G1 Battery Issues

[ky_mike]

Still having problems. I hooked up a better voltmeter and no matter how far in or out I move the adjustment in the voltage regulator it makes very little change and won't go above 12 volts. I have a new VR on order. Any thing else you can think of that I need to check while I'm waiting for the delivery man?

[caddylac camper]

Just do a couple of basic checks on the charge winding on the starter/generator. Use the ohm meter function and connect the tester leads to the red and green wires with these wires disconnected from the voltage regulator. You should have continuity if the winding is good, meter should show approx. .001, next leave one lead connected to either the red or green wire and the other to the starter motor case, rub this lead on the case to make sure you get a good ground. You want to see no reading or and infinite reading, this indicates the charge winding is not shorted to ground. This is about all you can do with the starter on the cart, the generator side will continue to produce electrical energy except the voltage regulator interrupts the circuit to keep the voltage levels at the desired setting.

[ky_mike]

Originally Posted by caddylac camper

Just do a couple of basic checks on the charge winding on the starter/generator. Use the ohm meter function and connect the tester leads to the red and green wires with these wires disconnected from the voltage regulator. You should have continuity if the winding is good, meter should show approx. .001, next leave one lead connected to either the red or green wire and the other to the starter motor case, rub this lead on the case to make sure you get a good ground. You want to see no reading or and infinite reading, this indicates the charge winding is not shorted to ground. This is about all you can do with the starter on the cart, the generator side will continue to produce electrical energy except the voltage regulator interrupts the circuit to keep the voltage levels at the desired setting.

Good stuff. Thanks!

[Ranger1]

I had a very similar problem. The "things" that I found were the following...
The connectors that attached the Red/Green wires on the S/G... one had a bad connection so I replaced the bullet connector.
Checked all of the ground connections to assure that they had a good connection.
Was informed (on this forum) to make sure all of the ground wires were connected to the ground on the battery. (30 year old wiring)

All of these helped, however, it wound up being the F2 post on the S/G was broken inside so a rebuild was the final fix.

My thoughts... These are 30 year old carts with 30 year old wiring etc... every connection needs to be checked. The V/R could be bad however,
it could also be that the S/G connections have been over heated at some point which means it could be internal.
(not a pro, just a novice with a g1)

[ky_mike]

I got my new voltage regulator. Installing it Sunday since Im sitting at the campground all weekend (life is rough :))

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[ky_mike]

Installed the new VR and still does not charge the battery. Any thing else you can think of that I can check? I did the tests that caddylac camper posted and everything looks right other than I am getting .005 instead of .001

[caddylac camper]

Mike, I think you may have a bad commutator and or brushes. If the key is on and the gas pedal is depressed and you have your nominal battery voltage at the green wire on the starter/generator then your field circuit is complete except for the voltage regulator. You have a new regulator installed so we can assume that it is ok provided it is hooked up properly. Red/white to D+, green to DF and black to D-. The currant still has to go through the start relays and main winding in the starter/gen before it gets to the battery. If those connections are good and clean and the main contacts in the start relays are not heavily pitted up then you should be able to charge the battery. A worn commutator reduces the amount of voltage that can pass through it. When starting the battery voltage is low and it seems to start your cart ok, but for charging the voltage needs to be higher. Its relatively easy to check the main connections on the starter/gen and on the start relays, the relays can be checked by a continuity test across the contacts, you want close to .001 resistance but you will not know the physical condition unless taken apart. I have seen repair kits for them online. If it turns out to be a commutator problem this is fixed by cutting a bit of material off on a lathe to true up the surface again. Replace the brushes while you have it apart, making sure the brush holders move freely and there are no broken springs etc. Hope you don't have to go this deep into it but as with all starters its the commutator that wears down through use.

[ky_mike]

Thanks caddylac camper!

I read your last post and decided to check my wiring one more time...

Red/white to D+, green to DF and black to D-

I had red/white and black reversed. Hooked the voltmeter back up and voila, it stayed in the 15v range when I turned it over.

[caddylac camper]

Thats great Mike, glad you got it working.