Lucas E3N does not charge after armature replacement

[Groily]

Sounds as if you have got the diagnosis right to me. Those replica regulators are, truly, very questionable.

If buying a dynamo regulator made in Holland as opposed to imported from the UK, be sure it is designed to regulate with the field coil wired between the F terminal and earth. Most dynamos other than Lucas (eg Miller, Bosch etc etc) are designed to operate with the field wired between F and D, and many regulators are designed to suit that - and so won't work with a dynamo wired the Lucas way.
Some people describe the difference as between 'shunt wound' dynamos (the Lucas way) or 'series wound' dynamos (the others) - I prefer to think of it in terms of which 'side' the regulating is done. 'Live' side for Lucas, earth side for the others.
Of the British made regulators, the only one I know that is wired for 'earth side' is the JG unit which has its origins for use with Miller systems back in the 1970s. DVR2s etc are for 'live side' applications and involve no changes at the dynamo.

Sorry to hear your magdynamo is a nightmare! Shouldn't be really, as the magneto part is pretty solid and very well-proven, and the dynamo is almost the same as what you have on this bike - or maybe it is the bigger better E3L version even. A good regulator is, as ever, the key to 'happy' if the nightmare bit is the charging side not the sparks.

Good luck again - with both beasts!

[Ed Field]

Small update, the ammeter in the Nacelle (is it called that as well at an AMC, it is by Royal Enfield) hs a reading, it's at a little rev almost at the corner, charging the battery at up to 8+ Volts. I quitted this test fast....

So, I'll have to wait for the new regulator, as I'm convinced Groily is right, "the Thing" is not working. The Dutch club is quick, so I expect it this week if it's on stock.

Keep you posted, have a nice evening,

Ed

[Groily]

Definitely not regulating if charging at 8 amps or more with a few revs. But you've obviously got the dynamo running like an express train.
Do be sure the regulator you have ordered is designed to work with the dynamo though. It does matter!
Nacelle is a good word I think. Works for any cover or metal shroud that goes over the headlight I reckon.

[Groily]

I will take note of reversing the brushes as one possible fix if I cannot get joy from the new armature (when I can get the sprocket off!)

Ha! Don't worry Clive, it's all smoke and mirrors - with the emphasis on smoke sometimes!

If field coil and brush connections are noted before disconnecting a dynamo that has hitherto worked OK, the rotation thing won't be an issue.
The problem only arises when faced with a 'new-to-you' one because not all bikes had 'em turning the same way so you can't be sure which way it's been slung together. Often the slinger-together has no real idea which way the user is going to need it to go unless he knows what bike it's going on.

Polarity is easy to change exactly as you describe.

Here are a few lightly-edited edited words from long ago that ended up in the Jampot, probably 10 years back, in case they are of any use.

Motoring; direction of rotation; polarity
To test whether a dynamo is basically all there, it’s a good idea to run it as a motor. It’s not 100% foolproof but it’s a good basic test. To motor a standard-wired Lucas dynamo, bridge the F and D terminals on the end, and connect the now-paired wire to the battery live (negative or positive depending on which earth you have), and earth the body of the dynamo to the other terminal.
For any dynamo where the field coil is wired between F and D internally rather than F to earth (for example if it’s been wired for use with a JG electronic regulator, most continental dynamos, etc), connect the F terminal to the body/earth with a short wire, then the D terminal to battery live and the dynamo body to battery earth. It should spin like a good ‘un.
Then check the thing rotates in the required direction (per the arrow on the drive end of the case – maybe!) but as dictated by the drive arrangement (definitely!) If it goes the wrong way, reverse the brush connections or the field coil ends (but not both or you’ll be back where you started). The oft-mentioned ‘polarity’ of the thing (whether it runs positive or negative earth) will be set by running it as a motor earthed the way it will be earthed on the machine. That has the same effect as ‘flashing the field’ by briefly touching the chosen battery live to the dynamo’s F terminal. It also restores remanent magnetism if it’s weak.

[ajscomboman]

Quote "I ordered a new armature at the club, completed it with new brushes and rebuilt the dynamo, including new bearings." Please be specific when mentioning which club. I spent ages trying to find out how a non member could buy parts from the parts service! Only to find you were referring to the Dutch Club, a totally separate club from the UK.

[Ed Field]

Hi,

ajscomboman, you're right there. For me it was obvious it was the Dutch club I ordered these parts, since I live in Holland and am a member. Should have mentioned this to avoid misunderstandings! I'm sorry you had to spend time to figure this out. I mentioned it only later on in the post about the regulator.

Until a few years ago however, it was possible to order at the UK club via the Dutch club, unfortunately the Brexit seems to have made this impossible.

Regrettebly, since I would like to use the benefits of the UK club for parts and machine dating services....membership of two clubs for the same brand however is a bit costly, as is the shipment and customs fees for parts from the UK to The Netherlands. To give you an idea, the price of the armature I replaced was in Holland about 110 pound. When ordered in the UK it would have cost me 110 pound, this is about € 125,-, so (almost) the same, but; shipment about € 20,- and custum fees and handling € 17,-, making a total of about € 162,-, and because this is above the limit of € 150,-including the costs, also import duties of 4.2% over the total...

I'll try to be more specific, thanks for reminding!

Greetings from Holland,

Ed

[Ed Field]

Hi All,

Finally an update on the dynamo and regulator issues on my '57 16 MS. I replaced the regulator with a electronic one I ordered at the Dutch club. I built this (invisible) in the Lucas casing and this workes really well. I've placed a AGM stabilised battery of 14 Ah, which is quite cheap (about €20,- including postage) on Amazon. The advantage of this above the normal Lead-Acid is that it can be placed on it's side which makes the connectors much easier accessible. Also it's designed to give a permanent,more constant output instead of the characteristics of a regular motorcycle Lead-Acid battery, which is often mostly designed to crank the starter engine, thus being able to have a high peak output.

This all 6 volts, positive earth as I do like to be as close to the original as possible.

As I live in the very south of the Netherlands, only a few kilometers away from the German and Belgian border I drive regularly in Germany, one of the advantages of being close to the German border is the fact 102 octane petrol without any methanol is very good available there....and the old ladys ( the AJS and Enfields) love it!

This is why I've added blinkers to the AJS, driving in Germany without them can be quite dangarous. I've put blinkers at the steering ends. in Holland and Germany they are called "Cow's Eyes" (Ochsenaugen). To have sufficient power from the dynamo I replaced the standard bulbs by Led from Classiccarleds, they have a P36D lamp in 3400 K, so in appearence the light is exactly the same.

For visibility I've added a Schottsky Diode at the Light Switch, making he pilot lights burn together with the headlamp,still having the possibility to drive with only the Pilots on.

As you can see, all changes reversible, but this makes the bike safer to use for me, also in daily traffic.

Best regards from Holland,

Ed