Re: Outboard question but not antique

[billw]

Back to this again….

The engine is an ’86 150.

Today I did an ohms test. Found found the stbd. charge coil had 545 ohms; port 547. No shorts to ground. No shorts to each other. No shorts to alternator windings. This all seemed to be within spec, as I remembered it. So, I did a cranking, not running, output test with my peak volt meter and whadda ya know, no real surprise: Around 130 volts each. If anything, a little LOW.

I guess now, the questions are just more philosophical:

Is cranking voltage really that much less than idle speed voltage?
Was my high reading BECAUSE the engine was running?
Was it because I was testing inline with the power pack connected?
What voltage would it be capable of at 5500RPM???
What, if anything, regulates charge coil voltage?

What Mercury tests I have ever done, you can test running voltage all day long and the correct readings are in ball park with OMC’s. Cranking is not that much different.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Long live American manufacturing!