Case 195 Voltage Regulator

[RoamingGnome]

Grandpa (my '68 Case 195) has been a little under the weather lately - 'been singing the red generator light blues...
It's got the Kohler with the starter/generator set up - took the voltage regulator off and cleaned all the connections but still no juice

Checked with the local Kohler dealership and they can order in a replacement voltage regulator for $60 Cdn...

My question is... anyone ever used a non stock voltage regulator as a replacement? The original Case p/n was A 70221 or Delco Remy 1118988

When going through my Dad's collection of nuts and bolts and other automotive treasures in the basement I found a couple of vintage Motorcraft Voltage Regulators that have similar electrical connections.

They don't look like they've ever been used (he had an old '72 econoline van and probably had saved these just in case he needed one someday...)

Just hesitating before I order a replacement from the dealership, It's tempting to use 'found' parts but I'd hate to screw up a starter generator that seems to be starting the tractor just fine...

[Eugen]

Gerry, I don't know if those voltage regulators would work. The important specs probably are the voltage that's being regulated, in our case 12 volts, the amperage that the regulator can do, which is probably fine, those being from a car with a bigger battery, and the field voltage and current.

Two of my tractors have this type of voltage regulator and at some point I bought one second hand from a fellow near Uxbridge. It was not an original Delco-Remy, rather an aftermarket device. Mine have three tabs at the front,
F = field; goes to the starter/generator F terminal
B = battery plus
L = load?

and one tab underneath, see the electrical diagram from the 200 series operator manual for how all this gets connected.

So, if your regulators have those tabs and are from a 12 volt system (with negative ground), most likely it'll work. I am attaching the two manuals I have from the time I was troubleshooting my system.

delco_remy_generator.pdf

(5 MiB) Downloaded 108 times

delco-remy-voltage-regulator-service-bulletin.pdf

(1.76 MiB) Downloaded 99 times

[RoamingGnome]

Many Thanks @Eugen
I really appreciate the PDF for the Regulator Service Bulletin - that explains the inner workings quite well

I'm leaning towards purchasing a new regulator and keeping my 'found' ones for later learning, testing and inspection.

When I have time and space I'd like to get a bench top adjustable DC power source (0-30v DC) so I could do some electrical re-educating and test the cut in and cut out settings of those ford regulators. They also have 4 terminals, but I need to check a ford wiring diagram to correlate the 'T' 'A' 'S' and 'F' terminals on the Ford parts to the Delco terminal ID's - It's true what they say about if 'if you don't use it you loose it...'
Some days trade school seems a very long time ago

[Eugen]

BTW, I got pretty much all the electronics measuring devices needed for this, including power supplies. I was a bit at a loss when I was troubleshooting my starter/generator not charging. You know, it can also be the generator at fault. The best way I found was with a known good generator and voltage regulator. Did you already come across the part where the starter/generator needs to be charged?

[DavidBarkey]

Those NOS Ford regs. are probably worth more to someone with classic Ford than a new replacement that is a direct replacement .

[propane1]

Did you take the regulator apart Gerry. ? Just points and coils in there, if I remember right. Use to be able to adjust the voltage in some of those.
Points could be just stuck or need a filing.
I got a regulator at a tractor parts store for a Briggs and scrapem engine a few years ago, that had a starter/generator.

Noel

[RoamingGnome]

Thanks for the feedback guys!

@Eugen - Unfortunately my 195 is the only one I have with the starter/generator combo, - I will probably go the "Plug & Pray" route first and see if a new regulator of the proper type fixes the problem. A test bench to spin up alternators and generators would be a good project for a retired guy like me with "so much spare time on his hands"

@DavidBarkey Yikes! I did a google search of that Ford part number and got a hit for someone selling the same item on EBay for $150

@propane1 - Noel - Good suggestion on looking inside - now that I've seen drawings from the service bulletin that @Eugen shared - I've got a good idea of what I should be looking for...

Great advice

[RoamingGnome]

Installed the new voltage regulator in Grandpa (Case 195) yesterday...

It works!!! No more red light on the dash, and happily charging at 13.5v now.

I ordered it from a local tractor shop in Waterdown,

the Delco-Remy part #1118988 crossed over to a "Mega-Fire" 435-040 (which is also a replacement for Briggs & Stratton part #295924) Took a few days to come in and cost me about $70 Canuck Bucks taxes in.

@propane1 suggested looking inside and seeing if I could clean up the contacts on the coils and maybe spot any problem areas - while I was waiting for the new regulator to come in I opened up the old one, and also the Ford one that my Dad had left me...

I was a little surprised to see a circuit board instead of two coils on the Ford Motorcraft one - guess technology made some advances from the late 60's to the early 70's, The original Case part didn't look too bad, other than the gasket being brittle and falling apart. I'll add it to my collection of junk and try testing it some day, just to see how the internals work...

For now, I'm celebrating the fact that I at least have one of the 3 tractors working again...

[Eugen]

I'm glad you got it working and I think the price is reasonable considering it'll last for many years.

[Harry]

Installed the new voltage regulator in Grandpa (Case 195) yesterday...

It works!!! No more red light on the dash, and happily charging at 13.5v now.

I ordered it from a local tractor shop in Waterdown,

PXL_20231026_222519004.jpg

the Delco-Remy part #1118988 crossed over to a "Mega-Fire" 435-040 (which is also a replacement for Briggs & Stratton part #295924) Took a few days to come in and cost me about $70 Canuck Bucks taxes in.

@propane1 suggested looking inside and seeing if I could clean up the contacts on the coils and maybe spot any problem areas - while I was waiting for the new regulator to come in I opened up the old one, and also the Ford one that my Dad had left me...

PXL_20231021_213411169.jpg

PXL_20231021_213428969.jpg

I was a little surprised to see a circuit board instead of two coils on the Ford Motorcraft one - guess technology made some advances from the late 60's to the early 70's, The original Case part didn't look too bad, other than the gasket being brittle and falling apart. I'll add it to my collection of junk and try testing it some day, just to see how the internals work...

For now, I'm celebrating the fact that I at least have one of the 3 tractors working again...

Gerry, I’m having similar situation with a starter generator on the 444. Had it rebuilt by a shop, new bearings and brushes and still light is on. I have a gauge I was going to install instead of a light. I should take a look inside of regulator and check the points setting. Thanks for sharing your experience. Harry