| |
Labor Day Putting down your wrenches or time for
MORE wrenching? 
Plenty of places to share. | | Click on image for the lowdown. 
====
| | |
7 members (dt235sd, panic, JW51, 68ironhead, baldeagle, GMCJammer51, Bill Hanlon),
29
guests, and
1
robot. | | Key: Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod | | | Forums66 Topics128,004 Posts1,055,246 Members48,418 | | Most Online14,466
Apr 26th, 2026 | | AD Chevy Trucks  Over 6,000 pictures Brad Allen has an awesome collection of Chevrolet factory pictures that he has set up from film strips. Check them out!
Lots of work on Brad's part ... pure enjoyment (and references) for you!
| | THANKS!
For helping keep this great
old truck web site
on the Internet for over 30 years! and not clogged down
with Ads!  Again, thanks!
| | 
#46814 06/24/2005 5:07 PM | Joined: Jan 2003 Posts: 24 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Jan 2003 Posts: 24 | I have a '51 AD 3/4 ton with a new generator, new voltage regulator and a new battery (all 6 volt).
The problem is that the ammeter showed a good charge (about half way between 0 and full charge) up until a few days ago. For a while the ammeter showed that the system was discharging, but now the needle sits almost exactly at 0, showing a little bit of charging at higher RPMs and a little bit of discharging at idle. Turning on the headlights moves the needle to the discharge side.
What should the readings be? What might have happened? What can I do to get the system functioning properly?
Thanks in advance.
Rob | | |
#46815 06/25/2005 2:19 AM | Joined: Oct 2003 Posts: 124 Member | | Member Joined: Oct 2003 Posts: 124 | If your battery has a healthy charge, the ammeter will stay around zero. Drain the battery a bit and check - turn on your lights for a couple of minutes, then start her up. If you don't see a healthy charge with a little rev then you do have a problem.
A poor battery terminal conection can cause this symptom - happened to me a few weeks ago.
If that's not it - the recent changes you made are probably it.
The service manual describes how to check the charging system with a meter, that's the quickest time to run down the problem. | | |
#46816 06/25/2005 3:08 AM | Joined: Jul 2003 Posts: 586 Shop Shark | | Shop Shark Joined: Jul 2003 Posts: 586 | It all sounds normal to me. Once your battery got up to a full 6V charge, it's not going to charge anymore. Thats why your neetle reads zero. Turning on the headlights will discharge your battery a little. It's also normal to see the neetle go negative when the truck is at idle, especially with the lights on. Cecil..... | | |
|
|
| |
