Generator light stays on, although very dimly

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King
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Generator light stays on, although very dimly

#1

Post by King »

Hi All

I went out for a ride last night and noticed that the gen light stayed on, although very dimly, until I reached highway speed. The genny is a stock 32E three brush, 6 volt, (rebuilt by Dale Cashman about two years ago) and has been working well and keeping the bat in good charge. The regulator is a stock Delco. I don't think it is any big deal but I would like to head off potential problems.
Should I move the third brush? Also what's the best multi-meter test to check out the genny's output and the regulator?

Thanks

King
dereborn
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Re: Generator light stays on, although very dimly

#2

Post by dereborn »

King! If you haven't touched it in 2 years, I guess it could well be the brushes starting to wear down, and/or the whole thingy gettin' clogged and dirty. Remove, clean up and check (replace?) the brushes - a good easy job for a rainy afternoon!

Just my 50 swedish öre...
Mike

Re: Generator light stays on, although very dimly

#3

Post by Mike »

I have a '65 I have had for 32 years-last year I finally got smart and got one of them regulator generator combos-I love it-no problems-got the regulator and all those wires away from the rear pipe.
I like my bike as stock as possible but will opt for better dependence any day.
I am thinking about going to electronic ignition, too.
If anybody has any bad or good new about these it would be appreciated.
King
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Re: Generator light stays on, although very dimly

#4

Post by King »

Hej Dereborn

Tack.

I think you are right. I'll clean her up and go from there.

King
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Re: Generator light stays on, although very dimly

#5

Post by 58flh »

King----Everyone is correct on the ,(cleaning-up)-of the brushes!.However as with anything ,check all wiring that has to do with your genny circuit.A look under the dash at the bulb & its socket should be checked.Also before touching ANYTHING/I would start bike /Run up the RPM & put a voltmeter to the battery & make-sure that your getting 7+ volts back in!.While there /if your using a Lead-Acid type battery ,check the fluid level in it.Remember after you clean that third brush,& ADJ. it /When checking the voltage going back into the battery,it can be erratic.,ex.(read 7.4 then drop below 6V.).This is a normal characteristic of that type of set-up.You can turn it in & it will be fine for awhile/But if you had a VOLTAGE METER constantly reading battery input,you would see the changes as they happen.The Man who rebuilt the 32/genny did it correctly as this is how they work.So if you see the genny light come on here & there /It is quite normal.Also you mentioned it went off with hi-way speeds,=more RPM & shes putting charge back into the battery.-(This is GOOD).The 32-genny is a powerhouse when configured to 2-brush/& you can do that yourself!Where the 3rd brush is concerned ,you can still have it but it actually becomes a shunt or trigger to let the regulater know its time to charge.This can be done in 6 & 12V configuration//& by looking at it no one would know ,as it looks stock.Just an IDEA/& Theres really NOTHING wrong with the OEM set-up!//Im just thinking in terms that TODAY we ride with a headlite on ALL the time & these systems were not designed to keep a light on & do 500-miles in a day.Good-Luck---Respectfully----Richie
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