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I am happy to hear this. I am ALSO happy to observe you are apparenlty paying attention to your dashboard ammeter. So many people, when they first encounter what they think is an electrical problem, start unscrewing and replacing caps, rotors, coils, condensors, etc., etc., without really having a clear idea of what the problem might be; the dashboard ammeter can often help us narrow down the potential sources of the problem. Before you decide to replace or rebuild the generator, you might want to try the following tests: (1) Look for obvious physical problems: burned wires, wires dangling loose, slipping belt, etc. (2) Get one of those test wires with alligator clips (or crocodile clips, depending on how you hold them) on both ends. Clip one end to the regulator base and the other to a good ground connection. If the ammeter suddenly shows a charge, check and clean the grounding surfaces. (3) Run your test leads between the ARM or GEN terminals and the BAT terminal. If you show a charge, you can take the regulator apart and try to clean and adjust everything, or you can try a new regulator. (4) If none of the above has made a difference in the charging rate, run your test lead between the FIELD terminal and ground. If the charging rate increase, ditto the above about cleaning or replacing the regulator. Thus easily, using a simple wire and the invaluable dashboard ammeter, can one diagnose many common voltage regulator failures. I don"t know what to tell you about whether to replace the regulator or clean it. On the one hand, there is a good chance the regulator you already have is more rugged than any replacement you"re going to find. On the other hand, not all regulator overhauls are successful, and then one has wasted time...
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