[TR] TR2 - Rope Fan Belt and Non-stopping Generator

[Randall]

>  The odd thing was that the generator was still spinning.  It 
> continued to spin until I disconnected one of the wires.  Can 
> anyone explain why?

That would indicate that the cutout relay in the control box did not open as
it should.

> It seemed like 
> it turned into an electric motor.

Exactly right.  Electrically, they are the same thing.  When the engine
turns the generator faster than it wants to run, it generates power.  But
with the engine not turning it, the generator would act like a motor except
that normally, the cutout disconnects it from the battery when the output
voltage drops below the battery voltage.

> Did I somehow reverse the polarity of the generator?

Possible, I guess.  Couldn't hurt to try repolarizing it, but I don't think
it will help.  And of course it won't solve whatever is wrong with the
control box.

> Any help would be greatly appreciated.

The steps in the attached booklet are reasonably straightforward, and should
quickly lead you to the problem.  Don't forget that there may be multiple
problems, so perform all the tests before deciding which units to replace.
If you are lucky, it's just the control box ... but unfortunately, driving
with the control box on the fritz may have fried the generator as well.

Randall

[demime 1.01d removed an attachment of type application/pdf which had a name of Lucas Generator and Control Box tests OCR.pdf]