The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The Electrical Bay How to check generator output

Allen:

If we're looking at the truck, and you follow Stuart's procedure, you will read anywhere from 6-8 volts on the battery when the engine is running. (provided it's stock, that is.) You will want to have someone on the throttle or have the engine idling fast to check the generator. Generators don't put out a consistent amount of juice. It's directly related to the RPMs that the engine is turning out. (Faster = more juice)

I may not know beans about alternators, but darn it if I don't know generators and old vehicles/farm equipment!



Don't feel too bad. The Ammeter is a "Little Known, Seldom Used" (at least these days) trick that lets me cheat. I'm all for not diging out tools that I don't have to.