Charging question

[Jack]

I had my 6 volt generator and voltage regulator at the shop, and everything checked out good, the gentleman adjusted the contacts on the regulator. I came home and installed them on the cub, and the gauge needle pegged all the way to the charge side. It did that for a while, now the needle on the gauge is showing on the discharge side of the gauge,
( the tractor starts right up without hesitation)
Will the charging system do that until the battery needs some juice from the generator? Or do I have a problem with the gauge?
Thank you in advance
Jack

[tst]

if the needle is moving the gauge is probably good, I would follow this chart to find the issue

[Jack]

Thank you

[Eugene]

Will the amp gauge show a charge when the engine is running at 1/2 or more throttle?

My tractors with a generator and regulator will show a slight discharge at reduced throttle.

[Jack]

Will the amp gauge show a charge when the engine is running at 1/2 or more throttle?

My tractors with a generator and regulator will show a slight discharge at reduced throttle.

The gauge reads on the discharge side at low idle and at full throttle, but the tractor starts right up , it's been like this for a few months now.

[Glen]

Hi,
The ammeter pointer should not go into the discharge area of the gauge when the engine is running above idle speeds.
It sounds like the generator or regulator has quit, unless the ammeter has quit.
When the system charges the battery up, the pointer goes back to near 0, not into the discharge area of the gauge.

[Crimson Tim]

Sounds like it’s wired wrong. A tractor that is not charging should run a couple of weeks without putting an external charger on it, but not a couple months. It must be charging, just wired in a way to not show the charging. Or the gauge is stuck on discharge. Does it go to zero when shut off?

Put a volt meter on the battery when off, then again when running. Voltage should be higher when running.

[ntrenn]

My 63 that is a 40 year old 12v conversion has been doing the same thing for years. Battery never goes down. It charges when it feels like it. I quit worrying about it.

[inairam]

There is a nice post on the voltage drop test on a 6 volt system

http://www.farmallcub.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=38133

[Normanott]

If generator has a cover band take it off and look for solder from the armature, if you were changing at 20 amps that would cause high heat. Most of those generators were closed and not ventilated and will heat hot enough to melt solder, look for solder on cover band. It's not a good idea to adjust a regulator that has been in service, I have before and sometimes it's ok sometimes not.