Hi, I installed a rebuilt generator in my '26, along with a fun projects cutout, new wiring, new battery about 2 months ago as part of a 12 to 6 volt restoration. The car has never seemed to charge correctly. So i've been crank starting it and once in a while put a trickle charger on the battery. This has been fine until a recent night drive with lights. they didn't last long so i began looking for the problem. Turns out i had a blown 4a fuse in the generator (what is this for??). I fixed this and now the ammeter needle does something other than point at 0. At idle it indicates between 8-10 amps and at any sort of speed goes off the scale. Figuring this might be because the battery was so low, i set out on about 4 hours of driving today (Woodward Dream Cruise). At idle the needle is now near 4, but still off the scale at speed, and the battery does not seem much more charged. Still has trouble turning the engine over. Any ideas?
thanks!

Sounds like a bad battery. If it is it will kill your generater.
Also: Did you set the 3rd brush so that the generater cgarges 20 amps before you took the cut-out off and put on the FP regulator?
I have installed about 4 of the FUN PROJECTS regulators. In each case they charge full(20 amps) for a short time (20 seconds to a few minutes) and with lights off they charge an amp or two at speed.
A constant high charge will also kill your generater.
Charging more than 20 amps for any amount of time can kill your generater.

Any time you grind away on the starter too long to get the car started you will have battery?charging issues.
You say you converted, or reverted, back to six volts. And you can't get it to start easily? You don't mention if you threw away all the battery and starter cables and installed 6 volt cables.
You need AT LEAST number 1 cables, preferably 0 or 00 (written 2/0, pronounced double ought).
12 volt cables WILL ABSOLUTELY cause poor starting/slow cranking speeds.
That includes the ground cable.

Ken
A four amp fuse is installed in the field circuit by some generator re builders to prevent the generator from destroying itself if the output to the battery is accidentally disconnected. This fuse can also blow if the generator output charging rate is set too high. If you witness the ammeter needle showing 20 amp charging that is probably why the fuse originally blew.
If you know for sure the battery is good I would install the cutout and reset the charging rate for 4-5 amps max, keep you eye on the ammeter and be sure it is charging at the rate you set and see if it keeps the battery charged after normal driving when using NO headlamps. If that works out try reinstalling the VR following the instructions to the letter without variance.
Aaron is right on about using the 0 or 00 gauge battery cables. Original Model T battery cables were 0 gauge. That is mandatory using the 6 volt system.
Ron the Coilman

Thanks all, yes i did "accidentally" disconnect the cable to the battery once while thinking "i don't think i should be doing this". And no, i didn't change the cables... i was being cheap. So i'm off to snyder's website now.

does anyone suspect my ammeter? does it sound like its acting normal? it never seems to drop below 0 for any reason. Does it make sense to change this first to get a better idea of what the generator is doing?

As i recall, i did not buy a VR, it was listed as a cutout. Are all FP cutouts really VRs?

thanks,
k

If you turn on the lights when the engine is not running, the ammeter should read a discharge. If it doesn't drop below 0 something is wrong with the ammeter.

Do you know anyone in your area who is familiar with Model T's. Maybe someone could help you check out the system.

Any loose connection between the battery and the generator could give you the symptoms you describe. Check battery cables, starter switch, terminal block, ammeter, and cutout/regulator for a loose or corroded connection.

Norm

Charging much over 10 amps will not only damage the generator, but also "boil" the battery. Excessive charging will not charge more but start splitting the water in the acid in oxygen and hydrogen which is a very explosive mixture and will also change the acid solution to a bader mixture.
I have never had so excellent charging since I mounted the FP regulator. Right after start it charges 14 - 16 amps, but after half an hour it went steady 10 amps. When lights are on it just charges 0,5 - 1 amp, which is just about enough.
The remarks about the cables are right. The starter pulls a lot of amps and the cables should not mean further drops of voltage - the starter needs all the 6V :-)

Kenneth Klemmer:

While we are probably best known for our voltage regulators - we do also make diode type cutouts. They look the same on the outside. Cutouts really are for cars that are rarely driven and only during daytime since you must not set the charge rate higher than about 4 amps with those or you will overcharge your battery big time and ruin it along with cooked generator too most likely. Cutouts are in the $25 range while Regulators are in the $65 range. You should be able to determine what you bought by what you paid.

John, definately bought a cutout then. Sounds like i need a voltage regulator since this car is driven 2-3 times a week.
thanks!