OK wanted to run this annoying problem by you all and see if any one has a diagnosis or had this happen. Car is a 1965 L76 with factory AC. Battery is on the left side under the master cylinder. The car starts fine cold, and runs fine most of the time. Ammeter does show a lot of charging to the far right also most of the time. The needle can also flutter a lot like the voltage regulator is turning on and off. But I have changed that several times. I have a battery cut off switch that I use when i am not driving the car and it is sitting up so if I am getting a drain like I suspect it is not a dead car when it sits up. Every so often when I am driving it and I turn it off and let the car sit for a little while it will not start. Meaning its like there is no power to turn over the engine. Nothing completely dead The ammeter is about a 1/4 over to the left of the zero when this happens so there is some drain or short. But again its only sometimes. The horn also works and then sometime does not. I even get a shock sometime's when I use it. I have checked and cleaned the electrical harness firewall connectors.

When it doe not start I can hook up my trusty portable 700 amp small battery booster to the battery posts and the car will start right up. The car battery is three years old and per testing with the bulb tester and a voltmeter I have power there.

Anybody got any ideas?

 

Clean up the red wires on your horn relay and double check the pins on the bulk head connector.

 

When it doesn't start when its hot the starter should be the problem
it happened on the 63 installed new starter all OK .

 

One more thing to check is both ends of both primary battery cables, particularly the ground cable. Next time it won't start, try wiggling both cables and see if that helps.

 

For not starting, and the battery gauge moving left when you try, sounds like the starter solenoid. That's the symptom I had when my 65 had a sticking solenoid.
For shocking you when you try to honk the horn, you need to add a jumper around (from one side to the other) of the rag joint in the steering column. The collapsing field from the horn relay is passing through your body instead of back to chassis ground. Probably only does it when you have your arm laying on the window trim or door post, or maybe leg against the window crank or another ground. Theoretically, I guess a loose or corroded ground from battery negative to frame/engine could also be an issue.

 

I agree, start there..

 

a significant clue is that your 700 amp booster/charger gets the car running each time...

 

I had a problem just like that in my '55 210 and it turned out to be heat soak. I could jump the battery with another car or just let the engine cool down and it would start right up. I also think it might be your starter/solenoid.

 

The cold weather that recently hit around me finally killed the rest of the battery. I installed a new one and that has helped with the starting and no more crazy reading on my ammeter. But when I turn it off I do get the ammeter moving over to the negative side by 1/4. So there is a draw but after the car cools down its back up straight. Once I have time I am going to start working on those suggestions like the starter solenoid and so on.

 

Well I would first figure out what the draw is. The only thing that should be is the clock. I would also check the glove box light and make sure it shuts off.

 

The clock wouldn't have a steady draw I don't think...just a blip when it rewinds every 2-3 minutes. You can put your cell phone on video and record when you close it up in the glove box to see if the light goes out. Finally, disconnect the alternator (unplug it) the next time you shut the car off and see if you still get the deflection..

However none of the above would account for the ammeter gradually returning to zero after the car cools down...

 

Auto electric has always been a challenge for me and I always take my problems to an auto electric shop where they find these problems quickly.

This is a common problem with all old Chevys. While this won't solve all of the problems the OP is referring to I would recommend this:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Early-Chevy...-/262942631948

It is not cheap but is a mini starter as well and has plenty of room if running headers as well AND slotted mounting holes.

I have one for my new 383 engine and will be installing it soon. I ordered a different one from Summit but it did not bolt up and when we tried to change the nose piece from the old starter we would have had to change other parts to make it fit so I just returned it and ordered this.

 

You don't know if the battery is getting recharged do you? Most auto parts stores have loaner tools or will test your charging system for you if you drive your car over to them. Myself I have 20 dollar battery testers that can test the battery and measure charging voltage in one minute.

Something I came across recently is that the older generators have permanent magnets that lose their magnetism if not used for long periods. I believe you can reflash the generator. You should be able to google this for more information as that's how I found it.

As for the horn shocks you need to know how to use multimeter to find energized surfaces. If you don't know how to use a multimeter then you need to find a automotive electrician that does.

 

I had a perfect looking battery cable that corroded inside the insulation about one foot down. (I did an autopsy).

So frustrating.

 

Generators are different beasts, C2s use alternators and do not require polarization of the magnets.

And, contrary to popular opinion, generators almost never need polarization either. If they have sat on a garage floor for 4 years perhaps they've lost their residual magnetic polarity -- perhaps

 

No, that is not right. A Generator with a permanent magnet is called a magneto, such as used in certain drag racing engines and your lawn mower. The permanent magnet allows it to produce current upon rotation, no battery needed.

The generator (and the alternator) used in our cars use an electromagnet powered by the battery called a field which must be powered or "excited" in order that the unit begins to produce current.

A generator does need to have a magnetic orientation, called residual magnetism in order to keep its proper polarity. As Frank pointed out, a generator almost never needs to be re-polarized or "flashed." Only when completely stripped down with its armature replaced or having sat unused for years does a generator lose its residual magnetism. It never hurts to try flashing one, but that will almost never fix a generator with no output.

When generators or alternators fail to charge the voltage regulator should always be the first suspect and can be tested by using your shop manual to full field the generator or alternator. If it produces 15-18 volts under such test, the generator or alternator is OK and the regulator or wiring is suspect.

Dan

 

So I made a mistake. Corvettes got alternators in '63. Big deal. You gott'a cure for his problem? Or just want to talk about my mistake??

 

Wow

 

Cardo- I don't think anyone here is even thinking about what you say is your mistake. You made no mistake, you are trying to be helpful as are the rest of us. I'm sure you agree that diagnosing electrical problems requires going in with a known set of facts, so when one of us hears something not quite right we feel compelled to clarify, to assist in the understanding, one of the purposes of this forum. We don't care who said it and why, only that the facts are disseminated. Happy New Year. I'd give you one of those thumbs up cartoons but I don't use 'em.

Dan