Trying to track down a short.
Where does the wire on the alternator that has a screw on it go. There is the 2 that are pluged in and the main white with red stripe but what about the other one?
Is it a ground?
I am getting roughly 7 volts out of it when I am cracking it.
HELP!!

 

the back of the alt

 

Its the charge output wire. When the engine is running, you should see AT LEAST 12 volts out of that wire. Mine had a new alternator, battery, upgraded power wires, upgraded fuseable links, etc and I got a consistant 14.4 volts no matter which accessories were turned on.

Anyway, it runs from the alternator, into the wiring haress and splits into two. One goes to the "main" fuseable link, and the other goes into the cabin. From there, Im not sure where it goes.

How are you looking for your short anyway?

~T.J.

 

Are you talking about the main power wire.
Cus I am talking about the other one I think.
I am using a multi meter, well my brotherinlaw is helping me. So the wire i am talking about should be wired into one of the 2 small wires coming from the plug in connector on the altenator?

 

Woah, wait a minute, I just re-read your first post, and there should only be three wires going to the alternator stock. One is the large white with red stripe wire that connects to the terminal thats secured with a nut. The other two are part of a plug, and simply plug into the back. Any more than that, and someone has added something.

The wire I was talking about in my previous post was the white with red stripe wire.

~T.J.

 

The wire I am talking about is held on with I believe a phillips screw. All this happpened when I did an engine swap. For some reason I thought that there was suppose to be something hocked there. Its a manual transmission if that matters.
I am wondering now WHY I have that wire on there now. I think that I added it , thinking it was as a ground. Then why am I getting voltage from it??
So just the Main white with red strip and the plug with 2 wires in it, thats all?
hmmmmmmmm.........

 

Yeah...There arent any wires held onto the alt with a phillips screw. Just the three that I already mentioned. Can you take a picture of the wire youre talking about? I might be able to recognize it. Maybe thats your short as well, and its grounding into the alternator casing. The alternator doesnt need a ground wire because it grounds to the engine block.

~T.J.

 

Yeah makes sense.
I dont know why I added that wire when I did the engine swap.
I found a short in wire that leads to the alternator.
I am trying to get an 82 with an 83 engine in it up and running. I put the engine in 5 year ago and never got it to run. Now thta I have the time and money to work on it I am trying to get it running. The starter will not turn the engine over(engine turns by hand freely)
Today while trying to start it i seen a big spark over by the exhaust then a cable by the carb was SMOKING!!!
My brotherinlaw and myself started to look for a short and found a wire from the alternator plug was grounded.
I am going to check it out somemore tommorrow!
Sorry for rambling.......just want to get this figured out.
I hope something real bad is not fried!