I got on Amazon last night and saw an AC Delco Gold regulator. Lots of reviews. Mostly purchased by 80s/90s Mopar owners. Definitely mixed reviews. Plenty of bad ones saying they don’t last and they have to keep replacing them. Gee, what a surprise!

I could get another PCM but who knows if the regulator in it works or if it does for how long. Always some used ones (boneyard salvage) on EBay and other places.

 

OK HY, here we go. I have the voltage dash gauge steady as a rock again. Took it for a 7 mile ride and it didn't so much as flicker one iota (other than when I had my turn signal on). Here's what I did.

Some background first. I'm thinking the better part of two years ago (because I think I discussed this with Ralph and he's been gone 1-1/2 years now, but it could have been with you...don't remember) I discovered an issue with the two field wires connected to the alternator. The first inch or two of wire coming off the ring terminal looked discolored (possibly burnt) and were very brittle. I cut it out and put new ring terminals on and the gauge steadied up again. Since then I mighta had those terminals off and on a couple times for whatever reasons.

Current Day: Got to thinking maybe I should check those two field wires again. So I went to take the nut off one of the studs where the wire connects to the alternator and it wouldn't back out all the way. Threads were munched. Had to get a small screwdriver behind the nut and push on it while I backed it out with the socket. Thought, oh crap this will be fun getting this to thread back on. I used an M4 tap and retapped the nut. Then I chased 3, maybe 4 threads on the stud with a M4 die. It's as far as I could go because there was a plastic frame around those studs that got in the way of chasing it further down the stud. I cut the ring terminal off the end of the field wire and crimped on a new one. Used 4 small flat washers as spacers that I put between the ring terminal and nut and was able to cinch it down using just the first few threads I was able to chase on the stud. Took it for a drive a voila!, gauge needle steady as a rock again. Got back and dissected the old ring terminal I snipped off. Saw nothing out of the ordinary. Wires still looked clean and fresh, could not pull them out of the terminal without massive effort, everything nice and clean (I had heat shrink around it). And another thing, a week back I had the wife sit in the truck and watch that shaky gauge while I went and fiddled with various wires to see if it would steady up the gauge. This is one of the wires I fiddled with. Was connected nice and tight. I did nothing with the other field wire today because I don't want to find those threads munched too. I consider myself fortunate having cleaned up the threads on the other one enough to get it to work. I'll have to get that alternator on my bench if I want to rethread those studs properly.

Anyhow, I have no idea how long this "fix" will last but once again I'm back to a steady gauge. Was it a bad connection at that field terminal? Don't know what else could it be. I didn't fiddle with any other wires.

Here's a question for you (beyond any answers you might already have from what I just told you). IF there were a bad connection at that alternator field terminal, how would changing or beefing up the ground to the voltage regulator steady up that dash gauge albeit only temporarily (like what has happened in the past)?

 

A bad connection at the field terminals would certainly give you some odd symptoms. As for fixing something else to 'fix it', perhaps there was more than one problem going on there?

Are there enough threads that the nut is gonna stay tight??

 

Not sure if I have enough threads on that stud HY. Not enough room to really do the job 100%. I have to take the alternator off then pull off that plastic framing around the studs so I can run the M4 dies all the way the full length of the stud. Guessing I can (and should) put that plastic framing back on. It's there for a reason (to separate the two terminals). I may leave it for the moment to see what happens but I suspect it wont be long and I'll do the job right. Just blows me away that what seems to be so simple ends up being a PITA. Nothing wrong with my connection the way it was that I can see. Last week I tried moving that ring terminal and it wouldn't budge. Solid connection. Geez, I know I'm an idiot but I can do wire connections.

 

The job that keeps on giving...... For me, today, that's my chainsaw. We actually have decent weather, so, thought I would go out, and finish cleaning up the sticks and low hanging branches in the yard..... put the new bar and chain on the saw, cleaned the air filter, gased and oiled it, tried to start it. Nope. It will run for a few seconds, and quite. Pull the trigger, and it will quit right now.... the funny little bulb to prime it doesn't feel quite right, and I see air in the fuel feed line.... I wonder if my lines have rotted out AGAIN.... they have been replaced twice on this saw already..... and last time was like two years ago. So, I spend 45 minutes to an hour struggling with a saw, and I am pretty much done.... Gotta love MS... (no, not Microsoft.... )

 

I can relate. There is no finickier piece of lawn and garden equipment than a chainsaw. Nothing comes close. And if you don't stay on top of it, it translates into the performance of the saw. I live in the woods and use my 25 year old chainsaw frequently (used it last weekend to cut up my neighbor's 30" dia. red oak). I'm not saying I'm an expert on proper care and maintenance of a chainsaw but if I'm not, I'm the next thing to it. The bar rails have to be perfectly level (must be able to stand the bar on edge on a perfectly flat surface like a kitchen counter), the chain teeth themselves have to be identical geometries and be sharp with round gullets (else it cuts crooked), the rakers have to be at the correct depth (shows up in the chips/dust), the sprocket can't have big wear gouges in it, the air filter MUST be clean or it wont start, and the oiler has to be working. As for the gas lines and carb, they are incredibly sensitive to bad gas like you have run into. I never store my chainsaw with pump gas in it. I'll run pump gas in it but wont store it with pump gas. Makes no matter if it's ethanol-free or not. Ethanol creates only minor problems. It's the benzene in pump gas that kills lines and carbs. When I store my chainsaw I empty the tank and fill it with engineered fuel and run it for 5 minutes. Engineered fuel is almost all paraffins...no ethanol and almost no benzene. It's good for two years and will not damage fuel lines, primer, or carb like pump fuel does. About $7/quart at Home Depot (or as I call it, Home Away From Home Depot). Could run it exclusively but gets expensive. I've replaced carbs and coils. Gotta try to find a name brand if you can else the Chinese crap is hit or miss.

And I do sympathize with your MS. I've told you about my buddies wife who has had it since her 30s (she's in her 60s now). A pretty bad case that relegated her to an electric scooter early and it's a struggle for her to do anything physical. Sweet lady cuz she keeps her chin up, stays positive, and keeps her mind busy. Different meds over the years with mixed results. It's a disgusting malady and my hat is off to you for fighting the daily battle.

 

Well, only supposed to be in the 70's today, but it sure feels a LOT hotter than that out in the sun.

They sell the "Tru-fuel" at lowes here, but, 20 bucks a gallon? Nope. Don't think so. I'll take it in and have it maintenanced every couple years instead.

 

I would never burn that engineered fuel either, not full time. Way too expensive. I just use it for storage.

Couple more trips with the truck. Needle steady as a rock. Got to replace a water valve and a sink drain in the bathroom next. Never catch up.

 

The joys of being a home owner. I am waiting for the HVAC guy to show up, to get an estimate on replacing the compressor for my central air..... Got one.... from a friend, and its still 4500 bucks. Ouch.

For my 2 cycle toys, I drain the tank, and run 'em till the quit for storage. My tractors, I just fill the tank, and leave 'em. Never had any problems with those. My Chainsaw.... I used it a couple weeks ago, and it worked fine. Usually starts and stays running on the second or third pull... now, its yank on it to get it to fire a bit, but, that's all ya get... won't even run on choke.

 

Those compressors are killer.