General generator guidance needed

[CableguyJJS3]

As part of my ongoing process of getting the Ranchero to start, stop and go, I have finally made it to the go part. It starts with the slightest hit of the key and purrs like a kitten. And even though I haven't driven it yet, I feel confident that the 4 wheel disc conversion is complete and will work beautifully. My question about the generator is just basic stuff at this stage. I am reading a charge when I come up in the rpm's, how much exactly I don't know I wasn't the one reading the volt meter. But I was sitting in the car watching the light. Now I know lights aren't end all be all, but here is what I have. When I start the car the light is fairly bright, then dims as I rev it up. Once I get to around 2k it goes off completely for a few seconds but then pops on again but very dim. I back out of the throttle and it brightens back up again, but does the same dimming and off when I come back up in the rev's. My question is can I get away with cleaning all the slime out of the generator and perhaps cleaning the point contacts in the regulator?? I did need to polarize the generator as I was reading no charge at all before that, but that's done now. From my perspective everything seems to be working so I don't think I need a rebuild or new parts, just trying to get some direction is all, this is the first generator I have ever touched. Thanks.

[hiball3985]

After the engine starts the light should stay off. I would take the generator rear cover off, clean the armature brush contact area, they can build corrosion if sitting to long, check the brushes for free movement, or buy new ones, there cheap, and the springs are good. You can check it some what by putting 12v to the armature post and a ground to the ground and it should run like a motor. Polarize it again when you hook it back up..

The symptoms also could be a bad body ground, just a thought.

[CableguyJJS3]

The car sat 7 years before I got it, so no telling what's in there really. I know the valve covers were leaking badly when I got it and the whole bottom half of the motor is covered in oil and grease and slime and all kinds of nastiness. And in looking inside the generator it looks to packed full of trash. As for the body ground, I replaced the one from the engine to the firewall completely with new cable and ends. But I got to messing with it a little last nite and ran into something weird. I'm reading fluxuating voltages at the reg, the light is still doing its on off on dim and bright thing as described above, yet I'm reading no positive voltage flow to the battery. So now I'm confused again. I will mess with it some more tonite and this weekend.

[CableguyJJS3]

Ok I'm cancelling my request for help. Converted to alternator today, wasn't worth the time or the hassle to try and figure out that generator.Flip side is I used the alternator off of my 68 Mustang and the harness and just made all those pieces work. Fit the alternator to the gen brackets and built the harness from the alt to the Mustang regulator. easy as pie and it even works woot woot!!!

[RICH MUISE]

Good decision!

[CableguyJJS3]

Yeah man, after I took apart the gen and found no issues and out it all back together and still no power I was done. I've beat my head on the fenders of this car enough as it is, I wasn't about to do it some more, especially not with a system I had never touched before, so in the spare parts box it goes. I was pleased to find that the alt I had laying around and hadn't been run on a car in at least 10 years was working so I saved that money, sadly the reg was rotten but not bad at $25. The rest was figuring out the bazillion different wiring diagrams I found and putting them all together to work with what parts and car I was working with, that was the hardest part. In the end it's putting voltages into the battery while it runs so I don't care at this point. The main reason really I haven't driven the car yet was no charge, didn't want to get stranded, that issue is solved. Now I need to get it to shift correctly new fluids all around and I can drive it, finally.