Corda's drag car. He bought the original 318 out of the car from before it was turned into a race car. It was have the original engine in the '62 Fury (200,000+ miles) bored out or use the VERY low mile block from Corda's car, which only needed a light honing and it was like brand new. Yes, my dad still has the numbers matching engine for his Fury. All we have for 1/4 mile track here is an oval. It used to be out in the toolies, now its surrounded by sub-divisions and things like that. Sometime's you hear about people complaining of the noise but it's basically "you knew there was a race track there when you bought the house so,,,,,,,,,,,,,shut up and stop complaining about it!" It's one Thursday a week from 6pm to 10 pm for maybe 4 months of the year and also the occasional Saturday race during the day. Sheesh! I mean, it's like buying a house at the end of an airport runway and then bitching about the jets making noise when they take off. But I digress.

Haven't been to Kaukauna for years, TOO many years. I mean like 25 and I want to, no,,,,,I NEED to get back over there again soon. Not to race, but to watch. I need the sound of open headers, the smell of tire smoke and also to have a tire patch on bun, a.k.a. race track hamburger. Life doesn't get any better than that!:cool:
 

ZieglerSpeed

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What a story! -and when I'd bracket race at Eau Claire and when I'd lose I'd go sit in the bleachers then and b.s. with Al and Sid Lewis (the native nephew of Ira Hayes). Ahh, the noise, burning rubber, smell of exotic petrol and meat on the grille. Pretty close to heaven isn't it~
 

Aspen500

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Sounds vaguely familiar. Thinking back, I'm PRETTY sure Al Corda worked at Marathon Electric anyways. It's been a very long time since all that happened. Since my dad knew him, I assume he worked there but the memory gets fuzzy after 30 or 40 years go by, and my dad retired 20 years ago (he'd 90 now). I'll have to ask him next time I'm over to his house.

Oh yeah, in addition to smelling tire smoke and the track burgers, I forgot to add the awesome aroma of burning 110 octane race fuel. Nothing better!:)
 
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