Alternator Wiring Confused

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jhdeval

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I am sorry I read through several posts and am just confused now. Can someone set me straight.

Slant 6
Old style single field and large positive lug alternator
Standard (electronic) fld/ign rectifier
Electronic distributor and blue box ecu

Do I go from the positive of the battery to the ign on the rectifier and then fld to the field of alternator or ...

Do I go from the ign run to the ign on the rectifier to the fld on the alternator?

I am thinking the second scenario makes more sense but before I go blowing myself across the garage I just want to make sure.
 
I'm trying (and failing) to figure out what it is you're trying to do. Repair hacked charging system wiring? Modify it somehow? What's the goal here? The way it's supposed to be wired is ignition Run to the "IGN" terminal of the regulator (not "rectifier"), then "FLD" terminal of the regulator to the alternator's field terminal.
 
I am trying to fix a hacked job. The mechanic I used bypassed the wiring in the engine compartment I went directly to the ignition. The car runs but won't charge now. So I should be able to link off the wire going to the ignition coil which is a run from the ignition switch and feed it to the ign on the regulator (sorry wrong term before) and then straight from the regulator to the field on the alternator?
 
If you intend to tap into a wire rather than repairing the original wiring "all the way back the way it's supposed to be, you'll want to find the wire that goes into the ballast resistor -- the one that shows ~battery voltage when the key is in the "run" position with both wires pulled off the ballast. Then tap into this wire in a good and durable manner (I recommend using a Posi-Tap). However, tapping into a wire really isn't a very good idea; you'll be throwing an extra 2½ amp load on the wire meant to feed the coil, which will overload that wire and tend to lower the voltage the coil sees, reducing ignition system performance.

You may want to take this opportunity to upgrade to the charging system wiring setup Chrysler used on heavy-duty applications, with a field load relay. This is very easy to do: fetch a good quality, name-brand (Tyco, Bosch, Omron, Potter-Brumsfeld) 12v "NO" relay with four terminals: 30, 85, 86, and 87. You'll also need a relay mounting bracket and appropriate terminals. Shouldn't be too hard or costly to come up with this stuff locally; in my store, relay + bracket/terminal block + terminals = $13. Go ahead and tap into the wire described in the first paragraph of this post with a Posi-Tap, and connect to relay terminal 86. Run a new wire (with a 7.5A fuse in it, if you're smart) to relay terminal 30 from the alternator B+ output stud or the big stud on the starter or anywhere else reasonably accessible on the main charge line that connects alternator B+ to battery poz. Connect relay terminal 85 to ground. Connect relay terminal 87 to the voltage regulator's "IGN" terminal. Connect the regulator's "FLD" terminal to the alternator's field terminal.

The field load relay brings the alternator and regulator electrically "closer" to each other and, more to the point of this post, relieves the overload condition described above.

While you are in there working on it, run a new 12ga ground wire from the alternator housing (sometimes there's a "GRD" hole you can put a short self-tapping screw into) to the regulator base and from the regulator base to the battery negative terminal; this will bring the whole system to the same ground plane and smooth-out voltage regulation considerably.

You may want to go download the wiring diagrams for your '63 before you get started.
 
I am posting just to ***** if you don't want to read the story.

GRRR so f'ing angry. I hired a mechanic to install the electronic ignition at one point I called to see where they were and he said he was under the dash trying to find a 12v run feed. I assumed this meant that he wasn't getting 12 v when starting the car. Well after I got the car back I found the battery totally dead I said strange. And started testing. Found I was getting 7 volts from the alternator. I replaced the alternator and was getting 12 volts again but that was all. Not enough to charge the battery. So I started testing further I was getting no voltage to the field. So I went to the regulator nothing in or out. I scratched my head. So this is when I came here and asked about the wiring. I found several diagrams showing the proper way to wire the electronic ignition with the dual ballast resistor. This is not how it was wired. So I looked further and found to wires taped up and hidden but just bare ends. Success 12v at run and the other one came from the regulator. GRRRR I fixed the wiring and tested again and now get 13.4 volts a little low but certainly enough to charge. Success.

I just wish if he didn't know how that he wouldn't have done it. Now I have a hole in my firewall that doesn't need to be there. GRRRRR

I am done bitching and feel a bit better. A lesson learned in this case.
 
slantsixdan said:
Go ahead and tap into the wire described in the first paragraph of this post with a Posi-Tap, and connect to relay terminal 86. Run a new wire (with a 7.5A fuse in it...

You may want to go download the wiring diagrams for your '63 before you get started.
Click to expand...

Why Tap into this wire from the Ballast when one already exists that runs to the Regulator?
If You do, then what to do with the unused wire?
 
Slanty sixty dan gets sucked into a (nearly) decade old thread LOLOL
 
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