I pulled the generator last night, and the problem was immediately
obvious: the commutator had a big flat spot and the brushes were badly
worn - one enough that it wasn't under spring tension most of the way
around and didn't come close to making contact with the flat spot.
So I went over to Economy Imports and got a freebie replacement (can
you believe it? Lifetime warranties on Lucas generators?). Of course,
it wasn't quite right - I had to fab up a spacer to keep the fan from
grinding on the front plate. But that wasn't so bad. I soaked the felt
in oil over night.
This morning I reinstalled. The regulator and cutout were almost right,
and I got them back in spec. Everything seems copacetic - the ignition
warning lamp was indeed burned out (by coincidence or over-voltage...).
I hope this generator lasts longer than the one I took out, which had
been installed last June! If not, I think I'll go to one of those
modern single-wire alternators. It looks like I could hook up the
output to the D terminal on the regulator box and have everything,
including ignition lamp and ammeter, work...
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