Electrifying!

I spent most of today working on under-hood electrical things.  I was working alone today, so this seemed to be the most productive use of my time.  I want to get the alternator, horns, and brake lights working first, because these will be required to go anywhere on the road.

The first order of business was to get the charging circuit to work, which is key to completing the conversion from 6 volts to 12 volts.  My self imposed restriction, however, is to do this in a way that it can be easily converted back to stock (6 volts) in the future.  I decided that the most straightforward way was to replace the stock 6 volt voltage regulator with a simple terminal strip, so the original wiring can be used to connect the new 12 volt alternator directly to the battery.  This alternator directly replaces the original generator, which I have retained along with all the other stock parts I have upgraded.  I didn't want to drill any new holes in the car, so I decided to make a plate that uses the same holes as the original regulator.

The new plate is spaced away from the inner fender surface with washers.  This should keep it from scratching the paint, or inadvertently shorting out.

 The barrier strip will fit on this plate, but I also prepared a "dummy" voltage regulator (really an empty shell) that I will eventually fill with headlight and foglight relays.  Using relays limits the voltage drop to the headlights, and makes them more reliable and brighter.  I don't need to install the relays right away, but I do need to make sure this plate has room for them.

I taped the washers in place to make it easier to install the plate.  The original regulator is at the top of this picture, and the base for the "dummy" regulator/relay box is to the right

Drilling holes to mount the relay box

It was tricky to mount the relay box, since I don't want anything poking through the plate.  I used some very short 8x32 screws in tapped holes to do this.

Here's the plate with the barrier strip and relay box.  It looks almost like the stock regulator

Here it is mounted in the left front of the engine compartment.  That wad of yellow wires goes to the ammeter at the starter solenoid, which is connected directly to the battery.  This is where the main charging circuit from the alternator needs to connect.

I connected the main yellow wire from the barrier strip to the alternator.  I also connected a ground wire, and another wire for the generator "idiot light"

While I was working in this corner of the engine compartment, I installed the coolant recovery system.  It took maybe 15 minutes to install!

 So, does the charging system work?  Here's a video from my cell phone:

Note that the ammeter is hooked up backwards, and shows discharging when the battery is actually charging.  Oh well... I suppose I could install it upside down, but why bother.  I think I can remember that it reads backwards.  In any event, it felt very good to have the alternator working!  One step closer to getting the car on the road.

The horns should be easy... they are a very simple circuit.  I had installed the horn wire in the steering column two weeks ago.  I installed the horn ring (button?) in the steering wheel, and checked for continuity when I pushed it down.

Nothing.  No continuity.  After eliminating everything else (a break in the horn wire , bad continuity in the horn ring itself, etc), I finally realized that the metal center of the steering wheel was covered with paint.  Maybe that would make a difference?

A few minutes with emery cloth and the horn button was solidly grounding the horn wire when I pushed it down, just like it should.  The only thing left to do is install the horn relay and hook up the horns.  Now, where did I put that relay?  I eventually found it and cleaned it up on the wire wheel...

The horns and the relay are still 6 volt, but they don't get used often enough to really overheat.  Here's a shot of the relay in position.  You can see the left horn peeking out from behind the radiator bracket.

I hooked up both horns, connected the battery, and (after eventually remembering to hook up the horn wire from the steering wheel) had success.  This is very encouraging!  The horns are quite loud.

Next, I tried hooking up the brake lights.  This took a little studying of the schematics, and I soon realized that I needed some inline bullet connectors to connect the tail lamps.  It was getting late, and I didn't really have time to get them tonight, so I settled for installing the ash tray and glove box door.

The dash is almost complete!  The remaining holes are for the clock (now on it's way to be refurbished) and the heater controls.

Overall, it has been a very satisfying day.  I spent it in solitude, but I still feel blessed.