Re: Voltmeter or Ammeter

Posted by Hal/WA on December 17, 2006 at 18:52:53 from (66.45.175.118):

In Reply to: Voltmeter or Ammeter posted by Aaron Ford on December 17, 2006 at 18:27:09:

I think a volt meter tells me more useful information than an ammeter. It will read the volts of the system at that time rather than the amount the system is charging or discharging. It should tell me if the engine will turn over before I ever activate the starter switch.

Also, a lot of modern alternator are capable of putting out much more amperage than most ammeters are made to handle. Once my son and I put a new, much stronger alternator on his old IHC Scout. We had to do some rewiring, since the new alternator had an internal regulator, but we continued to use the stock wiring scheme that put all the output through the ammeter. Unfortunately the battery had run down a bunch, so when we fired it up with the new alternator, the ammeter pegged the needle on the charge side. We didn't notice that right away and the ammeter got pretty hot. We probably really exceeded its design amperage by a lot. Luckily, we finally noticed the problem and shut it down before we had a fire under the dash (it did smoke a little!). We charged the battery with a regular charger and after that the system worked OK, with the ammeter never registering more than 30 amps charge, and then for only a few seconds before the reading went down. But I cautioned him to never let the battery get down very much and then plan to charge the battery with the alternator, since it had the potential to burn the Scout down. He sold the Scout a few months later, or we would have rewired it and eliminated whole power supply going through the low capacity ammeter. We explained what we had done to the new owner, who was a real mechanic.

You still need to follow the manufacturer's directions to install either an ammeter or volt meter. But I think the volt meter is easier and safer. IMHO

Replies:

• Re: Voltmeter or Ammeter souNdguy 06:41:08 12/18/06 (1)
  • Re: Voltmeter or Ammeter dan hill 03:17:32 12/19/06 (0)

Add a Reply Name: E-Mail: Subject: Comments: Optional Link URL: Link Title: Optional Image URL: Email Notification: If you check this box, email will be sent to you whenever someone replies to this message. Your email address must be entered above to receive notification. This notification will be cancelled automatically after 2 weeks.

TRACTOR PARTS	TRACTOR MANUALS

We sell tractor parts!  We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today. [ About Us ]