1969 Bus - Generator Light Was On For A While....

[coilette]

I have an alternator in my '69. I was cruisin' the other day and the generator light came on. I finished driving where I had to go, the light faded off, so I drove her a few more times with the light coming on more often than not... till it died.
She's on a trickle charger now so I can get enough juice to work with. My wiring under the dash is a mess and several things have shorted out recently. Although those things are fixed, it's still a mess. Other than all of that, is there a better place to start looking for the problem?

[Sluggo]

Make sure the belt is not broken and that it is spinning the fan.

Start by making sure all of your connections are good and then move on to testing the battery, then the alternator.

[Amskeptic]

I have an alternator in my '69. I was cruisin' the other day and the generator light came on. I finished driving where I had to go, the light faded off, so I drove her a few more times with the light coming on more often than not... till it died.
She's on a trickle charger now so I can get enough juice to work with. My wiring under the dash is a mess and several things have shorted out recently. Although those things are fixed, it's still a mess. Other than all of that, is there a better place to start looking for the problem?

This is a classic symptom of a grounding rotor IF the light comes on at higher rpms, then starts slowly coming on at lower and lower rpms until finally it is on even at idle.
Colin

[jeb1978]

This is a classic symptom of a grounding rotor IF the light comes on at higher rpms, then starts slowly coming on at lower and lower rpms until finally it is on even at idle.

OK, I'll bite... what is a "grounding rotor"? I've been having intermittent generator-light-on issues on my '69 Bus as of late. It would come and go for about two weeks, be on solid for a key cycle, then off again. Then it was off at idle, but on at 3000 RPM and higher. Now it's on all the time.

All the testing I've done per the Bentley says my generator is bad (30 amp). I noticed that one of the wires from commutator is broken off when swapping the brushes around. I would assume this is the problem.

[Amskeptic]

This is a classic symptom of a grounding rotor IF the light comes on at higher rpms, then starts slowly coming on at lower and lower rpms until fiunally it is on even at idle.

OK, I'll bite... what is a "grounding rotor"? I've been having intermittent generator-light-on issues on my '69 Bus as of late. It would come and go for about two weeks, be on solid for a key cycle, then off again. Then it was off at idle, but on at 3000 RPM and higher. Now it's on all the time.

All the testing I've done per the Bentley says my generator is bad (30 amp). I noticed that one of the wires from commutator is broken off when swapping the brushes around. I would assume this is the problem.

Grounding rotor symptom is specific to alternator-equipped cars.

Broken wire on commutator? Yes.
Colin