> which undoubtedly
> explains why, all these years, I've been able to run heater,
> lights, wipers and such with no complaints from any part of
> the charging system, all the while blissfully ignorant of the
> repercussions! :D
No doubt. I wasn't quite so lucky; used to have a dead battery at least
twice a week because the generator just couldn't keep up with a short
commute at night in cold rainy (or snowy) weather. At first I tried turning
up the control box, but that burned out generators; then I took some
measurements and discovered that the total load (on that TR3A) was well over
20 amps (not counting brake lights) while the stock generator was only rated
at 19 amps.
But part of the problem may have been that I wasn't using "Prince of
Darkness" bulbs (the specs in the manual are remarkably low compared to
US-spec bulbs) and had rewound the heater motor in search of a bit more heat
output.
-- Randall
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