Guys, I stand before you a very very confused individual, and am really hoping somebody might have a solution to help me get this bird back in the air.
After installing the engine back in N6399U (after my rebuild), I started her up, and then noticed my alternator circuit breaker popped. When the engine is running, and the alternator OFF, the voltage is a steady 12V, which makes sense. However with the alternator ON (even with the engine completely off OFF), the voltage will drop to about 8-10V, and eventually the circuit breaker will pop again. I was thinking maybe the regulator/Rectifier was short circuiting itself somehow, however after ordering a new one and installing it exactly the same as the old one, the problem still persists. When removing the engine for my rebuild, other than disconnecting the wires leading from the alternator to the regulator/Rectifier, I disconnected NOTHING ELSE in terms of wiring. Now all of a sudden, after hooking everything back up exactly as before, as soon as I turn the alternator switch on (again, even with the engine off), in a matter of about 10 seconds, the circuit breaker pops. There is obviously a short circuit somewhere, hence the voltage drop/circuit breaker popping but I honestly am not sure where to even start looking. I have my plane set up per Revmaster Alternator diagram (posted below). I’ve noticed on the diagram that it says to ground the rectifier to the 12VDC battery Ground, but this still is not doing the trick. I’ve also tried grounding it in a different location, and with different wires as well, all with the same results (circuit breaker popping). I will say....referencing the Revmaster alternator diagram, if I ONLY connect the battery (hot wire) to the regulator/rectifier, the voltage will remain steady. It’s only whenever I connect the alternator leads to the rectifier/regulator as well, is when I notice the voltage drop. If somebody has a working Revmaster engine, would you mind taking a picture of your rectifier/regulator setup, and also taking a picture of your grounds, and also show me where your hot wire leads to, etc.? Now that I have taken my old one out, and attempted to put my new one in, I no longer have a working model of what the actual physical setup is supposed to look like. Also, does anybody know how you can actually test the alternator WITHOUT taking it off the engine case (measuring resistance, volts AC coming out of the leads with engine running, etc.). I’m really hoping the physical alternator is not the problem, because if so, that fix that involves removing the engine....again. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated! Revmaster diagram posted in this forum, about 1/2 way down. http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=451960 V/R Sam Spanovich N6399U 74S, Anacortes WA Sent from my iPhone _______________________________________________ Search the KRnet Archives at https://www.mail-archive.com/krnet@list.krnet.org/. Please see LIST RULES and KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html. see http://list.krnet.org/mailman/listinfo/krnet_list.krnet.org to change options. To UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to krnet-le...@list.krnet.org
