5000D gen, at it again!

[ed1]

Ok I pulled my gen off and had it checked , guy said it was
putting out 50 amps. Will that work with a 22 amp volt reg.? I
posted last week, my battery was boiling over, so thinking I
might have a regulator sticking, I filed the point s lightly (finger
nail file). Now it is not working at all (light on). The gen, starter
and alt. guy is going to check regulator today, he did say that a
50 amp output is no problem since the regulator should take
care of that. I'm on my 2nd gen and 3rd reg. so I' m thinking of
going with the kit (alt) that has the tac. Drive and complete
harness (250.00) . Any advice as always is appreciated.
Ed1
 

[Will Gumbert]

The electrical shop should always test the generator and regulator together. Also, the regulator must be the correct type that is designed to be used with that type of generator. If not, the shop should be able to get one for you and test it with the genny before you put them back in the tractor. The mechanical regulators are sensitive devices and easily damaged. Make sure it has a good ground. -Will
 

[Bern]

Bite the bullet and buy the alternator kit. It will likely be the LAST time you ever have charging system issues with that tractor.

There's a reason auto manufacturers abandoned generators 50 years ago.
 

[ed1]

If my volt reg is dead, I going the alt route before I spend any more money on this system.
ed1
 

[souNdguy]

if the generator is in operating condition and no damage to the fields, etc..and it can be bench tested to produce power, then that leaves the rest of the issues to the vreg, wireing and battery.

with your statement of 2nd gen and 3rd vreg... you ain't got something right... and I doubt it's the genny.

lucase gennies aren't my favorite.. but they work ok.

lucas regs are pretty junky in my opinion.

you CAN get a working veg...

function of a genny and vreg can be as simple as the rest of that old technology on that machine.

I've never 'had' to convert to a alt because I couldn't make a genny/vreg do what i wanted it to do.

i HAVE converted to an alt before for other reasons however ( starting from scratch , or unable to locate an affordable replacement..etc.. )
 

[Shoepeg]

Where are you getting that alt conversion kit for $250? That seems cheap to me. I am considering doing the same with my gen but I've priced them @ $350. Let me know.
 

[Will Gumbert]

I can understand how you might want to go with an alternator, especially if this is a work tractor you use everyday. As Bern said, the alternator is generally more reliable and has some advantages over a generator like not having brushes that carry high current (the alternator will usually have slip rings instead that carry only the excitation current which is about one-tenth of the alternator's output) and smoother output voltage. Sometimes you have to raise the engine speed above idle to get them to start charging, but that's usually the case with a genny too. The kit you mentioned, does it come with the necessary mounting hardware, hookup info, and a tach drive? If so, that sounds like a fair deal. -Will
 

[RodinNS]

I don't think I'd bother buying a harness... Just buy the alt and mabey the brackets if you're not comfortable making that. The rest is only a couple of wires that you can easily run yourself.

It seems that you have a bad regulator at this point in time. That's not uncommon..... As Bern suggested, you can bite the bullet now and fix it or you can replace the reg and do it all over again at some unknown point not too far down the road.

Rod
 

[ed1]

It was a bad regulator, so I bought a new one (38.00) and I am going to give it one more try. It is a working tractor and so is my Jube (6V pos grd) for 11 yrs. now and no problem. I also have an 841 D that my father converted ot an alt. 20 years ago and I work it regularly. I went on line ( Cheap tractor parts) and the kit is 250.00 with everything and it does have a tac drive. Thanks to all your responses .
ed1
 

[souNdguy]

you can also retrofit a 59-64 diesel FORD vreg and it will make the lucas genny work... just watch your loads and self limit them to 20a vs 25a.

you will have to make a couple jumper wires for the vreg conenctor with a spade terminal kit.. but it will all work perfectly.

I did this on my 5000 while I looked for a suitable replacement vreg for my lucas genny.

ford style vregs for the 12v b circuit are pretty robust in my opinion..