[T3] Adventures in electronics (red light on)

[Brian Fye]

see if the rotating assembly is round.  if it is out of round, that can
cause the same bruch issues.

On Mon, Jan 21, 2013 at 6:39 PM, Chris Slaymaker <nurofiz at knology.net>wrote:

> I was driving to work at dawn this morning and the GEN light comes on.
> Normally, I would pull over immediately because in most VWs of that
> vintage, it could be a broken fan belt (and loss of cooling).  Instead, I
> turned my headlights off and drove the remaining 3 miles (of a 17-mile
> drive).  I had noticed the smell of overheated electronics prior to the
> light going on, so I suspected the voltage regulator.  When I parked the
> car, I pulled up the back seat and the voltage regulator was hot, but
> looked OK.  I checked in the engine compartment and saw that the brushes
> were worn down.  I mashed on them and then fired it back up. The generator
> light was off, so I went in to work.
>
> This afternoon, while driving back home, the generator light started
> flickering after about five miles, then was steady on about halfway home,
> so I knew the brushes weren't gonna hold me until I found new ones.
>
> Incidentally, I called the local NAPA store and they said they had to be
> made at the factory and shipped to the store.  It would take three days and
> shipping alone would be $12.
>
> I found a set of used brushes in one of my spare generators (Type 1) and
> put them in.  Now everything seems to be OK.  I will call a friend whose
> primary business is buggies and rails (he's been working on ACVWs since the
> 70s) and hopefully will find a couple of new sets of brushes tomorrow.
>
> The brushes that were in there wore down prematurely (2 years and 18,000
> miles) in my opinion.  They came with the new generator that I put in there
> at the time.  Someone said that a faulty voltage regulator can cause
> premature wear, but this one tested (and continues to test) fine.  I've got
> a spare (solid state also), but what's the point?  I guess they don't make
> brushes (or generators) (or voltage regulators) like they used to.
>
> Chris Slaymaker
> 1971 Westfalia "Lurch"
> 1971 Squareback "Foster"
> Knoxville, TN
>
> ". . . at least I'm enjoying the ride."
>
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-- 
Brian Fye
Canyonville Christian Academy
541 839 4401 ext. 110
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