Make my own stator/charge coil?

[anderkart]

regulated the volts with an old Harley Sportster voltage regulator,

I cant tell how you've got this wired up but those old style Voltage regulators control the Generators' output level by sending the needed amount of field current to the generator's Field terminal. Your DC. motor doesn't have a field terminal like a generator would so I don't see how your regulator could be controlling (or limiting) your DC. motors output level. (although Generator Regulators do have a set of cut-out points that might be usefull for keeping the batterys power from back-feeding to the motor)

Unless your motor is producing over 15 volts or so, all you should need between its output terminal and your battery Is a suitable sized blocking Diode (maybe a 10-amp) that would allow the charge to go on through to the battery, but not allow the batteries current to back-feed and try to operate the electric motor.

How ever you've got this system wired up, It does sound like your charging system is trying to work. Make sure your vacuum cleaner belt Isn't just slipping. When an Alternator, Generator (or DC. motor) is producing current, they don't just spin freely. Some high output alternators require as much as 5hp. from the engine to spin them while their charging and they need the belt to have good gripping ability at the drive pulley or they'll just slip and have low output.

Its also very possible that your just not spinning this electric motor fast enough to achieve its maximum charging/output level.

 

[Daveon]

Ander, I installed a diode between the motor and regulator. I don't know how the regulator is working but it is, I'm using the - on the motor for the field, which is kinda a ground, but not. It's just a science experiment. Plus I'm too cheap to go buy the real thing.

 

[motor_head]

those old style Voltage regulators control the Generators' output level by sending the needed amount of field current to the generator's Field terminal.

that's an alternator which is the the newer type, generators are the old type, a generator uses a regulator that just dumps the excess current

 

[anderkart]

that's an alternator which is the the newer type, generators are the old type, a generator uses a regulator that just dumps the excess current

Maybe some types of small engine charging systems work that way but those 70's Sportster Generators didn't just charge wide open all the time, and then have the regulator dissipate the unneeded output.

The design of the Bosch brand voltage Regulator Daveon's using sends a variable amount of ground signal to the generators field terminal (as needed) to maintain the output level to around 14-volts. 12 volt VW and GM Generators worked the same way and their regulators were interchangeable on older Harleys.

These Generator Regulators also had a cutout function and could be adjusted to raise/lower voltage and max output. I know all this cause I spent 17 years working at an Auto Electric specialty shop that specialized in rebuilding/Installing charging systems.

 

[Daveon]

New idea for regulating, since I don't have a real generator with a field, what about a regulator from a 12v solar panel, like this?
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96728

 

[anderkart]

First measure how many volts your Electric motor puts out (at max engine rpm) without using any regulator at all. Unless its running over 15 volts (while all connected up to a fully charged battery) It probably doesn't have enough output to warrant needing any regulator at all.

If its charging over 15v. (and under 22v./7-amp max) that Harbor freight regulator sounds like it'd probably work alright and lower its output down to a 14 volt max output. This regulator isn't going to increase your output voltage. Its only going to reduce it, if its higher than 14 volts...

 

[motor_head]

Maybe some types of small engine charging systems work that way but those 70's Sportster Generators didn't just charge wide open all the time, and then have the regulator dissipate the unneeded output.

The design of the Bosch brand voltage Regulator Daveon's using sends a variable amount of ground signal to the generators field terminal (as needed) to maintain the output level to around 14-volts. 12 volt VW and GM Generators worked the same way and their regulators were interchangeable on older Harleys.

These Generator Regulators also had a cutout function and could be adjusted to raise/lower voltage and max output. I know all this cause I spent 17 years working at an Auto Electric specialty shop that specialized in rebuilding/Installing charging systems.

guess i was wrong thought thats how they all work i do know lawnmowers generally don't even have a regulator some do though

 

[Daveon]

Ander, the direct output when revved will get over 19v, through that regulator I get a max of 12.6. I know I need to do something about my rigged "pulley" system, right now I'm under driven with a 1" o.d. on the pto and 1.5" on the motor.

 

[anderkart]

Whoops, I went back and re-read all your posts and saw you'd already said you were getting an (un-regulated) 19 volt output. I still think that Harbor Freight regulator would probably work fine and drop your output down to 14 volts.

Yeah re-gearing your rigged "pulley" system would probably allow better output at lower engine RPM's, but as long as your not doing a lot of extended low RPM driving it sounds like it might work out alright. I was thinking you might be able to help this by installing a Bronze bushing or steel sleeve over your Engines PTO shaft (where your Vacuum cleaner belt drives) either with a keyway or simply sized to be the perfect length to be retained by being squeezed between the inner hub of your T/C and the PTO's inner stop lip... This should be a very inexpensive way to increase your Generators RPM a bit. As long as your belt didn't end up being too tight, you can get 3/4" ID. bushings in many different OD. thicknesses to gear it most anyway you wanted.

Just out of curiosity, I've been sitting here studying your pic showing your Electric motor/Bosch regulator/wiring and trying to figure out how you currently have it all wired up. Somehow you must have this system connected in a way that this regulator is simply acting as a resister and causing a large voltage drop. I've never messes around with using an electric motor as a Generator, but I can tell you for sure that Bosch regulator was never intended to work that way.

 

[anderkart]

guess i was wrong thought thats how they all work i do know lawnmowers generally don't even have a regulator some do though

Hey no problemo there motor_head, I've never really had the chance to work on many small engine charging systems, so I got a feeling you probably know a lot more about those than me.

Most all those older automotive (Generator) Regulators simply monitor the charging voltage and then send the appropriate level of field current to maintain the system somewhere around 14 volts. (pretty much just like Alternators do)

The main difference in Generator Regulators is they also have a secondary function that connects/disconnects the Generators Armature (output) post from the battery. This feature ends up serving the same function as the anti-backfeed Diode Daveon installed in his system.

 

[Swabbster]

if someone wanted to use this idea with like a tav2 with the back plate they could buy a longer bolt that threds into the crank and attach a pulley,