Hoping I can get some advice on troubleshooting the charging system on my 1955 Ford 850. It's the 6v positive ground system. I've owned the tractor for a few months and it runs fine but does not charge the battery during operation. I'll run through the tests and actions I've taken:
- If I remove the ground strap while running the engine cuts out, I believe this confirms the charging system is not producing current.
- The ammeter is stuck at zero and does not budge during operation. I replaced the ammeter - no change.
- I've compared the wiring to the diagram in the manual, it all appears to check out. The previous owner had done some rewiring, but the only thing that appeared to be missing was the wire from ground on the VR to ground on the gen. I've replaced that on the off chance it could make a difference, but it did not.
- I've performed a motoring test on the generator (removed wires and belt, grounded field, energized arm to bat neg) and the generator pulley turns when I do so. If I understand correctly, this is supposed to indicate that the generator works.
- I replaced the VR, as it appeared this might be the source of the issue. The new VR (from Steiner) did not appear to change anything.
- I polarized the system as described by the literature that came with the new VR (jump field to bat terminal)
- The battery is new and takes charge well from an external charger.
- I've checked that the generator and VR ground out well
I've read just about everything I could find on this subject and performed every test I could find. I've already sunk a good bit of money into this and figure it might be worth at this point performing a 12v conversion and rewiring, but I'd really like to find the source if the issue and fix it first. Anyone have any tips or recommendations? Any help is greatly appreciated!
- If I remove the ground strap while running the engine cuts out, I believe this confirms the charging system is not producing current.
- The ammeter is stuck at zero and does not budge during operation. I replaced the ammeter - no change.
- I've compared the wiring to the diagram in the manual, it all appears to check out. The previous owner had done some rewiring, but the only thing that appeared to be missing was the wire from ground on the VR to ground on the gen. I've replaced that on the off chance it could make a difference, but it did not.
- I've performed a motoring test on the generator (removed wires and belt, grounded field, energized arm to bat neg) and the generator pulley turns when I do so. If I understand correctly, this is supposed to indicate that the generator works.
- I replaced the VR, as it appeared this might be the source of the issue. The new VR (from Steiner) did not appear to change anything.
- I polarized the system as described by the literature that came with the new VR (jump field to bat terminal)
- The battery is new and takes charge well from an external charger.
- I've checked that the generator and VR ground out well
I've read just about everything I could find on this subject and performed every test I could find. I've already sunk a good bit of money into this and figure it might be worth at this point performing a 12v conversion and rewiring, but I'd really like to find the source if the issue and fix it first. Anyone have any tips or recommendations? Any help is greatly appreciated!
Last edited:
