1 wire alternator

   Jim, you certainly are taking the batton and running with it! Good job with the last post! I am glad we are both keeping ourselves on our toes! Im sure Jbear will be passed out on the floor after reading all of this!! The thing about theory is that no matter how technical a circuit is, you can keep going and going on different aspects of it that are irrealevent(sp) of the situation. I enjoy this and it also keeps me on my toes because I have not been doing much work requiring hard core thoery, just doing more manual labor due to a large tower job we took on.
   As far as your boat goes, you will find the #10 goes to the ammeter on the dash from the alt, then back to the breaker. I like your observation about the cicuit interupter and not a breaker. I would of not caught that if you didnt mention it. Are you gonna rewire your boat and run a #4 wire too??? lol/ The best part of these post is I hope if someone reads them, they will be more cautious when adding accys and wont just run a wire of improper size and unprotected. Shorcuts can get you in trouble as I wired a temporary 12v power outlet in my parents new 85 Astro conversion van a long time ago to go on a trip, and leave it to me, I said that I will go to the fuseblock with a fusetap and tap it on the 20a fused side so I dont need another inline fuseholder there. Well to make a long story short, just prior to ripping it out after the trip, my sister folded the rear seat back, cut the wire, and the #14 burned from the rear to the front. It destroyed the fuseblock, carpet, etc the van died, almost caught fire, and took me 2 days to fix it all because I was too lazy to put a inline fuseholder in, and made a mistake by tapping into the feed side of the fuse on the fuseblock...Not a way to learn!! Dont be lazy!!!
    Jim, before I end, did you ever think that maybe tony posted this on purpose to see a possible battle??? He isnt far from Jbear you know, and you know he loves it!
    Lucky that Jbear is gone home for a short trip, or we might be having to help after he reads all this. Maybe Tony should change the topic of this post.
    What I really wonder is how many actually read all of this to the end????
    Jbear will have to take a day off when he returns for all of this!!!
    Sorry again Tony!!! Hope you got it figured out, cause we sure dont!! If I could send ya a cold one via email right now I would! Well..... Im going to have to email Jbaer a case!!! Isnt this site awesome!!!

                            Jeff....

JEFF KOSTIS wrote:    On new GM trucks, they use a #4 on their alternators, since they have gone to a one wire system themselves.

Don't beleive this is quite right, a 10 gauge wire, but not a 4 gauge wire, GM has used a single wire since the development of the SI series of alt(which is about twenty years old now) and before that it was really a one wire system but there wire two wires going in a common connector and one was just bascily a ground.

TONY!!!!!!!!: please do not get these guys goin' anymore. I am running out of Beam. Out to the ABC store or call 911. My brain is froze up. How was your ride? I am gonna pass on Daytona (to busy) but I hear there is lots goin' on at Orlando. I have guest coming in for Tribe Spring Training this weekend but may go for an evening ride.
Again: please consider my mental health (fragile) before starting any more electrical posts!

john

Gee, after that electrical engineering course my second year of college I swore I'd never look at those equations again. Guess I was wrong BKH

Tony; How was Daytona?
Please, no more of these electrical posts! My mental state cannot take it.
You mentioned Orlando. Got any info on dates yet? We gotta get a banner or something to draw guys from this site. Gonna take your boat? Of course I will. Maybe we should meet up along I-4 and enter together, park side-by-side and get up a sign or banner.
Let me know. It'll be here before we know it.
Hi to the Mrs. for us.
Be safe on the job.

john

ps; to long should've just e-mailed. sorry

Tony; Ok plan on May 13th

There was something there last year from PN so...this year we will have something from C/CFAN!

Did you get anything yet on sign-ups?

john

    Glad to hear the outcome!! As far as the NSS, it is prob getting tired as they do get intermittent and fail quite frequently. Check to verify the trans shift lever is in fact in neutral when the control is in neutral. You can confirm by jumping the wires out on the switch with a clip lead, or move one wire over to the same screw effectively connecting the 2 wires together if the problem arises again.

                                  Jeff..

    Tony, dont I wish I had this site a few years back when I was rebuilding the 74! I had to learn the hard way, slowing things down BIG TIME as I was just starting on it.
    I am pleased to see things are good. Looks like there is no need for a seperate voltmeter line. I have a hard time with whats considered "acceptable" when I know its marginal. Nice work, and sorry for the shrink, and the need for extra drinks!! Especially poor Jbear!!!!!!
                                   Jeff...