Re: [ihc] alternators

[John Hofstetter <hofs@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Dec 2, 2004, at 6:32 PM, <spamaddy@domain.elided> wrote:

> Hahaha, I think I figured out my problem.  I recently rebuilt my engine
> (yeah, I know I shouldn't be doing such serious work!), and had the 
> wiring
> all torn apart to clean/replace sections.  When I reconnected the plug 
> that
> goes to the alt, I reversed the wires.  Now I've redone them properly 
> and it
> looks like there's no current draw with the switch in the off 
> position.  I'm
> still confused, but it looks like this was the problem.  Very 
> boneheaded,
> thanks for all the feedback!
How could anyone be so stupid? I've never heard of such a thing!

I did the same thing a month or two ago and didn't catch it for a 
couple of weeks. The battery going dead every few days made me suspect 
the battery, but suspect my work? Nah. What really ticked me off was 
that I had done such a good job. And, I couldn't just change the spades 
in the plug because I had soldered a diode into the other wire.

What had let me be misled was that I had replaced the original field 
wire which is very small with a 14 gauge wire because that was what was 
lying around, so distinguishing between the two wires going to the plug 
wasn't as well defined as it could be. Simple test on the two leads 
(thanks, Mark, from Mad) is that the field lead is only hot when the 
switch is on, and the voltage sensing wire is always hot. Too bad I 
didn't test the wires before I rewired and not after the work was done.

It was much more difficult to change the diode than it was to install 
it the first time. I should have waited until we went to "town" and 
gotten another diode.

Mutter, mutter, curse, curse.

Anyway, glad you caught it.

John

John Hofstetter
Ol' Saline
www.goldrush.com/~hofs