New kid needs help with starter/generator

[cyclebender]

Hi guys, new to this forum and sure could use your help and experience. I purchased a used Club Car starter/generator to start a Honda motor. I don’t know what year this starter is for, but anyway I hooked it up, and it started the Honda right away. Problem is I don’t know how to use the charging capacity, if there is any. Anybody know an easy way to measure the voltage coming from the generator. I will purchase a voltage regulator when I find one compatible with this unit. Looking at a wiring diagram I saw posted on this forum, it showed the #10 red wire from the generator going to the started solenoid, but I can’t tell what post it connected to. Why go to the solenoid, is that the only way to get voltage to the battery? I’m using a ford solenoid that has two small posts in addition to the large post for the battery to the starter.
Any help or suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Cyclebender

[shadowman]

don,t mean to sound offensive but it sure sounds like this thing is jerry rigged big time....................i don,t know if this will work but since you have no voltage regulator i would get a a didital meter and probe both the pos an neg of battery with cart not running as for the voltage with a good battery you should have approx 12.7 volts............now jack the rear end up and start the cart your voltage should drop to 11.5 or so while starting but once started it should start rising............as your gassing the cart to WOT your voltage should be from 13.5 to 15.7 volts or so at WOT anything over or under and the stystem isn,t working right now the question is without a voltage regulator is it the S/G thats bad and since theres nothing else in the system besides the battery you would think it has to be the S/G as long as your certain the battery is good..............another way to tell and its reliable is to drive it at night with the lights on....when you come to a stop the lights should get a little dim but as you pull out and engine starts your lights should get brighter that tells you somthing is charging it to brighen the lights, i,m, kinda guessing and assuming here since the voltage regulator is missing from the system but this is the best i can offer right now.................good luck...........by the way if you have to triple check make sure the battery is good and terminal connections are clean and tight...........................

[cyclebender]

Tom, thanks for the reply, I really appreaciate it, but am a little lost with your answer. No cart, just a honda motor on my work bench with a Hitachi starter/generator mounted to start the motor with a belt drive. I think I have identified the started as a model GSB107 made between 1984 and 1996. I will ordered a voltage regulator just as soon as I can determine if the generator is producing sufficent voltage to charge a battery. I don't want to purchase a regulator only to find out the generator is not working properly. If the generator is not satisfactory, I'll just throw it away. Back to my problem. Can I just take a voltage reading directly (using a hand held volt meter) from the OB terminal on the generator? Will that produce a reliable reading? If so, I must be doing something wrong or the generator is shot, as I can't get any reading at all. Thanks again. Cyclebender

[shadowman]

i,m sorry i thought it was in a cart.......you should be able to get some sort of reading, does the volt meter have mulable settings on it and if so have you tried other settings? sorry about the confusion like i said i thought it was a cart.......one thing about the starter you got depeding on what year C.C. made starters that were for clockwise rotation and starters that were for counter clockwise rotation and that may have something to do with it........even thought they will start either direction i don,t know how the charging system would be set up................but if the system is charging you would thing you should be able to get a reading.........i need to ask a few people............................................ ...

[tpg]

Ground the field post on the generator. It will make the generator put out max. voltage. It will be around 16 volts. You can take the reading at the battery.

[crash12888]

Not knowing the Honda motor in question, Any chance it has a built in charging stator?

[4vertical]

also to add a starter/generator will only charge in one direction. as i recall a generator can be wired to turn in either direction. just someting to keep in mind.....

-Aaron

[cyclebender]

Thanks Aaron. When I put 12v to the starter, it spins in a counter clockwise direction, this is the way the factory wired it.I would assume it's suppose to charge in this direction also.
Cyclebender

[crash12888]

Sorry for my lack of manners, Welcome to BGW!
I believe it has to pass a certian RPM to start charging and not sure if the starting RPM is fast enough.
Have you searched for any info on it yet?
Go to the club car gas section and print the wire diagram, also check the stickies for testing the gen. It might say something about RPM requirements.
You can determine what wires go where when wiring it up with the voltage regulator when the time comes.

[cyclebender]

Thanks Crash. Took the motor apart, cleaned the armature and coils, installed new brushes. Every thing looks fine. Put it back to gather and it started the Honda just fine. Took a volt reading from the OB post, read .9 volts at idle and about 1.4 volts at about 2500 rpm. Guess this S/G is toast, save me from buying a regulator. Thanks for all your help. The Cyclebender