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Should there be voltage on regulator body?

S

SeaPair

Member
While checking all the connections on my 1987 Johnson 120 i decided to use a small wire wheel (hand held) to clean up some of the rust / corrosion on the regulator / rectifier body since it was exposed. Soon as I took a couple strokes it sparked similar to when you hook jumper cables up...I know I did not hit any wires sine they were on other side and under plastic box thing.

I then grabbed my voltmeter and saw there was current showing when I touched the metal body of the unit..again not the wires.

Should this happen or does this mean there's a problem somewhere (also I am having NO SPARK issue).

I have attached a photo of where I was cleaning and checked for current...it was more accessible then (this photo is older).

Thank you.

regulator-sparking.jpg

p.s. When I saw this I was hoping I would get spark again once I unplugged that unit but there was no change :(
 
I hope you had the battery completly disconnected.

If yes. It is possible to get FRICTION SPARKS from the wire wheel on a steel surface.

Disconnect the battery & use a hand wire brush if a surface is rusty. A spinning can unexpectedly grab a wire & rip the insulation off or rip it out of the module.
 
I didn't have the battery disconnected actually...I was very very careful to not get close to the wires though...and power pack was unplugged at the time.

It was more than friction sparks for sure, I was using it by hand very lightly..and what about the voltage I get when touching the body of the unit with the multimeter?

It seems as though there is current getting to it on the outside somehow..but I do not know where or what to look for.
I had recently lost all spark all of a sudden which is why I was even back there looking at connections etc.

Thank you.
 
I can not be more specific since I have no schematic to look at.

But there may be a fuse that has blownout. Look around the engine for some type of fuse that would try To protect the voltage regulator.
 
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